Volume 11, Number 2: Summer 2003

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From the Director

There has been no slowing down at the office of the CEE. Summer is everything but vacation time here. We enjoyed two very enriching events held in Cleveland last May: the workshop on Prayer in the Presence of the Blessed Sacrament and the LITE Administrators’ Meeting. There was a good deal of energy and sharing of ideas generated during these meetings.

We are always learning something new about the Eucharist mystery. Fr. Norman Pelletier during the workshop told us that, "the distinctive characteristic of the human person is not merely a logical or a political animal, but we are above all a “eucharistic animal”, capable of gratitude and endowed with the power to bless God for the gift of creation." Norman confessed that this was not his original idea, he found it in the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, quoting the encyclical letter of Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I of blessed memory. "The created world is not simply our possession but it is a gift, a gift from God the Creator, a healing gift, a gift of wonder and beauty, and that our proper response, on receiving such a gift, is to accept it with gratitude and thanksgiving." Every human being is created to receive God’s gift of life and is thus a eucharistic animal who in return celebrates life in giving thanks.
Here at the CEE we have much to give thanks for in the many individuals who have committed themselves to be eucharistic evangelizers through their LITE team ministry and other programs sponsored by the Center. I emphasized in my address to the LITE leadership, that although there is no remuneration for the numerous hours given to this ministry, our LITE members are not looked upon merely as "volunteers." Our people know what it means to be a “eucharistic animal.” In their ministry as eucharistic evangelizers they assist people in understanding what is must basic to being a human being who celebrates, contemplates, and is in communion with the love of God in Eucharist.

This summer I will be conducting seven retreats throughout the United States on the theme of contemplative prayer and the Eucharist. Nancy will be here holding onto our nerve center and overseeing the preparations for the October trip to Italy. Give us a call, we enjoy hearing from you. As Nancy said in her address to the LITE leadership, we are here at the CEE to foster: Creativity, Communication, Cooperation, Continuity, Companionship, Caring concern. So give a call and let us know what your summer is like.

Fr. William Fickel, sss
Director of the C.E.E.

Adopting a EUCHARISTIC Spirituality
by Patty Pizzitola
Corpus Christi Parish LITE Team I
Houston, Texas

Although, I knew that prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament flowed from the Mass, connecting yesterday’s with today’s and today’s with tomorrow’s — I was surprised to hear that the Church treats prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament as a liturgical rite.

I was blessed to attend two days of the Workshop on Prayer in the Presence of the Eucharist sponsored by the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament that was held in Cleveland, Ohio, May 13-16, 2003. Although, I did not take meticulous notes on Fr. Norman Pelletier’s presentations, I nonetheless left with a better understanding of what a Eucharistic spirituality should be, and his message on prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament made good sense to me. Whether we are LITE (Life in the Eucharist) team members or participants, Father’s message is what we should be transmitting and interiorizing.

Fr. Pelletier, the provincial superior of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament in the U.S.A. began the morning session by developing “what spirituality is” and “what it means to each of us as individuals”. We are all spiritual beings, or as Father stated, we are all spiritual “animals”. Our spirituality is developed and influenced in many ways throughout our lives. For some of us, it may be influenced by faith alone, for others it may be affected by teachers, parents or religious persons we have met. To further develop his theme, Fr. Norman reflected on different types of spiritualities that have influenced many of us on our faith journeys, e.g. the Jesuit (or Ignatian) spirituality; the Franciscan spirituality.

Slowly, yet methodically, participants were lead to the meat of his presentation — what it is to desire and to develop a Eucharistic spirituality. It may have been my imagination, but I could almost hear sounds of excitement from the participants as he moved us into this portion of the workshop. If not excitement, everyone definitely sat up straighter in his or her chair.

To emphasize what it is to have a Eucharistic spirituality, he shared a poignant story of a young woman who was dying. Her parish priest was visiting her shortly before her death to counsel her and assist her in preparation of her funeral. After much discussion with the priest she announced that there was one last detail to her funeral. “What is that”? Asked the priest. She responded, “I want a fork to be placed in my hand for all to see.” “A fork in your hand — why is that,” the priest asked? She went on to tell him that after attending so many covered dish dinners at church and family gatherings, she always remembered being told, “Save your fork, the best is yet to come!”

During the afternoon session, Father Pelletier stressed three points:
• Prayer before the Blessed Sacrament flows from the Mass
• Symbolism used in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament and
• How to pray before the Blessed Sacrament

Although I knew that prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament flowed from the Mass, connecting yesterday’s celebration with today’s and today’s celebration with tomorrow’s — I was surprised to hear that the Church treats prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament as a liturgical rite. Prayer in the presence of the Eucharist with exposition should be patterned after our Eucharistic celebrations — with song, scripture readings, and silent prayer in community with our fellow brothers and sisters. This type of prayer is not meant to be private devotion of only one or two people. If celebrated at another time, it should contain the same elements. Needless to say, this challenged some peoples’ thinking yet brought smiles of agreement to other faces.

