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eMatrimony.org Supporting, Encouraging, and Challenging the WWME Community |
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| Inviting - Pulpit Talks Why It Feels Good To Do Pulpit Talks John & Janice Wells We had a dream. We arrived at a church to give a pulpit talk 30 minutes before the start of Mass. The parking lot was overflowing and the rosary had begun inside the church. The priest was already out in front of the church welcoming the congregation. We had difficulty finding a seat because the church was packed to overflowing with additional folding chairs set up to line the aisles to accommodate the crowd. Before the Mass began, the priest introduced us as "very special guests". The Mass was wonderful with a full gospel choir. Before the priest started his homily, he gave the best plug for Marriage Encounter we had ever heard. After communion when the priest gave us "the nod", we struggled through the crowd to get to the altar. By this time Mass had already been going for some 90 minutes. As we gave our pulpit talk, we were greeted with applause; those present laughed, nodded their heads in agreement, and at the end of our talk, gave us a resounding round of applause. We left the altar to stand at the back of the church until the end of Mass which took another 15 minutes while the priest again emphasized the importance of Marriage Encounter and what it could do to strengthen marriage in these times. When Mass was over we left the Church to stand outside. There was only one exit so we had two tables set up, one to the left and one to the right of the door. We each covered a table. As everyone exited we were surrounded on all sides, people were taking flyers from the pulpit pals, the tables, and patiently lining up to talk with us. We spoke to so many people it was difficult to keep track of them. 30 minutes later the last of the couples left. We packed up still in a daze. We pinched ourselves and realized that it had not been a dream. We had just finished our pulpit talk at St. Rose de Lima in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi where the Pastor is Father Sebastian Myladiyil. Our feeling on exiting the church was like we had just left the altar after telling everyone of our marriage. That experience of the crowd coming out of the church was like the welcome you receive when you are surrounded by family and friends as you exit the church following your wedding - when no one is in a hurry to leave, not even to go to the reception. As if everyone, including us, wanted to hold on to the moment of the celebration of Mass and our marriage forever. We know that this may have been a once in a lifetime experience for us, but we wanted to share our experience with you. Given how difficult it is for me (Janice) to find the courage to speak publicly, I believe that God gave us this "shot in the arm" to help me, when I needed it most. "For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable". Today's (August 13/14, 2005) second reading reminds us that we are gifted and called by God. Let Marriage Encounter help you strengthen your marriage/Holy Order." If we do not spread the word of Marriage Encounter, who will? Love & Hugs, Slidell LA Click here for a printable version (PDF, 7KB)
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