Renaissance Convention
An event for members to learn the history of the movement, discover God’s providential and merciful hand, and leave with a renewed confidence in being able to tell our whole story and embrace our mission!
adults
Called to Create Artist’s Retreat: Eucharist
Weekend retreat for men and women artists, college age and older, examining the importance of the Eucharist in our lives as Catholic artists and how we can possibly contribute to the inspired 3 year Eucharistic revival recently launched by the U.S. Bishops.
Spiritual Motherhood of Priests
Led by Marianne Gronotte, more than two hundred and fifty women across three states throughout the Ohio Valley region have become spiritual mothers to the priests in their dioceses, and the Legionary priests who serve the area. These women are committed to praying for their adopted priest-sons in a dedicated and maternal way, starting with a weekly Holy Hour.
This weekly hour of Eucharistic Adoration is just one of five simple commitments of the SMOP program, but it is the women’s promise to pray for their priest before the Blessed Sacrament that is the basis, not just of this program, but of all spiritual motherhood programs around the world.
Besides weekly adoration, the women commit to saying daily prayers for their priest-son throughout the day, and frequenting the sacrament of confession as often as they can.
Perhaps the most difficult commitment to keep is that of anonymity: the women are required to remain anonymous to their priest-son. In the spirit of humility, and with the example of Jesus’ own mother Mary, who “kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart,” the women are discouraged from divulging to each other, and especially to their priest-sons, for whom they are praying. “There is something very sweet and hidden about praying for someone I’ve never met and will probably never meet,” describes one spiritual mother, “I like to think that even though I won’t know my spiritual son here on earth, we will recognize each other in Heaven.”
The fifth commitment requires the women to promise to pray for their priest-son for the rest of their lives. The women in the Spiritual Motherhood of Priests program enter into a permanent, life-long relationship that does not end even when their priest passes away; his spiritual mother will continue to pray for his soul as long as she lives.
Garden Rosary by Candlelight
Regnum Christi and Lumen families and friends enjoyed an evening of hospitality and prayer at the Connecticut home of Lisa and Bob Rooney whose backyard was in near full bloom. Mary Smith and Luly Fernandez, Consecrated Women of RC from the DC community, graciously provided and handed each family a personalized votive candle. The candles were lit and held throughout the praying of the Rosary, providing a golden glow to the faces of the participants and illuminating Mary’s statue.
In the end, the candles were collected and taken back by Mary and Luly to be placed in the chapel in their home in DC. In the coming weeks, each one will burn in the sanctuary lamp for eight days, and the consecrated women will pray for the intentions of the family who held it. Everyone commented on how their hearts were touched and warmed by this gesture.
Fr. Eric Nielsen, Regnum Christi Chaplain, led us in praying the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary. Lay women and men took turns announcing the mysteries, the accompanying scripture verses and meditations, and the closing prayers. The evening ended with a moving and inspirational reflection by Luly Fernandez. She reminded us of the incredible, even miraculous power of prayer, especially in the praying of the Rosary. As the guests departed, each received in place of their candle a fully bloomed white rose to remind us of Mary’s glories, and a package of seeds for a Marian flower, to begin their own Mary Garden.
if you only knew… podcast
Who is Jesus to you? Join Cathy and Cailee as they dive into the deepest relationship that you can have with God – Jesus the Bridegroom. In sharing the Truth straight from Catholic teaching, Scripture, and their own personal experience of Him as the Lover of their souls they hope to inspire other to go and discover the beauty of Christ’s intimate love.
Together, Cathy and Cailee explore topics like what is means to live in the gaze of Jesus the Bridegroom, the importance of having standards, especially in dating, and how these leads to a flourishing femininity, and even how to be mad at the Bridegroom when you’re experiencing the real frustrations of disappointment, distrust, and disbelief while waiting for God to fulfill the desires of your heart. “Regardless of your relationship status, or how well you know the faith already, Jesus the Bridegroom wants you. He is knocking at your heart, and we want to tell you that opening the door to Him is the best thing you could ever do.”
Holy Week Missions Calgary
Holy Week Missions 2024 in Calgary saw 60 youth registered and a total of 82 participants in the Youth Track. The youth participated in a week of activities, adoration, corporal works of mercy, street missions, liturgies and formative talks. At the end of the Easter Vigil there was a potluck dinner and dance to wind up an amazing week of coming closer to our Lord throughout his Passion. Several youth committed to deepening their relationship with Christ and to continuing monthly missions throughout the year.