Father Pelletier asked us to reflect on having exposition in a monstrance versus using the symbols from the mass. He demonstrated this by taking a host (unconsecrated) and placing it over a chalice, further connecting our prayer of adoration with exposition to the celebration of the Mass. Being a very visual person, this demonstration was very powerful for me and made me realize how important the visual symbols we use are.

In concluding his presentation, Fr. Norman went on to explain how to pray in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. We can use this same technique during the Mass or alone in private prayer. He linked this method to a motto used by St. Peter Julian Eymard: Adveniat Regnum Tuum Eucharisticum (Thy Eucharistic Kingdom Come!) In other words, our prayer should be structured around four aspects: Adoration, Reparation, Thanksgiving and Entreaty (petition).

This presentation was very enlightening for me and I realize now that Father Pelletier and the Church challenge us to become a Eucharistic people through the quality of our prayer and through the social action this prayer brings us to — fostering justice for all.

Reflection on the Annual Meeting of Life in the Eucharist Administrators
by Frank V. Zalar
St. Paschal Baylon Parish LITE Team Member
Highland Heights, Ohio

About 30 Life in the Eucharist (LITE) team administrators and team members met in Highland Heights (Cleveland), Ohio at St. Paschal Baylon Parish on Friday and Saturday, May 16 and 17, 2003. The festivities began on Friday evening with fellowship and good cheer at “Buca di Beppo” restaurant. This was followed by the introductory session keynoted with an inspiring talk by Fr. Roger Bourgeois, sss, provincial vicar of the Province of Saint Ann of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament. This was followed by an opportunity for participants to meet in small groups and share LITE experiences, positive and negative. The participants in attendance were encouraged to share with the large group their concerns pertaining to our ministry of eucharistic evangelizing through the Life in the Eucharist Program. On Saturday, the real work commenced. Fr. Thomas Wiese, Fr. William Fickel and Nancy MacRoberts presented a three-part “State of the Center for Eucharistic Evangelizing” report on the LITE movement. Reports were also given by Patty Pizzitola (Houston) on “seminar adaptations”, that is, newer formats being used to evangelize by means of the Eucharist, and Frank Zalar (Cleveland) regarding perspectives on travel team experiences. It is evident from these reports that LITE formats and materials are evolving to keep pace with requests for non-traditional venues and formats.

The delegates had ample opportunities to meet in small and large groups to discuss and report on important questions such as: suggestions for future developments in LITE, practical ideas to improve our ministry as LITE evangelizers, ways to encourage growth of the current LITE teams and creation of new teams. The creative “juices” were flowing as the Holy Spirit took control. Many useful comments and suggestions have been recorded and will shortly be summarized by the CEE in a formal report of this year’s meeting. From these prioritized lists will emerge a few high priority action items that will be implemented by the CEE and LITE teams.
As measured by the active participation and enthusiasm of all delegates, the LITE movement is alive and well. The transition of leadership from Fr. Tom to Fr. Bill has been accomplished seamlessly. The LITE teams are extremely grateful to Fr. Tom for his past leadership and are looking ahead with anticipation and full confidence to the leadership of Fr. Bill. The LITE team members are also grateful to the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament for their continued support and we look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration.

We have been given a great gift in sharing the charism of St. Peter Julian Eymard. The world needs the Eucharistic Spirituality we proclaim. It is up to all LITE apostles to continually grow in knowledge and holiness centered in the Eucharist. The administrators’ meeting was very successful in uncovering numerous issues which, if addressed, will contribute to the continued success and growth of the movement. We look to the future with confidence and excitement.

TO GROW IN WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE

To you really know what Evangelization means? Do you understand what L.I.T.E. team members are being called to do? To help you understand and grow in your particular ministry of Eucharistic Evangelizing, the CEE would like to recommend for your reading, John Paul and the New Evangelization edited by Ralph Martin and Peter Williamson, published by Ignatius Press. The book is a compilation of chapters written by various authors addressing the new concept of evangelization in the Church today. Not only will the readers be inspired but they will learn new ideas and be encouraged to take their place in this important ministry. The introduction alone with its clarification of what “evangelization” means is worth the price of this very readable book.
Looking for inspiration? Look no further than Emmanuel Magazine, available from Emmanuel Publishing, 5384 Wilson Mills Rd., Cleveland, OH 44143 or e-mail them at Emman5384@aol.com.

