AUG 2021
In This Issue: 3 What Are You Going to Do With Your Life? 4 Summer Activities Bring Community Together for Faith, Fellowship and Fun 6 Parishioner Laurie O’Driscoll Finds Faith After a Lifelong Search
HOLY FAMILY CATHEDRAL MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
Confraternity of Christian Mothers SHARING THE FAITH AND OFFERING ESSENTIAL SUPPORT TO ONE ANOTHER
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ife can be very hard. Some of us might feel lonely, especially when we are going through a tough time. But one way to get through is to have a group of friends praying for you. A group that will share your walk through life — which can make all the difference. The Confraternity of Christian Mothers, or CCM, exists to be a place for friendship among wives and mothers here at Holy Family Cathedral. Women are there to share in the burdens and joys of life. “This group consists of Catholic wives and mothers, gathered around Christ, to pray with and for one another,” says Karen Barrett, who has been a CCM member for four years. “We are here to pray for our children, and to discuss problems and advise one another regarding the Christian rearing of our children.” It’s often hard for parents, especially mothers, to take time for themselves. The CCM is a way for women to consistently have a place to be together and Confraternity of Christian Mothers enrollment ceremony have time for fellowship and prayer. “An invitation to join CCM was extended to me from a Catholic friend whose motherhood and spiritual life I greatly admire,” Karen says. “I realized, if this was one of the major tools in her toolbox, it was also something I wanted in mine! And, truly, I wanted to spend more time around more women like her.” The group meets on the third Thursday of each month with Adoration at 5 p.m., Mass at 6 p.m., Confraternity prayers around 6:30 p.m., and a potluck meal to end the evening. The group at Holy Family Cathedral is in the early stages, but the CCM organization dates back to the 1850s in Lille, France. In 1881, the first American Confraternity of Christian Mothers was formed at St. Augustine’s Church in Pittsburgh, Pa. Karen loves that this group goes much deeper than a women’s book club or night out for dinner. It involves time with the continued on page 2 8TH STREET & BOULDER AVE • TULSA, OK 74119 • (918) 582-6247 • TULSACATHEDRAL.COM
HOLY FAMILY CATHEDRAL Confraternity of Christian Mothers continued from front cover
Blessed Sacrament and Mass. “You can see the trickle-down effect, as we receive grace from Him and take His peace forward into our relationships,” Karen says. “It makes for an evening of true restoration.” All practicing Catholic women, married or widowed, with children or not, are invited to the CCM. Karen says it’s important to be surrounded by women with a similar belief system. There is so much information out there on the best ways to parent, but asking the advice of other Christian women is the most helpful in the long run. “It’s a relief to have a glimpse into the core of traditional Christian motherhood, how it was practically lived, and how we can transpose these things into our own lives,” Karen says. As the famous adage says, “it takes a whole village to raise a child” — when it comes to CCM, Karen finds this to be so very true. “Not only does your own soul need to be nourished by
fellow Christian women who share your vocation, but it is the foundation of a community that your family can grow and thrive within,” Karen says. The CCM is so important to Karen’s faith life. She’s met so many women who inspire her in her faith. She loves having the opportunity for her and her family to form friendships that are rooted in faith. She’s so thankful for all the people she’s met through the CCM. Karen invites all women of the Cathedral to get involved. “We pray together, individually and then as a community, very specific prayers for our motherhood and our children, which will inevitably carry over into our private prayer lives,” Karen says. “We eat. We laugh. We share moments of our lives both painful and pleasant. We plan future events where our children could get together, or discuss books and devotions that are helpful for our vocation. It’s inspiring and uplifting — a sisterhood.”
Be sure to refer to the bulletin for upcoming meeting times for the Confraternity of Christian Mothers. They meet the third Thursday of every month, beginning at 5 p.m. Women can attend every month or once a year. Also, attendees need not be present the whole time. All are welcome! 2
AUG 2021
A Letter from Our Rector
WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO Dear Parishioners,
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e are called to be the disciples of Jesus Christ. Discipleship is our calling — stewardship is the way we are to live the life we have been given. I don’t think we believers would or should argue the point. It begins with our Baptism and our new life as members of the Church. There are no questions about it, even though we may not always remember that we have been called to discipleship — it is a lifelong process, and we are all works in progress. But please remember, we are God’s “works” that evolve moment by moment, day by day, and year after year. To get more specific, we need to not only understand that stewardship is the expression of discipleship, but it is also the way in which we are to live our life. It is not a program — it is a way of life. I suppose at least once in our lifetime, we have been asked, “What are you going to do with your life?” Usually, that will happen at graduation. How many of us have followed the path we thought we would at that time in our life? Perhaps we replied with a certain profession that may have interested us at the time. But there is always more to our answer than the title of a profession, just as there is more to our lives than just breathing. How do we use the gifts God has given to us? How we do so will define the life we live for God and the Church. That is our call to discipleship. It is how we should understand stewardship. Many people ask me why I am so convinced that stewardship is a way of life. The simple answer I give is always the easy one and the most practical. My life as a faithful steward makes sense. The story of Christianity is filled with people like you and me who wonder and desire how to live as a disciple of Jesus Christ. It is what we are to do with our lives.
