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About The Georgia bulletin (Atlanta) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (March 19, 1987)
PAGE 12 — The Georgia Bulletin, March 19, 1987 Dahlonega Candidates (Continued from page 1) Initiation of Adults. On Sunday, March 8, candidates Jenny Berrena, Amy Aicher and Audrey Dalton were presented with Bibles dur ing the 10:30 Mass at St. Luke’s, and with their sponsors, of ficially presented to the parish family for the first time. Later they traveled to Atlanta for the Cathedral rite. There are about 60 families in the parish as well as 20 families in its mission at Dawsonville. The attendance at both places swells in the summer with the influx of vaca tioners, according to the pastor, Father John R. Henley. There is also a military presence in the area, at Camp Frank D. Merrill, an Army Ranger training camp, and ROTC personnel at North Georgia College. Mrs. Berrena’s husband, Matthew, is a staff sergeant at the Ranger training camp. The couple has been married four years. She had considered converting at the time of her mar riage but when she mentioned this to the priest he talked her out of it, she said, advising her to wait, to think about it more. When they came to Dahlonega about a year ago she found the small parish to her liking. “I had thought about it,” she said. Raised as a Lutheran, she found this religious background a good unifying factor. And important to both the Berrenas was raising the children they hope to have in a strong religious environment. Perhaps the greatest influence on her was the excellent example given her by her husband’s family. “Their faith in the face of adversity and their ability to deal with adversi ty” made a lasting impression on her. The fellowship and feeling of community the couple found when they began attending St. Luke's was the kind she had been used to in the Lutheran congregation in her home town of State College, Pa. Members of the women's prayer group which meets Thursday afternoons “opened their hearts and homes to me,” she said. “I feel that if I have any questions about the faith I can ask them and they will answer in a Christian, loving way.” Dru Woody, who is sponsor for Mrs. Berrena, sees her role as being someone who can go along with the candidates on their journey, answering their questions from the perspective of someone who is living the faith. She said she tries to be open and available in sharing her faith, willing to talk about and answer any questions Mrs. Berrena may have. Mrs. Woody, mother of six, has been in the parish nine years and has been active eight of those years. She is a Eucharistic minister, was a catechist “for years and years," and director of religious education for one year. The Woodys came to Dahlonega from Virginia Beach, Va., where they were members of a huge parish. “When we split we still had 1,200 families,” she said. Another candidate who found a good example of living the faith among her husband’s family is Audrey Dalton, 20, who came to realize she wanted to be a part of what her hus band, Brad, and his family shared. Before making her deci sion she regularly attended Oakwood Tabernacle Holiness Remodeling Services Re-Siding (Quantity of Premium Left Over From Apartment Commitment) Beige — White Grey — Contractor Pricing. • Additions • Roofing • Kitchens — Quinn Windows — 925-0280 SEAFOOD, etc. • “The Fresh Fish Market” • Special Orders Welcome • Fish scaled and filleted at no extra charge 2275 Cheshire Bridge Rd. One block south of Lindbe rgh Monday Friday 1 1 00 7 00 Saturday 10 00 7 00 p m 982-0975 vYYWyYYWyY Church. Brad’s mother, Eleanor Dalton, is part-time parish secretary. A native of Dahlonega, she moved away years ago and lived in the Midwest. The family returned from Iowa to the north Georgia mountain town three years ago. She said no one in the family ever asked the young Mrs. Dalton to become a Catholic but tried to support her by ex ample. Another influence in the younger woman's decision was her older sister, Lisa, an enthusiastic convert who came into the Church several years ago at St. Michael’s parish in Gainesville. Audrey Dalton said she has received support in understanding the faith dimensions of her life from Father Henley, Ken Cassity, pastoral associate and director of religious education, and the others in the RCIA group. Amy Aicher has been in Dahlonega since July, 1986 when her husband John, a Catholic and a graduate of Emory Medical School, opened his practice in family medicine. The Aichers lived in Columbus for three years before set tling in Dahlonega. Their children, ages nine, three and 20 months, were all baptized in the Church. The Aichers were married in the