Seminar / Workshop on God - Introduction to Prayer - Marriage Preparation Live Meeting at 2000 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal - Saturday, January 28th, 2023 - HAPPY NEW YEAR!

In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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“From This Day Forward”

Marriage Preparation Course 2023

WORKSHOP 💘 GOD 💘 LIFE 💘 MARRIAGE 💘 
💘 FAMILY  💘 PRAYER 💘 TRINITY 💘 SEMINAR 

👇 Link to Fr. Gilles' Power Point Presentation: 👇

👉  Workshop / Seminar "Introduction to Prayer" -
Saturday, January 28th, 2023 👈

PDF Version of this Power Point Presentation 

INTRO of Father Gilles Surprenant 
by Bridget Bagshaw, Coordinator 

Father Gilles Surprenant in Capernaum, Galilee, Palestine

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 💘 WORKSHOP ON PRAYER 💘 

"The Trinity" by Andrei Rublev - 1411 A.D.

Russian icon 56" x 45" 

This is a 3-Hour WORKSHOP / SEMINAR 

We'll have actual prayer experiences...

... discussion, couple time, Q&A, & breaks...

Last year, afte we prayed a little with couples, they wanted more. Well, this morning we will spend 3 hours exploring prayer. 

You will have opportunity to express any doubts and ask questions. Let this Workshop / Seminar be an adventure; I am your field guide.

Violence, troubles, dangers threaten humanity. Our human condition causes us to suffer insecurities, fears, doubts, and concerns for the future. We endure the faults of others and dislike admitting our own faults. 

The awesome truth is that our Creator God loves us without limits. God gives us freedom because He designed us for friendship love. It is only in learning to love our Maker back that we will be perfectly happy. We can please others but we cannot “make happy” anyone; it is unfair to even expect a human, other  than Jesus, to try to “make us happy”. 

We're off!

WORKSHOP 💘 GOD 💘 LIFE 💘 MARRIAGE 💘 

💘 FAMILY  💘 PRAYER 💘 TRINITY 💘 SEMINAR 

Please join me as we begin with a PRAYER 

OPENING PRAYER 

LED BY FR. GILLES

💘 GOD 💘 LIFE 💘 PRAYER 💘

“Lord, I can’t pray properly. 
I’m weak; I’m human; 
I’m fragile. I’m easily distracted,
taken into thoughts of myself and the world.
But you, Lord, lead me past that.
Help me to pray truly as I am. 

Help me to focus on the Father, the Son,
and You, Holy Spirit,
so that my soul may be opened,
and I can receive the grace that is there
for everyone in prayer. Amen.” 

Prayer published by C. Alan Ames inspired by St. Teresa of Avila

“The Warning: Testimonies and Prophecies of the Illumination of Conscience.” By Christine Watkins, Queen of Peace Media, 2020. Sacramento CA

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METHOD: LIKE WINE TASTING 

or LIKE BEER TASTING

OUR METHODOLOGY :

ADULT LEARNING MODEL

OUR OUTLINE - in 4 segments 

 (1) The human prayer impulse (2) Praying in common 
(3) Praying alone (4) Praying as a couple

WITH GOD... WE ARE ALL BEGINNERS...
WE LEARN BEST TOGETHER...

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Living Prayer 

By Anthony of Sourozh, Metropolitan. Living Prayer: The Pocket Library of Spiritual Wisdom. Foreword, p. 5. Darton, Longman & Todd LTD. Kindle Edition. 

Worship to me means a relationship. I used not to be a believer, then one day I discovered God and immediately he appeared to me to be the supreme value and the total meaning of life, but at the same time a person. I think that worship can mean nothing at all to someone for whom there is no object of worship. You cannot teach worship to someone who has not got a sense of the living God; you can teach him to act as if he believed, but it will not be the spontaneous attitude which is real worship. Therefore, as a foreword to this book on prayer, what I would like to convey is my certitude in the personal reality of a God with whom a relationship can be established. 

Then I would ask my reader to treat God as a neighbour, as someone, and value this knowledge in the same terms in which he values a relationship with a brother or a friend. This, I think, is essential. One of the reasons why communal worship or private prayer seem to be so dead or so conventional is that the act of worship, which takes place in the heart communing with God, is too often missing. Every expression, either verbal or in action, may help, but they are only expressions of what is essential, namely, a deep silence of communion. 

We all know in human relationships that love and friendship are deep when we can be silent with someone. As long as we need to talk in order to keep in touch, we can safely and sadly assume that the relationship is still superficial; and so, if we want to worship God, we must first of all learn to feel happy, being silent together with him. This is an easier thing to do than one might think at first; it needs a little time, some confidence and the courage to start. 

