Newspaper Page Text
November 13, 1980
PAGE 5
A Community Of Communities
BY FATHER PHILIP MURNION
“Ecclesiolas” are the “little churches”
started five years ago in St. John’s Parish in
the Bronx. These little groups bring 10-12
neighbors together three times a year in the
home of a member: during Advent, Lent and
once in the summer.
Msgr. John Doherty, pastor at St. John’s,
helps provide material for the group’s
discussion. In the “ecclesiolas,” the people
talk about important events in their
neighborhood and about the purposes of the
church.
The “ecclesiolas” of St. John’s are just
one example of the small groups that are a
part of parish life in many parts of the
world. In small groups, people reflect
together on their lives and their values.
One group I know in a parish spent an
entire year talking just about the Gospel of
Mark. Another group has been talking about
the Sunday Scripture readings, as part of
preparing for Sunday liturgy. In other
groups, adults examine their roles as the
parents of teen-agers or as Christian
members of hurting cities.
In Latin America small groups, composed
often of poor peasants, are known as
“communidades de base” -- basic
communities. They meet often to examine
the political, social and economic forces
affecting their lives, to consider what faith
demands, sometimes to consider what
actions they can take together.
African Christians form small groups to
relate Christian life to the still important
family and tribal network.
In Europe too, small groups of Christians
play an important role in the church.
The origins of such groups vary. In
general, people are trying to counteract the
trend toward isolation in modern life. Their
quest is for the time and the space in which
to be a little more reflective about their
lives. To avoid simply “going along with the
tide,” they may need the support of others -
support that is close enough to be felt.
In the United States small groups take
many forms. Some have modest purposes,
perhaps meeting just once. Others develop as
ongoing events in the lives of members.
At St. John the Evangelist Parish in the
Diocese of Toledo, small groups have met
for prayer and reflection for several years,
dating from the time when Bishop Albert
Ottenweller, now bishop of Steubenville,
Ohio, was pastor. The groups are part of the
basic structure of the parish, a parish which
is a community of communities.
In a poor neighborhood in Brooklyn,
Father Bryan Karvelis felt he had found
valuable support in a fraternity of priests
called “Jesu Caritas” which met each month
for prayer and reflection. So Father Karvelis
adapted the idea for his parish. Now groups
of 10-12 adults, mostly Spanish-speaking,
enjoy support similar to that found by their
pastor in a small group.
Small groups are not a new development.
For decades, Catholic couples found
meetings of the Christian Family Movement
helpful. These were groups of about six
couples who followed the basic pattern of
many small groups, “observe - judge -- act.”
In fact, many organizations and
movements have had small groups that were
designed to sharpen members’ awareness,
deepen commitment and foster mutual
support.
Some people view small groups
skeptically, fearing they will cause parishes
to break down into cliques. This fear can be
defused if groups are open to everyone, if
members share in other parish activities, and
if groups see their meetings not as a sign of
special status but as a call to be of greater
service to others.
What factors help small groups become
valuable elements within the whole of their
parish’s life?
First, leadership is needed. People need to
be identified as leaders, to be trained and
supported.
Second, groups should address concerns
important to members and to the life of the
church.
Third, sessions that combine
consideration of people’s experiences with
reflection on faith and church are likely to
be considered valuable.
Fourth, people generally need good
printed materials as an initial basis for
reflection. Then they can adapt the materials
to their own needs.
Fifth, staff-level support from the parish
is important.
Sixth, members of groups should also
take part in the liturgy and other activities
of the parish.
Seventh, members of groups can be
encouraged to play active roles as leaders in
other groups and activities.
The role small groups can play in the lives
of parishes and their people has led some
commentators'to think that the groups are
crucial to the church’s future. Perhaps their
potential is only beginning to be realized.
' >
KNOW
YOUR FAITH
(All Articles on this page Copyrighted 1980 by N. C. News Service)
v >
AS WE GET TO KNOW OTHERS in our group, we find
it easier to share our faith, our lives, our questions and our
selves. We arrive more quickly and effectively at what really
matters as we come closer to people with whom we gather
regularly to talk and pray together. (NC Photo by Bob
Strawn)
The Back Room Of Angie’s Smorgasbord
BY RICHARD LAWLESS
A dormitory meeting room.
A variety of student-housing living rooms.
And the back room of Aggie’s
Smorgasbord restaurant in Osawatomie,
Kan.
These are just some places where I have
experienced the power of a small group to
strengthen my faith and challenge me to
grow.
To make people more conscious of the
reality celebrated by the church’s liturgy,
many parishes have turned for help to small
groups. In the many varieties of small groups
that have surfaced in recent years, pastors
and religious educators have found a tool for
renewal that is effective for at least a
significant minority of parishioners. Through
the people so touched, the small group is
able to become a force of value to the parish
as a whole.
It is easy to realize why small groups can
be important parts of parish renewal. As we
get to know and trust others over a period of
time, we find it easier to share our faith, our
lives, our questions and our selves.
Large-scale, parish-wide renewal is
important. But in the midst of all this, the
small group has a place. The value of small
groups may actually increase, not decrease,
when parish-wide renewal is taking place.
The small group serves as a sort of model for
adult faith formation.
Here are just a few kinds of small groups
which I have found beneficial or which I
know have worked for others:
- Christ Life Communities. These groups
were formerly known as the Sodality. They
offer a blend of spiritual discipline, social
involvement and community building. This
is an old form that is very new.