Pope Paul VI’s Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Nutiandi and the U.S. Bishop’s Go and Make Disciples, a National Plan and Strategy for Catholic Evangelization in the United States is available on the following website www.usccb.org/evangelization.

GOOD NEWS FROM OLD FRIENDS

Frank and Diane Berning were once LITE team members in St. Joseph Parish in Broadalbin, NY. As the saying goes, “once a LITE team member, always a LITE member”. In the next issue of HI LITE we want you to look forward to an interesting report from Fr. Robert Rousseau, the Founder of LITE

Frank is currently in the process of becoming a permanent deacon and in this capacity, he was asked to preach in the parish at the Masses on the feast of Corpus Christi. True to his training and because of the importance of the feast day, Frank chose to use the material and training he received from Fr. Robert Rousseau, SSS on Eucharist and Transformation as material to develop his reflections during the homily. We wish the Bernings well and will continue to keep each other in our prayers.

SECRETARIAT FOR EVANGELIZATION
The United States Council of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Evangelization and the Commission on Catholic Evangelization is presenting the first North American Institute for Catholic Evangelization (NAICE) in Portland, Oregon on July 9-12, 2003. The Center for Eucharistic Evangelizing in the persons of Fr. William Fickel, sss and Nancy MacRoberts, will represent the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament and the Life In The Eucharist Movement at this important conference. They will bring a special gift and show how the Eucharist can be a powerful instrument for doing the work of evangelization. 463 delegates have registered for the Conference coming from a rich diversity of ministries on the parish, diocesan and national levels. There will be 115 national leaders, 197 diocesan leaders and 151 parish leaders attending. In the United States, there are 106 Latin Rite dioceses, 4 Eastern Rite dioceses, and the Archdiocese for Military Services. Delegates are also coming from Canada, Costa Rica, Honduras, and the United Kingdom. This will be a wonderful opportunity to introduce the Center and the LITE Movement to leaders of parishes and dioceses. You may follow the progress of registration and additional news of the conference by checking the web site: www.usccb.org/evangelization.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES!

What a difference a year makes — so you can imagine what a difference 10 years make! In September, 1992, Noreen Wright and Nancy MacRoberts sat down at an electric typewriter and composed the very first Life In The Eucharist (LITE) Newsletter. Look at us now — more than ten years later! Your articles are always needed to enrich each other’s lives and to help keep us in touch and informed about what’s happening in the world of LITE. In the next issue of HI LITE we want you to look forward to an interesting report from Fr. Robert Rousseau, the Founder of LITE, relating his experiences giving LITE seminars and training teams in Viet Nam and Senegal, Africa!

ASK AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE — HELPING HANDS
The CEE would like to thank all those loyal LITE (Life in the Eucharist) souls in the Cleveland, Ohio area who so diligently gave of their time to make the 2003 Administrators’ gathering such a positive experience. Special notes of appreciation go to Louise Borgione, Faith DiPippo and Helen Govern and their team members who so zealously saw to it that everything needed was provided. One and all responded so graciously when asked to help, from providing newsprint pads and markers to breakfasts, lunch, dinner and prayer services for special quiet times together. A last word of thanks to all the members of the Ohio LITE teams who were so welcoming to the LITE visitors from Houston, Texas. The warmth and genuine expressions of friendship from our Ohio brothers and sisters made all the difference in the world. How great it was to welcome the St. Clare’s LITE team from the Cleveland area who joined all of the rest us after their busy day giving a LITE seminar in the area! We are truly “one in the Spirit”!

To various special Blessed Sacrament Fathers and Brothers some particular words of gratitude are in order for their assistance with the weekend gathering. We would like to thank: Father Roger Bourgeois, the provincial vicar, for offering us the hospitality of the Blessed Sacrament community, for his presence and inspiring keynote address to the group; Deacon Joseph Bourgeois for helping with many of the practical details like transportation to and from the airport, and especially for welcoming of some Houston visitors; Brother Michael O’Leary who made sure all the visitors’ had welcoming accommodations and that everything in the community was up to par; and finally to all of the members of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament who were able to join the LITE (Life in the Eucharist) members on Friday and Saturday — Brother Eugene Blee, Brother Edmund Hardy, Brother Michael Perez, Father Thomas Smithson, Father Edward Stapleton, and Father Thomas Wiese. Everyone, LITE team members and the Blessed Sacrament community alike, thoroughly enjoyed the pot luck dinner and time for socializing Saturday night. What a special joy it was to be able to see Father Eugene LaVerdiere who was visiting Cleveland from New York and to celebrate Eucharist on Saturday evening together with him and so many others! Good spirit, good wine, good food, good friends! More great memories! We bless God for all the good things of that Life in the Eucharist weekend!

SSS International | Eucharistic Theology | SSS USA | Saint Peter Julian Eymard