Introduction

Why are you here?

That’s a cosmological question! But in this manual, it is a practical and pointed question. Something led you to the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, some time in the past. After reflection and discernment, you can name that “something” as the Holy Spirit. You are here because you were called. We’re not simply talking about membership. We’re talking about vocation.

Just as baptism and confirmation do not instantly transform anyone into a fully mature Catholic, the MCA Act of Consecration does not produce a fully formed associate. It is a commitment that matures through the grind of daily life. It is shaped by events in your personal life, events in your local MCA, in your parish, in society, in the Church. The MCA you once joined is not the same, any more than the world is the same. Does the MCA still work for you? Have you kept up with the changes? Is this still your vocation?

This study guide is designed to be used by a group, preferably an established MCA. There are three desired outcomes:
•	The quality of monthly meetings improves. What might that look like? It could mean more balanced sharing, more focused sharing, sharing that is more relevant to the core purpose of the MCA, more individual responsibility for the functioning of the group.
•	The individuals and the group as a whole are inspired and animated by their Catholic faith and by MCA membership. What might that feel like? This is an opportunity for renewal, to recapture the fervor that led you to join the MCA. It might even lead to new vocations.
•	The members are updated on the content of their core documents. The Constitution and Rule of Life have changed many times over the decades. The initial motivation for this study guide was born out of evidence of a widespread failure to understand and use current core documents.

To sum up, the ultimate purpose of this manual is to help us better live out our common vocation in a specifically Cenacle way: to preserve the Faith among those who are spiritually neglected and abandoned, and to help every Catholic be an apostle.

How to Use this Study Guide

Using this study guide will require commitment. The details of that commitment are outlined below. The nine sessions in this booklet are intended to be used over the course of a year by an established group. The group should not launch into this series without some preliminary discussion and taking of counsel.

The guide can also be used by groups with candidates for purposes of formation, as long as some explanation is provided. It is important to explain that these meetings would be different from typical meetings in which members share about their apostolates and daily providence and take counsel together.

Private Reflection
You are committing to read the brief reflection and take a little time reflecting on the questions before every meeting. You will not be expected to share on these questions at the meeting. You should note your thoughts, journal style, nevertheless. This will help you reflect on the entire process during the course of the series.

Meeting Basics
An opening prayer is provided. Every meeting should close with the business of planning the next meeting. A secretary is needed to take notes on general feedback about the process and the material. This is because you may discover that you need to come back to some questions or material at a later time. 

This is designed to be a group process and not simply an individual process. If anyone misses a meeting, someone who was present should agree to contact him or her. Provide a few remarks about what happened at the meeting, and give an update on the next meeting. If you miss a meeting, you should read and reflect on that meeting content before the next meeting, in order to keep up with the group. And of course, you’ll need  to do the reflection for the upcoming meeting.

How to work through the “Reading from Our Documents”
You may or may not choose to review the document readings before the meeting. At the meeting, you should take turns slowly reading aloud each section. Pause as indicated to discuss the material.

First, clarify. Simply touch bases to see if everyone understands the meaning. There may be no “clarifying” needed sometimes, while other times it might provoke lengthy discussion.

Next, share. Keep an eye on the clock while you do, however. You can’t get too deep about every reading or you won’t finish. Try to keep your sharing brief and focused.

How to Conclude the Meeting
It’s hard to know how much material is too much for one session. Please do your best to read and discuss, even if only briefly, all the document articles for each session. You need to feel free to make adjustments that work for you.

So, you may have to make the choice to cut off discussion of some material because you’re out of time. But, please do not cut off the “Conclusions” section! Always make time to stop at the end and briefly review how you’re feeling, what you’re thinking. This doesn’t have to take very long, but it’s very important. This is where the Holy Spirit may be speaking, both to you personally and to the group as a whole. Listen to each other without commenting or challenging.

Work in the Workbook
This manual contains complete copies of the MCA Rule of Life and Constitution, and the MCA Norms and Policies.	Mark up your study guide. Write in the margins, take notes during meetings, add miscellaneous articles, prayers, or handouts that are meaningful to you. Do whatever helps you.

