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Little Rock "Down Under" launched their first Bible Institute March 17-19 of this year. I was privileged to be their speaker at the invitation of an enthusiastic team of planners from Our Lady of the Way Catholic community in Petrie, Queensland. "The Transforming Power of God's Word" was the theme for the 80 people who gathered from many parts of Australia and New Zealand at a conference center in Indooroopilly outside of Brisbane.
The atmosphere was charged with enthusiasm and joy as we prayed, learned and shared our faith together. The dream of the LRSS team in Australia became a reality—a Bible Institute modeled after our own summer Institute held in Little Rock each year. If there is any doubt that adult Catholics can continue to be stretched and continue to be shaped as effective disciples, that group, and many others I met, would put that to rest! I want to offer a special thanks to Brisbane's Archbishop John Bathersby who is so encouraging of this ministry in his diocese and who celebrated Mass with us as we closed the first Institute.
While in Australia I was able to work with a number of groups, some who came to learn about LRSS in Informational workshops (Brisbane, Gold Coast, and Adelaide), some coming to Enrichment workshops (Adelaide), and others attending a parish session on the Bible and the Mass (Petrie). To a person, I found faithful and energetic people who were alive in Christ. And in Adelaide, a group even prepared a fatted calf for a banquet that will only be rivaled by the heavenly banquet.
It was my second trip to Australia, but my first to Singapore and Malaysia, where I traveled for the final week of my journey. Gerardine Yee, a partner in ministry in that region, worked with the Singapore Biblical Apostolate to arrange for my time in Singapore, and with both the Chinese- and English-speaking communities in Kuala Lumpur for my time in Malaysia. It was a wonderful opportunity to see the church alive in a different part of the world and to be able to share together our journey with Bible study.
There are a number of groups in both locations who use Little Rock Scripture Study and they were anxious to come together to talk about their experiences and to brush up on their skills in an Enrichment workshop attended by over 100 people. Another 500 or so came to an evening session entitled "The Gospel Across Cultures." I was so impressed by their zeal and devotional lives. On my last night in Singapore it was a special treat to participate in a LRSS group finishing their study of Isaiah. They met in a downtown office of an attorney, and they've been doing this for a number of years. This particular group was composed of single women and they call themselves the Harvesters.
In Kuala Lumpur we were met by representatives of the Chinese-language community who have permission to translate the LRSS materials into Mandarin. Approximately 300 people around the city have been using these materials and I was most impressed with the work and generosity of this community. The English-language community gathered over 100 people for two nights of enrichment and learning, again marked by generosity and enthusiasm.
I want to offer my personal thanks to all of the people I met along the way who made me feel welcome. And I invite all of us to pray for one another wherever we are so that God's Word continues to reach people around the globe.
Five years ago, in the Diocese of Saint John, New Brunswick, (Canada), Little Rock Scripture Study was introduced to respond to the need for more Scripture literacy among the laity. Like most Catholics in the wake of Vatican II, people were awakening to the gift of God’s Word in holy Scripture. Realizing how strong the thirst was, the diocese decided to introduce LRSS to meet the need.
After a series of introductory workshops, the parishes commenced with the initial course – Acts of the Apostles. From then on it was the normal practice for most parishes to complete a fall and a spring course which meant by the spring of 2005, many had completed ten studies. Approximately forty percent of the parishes are using the program as a Scripture awareness or adult faith development initiative.
I have been involved in LRSS since it began, serving as a coordinator in two different parishes. In 2003, I was asked to coordinate the program for the diocese. In this role I was privileged to maintain contact with the parish coordinators as well as the LRSS office in Arkansas. My goal was to get everyone together to share ideas and techniques and to be energized by our united presence.
In the fall of 2004, to commemorate Little Rock’s thirtieth anniversary and the fifth year of use in our diocese, it was decided to plan an Enrichment Workshop. It would bring together all the parishes using the program for a day of sharing and renewal.