In the family track, 14 families registered with a total of 60 participants. The families were commissioned on Palm Sunday and completed home activities throughout the week, finishing up with a full day Mission on Holy Saturday that included a Cross Walk and door to door missions along with games and crafts and a formative talk for the adults.
In the Young Adult Mission, 18 young adults participated in a one-day mission that included a formative talk, missionary training, street missions handing out hot chocolate and homemade cookies to those experiencing homelessness, a Cross Walk in which they collected prayer intentions, and an evening meal.
Read more about this initiative here.
Called to Create
Called to Create is an apostolate dedicated to Catholic visual artists who desire to live their vocation to art as a response to God’s invitation to discover and share the beauty they find in creation. “The needs that are met by this apostolate are mainly the spiritual support for the artists and the camaraderie amongst like-minded artists to become or to continue to be a beacon for Christ and his Church in this society,” says Laura Kline, founder. That spiritual support and formation is a vital part of Called to Create; members of the apostolate feel called to evangelize through their art, but know that in order to carry on this evangelistic mission, they themselves must be continually nourished by prayer and the sacraments and, importantly, as artists, by the spiritual contemplation of beauty. For this reason, Called to Create members join together in small groups for a monthly meeting that combines the key elements of prayer (such as a Gospel reflection), community, and of course, creativity.
Catholic Caregiver Community
The Catholic Caregiver Community is a one-of-a-kind ministry created to serve those who find themselves in the complex and sometimes entirely unexpected role of caring for their aging parents, helping them to navigate the many emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual challenges that come along with it. As members journey through this caregiving role, the community provides weekly guidance, counsel and relatable accompaniment, as well as concrete support through actionable techniques, tactics, and tools, all aimed at helping caregivers to restore balance in their lives, regain control of their actions, and care for their loved ones with confidence.
Through monthly talks and meditations led by priests, religious, or lay people including Legionary priests, Consecrated Women, or lay Regnum Christi members, caregivers are invited to encounter Christ and connect their caregiver role to a greater purpose, aligned with their Catholic faith. “With the proper support and tools, caring for an elderly parent is a beautiful and fruitful vocation that transcends beyond their relationship and even impacts generations to come,” says Maria. “Ultimately, we hope that they lean into their faith by acknowledging that they have been chosen to be a caregiver to their mom and dad and through this experience to deepen their relationship with Christ.”
Visit the Catholic Caregiver Community website.
A Free Lenten Cookbook: Nourishment for Body and Soul
This digital initiative out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada was originally borne from a need for connection; the Regnum Christi Calgary Women’s section longed for more activities and events that would bring its members together, even while COVID restrictions kept them apart. Since some of the Calgary teams had produced small cookbooks in the past, the Formation Team agreed that creating a larger, Lent-focused e-cookbook was a good fit, and members of the Formation Team each submitted a recipe (either original or adapted from another source). The digital cookbook includes recipes for a variety of fish and meatless dishes, like Easy Baked Salmon, Linguini with Clam Sauce, Black Bean Burgers, and Famous Carrot Soup. It also includes a prayer to say before and after meals, and quotes from Scripture and the saints.
One of the people on the board for this project was Richelle Tabelon. In 2007, Richelle settled in Calgary, Alberta, where she now resides and works as a Registered Dietitian. Throughout her career, she has provided a wide variety of nutrition counselling services in preventative health, chronic disease, and emotional eating, developing skills and a passion for working collaboratively with psychologists and physicians regarding disordered eating, anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder recovery. “I have prayed for a career where I could incorporate my faith into my work, and helping support people with eating disorder recovery allowed me that opportunity,” says Richelle.
As a Registered Dietitian, Richelle has a uniquely informed perspective on the concept of Lenten fasting and abstinence; for her, it is important to recognize that these are not simply arbitrary rules to obey on specific days or during particular liturgical seasons, but an invitation to grow in faith. “I have personally been drawn back to focus on the true meaning and purpose of fasting and abstinence during Lent,” says Richelle. “I don’t want to merely ‘follow the rules,’ but utilize these gifts that the Church has provided for us to be a means of deeper spiritual growth and a more intimate relationship with Jesus.”
For this reason, Richelle underscores the importance of continually examining our underlying intentions during periods of fasting and abstinence. “It’s important to make sure that fasting isn’t about trying to lose weight,” Richelle says. “As a dietitian, I’m quite sensitive to the fact that fasting and abstinence from food is not appropriate for everyone, but there are many ways to fast during Lent without using food.”
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