Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Late last year I asked everybody in the Diocese to pray together a prayer asking the Lord to renew our diocese. As we continue to wait and pray for a new bishop, I now want to implement a programme of spiritual renewal for the entire diocese and I invite everybody to take part.
The theme we have chosen for this programme is:
The Catholic Diocese of Christchurch is a community of missionary disciples who love God, love each other, and go out to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all the World.
The Programme consists of an invitation to every group in the Diocese to have two extended sessions of prayer, during a normal or special meeting, between Ash Wednesday and Pentecost Sunday. These prayer sessions are based on the Lectio Divina model using resources produced by the Diocese. Every group will be asked to pray and share together on scriptural passages provided focusing on the mission of the church. Each group will also be asked to reflect on what it means to be a missionary disciple, and to view their group’s activities through the lens of this theme.
As we look to the renewal of our structures and buildings it is important that we focus on spiritual renewal as all renewal begins with a renewal of prayer. During this time of spiritual renewal my hope is that all of us will grow in our relationship with Jesus, so that we reach out to those in the community who have drifted from their faith or do not know Jesus. I believe this period of prayer will be the catalyst for a greater spiritual renewal in our diocese and a gift for the new bishop when he is appointed. I invite you to join me on this journey.
God bless,
Fr Rick Loughnan
Diocesan Administrator.