Well, it has
been another year and we just finished our annual Spiritan Vocations
Weekend on the beautiful shores of Lake Simcoe at the Loretto
Maryholme Retreat Centre. The theme this year was taken from
John’s Gospel – John 1:39 – “Come and See.”
The Spiritan Vocations Team gathered on the Friday evening with our
young people and after a lovely dinner, we were welcomed by Fr. Paul
McAuley, CSSp, the Spiritan Vocations Director. Fr. Mike Doyle, CSSp
opened the weekend with a talk on being a missionary in the 21st
century after which Spiritan candidate, Joe Rasonabe led us in night
prayer. Saturday morning, after a sumptuous breakfast and morning
prayers, Fr. Paul walked the retreatants through John’s Gospel
account of the calling of the first disciples. The rest of the
morning was given over to quiet time and reflection on presenting the
Christian story. Fr. Mike presided at Mass in honour of Our Lady just
before lunch. After lunch our retreatants had time for swimming,
canoeing, fishing and rest before we came together again to hear the
personal testimonies of our two Spiritan candidates, Joe Rasonabe and
Bernard Kenol. Joe shared his story of his long journey to fulfill a
lifelong calling to the priesthood and Bernard gave a wonderful
PowerPoint presentation illustrating his calling being realized
during the World Youth Days. That afternoon, Kathy Murtha, a former
Volunteer International Christian Service (V.I.C.S.)
member and currently a member of the Spiritan Vocations Team,
lead us on a reflective journey of prayer. It was an awesome
experience. Later, Fr. Locky Flanagan, CSSp, the Provincial Superior
of the Spiritans, joined the retreat to encourage all those
attending. Sunday morning, we were joined by John and Katie Flaherty
and their young son, Locky. John and Katie gave a very heart filled
and moving testimony of their vocational journey as a lay married
couple. They are both Lay Spiritans and former V.I.C.S. volunteers
and their sharing was an inspiration to all. We finished the retreat
in God’s Cathedral – a beautiful outdoor Mass –
presided over by Fr. Paul. He spoke of the giftedness and beauty of
each person and that all people have a vocation. Once again, the
Spiritans have been blessed by God on this Vocations Weekend. We are
especially appreciative of Pam Canham, Pat Sheehan & Joyce
MacDonald who are not only members of our Vocations Team but who gave
of their time and talents in the kitchen to make the retreat
enjoyable. We are also grateful to Joe Rasonabe for preparing the
wonderful liturgies and providing the music for the weekend. Thanks
too, to Joe again and to Bernard Kenol for their sharing of their
vocational stories. We can’t forget the Flahertys and Kathy
Murtha for their input. This Spiritan Vocations Retreat has become an
annual tradition and if God is willing, it will continue for many
more years.
Fr. Paul McAuley, CSSp
The
Spiritan Vocations Retreat on YouTube
Welcome
to the site of the TransCanada Province of the Spiritans. We are a
Roman Catholic Religious Congregation of over three thousand members,
founded in 1703. Our missions are spread worldwide. While we may be
found involved in many diverse ministries, we have dedicated
ourselves to working with the poor and in those situations where the
Church has difficulty in finding ministers. We hope you enjoy your
visit to our site and that while browsing you will keep us in your
prayers. May God bless you.