Once the Curé d’Ars, a French saint of the eighteenth century, asked an old peasant what he was doing sitting for hours in the church, seemingly not even praying; the peasant replied: ‘I look at him, he looks at me and we are happy together.’ That man had learned to speak to God without breaking the silence of intimacy by words. If we can do that we can use any form of worship. 

If we try to make worship itself out of the words we use, we will get desperately tired of those words, because unless they have the depth of silence, they are shallow and tiresome. But how inspiring words can be once they are backed by silence and are infused with the right spirit: ‘O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise’ (Ps 51:15). 

1* Adaptation of a talk given on the BBC in the ‘Ten to Eight’ programme first broadcast in 1965.

Anthony of Sourozh, Metropolitan. Living Prayer: The Pocket Library of Spiritual Wisdom (pp. 5-6). Darton, Longman & Todd LTD. Kindle Edition. 

PRAYER RESOURCES

👉 "Beginners' PAGE"

👉 Catholic Christian Tools  page

👉 👉 HOME - https://gillessurprenant.blogspot.com/      

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A few additional texts... reflections.... 

We are created in the IMAGE and LIKENESS of GOD...

God is an infinite "fire" of life-giving love...

Our "soul" / "spirit" in our "center" is a flame of

God within us... God is infinite... so there is in us

a living, dynamic flame of the infinite....

That is why we are never content with just a taste...

something in us wants to...

eat the whole buffet... drink the whole bottle...

completely consume what we love and desire...

A man wants to love every woman in the world...

A woman wants to love every man in the world...

which is why pornography is so dangerous...

not because sex is bad... no, God made us beautiful...

in us is a flame of the infinite, life-giving love-fire of God...

To touch high tension electricity wires is to "fry" and die...

electric power goes through transformers to make it safe...

Human sexuality must also go through a transformer to be safe...

To look at human beauty from a distance is a torturing fire leading to depression and death...

Marriage is the "transformer" that makes our intimate loving safe and life-giving and it takes place in the presence of God. 

For a detailed exploration of this theme, go to…

“LIVING IN THE IMAGE and LIKENESS of GOD”

by Father Ron Rolheiser 

https://vimeo.com/showcase/8489527?page=3   

Father Ron Rolheiser’s website: https://ronrolheiser.com/ 

or see his books - contact:  Samia at   https://theologia.ca/ 

For the remainder of the workshop / seminar, see the Power Point presentation :

👇 Link to Fr. Gilles' Power Point Presentation: 👇

👉  Workshop / Seminar "Introduction to Prayer" -
Saturday, January 28th, 2023 👈

PDF Version of this Power Point Presentation 

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PERSPECTIVE - Victor Frankl's discovery about who survived and who didn't in the Nazi concentration camps - "Man's Search for Meaning" 

= the freedom we have to "choose" our interior attitude to life 

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GO TO CATHOLIC CHRISTIAN TOOLS PAGE

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS 

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In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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© 2006-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC 

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LINKS : GOD - LIFE - MARRIAGE - FAMILY - GOD

In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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LINKS èç GOD èç LIFE èç MARRIAGE èç FAMILY  èç GOD èç LINKS

1.      In life, how do we connect the dots…? What are the links between GOD – YOU – LIFE – MARRIAGE – FAMILY – GOD? - Link to Beginners' Page

2.      What has been your experience of God? Interiority? Prayer? Spiritual things?

1)    Are you familiar or comfortable with your interior life?

2)    Perhaps you’ve never really thought much about your interior life?

3)    Do you find the idea or reality of your interior life challenging or frightening?

4)    Where are you with regards to your interiority at this point in your life?

5)    Have you and your fiancé shared about your respective interior life?

3.      We obtain knowledge by thinking / learning and through experience. We need both.

4.      A spiritual exercise in PRAYER – whether or not you pray regularly           (10 to 15 minutes)

1)    Read these instructions through first, prepare and set a timer, and then go ahead.

2)    Sit comfortably, hands resting on your knees… Back & head straight…      & relax…

3)    Be still… adjusting your body in any way you need to in order to let go & relax…

4)    Pay attention to your interior landscape as if you were driving in the country…

5)    If all is quiet and peaceful, lovely… now focus on a kind image of God or Jesus

6)    If all is not quiet, notice the noise, words, echoes, whatever comes along…

Acknowledge it briefly and let it go; focus again on a kind image of God or Jesus

7)    If you are on familiar terms with God or Jesus; then have a good visit with Him.
If you are not on familiar terms with God or Jesus, consider this an introduction.
He is very interested in having a personal relationship with you: it’s always up to you.

8)    You always get to decide how open you want to be with the Creator & Saviour….

