3 minute read
THAT MAN IS YOU! An Invitation to Share in Faith and Fellowship with Men of the Parish
It’s often too easy to get wrapped up in the demands of work and home. In turn, it can be difficult to find the time to focus on faith and fellowship. And it can be particularly challenging for men to gather with those who are like-minded and have time to share the Catholic faith.
Here at Our Lady of Lourdes, we have an opportunity for men to gather on Friday mornings, share their faith and socialize. That Man is You! — or TMIY — is an opportunity for fellowship, a video on a faith topic and small-group discussions. Our parish group uses this program through Paradisus Dei, a nonprofit organization that provides programming to help families and men discover the “superabundance of God.”
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Participants and Core Team members are thankful to be back to meeting in person after they moved to Zoom for a time during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each Friday, about 25 men gather beginning at 6 a.m. to socialize. Programming starts at 6:30 a.m. and wraps up by 7:30 a.m.
This is the fourth year of TMIY. Core Team Member Domenic Coletti helped bring this program to Our Lady of Lourdes after several people mentioned it to him. Finally, Joan Rose Brown gave him the extra drive to get it started.
“The impetus in starting this was the Holy Spirit,” Domenic says. “It was fortuitous that it kept getting brought up to me.”
Once a Core Team was identified, the momentum was there to start this group.
Domenic knows it can often be difficult for men to find other men who share the faith. As our world becomes more and more secularized, it becomes more challenging to make authentic friendships. People are busy and modern technology has changed the way we communicate. In the face of all of these challenges, a huge draw of this group is the fellowship aspect.
“Men like that they can talk about their lives and struggles,” Domenic says. “Men wonder why they can’t find other men like them out in the world. When they do find them, they want to keep attending.”
Domenic says that being involved in this group has helped him be a better husband to his wife, Angela, and father to his two daughters, Rebeca and Elizabeth.
Small groups typically stay the same, so men can develop a stronger bond with the other men. However, men need not be at every meeting — the team wants men to know they can come as often as they are able. The videos are available online to catch up on missed sessions.
“I’d invite all men to come give it a try,” Domenic says. “You might be surprised by how comfortable you feel if you attend. These are all regular guys, living regular lives, but doing it in the right way.”
We asked a few TMIY participants what they love about the program and why others should attend.
Ken Kukorowski, participant: “Men should attend and participate because TMIY challenges men to be better fathers, husbands and to do it in a way that strengthens our Catholic spiritual foundation in a practical way. I wish more men would participate so I could meet more parishioners!”
Ric Patrick, participant: “The Christian fellowship and friendships make good men better. Iron sharpens iron. It allows men to be comfortable communicating with each other and expressing our Christian beliefs.”
Dan Jess, TMIY Core Team member: “TMIY is engaging every week around the issues men face in the world. The small groups we have built and the bonds we have together give me the strength and courage to do what’s right and know there are a number of men trying to do the same thing.”
Dave Behrens, participant: “TMIY is my safety net for when the homily has me wanting a bit more. I can always count on our group to share something that gives me a new perspective on old challenges.”
