Find God in the turmoil and tragedy of everyday life and act
gently.
That was the message delivered to more than 1,000 people by
Oblate Father Barry Strong March 21 at the 12th annual Live
Jesus! Lenten Retreat, held at St. John Neumann Church in
Reston.
Paraphrasing Pope Francis, Father Strong told the crowd to
listen and sympathize with people who are suffering and cry
with them.
“If you don’t learn how to cry, you can’t be a good
Christian,” he said.
“Find God in the turmoil. Act gently. Live Jesus.”
Father Strong, director of province administration for the
Wilmington-Philadelphia Province of the Oblates of St.
Francis de Sales, spoke on the topic “Where Is God in the
Turmoil?”
He said the question, “Why does God allow evil and
suffering,” is one that people of faith have wrestled with
for millennia, and it remains the most serious threat to
belief in God.
Father Strong distinguished between moral evil caused by the
sinfulness of human beings with physical and natural
disasters such as hurricanes, floods and famine.
Many theologians agree that the only answer is faith, he
said.
“We can’t figure it out because we don’t know the mind of
God,” he said.
St. Paul orients creation toward Jesus Christ and away from
the original sin of Adam and Eve, Father Strong said.
He told the crowd to reframe the question. “Instead of asking
‘why does God allow bad things to happen to good people,’ ask
‘how can I respond to this tragedy?’ Creation is happening
now in our present moment. God is present in every moment.
“God does not stop suffering but transforms it,” he said.
Father Strong then discussed the message of St. Francis de
Sales, who highlighted grace and redemption and promoted a
spirituality of hope and peace.
“When tragedy happens to us, we respond with love of
submission,” he said. “Accept God’s loving embrace and step
forward into the future.”
Visitation Sister Karen Mohan from Minneapolis focused on
“Perspectives on Gentleness.”
In the morning, prepare your hearts for the day and invite
the Lord to be present in these moments, she said.
“We’re not in charge,” she reminded the crowd. “Belonging to
God allows us to belong to each other.”
Sister Karen said we need to ask ourselves where we need to
slow down.
“Be gentle with yourself before you are gentle with others,”
she said.
Tom and Michelle Costello, parishioners of St. John Neumann,
gave a closing reflection on how “ordinary” Catholics can
respond to God’s call in their lives.
“Let go and trust in God,” they said. “Take the first step.
When one begins the journey, God does provide.
“Great opportunities to serve God are rare, but little ones
are frequent.”
The morning concluded with Mass celebrated by Oblate Father
James Greenfield and other members of the local Oblate
community.
For Mary Carroll, a parishioner of Our Lady of Good Counsel
Church in Vienna, this was her first Live Jesus! Retreat.
“I thought that because it’s the season of Lent, this would
be a good way to spend some time in reflection and an
opportunity to deepen my faith,” Carroll said. “I like the
Oblate spirituality and perspective.”
Brian Mahoney, also a parishioner of Our Lady of Good
Counsel, said he attended a previous Live Jesus! Retreat at
Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria.
“I want to jump-start my Lenten experience this year and
reinforce the Salesian philosophy of living in the moment,”
Mahoney said.
Diane Beauchamp, a parishioner of St. John the Apostle Church
in Leesburg, said she was exposed to Salesian spirituality
when she attended Visitation High School in Minneapolis.
“In high school, the nuns never really talked about it, they
just lived it,” she said. “It wasn’t until I was an adult
that I really discovered the meat of Salesian spirituality.
“As the mother of five and working full-time, I experience
that gentleness that they’re talking about when my 5-year-old
is going nuts,” she said. “I can actually feel the calmness
to wait and listen to her. My older children didn’t get that
benefit.”
Beauchamp said she loved what Sister Karen said about how
gentleness allows us to respect the dignity of others.
“It isn’t just wimpiness,” she said. “It enables you to truly
see others where they’re at and not judge them.”
Oblate Father Kevin Nadolski, who served as master of
ceremonies for the morning, said that Live Jesus! has become
a victim of its own success. The demand has outgrown the
facilities that are used to host the event.
Organizers are considering the possibility of holding future
retreats at larger venues such as Marymount University in
Arlington or Georgetown University in Washington.
Find out more
Live Jesus! communities are active in several locations in
the area. Visit livejesuscommunities.org.
A video of the 2015 retreat can be found at oblates.org.