Cathedral of Christ the King and Mrs. Aicher was overjoyed to return there Sun day, March 8 for the Rite of Election. But she prefers a small church. She had been raised a Baptist and did not feel comfortable in big churches like the one the Aichers attend ed in Columbus. She found the people to be unfriendly, she said, not what she had been used to in the Baptist church, where there is a good deal of fellowship. Then in Dahlonega she found the small church and friend ly people she had been seeking. The close-knit parish satisfies her need to feel closer to God and to the church community. The Thursday afternoon prayer group has also helped her to better understand matters of faith and to get close to people. Like Audrey Dalton, she has found talking to the pastor, Cassity and others in the group helpful in understanding Church teaching. Another blessing for her has been living next door to Sister M. Marcia McKinley, patient advocate and chaplain at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Dahlonega. Mrs. Aicher spends a lot of time with Sister McKinley and the two other Sisters of Mercy with her, asking questions and getting the right answers, she said. Mary Ann Claggett knew Mrs. Aicher just slightly when the doctor's wife asked her to be her sponsor for RCIA. Her initial reaction, Mrs. Clagett said, was to feel "very honored, but I did not feel I measured up as a perfect Catholic Christian.” But the process, she said, has been a learning experience. "Both of us are growing in our faith.” Another member of the women's prayer group. Mrs. Clagett said there exists in the group a deep bond which holds them together in their sharing of happiness and sor row. The bond shared by candidates and sponsors is a necessary part of the RCIA process. Archbishop Thomas A. Donnellan said as he addressed the candidates and catechumens at the Sunday celebration. Important on their journey of faith, he said, is the visible support of the other candidates and catechumens. This support is evident in the presence, both in the parish church and the cathedral, of their sponsors, priests and deacons. Funbral Directors OVER 100 YEARS OF DIGNIFIED SERVICE H. M. PATTERSON & SONS SPRING HILL 876-1022 1020 SPRING ST NW CASCADE HILL 344-3610 3610 CASCADE RD SW OGLETHORPE HILL 261-3510 4550 PEACHTREE RD NE GREEN LAWN 876-4311 1270 SPRING ST NW ttlMIIH lr mviuuoN NAU0MAL SlllCTIO MORTICIANS BOOK OF ELECT — Father John Henley, pastor, reads the names of those from St. Luke’s who want to join the Catholic Church at Easter. Lent (Continued from page 1) “For the Christian, water is a sign of the risen Life of Christ given in Baptism, and is one of the major Easter symbols.” ACTIVITIES: Many of us have a rich association of words and pictures which come to mind at mention of “water.” With family members or friends, try a word association game in which one persons says whatever word comes to mind when thinking of water. Then others in the group say a word associated with that word. Be sure each person has a chance to start the process with a word choice. With the words generated, try a "cinquain," a five-line verse in this pattern: first line - noun; second line - two ad jectives; third line - three “ing” words; fourth line - a four- word phrase; fifth line - a synonym for the first line. While many have washed the feet of infirm parents or in valid brothers and sisters, it is not a common family prac tice to wash one another’s feet. In Jesus’ time, washing feet was the work of slaves or servants. If tried as a family, let each member have his or her feet washed. Afterward, let each one talk about how it felt to wash and be washed. Read John 13:2 - 7. Begin the family meal by thinking of water as the symbol of life and thanking God for what the clear water in the glass makes each think of: “Thank you, God, for ice to make things cool and refreshing,” or "Thank you, God, for giving us baptism to help us live your Life.” The commentary and activities are excerpted with the permission of the Glenmary Home Missioners (copyright (c) 1978, revised 1984). Low Cost Term Life Insurance SOMMERS/ MORELAND « ASSOC. Independent Insurance Broker Always (he Best — Companies/ Rates/Service 252-8400 Annual Rates ARE $100,000 $250,000 $500,000 $1,000,000 35 104 237 425 800 40 121 260 470 890 45 157 325 600 1.150 50 203 430 810 1,575 55 273 600 1,150 2,225 60 303 875 1,700 3.355 PaineWebber Brian M. Mullin Investment Executive Consumer Markets PaineWebber Incorporated 3340 Peachtree Road, Suite 975 800 241-7258 Natl. Atlanta. GA 30026 800 282-0488 GA 404 262-3900 HAS SOCIAL SECURITY TURNED YOU DOWN FOR DISABILITY? CALL 371-8233 CYNTHIA L. HORTON. 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