By Christina Galeone
CFP Correspondent
There’s no doubt that books can have a profound impact on people’s lives. Some can lead people down dark paths. Others can shed light on opportunities for communities to grow in hope, faith and love.
According to the Peace and Social Justice Ministry at St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish in Upton, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” by Pope Francis, falls into the latter category. The book, which was published in December 2020, inspired the ministry’s members to hold a “Let Us Dream” parish mini-retreat at the church. On June 5, about 20 people attended the event that – like the book – encouraged people to reflect on how the COVID-19 pandemic affected them and others and how they could emerge from it prepared to help build a better world for everyone.
Sarah Baldiga, who organized and led the mini-retreat, said that the ministry used the Pope’s book to guide the participants’ discussion about the effects of the pandemic on individuals, families, communities (including the parish) and the world. The attendees had been prompted to read the book prior to the event.
“The morning offered a mix of prayerful listening to the Pope’s words and to the personal stories shared in talks by our ministry members; personal reflection time; and small group sharing,” Ms. Baldiga said. “It was a healing experience for many as we reflected on not just the pain and suffering of the past year, but on silver linings – personally, locally and globally. For example, the pandemic has shone a light on how economic, health and environmental disparities disproportionately impact the poor.”
In small groups, attendees discussed discerning how God calls us to harness Catholic social teaching to help the suffering.
“As Pope Francis said in his book, this is our Noah moment,” Ms. Baldiga shared. “As we emerge from this … we have an incredible gift to decide how we will move forward. What lessons will we take? How will we change? I think folks walked away hopeful, and the day was a first step on our pilgrimage to a better future for all.”
During the part of the morning dedicated to moving forward, the participants created a vision. Each person was given a chance to write a personal dream for the parish or general community. All of the notes were then posted on an “Our Dream” board. The selfless responses consisted of spiritual hopes, including one for everyone to be able to discern God’s will for their lives, social aspirations, such as learning how to listen to each other, and charitable dreams to help those in need.
And while the participants were inspired to help others, the mini-retreat enriched their own lives as well.
Joan Claflin was one of the parishioners who was thankful for the experience. “This mini-retreat gave me the opportunity to prayerfully step back and reflect on what I have experienced and to discern how to begin to move forward into a new normal,” she shared. “I enjoyed being with others, to hear their witness accounts, and to recognize how God has been moving in each of our lives.”
That enthusiasm wasn’t limited to the parishioners. Father Laurence Brault was excited to see how well the Peace and Social Justice Ministry created and facilitated the event. Noting that Pope Francis views the pandemic experience as an opportunity to extend the Gospel mission to those on the margins of society and all people in new ways, the church’s pastor said that this unprecedented time can provide a chance to think outside the box and “approach the call to evangelize our people, forming them to a greater willingness to listen to the Holy Spirit and to discern how to reach more people with the truth of the Gospel.” He added that the event was a “prayerful time of reflection and sharing.”
“It was a gift to hear my people talk about how this pandemic had affected their lives, as well as how they saw this time affecting the Church, the parish, and the community at large; an openness to see the church reach out in new ways was clearly evident,” Father Brault shared. “Those attending made it clear that, with Pope Francis, they did not want to see the parish just simply return to what was the normal previously. This opens us up to looking at further ways of evangelizing, further ways of getting the Gospel out to people, opening parishioners up to how we can touch the lives of all those who we encounter in our ministry. What I believe was accomplished with this mini-retreat was a beginning.”