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2009 Gospel of Life Retreat
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Father Abel Agbulu
Retreat Spiritual Director
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Retreat Synopsis
The Gospel of Life Annual Retreat was held at the Catholic Community of St. Francis Xavier, Hunt Valley Maryland, May 16, 2009 from 8 am to 3 pm.
The Spiritual Director and Mass Celebrant will be Fr. Abel Agbulu, a dear friend and priest, from Nigeria. He is currently studying at St. Mary's Seminary and serving at Saint Cecilia's in Baltimore.
The retreat started with morning mass, followed by a session in which Fr. Abel shared with us how to grow in faith and strength as our culture attempts to relegate the Church to the dark ages.
In addition to Mass the day included time for discussing our personal response to what Father Abel shared and how our Gospel of Life Group can best serve the community at St Francis Xavier.
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CCSFX Gospel of Life Committee Retreat
The Joy of Discipleship
Spiritual Director - Father Abel Agbulu
May 16, 2009
- John 15: 18-21 ("If the world hates you…") incredible Godincidence that this was the Gospel message for the Mass at the start of our Retreat today.
- The day the Lord comes into our lives - there are no coincidences.
- How did Jesus respond to: Intellectual Violence, Emotional Violence, Mental Violence,
- Physical Violence
- "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. (It does not say:...the world will love YOU!)
- No matter how often or how hard we try to please those "of the world"- because we are followers of Christ and "not of the world" the world will continue to hate us.
- The 'Personalistic norm'- the ONLY valid response to another human being is love. (TOB)
- Imitation of Christ - When we live in the world do we get caught up in the constant bombardment of the liberal media, i.e. television, radio, newspapers....do we get anxious and upset with the "culture of death" that prevails in the world or do we turn to Christ in prayer and supplication - and most importantly with praise and thanksgiving for His eternal Kingship?"
- DO WE KNOW WHO IT IS WHOM WE WORSHIP??? HE IS THE KING OF KINGS, THE LORD OF LORDS, LAMB OF GOD AND SAVIOU R OF THE WORLD!
- What is there in me that I hold unforgiveness for? Do I need the sacrament and graces of Reconciliation? Daily examination of conscience?
- Revelation 19: 11-16 is the heart of the Retreat
- The book of Revelation is the summary of salvation (from Genesis to Revelation)
- Father shared, with full effect, the truth of God's victory truly stated in this text. It became clear to me for the first time, even though I have studied Revelations a number of times, the clear truth of God's victory in the fullness of time. This gives us a great confidence in living through days as we are today. So what is to be our attitude in these violent times? Nonviolence, the nonviolence of love overcomes violence.
- We are in a spiritual battle. It is raging all around us but Christ by His Cross and Resurrection has won the war. He is our Commander and Chief - Revelation 19: 11 - Jesus is on a white horse (white signifies victory and purity) - He is followed by His Army of Angels on white horses.
- He is called "Faithful and True". His robe is dipped in blood. Whose blood? Christ's own blood. And His name is "Word of God".
- From His mouth comes a sharp sword (the Word of God cuts as a two-edged sword). It is love that conquers. It is love that is victorious.
- Jeremiah 1: 7-12 "See I place my Word in your mouth. The Word will pluck up, breakdown, destroy, overthrow, build and plant"
- Christ gave us everything - His mother, His very last breath. We need to come to Him in praise.
- We must not battle in "the flesh" - the battle is not there. He is stripping us of our own goodness, showing us that even that is not enough - we need to praise Him.
- The most difficult thing we have to do in life is love those who hate God.
- We must stand for truth and as soldiers of Christ. We must confront the enemy with love but also with conviction. We must armor ourselves with ALL the armor of Christ. We must cover ourselves completely - leave nothing exposed that the enemy might use against us.
- Before you go into battle you must go through training. Who are we?
- When we feel anger, when we encounter those who hate God, God's anger may well up, but we must respond always in love. Anger may be prophetic, but must be done in love. Respond with God by praying - "Lord, what should I say?" Let the Holy Spirit speak through us. Always test your words, test your motives: they must be constructive not destructive.
- Micah 6:8 Love tenderly, walk humbly with God.......mercy.
- Joy needed to sway others - (JOY=Jesus first, Others second, Yourself last).
- As we broke for lunch our prayer was the Litany of the Saints.
- John 15:12-Session Two of the Joy of Dicipleship
- Our response must be love (nonviolence) toward those priests and bishops who are disobedient to God's laws and who disappoint us. PRAY for them. Consecrate them to the Blessed Mother.
- After sharing a meal together we each prayed a Hail Mary for our own specific intentions - we lifted our voices in a song "Immaculate Mary".
- In Baptism we died with Christ and will rise with Him. Jesus describes His own Baptism as death.
- Rev. 14:13 Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.
- We suffer death again when we say goodbye to our old lives. Lives filled with selfish habits, lives focused only y on worldly things....it is a painful process to leave these things behind. But we must in order to follow Christ into battle...
- We must spread the "Good News" the Gospel of Life by living it in JOY. That is where the power to change hearts comes from.
- When we interact with the world, we will be without need of rest, we will not grow weary, we will not faint. Isaiah 40:28-31 we will be on Eagles wings...
- What is our response to the Muslims we encounter. Knowing their "battle cry" is to destroy us we MUST reflect Christ to them - we must be faithful witnesses of truth and love - we must be direct in truthfulness. No one encounters the living God and refuses. If they do not accept the good news, kick the dust from your feet......
- Ephesians 6:10 Apart from God I can do nothing. Put on the whole armor of God. Protect all of you not just part of you. Satan will test and attack all we learn today. Birds will come and try to pick away at what we have learned...
- Fr. Abel shared a true story of a seminarian in Nigeria....A young boy came to the gates of the seminary begging for food. The provincial feeling that something was not quite right told a seminarian not to answer the door, the seminarian felt that the older priest was unkind and incorrect in his feelings. The young seminarian answered the door. He gave the boy food and for days he continued to give the food to the boy. Then the boy asked the young seminarian to bring the food to his home. The seminarian did. Then the boy introduced the seminarian to his young sister. The seminarian began an affair with this 13 year old girl and she became pregnant...
- Satan had succeeded in his plan of destruction for the seminarian. We must be always alert to the enemy's wiles and follow the direction of our leaders or elders.
- Put on ALL the armor of Christ:
- Belt of Truth - truth like a padlock holds us together.
- Breastplate of Righteousness - Protects the heart - enemy attacks our hearts - God's righteousness will protect our hearts.
- Shield of Faith - Use to deflect the blows of the enemy. Use my faith&CCC to fend off the attacks- as a "turtle" with our shields we protect each other.
- Helmet of Salvation - Our thoughts must be covered by salvation.
- Sword of the Spirit - The Word of God. We do not strike with a weapon - just share the word of God's truth.
- Personal Observations from Rob
- Following the retreat I could not get my mind off Revelations 19, I was more encouraged then I have been in 34 years as a committed Christian. I went to the scripture and started to meditate on the text on both sides of what we focused on this day. I was blown away by the prophetic words I read: who is the harlot or great prostitute of verse 2 and what blood needed to be avenged? Verses 7 to 10 were straight out of the Theology of the Body and our now familiar destiny. Following the great commentary Father gave us on verses 11 to 16 I wondered at the beast and his false prophet in verse 20 and there end which followed.
- My take away from this day was a greater knowledge and understanding of the need to focus on the spiritual to the exclusion of the world and all she has to offer. To realize the battle is won by God and that I need to grow, all that I can, into the man he wants me to be to know Him, love Him and serve Him in this world.
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