the catholic community of st. francis of assisi
Lord of the Harvest
Are you looking to experience the love of God to be healed and to heal others through the power of the Holy Spirit? Do you want to be inspired as a Catholic to use your God-given authority daily? Then, parishioner Maureen Costello has started a ministry for you. “The mission of ‘Lord of the Harvest Healing Ministry’ (LOHHM) is to encourage people to deepen their relationship with Jesus so that they can experience the love of God and the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit in their everyday lives,” says Maureen. “LOHHM is dedicated to helping people with all aspects of spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental healing.”
Maureen remembers, “The idea behind LOHHM started on a Sunday morning this past January at the 11:45 Mass when, during his sermon, Monsignor Clay asked the congregation whether we wanted to be seekers, just learning and reading books about God or actual apostles and disciples doing the work of Jesus on earth?” She says, “I felt the Holy Spirit powerfully urging me to leave my comfort zone and work for God like an apostle. After Mass, I approached Monsignor Clay and asked him if I could start a healing ministry at St. Francis to focus on helping people through the words of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. I explained a few of my experiences of seeing miraculous events and healings in myself and others through the Lord. Monsignor Clay immediately gave his approval.”
Volunteer Spotlight: Pam James
Pam James can weave, and not just a great story! Pam has been in Weaver’s Guilds, each with over 200 members, in three different states, Colorado, Texas, and North Carolina, and has been an avid weaver and mixed media artist for a long time. Every two years, there is a convention where she says, “Every well-known weaver attends and is probably teaching a class.” This past year, the convention was in Wichita, Kansas, where she entered a piece in the Mixed Media category and won 3rd Place!
How does this correlate to her work at St. Francis? She weaves her love of art with her leadership of the ‘Care for Creation’ ministry at St. Francis. “I’ve always been a bit of an ‘eco-freak,’” says Pam,” I grew up with the idea that you mustn’t waste. My sister-in-law is kind enough to call me resourceful, but I’m just cheap! I’ve always asked myself, ‘Why would I throw that away? I can use that.’” She exclusively uses ‘recycled yarn’ in weaving, embracing the ‘reuse’ principle of Care for Creation.
Ministry Spotlight: LGBTQ+ Ministry
St. Francis of Assisi Parish has been at the forefront of the expectation that we are all God’s children. As Tim Hackett, coordinator of the LGBTQ+ ministry here, says, “The most important inclusive Catholic teaching is that we are all to love Jesus and to love one another.” Tim spoke to several members of the ministry as to how to explain their ministry’s efforts. They shared their common perspective on their ministry: “Our ministry’s efforts can generally be broken down into spiritual (Lent/Advent SCC, days of reflection, retreats), social (Memorial Day picnic, Christmas party) and outreach (Durham Pride, OutRaleigh, Expo) programming and the monthly ‘Always God’s Children’ support group.”
