Keynote by Fr. Anthony Gittins

These are just musings that I garnered from Fr. Gittins keynote. Please notify me if this is not an accurate summation of the keynote.

People of Conversion with Missionary Hearts…
“God says I am about to create a new heaven and a new earth…contigent partly on our own response. As Isaiah states his own dissatisfaction with the status quo, we are called to challenge ours as well.” This summation from Fr. Anthony Gittins keynote address has laid for the challenge to call forth action and to refuse to let ourselves be staid.
Challenge: over the next 24 hours, as we experience – we need to identify how we think differently and how we will resolve to act differently. Please think how we will act, make a suggestion to the USCMA of what you will do.
Two tasks:
Identify and name appropriate mission tasks:
New image is common in Hebrew scriptures- God will do a new thing—A call to move beyond. The new is similar to the old without dramatic changes. Some novelty.
We need to commit to the life of the mission or this is just a weekend break for us here in New Orleans.

Applying the lesson is easy. Our passionate life in missions a prerequisite. We are to examine our well-meaning intentions to stifle the work and spirit of God and others. It is our issue in mission when we refuse to let God be God, in missions and in institutions. We can no longer speak on the Spirit’s behalf or to muzzle the Spirit. When we act as instruments, then we are at our most vulnerable, risk taking and authentically missioned. Do not resist the Spirit!
For many the Holy Spirit remains elusive. It is easy to pray, “Come Holy Spirit and renew the face of the earth” but to live and allow the Holy Spirit to renew is where we fail! In our effort to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision of the new heaven to dim.

Women have a place in this church and we are being called by the Spirit to recognize marginalized people, regardless of gender. How will we advocate for the Spirit to assure the welcome and recognition of all people? Lay voices continue to be muted and unheard in our church. Ministry is what legitimately needs the need of the people.

In the early church people were committed to living simply and humbly with one another. 2000 years later, we are reminded and relished by the words of the prophets and Spiritus attempts to bring reform in our time. Oscar Romero, ...
IS the distrust of the laity a sign of distrust of the Holy Spirit? This question was posed at a conference 10 years ago, it is still a question applicable today.

The way that God's spirit constantly tries to shape and disturb us.