A local planning committee was formed in January, 2005 and met almost once a month until October. Parish coordinators had to be contacted, a site had to be chosen, the logistics of pre-registering, transportation, provision of a lunch, choosing leaders of song and readers kept the committee busy. All of this was done while maintaining constant contact with the staff at the LRSS office. It was challenging, exciting and, in the end, rewarding as we witnessed the enthusiasm of the participants.
One year later, on an overcast, rainy Saturday, October 15, 2005, approximately 140 Scripture Study enthusiasts converged on the city of Fredericton, New Brunswick to participate in an Enrichment Workshop facilitated by Cackie Upchurch, director of Little Rock Scripture Study. Twenty different parishes of the diocese of Saint John were represented. This was the first time people from different parishes had the opportunity to gather together, and judging by the evaluations, it was an affirming and spirit-filled occasion.
The family center of St. Theresa’s parish in Fredericton was filled to capacity. There was no shortage of enthusiasm and no shortage of questions and suggestions. Cackie invited us to share our experiences. Many volunteered their approach to a challenging group situation, the use of conversational prayer, and how to promote LRSS in different settings. We left that day with good information, practical tips for use in our parishes, and a greater appreciation for how God’s Word is alive and well in New Brunswick.
An ENRICHMENT WORKSHOP is available to LRSS users in a diocese. It provides practical suggestions and exercises to enhance the dynamics of the small group and conversational prayer. Publicity strategies are also offered.
Here is a parable about watchfulness and attentive waiting. It is a teaching about the importance of being ready—a little sermon about staying awake. Read the parable carefully. Listen deeply. In the spirit of the rule of St. Benedict, listen with the ear of your heart.
Staying awake is not easy as Jesus’ friends in the garden of Gethsemane discovered. (Mt 26:40) Our parable tells us that all of these virgins got drowsy and fell asleep—not just the foolish ones but all… The difference, of course, is that those who were wise came prepared. They brought flasks of oil in the event that the waiting would be longer than they anticipated.
This is rich material for reflection. What are your flasks of oil? Do you have an extra supply of whatever it is you might need in your spiritual emergency moments? Do you possess the oil of patience, hope, joyful anticipation? Have you stocked up on the oil of deep listening. prayer, commitment? What about the oil of vigilance? Do you keep your lamp trimmed and your heart watchful? How do you guard your spirit to keep it from wandering?
Do you have a heart for waiting? What are some of the important events, people, or moments of growth for which you have waited? Did your waiting contain an aspect of joyful anticipation? Have you had the experience of finding yourself asleep when you longed to be awake? When have you waited for God?
These are good questions to bring to our personal prayer. Undoubtedly many of us have missed the Bridegroom because of drowsiness. The Beloved tries to break into our lives in myriads of ways each day. It is easy to be oblivious to the way God’s face shines on us throughout the hours. We attend Mass, yet miss the blessing of the sacred words because we are distracted. We hold out our hands to receive Christ and then miss Christ’s presence in the faces of those we live and work with or in the faces of the poor and lonely.
The light of the newborn sun is given to us on many mornings. Nature unfolds all around us in robes of splendor. Yet often we sleepwalk through the divine art show. We miss the gift. Our excitement about spiritual things weakens. Our light wanes and we discover we don’t have enough oil to get the lamp of our lives relit. Perhaps this is what happened to the foolish virgins.
Since I often find myself leaning toward the underdog I don’t want to be too hard on the so-called foolish ones who forgot to bring oil. Let me say a word on their behalf. It may be that they were so excited about their hope of beholding the bridegroom that they just rushed off in a flurry, their hearts set on this wondrous meeting, and simply forgot to bring their supply of oil. Or, maybe like many of the poor in our world they had limited funds to buy the necessary oil.
