I hit a huge problem at work yesterday; in November there is a retreat that I am supposed to plan and direct, a very important retreat having to do with Sacramental preparation.
The retreat is currently scheduled during the 3rd weekend of November; that is the weekend I am at class. I can't skip class - because it would be the equivalent of skipping 6 weeks or so of class.
I notified the Pastor yesterday of the conflict and asked if we have any options. He did state very directly that it's not something that can go on without my presence, so we are going to meet this afternoon to talk about it and see what we can do.
I have looked at the church calender; quite honestly, I've never seen such a full calender in my life. There are NO options. This is officially an impossible situation.
And yes, I took this problem to Adoration yesterday afternoon and I will do so again today before my meeting with the Pastor.
Please pray with me that our meeting will go well and that we will find a way out of this mess!
UPDATE! ~ I met with the Pastor this afternoon as planned, and things went well. As it turned out, the only reason they hadn't originally chosen the previous weekend was because he was supposed to lead a pilgrimage. Since the pilgrimage didn't happen, he still has the weekend available. So the conflict has been officially removed! And there are no space issues...those are also resolved!
PRAISE GOD! And thanks for your prayers!
21 comments:
adoro:
Can the class be taped, so you can watch it later? Praying.
Tara ~ It's not a sit-and-watch retreat. It's my job to put the retreat together and put the retreat on for the parents and kids. Basically, I'm running the show.
~ Adoro
Adoro: Sounds like a job for the "undoer of knots"? I'm on it!
I had the same conflict with my own Masters Program and First Communion Mass because the date chosen was the ONLY open date when the priest was going to be available.
You might find out if you could miss part of one day or something. That was my final solution, I missed the first morning but got there by noon so I could get back to learning after lunch.
angelmeg ~ Missing is not an option - Missing one day is the equivalent of missing 6 weeks of Old Testament. Which would mean dropping out. Which would cause me to lose my scholarship and I'd have to quit school because I can't make up the difference. The program I'm in is very specific and abscences are NOT allowed, both for accreditation purposes and practicality because it's a non-traditional program. There is no way to make up the time and the schedule of the retreat directly coincides with the hours on both Friday night and Saturday morning that I would be in class.
But in any case, it worked out and we're doing it the previous weekend. Initially it was planned differently because Father was going to be on a pilgrimage that didn't work out.
God is good!
~ Adoro
Tara ~ sorry, realized I misread your question. The classes are taped by a lot of students, but the profs have made it clear that it simply isn't really practical to sit through 6 hours of lecture on audio tape, which may or may not have recorded properly.
If it were a matter of an hour or so, things can work out. But missing the 6 hours of lecture or so simply can't be made up.
~ Adoro
Prayers coming your way.
By the way, we went to Museo Picasso today. And guess what painting caught our eye? It's quite beautiful in real life. The detail even from across the room is so realistic.
Anyway you could put together a volunteer team as "proctors" for your retreat who could be "in persona Adoro" for six hours or so?
Ray, due to the storm I can't update my post and I shouldn't even be online. But to answer your question, first check above comments....the problem is resolved. Thank you.
Secondly....no, the volunteers are already there and are experienced people. But it is my JOB to coordinate the entire thing, to direct it, etc. That's quite literally what they pay me to do; my presence cannot be left to a team of volunteers. If it could, they would first of all never volunteer because the work involved in this endeavor would absolutely floor any volunteer. So they'd all quit. (My job title, after all, is "Coordinator")
~ Adoro
Glad the problem is resolved! There is always more than one or two solutions--glad it worked out.
YEAH!
and so it begins ... the saga of he grad student with the full-time job. there will be more conflicts - step back and watch the Lord work!
That's good news..just out of interest what does Pastor mean? i hope you don't mind me asking but i'm English & it sounds kind of Protestant!
I assure you, it's completely Catholic, as is the Church.
It means the priest who is formally in charge of the parish. It is his formal title in the "business" of the parish, and of course, with regard to the sacramens...he is our Shepherd.
The parish I work at has only 1 priest currently, but used to also have an Associate. So they were titled "Pastor" And "Associate Pastor". My home parish is very large and has 3 priests...so their are differentiated by title: Pastor, Associate, and it's either another Associate Pastor or he might be the Parochial Vicar (as my parish has a school so there might be specific duties assigned to one priest with regard to that).
Hope that helps! It's common here and there are many priests who refer to this formal title as "Pastor".
If the Protestants hadn't hijacked the term, well, there wouldn't be any confusion. It is certainly more Catholic than Protestant in terminology, that is for certain.
~ Adoro
Jackie,
I had no idea the English didn't use the term "pastor."
It's what every single priest in charge of a parish is known as in the US.
My pastor is Father Frank Phillips, CR.
All the other priests at my parish are the "Associate Pastors."
Oh, and Adoro ---
Amazing! What a great story that made me smile.
:)
We don't use 'pastor' in NZ either... here it is a term that will be used in evangelical fundamental type congregations. We have the 'parish priest' and the 'curate'. But these days where a parish is lucky to have one priest let alone two, 'curate' is not used as much as when I was growing up.
Kiwi,
What is the curate's function?
How does one call the priest who's in charge of the parish?
(Or is that the curate?)
I've always wondered what a vicar is, too.
Here, the protestants use "Pastor" as a term of address.
We would never do that.
"This is Father Phillips, the pastor of St. John's."
The parish priest is the one in charge... the curate was what the young priest in the parish was called when I was a child. "vicar" is an Anglican (Church of England) term for the minister in charge of a parish.
In th words of my then four year old daughter, when I had been struggling to get our car out of the driveway onto a busy highway and in frustration prayed for heavenly assitance.
When a huge hole in the traffic opened up and we moved out onto the highway the angelic child in the carseat behind me said:
"Duh mom, all you had to do was ask!"
Oh to have the faith of a child, when we need for things to go our way to do His will, why wouldn't He help that to happen?
LOL! I love it! And so true!
I often wish I had such faith.
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