A weekend retreat with Rabboni for Taiping parishioners

Psychology today tells us that 60 per cent of our actions flow from our unconscious mind. Hurts such as rejection, abandonment, humiliation, betrayals and injustices can be buried deep in our minds and cause us to isolate ourselves from others.

Fr Johnny, from India, shared with the parishioners of the Taiping Catholic Church that only the Holy Spirit can heal these inner hurts. He recommended prayer, daily reading of the scriptures and counselling. He also stressed on the power of the Sacrament of Reconciliation when he shared, from many of his own experiences, how confession has healed serious physical and mental illnesses. He spoke about the three levels of our mind: the conscious, sub-conscious and the unconscious mind.

The Taiping Catholic Church organised a Parish retreat entitled “A weekend with Rabboni,” April 6-8. The aim of the retreat was for parishioners to encounter the Risen Lord as Mary Magdalene did when she met Jesus soon after the resurrection and called Him Rabboni. Indeed for the 500 over participants, Jesus is now not just a historical figure, but is alive and amongst His people, bringing wholeness of mind, body and spirit.

The sessions were in five groups: English, Tamil, Mandarin, Bahasa and children (6-12 years). Fr Johnny was the main speaker for the English section, another Indian priest, Fr Aron attended to the Tamil-speaking group, Fr Martin Thien from Melaka presented for the Mandarin-speaking group, Fr Stanley Antoni the rector of College General, Sr Bibianah FSP and Sr Roseling FSP took care of the Bahasaspeaking group and Aron, the Youth leader and his team presented to the children.

The general direction given by the Parish priest, Fr Jude Miranda to the speakers was to lead the participants through a process of transformation of SELF, RELATIONSHIP and MISSION. Most of the speakers challenged listeners to confront the issues in their lives and honestly make an examination of their conscience. They recommended frequenting the sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation, as remedies of healing and transformation.

Fr Aron began his session with the story of Mary Magdalene and how her encounter with Jesus set her free from darkness (seven demons) and transformed her to a life of holiness. Fr Martin Thien stressed that the salvation won by Jesus 2000 years ago must be received personally today before love can be effectively shared with family members and others. Fr Stanley, in the closing Mass, also emphasised that living a life of love is the goal of healing and transformation. He asked all to consider whether our love was mere “Cinta” or “Kasih.” In true love, there is discipline, speaking the truth and sacrificing ourselves for the good of others.

Everyone benefited from the sessions, including the children who loved the songs and group activities. Other than talks, the speakers also made time for home visitations, counselling, confessions and prayer ministry. At the end of the closing Mass, everyone was given a lighted candle to go forth and shine the light of the Risen Lord in their lives.

Here are some comments from participants: “I am now challenged to read the Bible 30 minutes every day. I plan to ‘Aspire to Inspire before I Expire’”(Charles Lesslar); “From the sessions, I once again heard God in these words, ‘Present pain has past history, so discover’”(Susan Lesslar); “At the prayer session, when I carried the cross, I was feeling pain in my left knee. Anyhow, I continued with a few more steps and the pain went away.”(Mandarin participant).

This Parish retreat can be summed up by the words of a young adult participant, “Truly, it was a weekend well spent in the Holy Octave of Easter, and the added joy of observing Divine Mercy Sunday in prayer, healing and worship; a Weekend with Rabboni indeed”(Deeviya).

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online