A delightful memory of discussing this parable with a class of young children in Ada, Oklahoma in the 60’s has lingered with me through the years. During our sharing a little girl raised her hand. She was quite annoyed with the fact that I seemed to be praising the wise virgins. Her comment was, Well I think those wise virgins were selfish in not sharing their oil. If they had been willing to share all of them could have all gone to the feast. Her comment has remained with me all these years. If the loaf of bread and two fish of John’s gospel were multiplied and all the people ate (Jn 6:9) why not the oil?
Returning to the heart of the parable, let us remember that this is a teaching about being always ready for that unexpected moment when God may arrive. This divine appearance could be in prayer or meditation; it could be in death or a personal tragedy. It may be a sacred encounter with creation or with another person. The important question is, Will we be awake?
We really don’t know when the bridegroom of death will come. Still, it seems unlikely that God would lock the door when we are standing outside huffing and puffing from our frantic journey to acquire our supply of oil. If we are begging to come in, God probably knows us. Yet those words, I don’t know you haunt me. I long to live in such a manner that my daily faithfulness in waiting for the bridegroom will catch heaven’s attention and the door will always swing open. For that to take place I need only to keep my lamp trimmed, my eyes watching, my heart open. And I must practice staying awake.
Your next word to romance is John 17: 1- 26
Over the last thirty years or so many of us have been blessed to be part of parishes or dioceses that have participated in programs such as Disciples in Mission, Renew or Cursillo. Each of these programs have helped us to understand our faith better but have helped us as well and to do it in a context of community or small faith sharing groups.
The designers of these programs know what we all know in our hearts: it is important to feel that we belong, to feel part of something. In the early Christian communities the groups of people who gathered together for prayer and worship were smaller. As later though, as Christianity grew and expanded, large churches and cathedrals were built, which were beautiful, but the size and design made it difficult for people to actually meet and talk together.
More importantly, there has been a growing concern, since the 1970’s, that many adult Catholics have grown up without a good understanding of their faith and therefore without the tools they need to pass on that faith on to their children or to other interested adults.
Following the suggestions of knowledgeable people, Adult Catholics have been invited, through groups such as Cursillo, Renew and Disciples in Mission to come together in small groups to learn about their faith and to find ways to experience God’s presence in their everyday lives.
The results have been rewarding. More and more Catholics are have grown comfortable sharing their faith with others and now they wonder how they can continue growing in their faith and in their relationships with other Catholics. Many of them hunger for a better understanding of the Scriptures that undergirds their faith.
For many, Little Rock Scripture Study is a natural follow-up to their other small group experiences. LRSS is meant for adults meeting in small groups. Each adult commits to a daily personal study of 20 minutes a day. During that time s/he reads a portion of the Scripture, the commentary and answers three questions. After six days of study, the participants gather with the help of a trained facilitator to share the answers to the questions. They begin their sharing with a style of prayer which invites some short prayers from involves group members. And after the answers are shared at end of prayer and discussion the meeting session concludes with a twenty minute wrap-up lecture. The lectures can be provided by a person in the local community or can be purchased on audio or video tape.
All the lectures are available in audio (cassette and CD) and video (VHS and DVD) formats.
Informational and Enrichment Workshops offer clear information, hands-on experience, and practical tips for establishing and growing Bible study using LRSS materials and methods. For very little expense a diocese can arrange to host a workshop that will benefit parishes throughout the diocese. For more information, contact: Susan McCarthy, R.D.C., P.O. Box 7565, Little Rock, AR 72217; (501) 664-6102 or (501) 366-5691; or by e-mail at smccarthy@dolr.org.
September 30, 2006
Diocese of Evansville
Informational and Enrichment Workshops
October 14, 2006
Diocese of Winona
Informational Workshop
October 21-22, 2006
Diocese of Sacramento
Informational and Enrichment Workshops
Use these months, too, to plan an Enrichment experience for your facilitators. Barbara Fleischer's book, Facilitating for Growth, offers helpful reading and small group exercises.
Each of the LRSS courses begins with an Introductory Session (see CM pp.53-56 to plan your next Introductory Session). Use the Session as the start of building community in your small group.
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