- Brown Bag Seminars: These provide a
setting over an informal lunch for
discussions of scriptural, theological and
spiritual themes. The real strength here, as in
other small group models, is in what happens
to people who interact over the period of
several meetings. In this setting, I have come
to care for each person, and they for me and
each other, a condition conducive to the
growth and development of one’s faith.
- Home Retreats. These retreats are a
systematic program of neighborhood,
at-home meetings led by a host or hostess
who receives a brief, but instructive training.
In the relaxed atmosphere of a home setting,
many hundreds of people have found this to
be a good way to grow and share faith with
fellow parishioners.
- Mothers’ Mornings Off: Get a baby
sitter, a group of mothers and a leader. Then
meet to explore a spiritual theme or a topic
chosen by the group. This can be an
important way of meeting the needs of
young parents for adult nourishment in the
faith.
-- Sunday School. This hallowed
institution provided inspiration for what
happened at Aggie’s Smorgasbord.
Anywhere from 15 to 40 adult Catholics
gathered each Sunday before (or after) Mass.
The topics chosen for such sessions are
important, as are leaders, books, films and
other resources. Over coffee and over a
period of time, people can find this to be an
important time of the week.
These are just a few of the many kinds of
small groups Catholics have found helpful.
Parents, senior citizens, neighbors and other
groups have found good reason to gather.
People have formed small groups because
they wanted to learn more about Scripture,
to explore ways of praying, to examine the
means available to them for promoting social
justice, to think through the religious
dimensions of their own mixed marriages -
and for other reasons too.
Size should not be too important a factor
when forming a small group. Seven people
touched deeply over a two-month or
two-year period means that those seven have
experienced some part of the good news in a
way that has probably aided their personal
and spiritual growth. The good that comes
from that growth can benefit a parish in
ways that are seen and unseen.
For, “where two or three are
gathered. . . ”
THE EMERGENCE OF SMALL The groups reflect on their lives and
GROUPS of adults who gather for work, pray together, and look to the
reflection with other adults is an group for opportunities to discuss
interesting phenomenon which has matters of importance in their lives,
emerged in the church in recent years. (NC Photo)
God’s Co-Workers
BY FATHER JOHN J. CASTELOT
The Corinthian Christians tended to
exaggerate the importance of individual
preachers. So St. Paul had to help the people
see these preachers in proper perspective.
Preachers are only instruments of God’s
grace, sowers and tenders of the seed. The
Christian community itself is God’s garden,
his “cultivation.” (1 Cor. 3:9) Not averse to
mixing metaphors, Paul calls the
community, in the same breath, “God’s
building.”
It is this latter figure of speech which he
develops in his continued reflections on the
ministry and ministers of God’s word. Lest
he be misunderstood once more, he is
anxious to point out that God alone is the
ultimate source of faith and of life in Christ
for all the Christians. His ministers have a
grave responsibility to do their part to the
best of their ability. They are “God’s
co-workers.” (I Cor. 3:9).
Empowered by God’s grace, Paul did
what any good builder does first: He built a
solid foundation. Those who contribute
anything to the construction of the building
-- a very special building - should take care
to guarantee top flight workmanship and
high-grade materials.
The mention of a foundation reminds
Paul of something important. So at this
point he throws in a parenthetical remark:
“No one can lay a foundation other than the
one that has been laid, Jesus Christ.” (I Cor.
3:11)
Paul does not seem overly concerned
about who or how many people spread the
good news. In fact, he implies that all
Christians have an obligation to use their
talents in this enterprise.
But wherever they work, they are to do
their very best. It may be difficult to tell on
the spot how well or how poorly they are
carrying out this Christian vocation, but the
day is coming when their work will be put to
the test.
For Paul that day is when the Lord will
return. Paul uses the biblical image of fire
here, the common biblical image for testing,
discernment. The reference to “one fleeing
through fire,” (I Cor. 3:15) has nothing to
do with the later church doctrine on
purgatory. It is simply a continuation of the
analogy he has been using. If a builder puts
up a firetrap, he may get caught in it himself
and escape only by the skin of his teeth.
On the other hand, positively wrecking
the community is far worse for Paul. The
community is a temple, a dwelling-place of
the Spirit, and, like the temple of old, set
apart for the worship of God. To tear this
temple apart by rivalries, cliques and the
resultant hostilities is tantamount to
sacrilege.
Paul is not saying there is a
conflict-between human and divine wisdom,
for human intelligence is one of God’s most
precious gifts. Rather, he is saying human
intelligence, all alone, without the guidance
of divine wisdom, can lead to utterly
disastrous conclusions for humanity itself.
The entire discourse is designed to show
how foolish, how destructive, how
unchristian the Corinthians’ divisive
attachment to individual ministers is. They
must not lose their perspective - which he
summarizes with no little eloquence of his
own:
“Let there be no boasting about men. All
things are yours, whether it be Paul, or
Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or
death, or the present, or the future: All
these are yours, and you are Christ’s and
Christ is God’s” (I Cor. 3,21-23).
Discussion
Points And Questions
1. Most people have been part of a small group at one time or
another. Think of a group you joined. Why were you meeting? What
did you talk about? Was there a leader who planned the evening? How
valuable was the experience for you?
2. Why does Father Philip Murnion say small groups are popular
today?
3. What are the groups called which Father Murnion says are meeting
in Latin America? Why are they meeting?
4. Richard Lawless has found small groups very beneficial for him
personally. Name and discuss one group he mentions.
5. From reading Lawless’ article, how can participation in small
groups lead to benefits for the individual and for the larger parish?
6. According to Father John Castelot, in what way are preachers
God’s co-workers?
7. Having read this week’s articles, what do you consider the main
advantage of the small group experience?