Thank You
This project was conceived and developed by Patricia Regan MCA and Deborah Wilson MSBT, in 2011. At that time, Pat was Regional Custodian and Deb was Spiritual Guide for Incarnation Region. We would like to thank our contributors: Barbara McIntyre MSBT (Session 2), Mary Kay McDonald MSBT (Session 3), Christine Wiltrakis MSBT (Session 4), Theresa Bretthauer MSBT (Session 5), and Susanne Thibault MSBT (Session 7). All of them said “yes” right away when asked to help, and all of them came through wonderfully and on time!

We would also like to thank the members of Trinita Missionary Cenacle in New Hartford, CT. This long-established MCA faithfully completed this series as a pilot project and provided valuable feedback. Thank you to associates Bernie Dalpe, Ed Dalpe, Becky Kent, Anita Panagakos, Bill Panagakos, and candidates Roberta Armand, Caryl Puccino, and Tony Puccino.

And thank you for your willingness to undertake this journey. Through your vocation you have already given much to God’s mission. We pray this endeavor will strengthen you for whatever your future works may be.

Patricia Regan MCA
Deborah Wilson MSBT
Fall 2014

Session #1: Regrounding
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “Going to the Ground Again”

Yesterday I was digging through a drawer looking for a notepad. Instead, I found the notebook in which I had written reflections from a retreat I made four years ago. Oh, wow. The issues I was working on during that retreat are things I am still working on! It made me wonder: if I had come back to the retreat experience more often in the past few years, would I have made better progress by now?

“Regrounding” sounds more interesting than “back to the basics,” but that is essentially what this nine session series is about. Every so often we need to stop charging ahead, stop seeking out the next new thing that will dazzle, puzzle, or entertain. Every so often, we need to go back to the ground and taste again the waters that first nourished us.

Going back may feel like going backward. There is nothing new here, not really. What has really changed over the years is not the approved MCA documents, though of course there have been some updating and revisions in recent years. No, what has really changed... is you.

This year of regrounding is a gift for you and your local Missionary Cenacle. It is a time to step back from the normal succession of meetings which focus on one article or devotion or virtue after another. It is a time to focus instead on the big picture. What is the MCA now? Would I still be attracted to it if I were only just learning about it for the first time today? How have I grown in my vocation, and how have I failed to grow?

Questions will surely emerge as we work through these sessions together. Some questions may be painful, others may inspire, and many may remain unanswered. But questions are good. It means we’re still learning, still growing, still hungering for more. Questions mean we are still alive, we still care!

Let’s “begin with the end in mind.” Working though these sessions as a group will reground the group itself as well as the individuals within it. It’s not by magic, of course. Commitment and work will be involved. We must choose at times to act with a confidence we don’t really feel. Perhaps this is one of those times. Trust the process, and trust the others in the group. And, of course, trust the power of the Holy Spirit.

“You are here through the Holy Spirit. We have been lifted up just as marvelously as Habacuc, if not by the hair of our heads, at least drawn into solitude. The same Spirit that found Jesus in the desert is the efficacious cause of our being here. I could give many reasons for my not being here and I think you could too. We can say, “Lord, here we are.” (MCM, p. 172)

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	What do I remember about my act of consecration? What feelings? What story would I tell about it?

2.	What is my history with the group with which I am now meeting? What do I anticipate will be hard about doing this process with these particular people? What do I think will be the graces from doing it with them?

3.	What is my best moment or best period of time as a consecrated member of the MCA? What experience(s) do I look back on that inspire gratitude for my vocation?

Session #1: Regrounding
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture	John 15:15-17
No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing. I call you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you. You didn’t choose me,  I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit– fruit that lasts, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. This is what I command you: to love one another.

Father Judge		Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 184
All through the Gospels we find our Lord using souls as His instruments for good. The great Mystery of the Incarnation, at the beginning of His life in this world, bears witness to the fact that the human agent may participate in divine work. It is His will, understand, that this fire should scatter, that it should scatter through you and you may thank God for this grace, for your selection. It should give you, certainly, a holy joy and tremendous pleasure to think that you have been so chosen by the Almighty, that his Holy Spirit is to burn in you for others, and to be communicated through you to others.
How is this to be done? You are to inspire others to this Cenacle spirit. There is no problem about the extension of the Missionary Cenacle. The only problem is to keep in your heart the Cenacle spirit. The program and methods of the Missionary Cenacle are all worked out; you have your rules (you have) those different works, the preventive work, reclamation work, and so on. The great problem is this: being right with the Cenacle spirit.