9)    Now you’ll have 7 minutes of silence….  

10) When your timer rings, stop it; then you can choose to continue in silence or stop. 

5.      Your connection with God will become more real and personal as you make silence and prayer a regular part of your day as a spiritual exercise, an exercise of your spirit. It is within our spirit that God connects with us because God is SPIRIT and not flesh. Yes, Jesus took on flesh, a human nature, when He was conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit. As Son of God, though, Jesus is SPIRIT like the Father and the Holy Spirit. God created us human beings with an “empty space” in the center of our self, our identity, our soul or spirit and this space is designed to receive the mysterious divine presence of God the Holy Trinity. When God dwells within us, we become most perfectly human.

6.      The whole adventure of life begins with you, with me… because that is how God designed life on Earth for humanity. Jesus didn’t come to reform the Roman Empire or even the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. He came to help people, one person at a time, even in speaking to crowds, so that all those who want to encounter God can decide to accept to enter into a personal relationship with the Father through Jesus and with the help of the Holy Spirit. From this point of departure, we can experience how God wants to enrich all our relationships with others, beginning with our own family of origin, and then through marriage, developing our own family as a couple for the flowering of family life. 

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1.      Why bother with God at all? What if God isn’t real? Cf. Catholic Answers.com / Bishop Barron YouTube

2.      How can we possibly get to know God? How can we be known by God? Cf. Christian Disciplines for RC’s

3.      If one would like to pray, how does one start? Alone? As a couple? As a family? 

4.      If prayer is a divine fire, just putting the kindling and logs together isn’t enough. We need a spark or match or lighter to produce the first flame. What’s a spiritual match, lighter, or spark?

(1)   The Book of Psalms in the Old Testament of the Bible

(2)   The Gospels and Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament of the Bible

(3)   The Wisdom books in the Old Testament

(4)   The Letters of Paul, Peter, John, James & Jude in the New Testament

(5)   These are a good start, and then there’s a lot more. 

5.      Is it possible to get coaching or mentoring in prayer and in the spiritual life? 

(1)   The most personal opportunity to experience the healing power of God’s love and to be interiorly touched personally by God is in the Sacrament of Penance / Reconciliation, which is also called Confession and is available from all priests in the R.C. Church. Just find a priest you can trust or with whom you may feel comfortable and ask him.

(2)   The Ignatian Center of Montreal in NDG provides Prayer Companions

(3)   The Ignatian Center of Montreal in NDG also provides Spiritual Directors

(4)   You can obtain spiritual direction on various retreat experiences in retreat centers

(5)   You can ask your parish priest

(6)   Your parish may provide spiritual exercises that might help you

(7)   Our Church provides many opportunities for formation, learning, and accompaniment

6.      What are the essentials of prayer? The acronym ACTS can help you remember easily.

(1)   Adoration: expressing reverence for God by attitude, posture, words, interior disposition

(2)   Contrition: expressing to God sincere regret for wrongs / sins / omissions / neglect

(3)   Thanksgiving: giving thanks to God for his benefits we notice and those we haven’t

(4)   Supplication: putting our needs and requests and those of others to God – He already knows, but we need to exercise our desire in order to get ready for his answer 

7.      What different kinds or methods or styles of prayer are there? Answer: an almost infinite variety

(1)   Prayerfully reading and pondering the inspired Word of God in Sacred Scripture: the Bible

(2)   Prayerfully participating in the various Sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist / Mass

(3)   Praying and meditating on the Mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary

(4)   Praying the Liturgy of the Hours, also called the Divine Office or The Breviary

(5)   Occupational Prayer: shooting short prayer phrases to God in the midst of daily occupations

(6)   The Prayer of Silence or Contemplation: silently welcoming the Holy Trinity as interior Guests

(7)   Various forms of meditation: relating personally to work of religious art as a window to God

(8)   Calling on a saint to keep you company and help you to pray to God: e.g. Mary in the Rosary

(9)   Many, many more…. e.g. Ignatian Prayer, Carmelite Prayer, Franciscan Prayer…. 

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In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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© 2006-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC 

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Marriage Bibliography – Some Good Reading

In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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Marriage Bibliography – Some Good Reading

LISTED ALPHABETICALLY

These 3 categories are actually interchangeable – these books are useful at all times in married life.