With Your Life? Our attitude must be formed to spend the time and the talents we have, to do our part for God’s Church. When does that become our priority? When does it become our way of life? These are the questions any believer must ask themselves when we think about our relationship with God, His Church, and the people around us. But, throughout my time in life as a priest, stewardship as my way of life makes sense and is more than possible with what God has given me to work with. It is the same with each of us. I am grateful for what God has given me and thankful I can live my life as His disciple. I say that not just as a priest, but as a baptized member of His family. I am thankful my parents brought me to be baptized a Christian and begin a life that would lead me, like all of us, to be the disciple we are called to be. When we were baptized, no one asked us, “What are you going to do with your life?” If my parents and Godparents understood why we were all there, it should have been clear that we are all to be faithful stewards of all that God provides, beginning with the gift of life. That is why stewardship as a way of life is in my mind, heart and soul. That, too, was a gift from God for which I am most grateful. This is my calling, and “this” is what I am going to do with the rest of my life. What will you do with yours? Sincerely yours in Christ,
Very Rev. Gary D. Kastl Rector
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HOLY FAMILY CATHEDRAL Summer Activities Bring Community We thank all who attended our Parish Picnic, as well as all of our Totus Tuus volunteers and participants. Summer 2021 has been a wonderful time of sharing in faith, fellowship, and fun in our Holy Family Cathedral community!
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Together for Faith, Fellowship and Fun
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HOLY FAMILY CATHEDRAL
Parishioner Laurie O’Driscoll W
hen Laurie O’Driscoll entered the Church this past Easter, it was the culmination of a lifelong search for faith — but only the beginning of her journey as a new Catholic. Growing up in a non-religious family, Laurie was not baptized or raised in any particular faith tradition. However, she always felt as though there was something more. “I have always believed in God and have always prayed,” she says. “As an only child, I spent a lot of time alone and I would often sit in my room and play and just talk to God.” Despite her secular upbringing, Laurie’s family nonetheless sparked her interest in spirituality. Her mother’s side of the family was interested in divination and astrology, Laurie’s mother taught her to pray as a child, and her maternal grandmother would often take her to her Protestant church during the summer. Her father’s side of the family was interested in ancient religions, mythology, the paranormal, and spirituality in general, which led to her reading and studying those things, and eventually dabbling in New Age practices. Despite all that, Laurie would constantly find herself pulled into the orbit of Catholicism, learning about the saints and monasticism, as well as listening to Catholic radio programs. While she would eventually push it away, she continued to be inexplicably drawn to the Church. “As time went on, I grew weary of the ideas in New Age practices and paganism, and I didn’t like where they were going,” Laurie says. “I started pulling away from these things and my spiritual life became simply praying for about three years. I believe in God, but I felt so disconnected. In spite of all my spiritual pursuits, I felt like I couldn’t reach Him.” Laurie has been happily married to her husband, Brendan — who is from Ireland and was born and raised Catholic — since 2002. The couple has two children — Oisín, 18, and Aoife, 15. This past Christmas Eve, Laurie attended midnight Mass at the Cathedral with her husband and daughter — and that was where everything changed. “As the night went on, I started to feel like I was wrapped up in love — it was such a strong feeling!” she 6
Laurie O’Driscoll
says. “I felt comforted and safe, too. That feeling grew stronger until it was almost overwhelming. At a certain point, I realized the God I had been seeking all my life, in all the wrong ways, was right here. He was here in this faith, in this Church, and in these people. Everything about Christianity that I had ever doubted or questioned just fell away. The truth of it all just sort of snapped into place and suddenly made sense to me — God is real, Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, and He died for us.” The very next day, Laurie told her family that she wanted to join the Church, and started the Becoming Catholic RCIA process here at the cathedral in early January. “From the moment I walked into that first class, I felt so comfortable,” she says. “Fr. Kastl and Jeri Potter were the first people I met that day, and they were both very kind and made sure I knew not to be afraid to ask questions. I loved each class and learning something new each week. I would spend the week between classes counting
AUG 2021