Prayer
God our Father, we offer you this time together. Send us your Spirit to guide us as we seek to fan the flames you have scattered in our hearts. We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule  34;  Norms 3.2,  3.5.1-7
Part 2:		Rule  19, 19.1;  Norms 4.1.1;  Rule 29;  Norms  4.1.2,  4.5.1-9
Part 3:		Rule 41, 42;  Norms 7.6.1-5

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #1

Part 1

From Rule of Life
Cenacles
34.  A Missionary Cenacle is a local unit of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate. It shall be officially established by MCA authority and governed according to MCA Norms and Policies.  

from Norms and Policies
3.2	Qualities of Members include:
•		a love of God and neighbor;	
•		eagerness to serve others;	
•		a spirit of sacrifice;	
•		an attraction to the Missionary Cenacle spirituality as a way of life;	
•		a desire to be part of an apostolic community;	
•		willingness to make the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate a priority;	
•		availability of time and freedom to fulfill the responsibilities of membership;	
•		a maturity appropriate to one’s age.	

3.5  Responsibilities of Members
3.5.1  Both Associates and Candidates have the responsibility to: 
•		attend regularly the meetings of the local Cenacle, the days of recollection, and the annual retreat;	
•		bear witness to their faith in their daily lives and engage in apostolic works; 	
•		become familiar with, and abide by the Rule of Life and Constitution, and Norms and Policies of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate and continue their spiritual and apostolic development;	
•		support the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate Stewardship program with their time, talent, and treasure; 	
•		develop and use their gifts including their gifts for leadership; 		
•		be accountable to Cenacle authority for their Cenacle service; and  	
•		promote vocations to the various branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family.	

Clarifying
Is there anything here which might need explanation to someone new to the MCA?

Sharing
Is there anything surprising in this? Which of the bullet points do I value most?

Part 2

from Rule of Life
19.  We are to come together regularly to glorify the Triune God through common prayer. We pray individually and collectively to promote greater zeal in the apostolate, more supportive community life and stronger bonds within the Missionary Cenacle Family.

19.1  Cenacles are encouraged to come together frequently for a communal day of recollection.

From Norms and Policies
4.1 Nature and Purpose of Cenacles
4.1.1  Missionary Cenacles are small communities of apostolic lay men and women, guided by the Holy Spirit, for the purpose of continuing the mission of Jesus. Missionary Cenacles provide mutual support for their members as they seek the will of God in the context of Christian community.

From Rule of Life
29.  We pledge to respect the authority of the Custodians in everything that pertains to the integrity of our act of consecration, the observance of our Rule of Life, Constitution and Norms and Policies.

From Norms and Policies
4.1.2  A Missionary Cenacle is a local unit of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.  It shall be officially established by MCA authority and governed according to MCA Norms and Policies.

4.5.1  The purpose of Cenacle meetings is to provide mutual support for its members in order that they might grow in holiness, live an apostolic life, and form community.
4.5.2  Cenacles shall meet twice a month unless it is unduly burdensome to do so, in which case, they shall meet once a month.
4.5.3  One monthly meeting shall be devoted to sharing the experiences of apostolic life, planning or evaluating apostolic works, and developing a mission plan or evaluating its effectiveness.
4.5.4  One monthly meeting shall be devoted to reflection on Cenacle spirituality.
4.5.5  Cenacles that meet once a month shall devote adequate time for prayer, reflection on Cenacle spirituality, and sharing the experiences of apostolic life.
4.5.6  Cenacles are encouraged to meet periodically on a social basis in order to foster a spirit of community.
4.5.7  Cenacles shall meet in council on a regular basis, especially whenever important decisions are to be made.  They are to pray for enlightenment to know God’s will and for the fortitude to carry it out.
4.5.8 Any personal sharing is to remain confidential and is not to be divulged outside of the Cenacle.
4.5.9  Each Cenacle shall conduct an annual review of its apostolic works.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Every Cenacle adapts the norms to their own particular circumstances. Which of the norms in Section 4.5 work well for us? What one norm might I choose as a good one for us to try to grow into?