Marriage Enrichment

1.      A Couple After God’s Own Heart. Building a Lasting, Loving Marriage Together. Interactive Workbook. By Jim & Elizabeth George. Harvest House, Eugene OR 2012 (based on the book)

2.      For Better… Forever! – A Catholic Guide to Lifelong Marriage. By Gregory K. Popcak. Our Sunday Visitor, Huntington, IN 2008

3.      Embracing God’s Plan for Marriage. A Scripture Study for Couples. By Mark and Melanie Hart. The Word Among Us, Frederick, MD 2012

4.      Holy Marriage, Happy Marriage. Faith-Filled Ways to a Better Relationship. By Chris & Linda Padgett. Servant Books, Cincinnati, OH 2015

5.      A Marriage Made for Heaven. – The Secrets of Heavenly Couplehood. – A Marriage Enrichment Experience for the Parish and Small Groups. By Gregory K. Popcak, and Lisa A. Popcak. Crossroad, N.Y. 2009

Marriage Preparation

6.      Catholic Marriage. An Intimate Community of Life and Love. By Patricia Murphy. Novalis, Toronto, ON 2011

7.      Good News about Sex & Marriage. Answers to Your Honest Questions about Catholic Teaching. By Christopher West. Servant Books, Cincinnati, OH 2013

8.      Marriage. The Mystery of Faithful Love. By Dietrich von Hildebrand. Sophia Institute Press, Manchester, NH 1997

9.      Sharing Christ’s Priesthood. A Bible Study for Catholics. By Mike Aquilina. Lambing Press, Pittsburgh, PA 2009 

Recently Married

10. Domestic Monastery. By Ronald Rolheiser. Paraclete Press, Brewster, MA 2019

11. Just Married. The Catholic Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the First Five Years of Marriage. By Dr. Greg and Lisa Popcak. Ave Maria Press, Notre Dame, IN 2013

 

For more resources, feel free to contact our Team giving our Marriage Preparation Course “From This Day Forward”: Bridget Bagshaw <BBagshaw@diocesemontreal.org>

 

OR our Diocesan Center for Marriage, Life, and the Family at: 514-925-4300 ext. 232

Ellen Roderick <ERoderick@diocesemontreal.org>

Katerine Perrault <KPerrault@diocesemontreal.org> 

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In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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© 2006-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC 

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Developing an Attitude of Service

In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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Developing an Attitude of Service

Before marriage, I dreamed about how happy I would be when we got married.  I had visions of all the wonderful things my wife would do for me.  Sausage and eggs together in the mornings.  Candlelight dinners at night.  Holding hands all day long and sex every night.  I assumed that she had the same visions.  But, after marriage I found out that my wife didn't do mornings.  So much for the sausage and eggs.  She anticipated that I would take her out to romantic restaurants for dinner, not as a prelude to sex, but simply because I loved her.  

I expressed my disappointment with her and she expressed her disappointment with me.  We succeeded in being utterly miserable.  Our marriage didn't turn around overnight, but it did turn around.  And so can yours.  I want to share the secret.  It all has to do with attitude. 

Jesus' life and teachings focused on sacrificial service to others.  He once said, "I did not come to be ministered to, but to minister."  It is a theme that all truly great men and women of the past have affirmed.  Life's greatest meaning is not found in getting, but in giving.  This profound principle made a significant difference in my marriage.  

Developing an attitude of service is not easy but the rewards are overwhelmingly positive.  Few people will run away from someone who is serving them. My wife was no exception.  When I reached out to serve her, it wasn't long before she was reaching out to me.  Jesus had it right!  Why did it take me so long to learn? 

How would a wife respond to a husband who sincerely sought to serve her?  In my desperation I was determined to find out.  I set myself to discovering her needs and desires and sought to fulfill them.  I began quietly and slowly to do some of the things she had requested in the past.  

You see, by now we were too estranged to talk about our relationship, but I could choose to take action on some of her previous complaints. I started washing dishes without being asked.  I volunteered to fold the clothes.  It seemed to me these were the kind of things Jesus might have done had He been married.

When she made specific requests, I determined to respond cheerfully and if possible to do them.  
In less than three months, my wife's attitude toward me began to change.  She came out of her shell of withdrawal and began to talk again.  I think she sensed that my days of preaching were over and that my attitude toward her was changing.  Genuine acts of service seldom go unrewarded. Before long, our hostility was gone, and we began to have positive feelings toward each other.

You see, if I believe that it is more blessed to give than to receive; that serving my spouse is more important than being served; that my best end is found in making her life better, then it will affect the way I treat her.  When she sees this attitude expressed in my behaviour she knows that something has changed.  If I am consistent, then service becomes a lifestyle. 

Most wives and husbands are attracted to someone who shows genuine concern for them.  The person who follows the example of Jesus – in serving others – is on the road to greatness and to a growing marriage relationship.  

Adapted from The Family You've Always Wanted: Five Ways You Can Make It Happen  by Dr. Gary Chapman. To find out more about Dr. Chapman's resources, visit https://www.5lovelanguages.com/

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In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

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© 2006-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC 

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