Finds Faith After a Lifelong Search the days until the next one.” RCIA also ended up bringing Laurie closer to her husband, Brendan, and it also brought Brendan closer to his own faith. “It really surprised me how many misconceptions I had about Catholicism, and I wasn’t alone in that — even my husband, who was born into the faith, was surprised by some of what I was learning,” Laurie says. “He had been Catholic all his life, and still, there were things he’d either forgotten about or simply didn’t know. While I was the one going through RCIA, he also benefited from the process. After the Rite of Election, he asked Fr. Kastl how to come back into the Church. We found out we would have to have our marriage convalidated and that he’d have to go to confession, so we began the process of acquiring the documents needed to make that happen.” The Easter Vigil was an emotional day for Laurie not just because she received the three Sacraments of Initiation, but also because she and Brendan were able to convalidate their marriage in the Church. “I was so excited on that day — ever since Midnight Mass I had wanted this day to get here as soon as possible,” Laurie says. “But as much as I wanted it, I also felt so unworthy. When it was my turn to get baptized, I walked up to the baptismal font thinking, ‘Why would God call me here? I’m too broken for this.’ Jeri was there as we each went up to get baptized and I think maybe she noticed that I was struggling with something. She
Becoming Catholic will meet on Sunday mornings in the Halpine Room, beginning Aug. 22. We will begin with coffee and socializing at 10:15 a.m. — class begins at 10:30 a.m., including question-and-answer time and culminating with attendance at the Noon Mass.
gestured for me to come up, I placed my head over the font and Bishop Konderla poured the water over my head three times, and I just felt so happy! Forty-four years of sins had been mercifully washed away, and my life as a Christian had begun. “As I approached the bishop to be confirmed, I was so excited,” she adds. “As someone who grew up an only child, now I suddenly had lots and lots of brothers and sisters in Christ. Receiving my First Holy Communion was probably the sacrament I had wanted the most that night. I had been to Adoration a couple of times before, and they were such beautiful experiences — but receiving Communion was way more than that. Through the Eucharist, Christ is here, lovingly connecting with all of us in such an intimate way. It made me realize why Catholic churches always felt so much more to me like God was actually present than when I’d gone to another type of church.” Afterward, Laurie and Brendan celebrated their marriage in the Catholic Church at Our Lady’s altar. “The bishop performed our wedding ceremony,” she says. “As the ceremony went on, I felt like I was marrying for the first time. I had been with my husband for 21 years, married for 19, and even so, I was still a little nervous but so happy. My husband looked at me with such love, my heart melted. I felt so much love for him in return and so much gratitude that God saw fit to bless me with a husband who has such a good heart and has done continued on back cover
Session 1 — Images of God Session 2 — Proclamation of the Kingdom of God Session 3 — The Fall and the Old Testament Session 4 — One God, Three Persons and the Incarnation Session 5 — Jesus the Christ 7
PO Box 3204 • Tulsa, OK 74101-3204 (918) 582-6247 • tulsacathedral.com
Laurie O’Driscoll
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everything he possibly could to provide for us and guide our family over the years. We’ve been through so much together and I know marrying in the Church will only strengthen us more as we go forward.” Laurie looks forward to continuing her journey in the faith and hopes that many others will benefit from Becoming Catholic as much as she has. “I want to grow and learn as much as I can and to be active in the Church,” she says. “I know what it’s like to spend decades outside of the faith and I hope that maybe my experiences can help someone else so that they don’t have to spend another moment outside of God’s embrace. I’m joyful every day now, and when challenges do arise I know I’m not alone and that through His grace, I will get through them. I want everyone to know this feeling.
“The Becoming Catholic program is a wonderful and nurturing environment for anyone who wants to know Catholicism,” she adds. “While I was going through the program, there were people seeking to convert, like me, as well as Catholics who wanted to deepen their understanding of their faith. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, or how broken you may feel. Everyone is welcome and everything is taught through kindness, patience, and compassion. I am so very grateful to Fr. Kastl, Fr. Carvajal, Jeri Potter, and everyone who makes the RCIA program what it is. Converting can be a little intense, and can feel a little disconcerting at times. They made the process joyful and fun. They were always very approachable and it’s obvious how much they care about all of us.”
If you would like more information about the Becoming Catholic RCIA process, please contact Jeri Potter at 918-261-3243 or becomingcatholic@tulsacathedral.com.