Part 3

From Rule of Life
41.  Jesus is the Way and the Truth and the Life. The Rule of Life and Constitution help us to walk in this Way, to live this Truth and to find this Life. The Associates shall esteem the Rule of Life and Constitution, hold them sacred and keep them faithfully. They shall read them, meditate upon them and aspire to live them.

42.  Fidelity to our vocation demands that we continue our spiritual, apostolic, academic, personal and social development within our common goals and mission. We have gifts that differ according to the favor bestowed on each of us (Rom. 12:6). We are to encourage one another to discover, develop, and use our gifts, lest the grace of God be given in vain (1 Cor. 15:10). This is a lifelong process and, as we advance in age, we are to follow Jesus ever more faithfully in the power of the Spirit until that day when, with him, we enter into the glory of the Father.

From Norms and Policies
7.6  The Continued Formation of Associates
7.6.1 Associates have the major responsibility for continuing their own spiritual formation and development.
7.6.2  Associates are expected to continue deepening their study and practice of the Cenacle Rule of Life so as to grow in an ever greater love of God and neighbor.
7.6.3  Associates shall be given various opportunities for leadership development.
7.6.4  Special workshops for the training of Custodians and Spiritual Guides shall be provided in every region.
7.6.5  Associates shall renew their Act of Consecration annually.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t really understand?

Sharing
What in these articles do I find inspiring or encouraging?

Session #2: Taking Counsel, Discernment
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “Taking Counsel:  Why Bother?”

Council and taking counsel can be for us an unquestioned, almost impossible ideal. Why bother?  Asking why we bother reminds us of the real value beneath our reverential attitude toward council. We value it because we value the leading of the Holy Spirit. We value following God’s will. It’s worth the work of going through the process to TRY to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice in others, in the information and in the process.

Fr. Judge was insistent that the Custodians take counsel and meet in Council (with others in the Cenacle).  In his letters to the early Custodians we can hear him demanding that they do nothing without taking counsel, and that they ought to meet at least once a month.  As early as his meeting with the first six women of the cenacle in Brooklyn (1909) Fr. Judge was saying, “your ideas may be better than my own, by all means let us have them.” “Every associate was permitted a voice in the Council although not everyone’s suggestions could be implemented in every case.” (Sr. Joseph Miriam Blackwell, Ecclesial People.)  

Why was Fr. Judge so insistent about this? His Vincentian training, his own family’s practice of listening to one another before decisions, and his own experiences of making mistakes as a young priest, all had taught him to check out his impulses to see if they were truly of the Holy Spirit. So taking counsel is an indispensable method of bringing out all aspects of a situation and of trying to discern the Spirit’s leading (God’s will).  And how do we do it? Through regular prayer to the Holy Spirit, through spiritual direction and confession, and communally with others in our local cenacle.

In the MSBT each sister belongs to a Local Council, but not all Local Council meetings involve taking counsel. Often they are planning meetings, faith sharing, or prayer meetings. These are good of course, but taking counsel implies there are decisions to be made by the group or by one of the persons in the group–at times one important decision. So not every meeting of a group may involve taking counsel. 

Depending on the decision to be made, there are particular people with whom we ought to take counsel: spouse, family members or friends, spiritual directors, work associates, members of our Cenacle Family. Even when the process does not seem to yield clarity, the time and energy spent in taking counsel is never wasted, because it serves to strengthen trust and communication in these important relationships.

“Why is it that the Holy Spirit is so little known?  It is because the Holy Spirit does not guide the councils of men. If he does not guide the councils of men, He does not guide their hearts.”   Conference to Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, April 17, 1921 MF 8669

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	Can you recall a time when you took counsel with another person or group regarding an important decision? 

2.	Taking counsel in a group means we state our opinions and thoughts then let go in order to hear others and hear the voice of the Spirit. How do you feel about that process?

3. 	Is there something which is an obstacle to your attending and responding to the Spirit’s voice? Is the Spirit prodding you to do something more? 

Session #2: Taking Counsel, Discernment
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture	Isaiah 30:19-21
Yes, people of Zion, dwelling in Jerusalem, you shall no longer weep;
He will be most gracious to you when you cry out; as soon as he hears he will answer you. The Lord will give you bread in adversity and water in affliction.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself, but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you: “This is the way; walk in it,”
when you would turn to the right or the left.

Father Judge		Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 262
…be on your guard lest there be any departure from the simplicity and tranquility and Christlike charity that has ever been in evidence in our Cenacles.
Remember, an argumentative or disputative spirit is not ours. Like the Apostles in the upper Chamber, the first Cenacle, all our deliberations are marked by a peaceful and charitable and prayerful presentation of reasons. The rest we leave to the direction of the Holy Spirit. “For it hath seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us.”(Acts 15:28) This should be the sentiment actuating all your councils. All those acts of human expedience will never have place in your deliberations. I thank God that until this day He has saved us from this, and I humbly pray His Divine Majesty to save us always from this blight.

Prayer
God our Father, we offer you this time together. Send us your Spirit to guide us as we seek to fan the flames you have scattered in our hearts. Help us to grow in the practice of taking counsel. We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule 18, 18.1, 3o
Part 2:		Rule  33;  Norms and Policies 3.4.2, 3.6.4, 4.2.6, 5.1.2, 6.1.2 (1-5), 6.1.4

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....	
As we end this session, I feel....	
As we end this session, I have learned....	
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?
	
Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:		
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:		
•		Who will contact absent members?		

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #2

Part 1

from Rule of Life
18.  Periodically we shall seek extended times of prayer and recollection. We are to make an annual retreat. In order that we may be more attentive to the lights and impulses of the Holy Spirit in our following of Christ and in our continuing formation, we are encouraged to seek spiritual guidance from a person well-versed in Cenacle spirituality.
18.1  Spiritual Guides shall be appointed for the well-being of the MCA as directed by the Norms and Policies.

30.  Relying on the Holy Spirit, we are to seek together to discover God's will in a climate of respect and trust. With genuine love, we help each other to grow in apostolic holiness through mutual encouragement and appropriate accountability for our Cenacle responsibilities.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
What does (or should) encouragement and accountability look like in our local MCA? 

Part 2

from Rule of Life
33.   The practice of taking counsel is a cherished tradition in the Missionary Cenacle. After prayer and counsel, we humbly accept the decision of those in authority.

From Norms and Policies
3.4.2  Associates have the right to:
•		elect officers;	
•		hold elected office in the local Missionary Cenacle; 	
•		hold elected office at the regional and general levels; 	
•		fulfill the role of Spiritual Guide; 	
•		participate in taking counsel in the local Cenacle;	
•		appeal a local Cenacle decision to the Regional Custodian and/or General Custodian; and 	
•		perpetual remembrance in the prayers for deceased members in the Missionary Cenacle Ordo.	

3.6.4  A member may make private vows, in counsel with his/her spiritual director, and remain in the MCA.  The specific nature of the vows shall be determined by the member and his/her spiritual director.

4.2.6  Members of the newly formed Cenacle will take counsel to select its name.  A review of other Cenacle names within its region will offer examples.

5.1.2  Daily prayer to the Holy Spirit asking for the gifts and fruits of the spirit, especially wisdom and fortitude, is at the heart of Missionary Cenacle spirituality. 

6.1.2  Local Custodian
The duties of the local Custodian are to:
•		preside at meetings and encourage active participation by all the members;	
•		call all members to mission, evaluate the apostolic works of the Cenacle, and periodically discern in counsel new works as circumstances change;	
•		promote the spiritual life of the members in collaboration with the Spiritual Guide;	
•		foster a spirit of community in the Cenacle;	
•		call members to council when important decisions are to be made (must be knowledgeable on the process of taking counsel)	
[Please note there are eleven additional duties listed in the Norms and Policies.]

6.1.4  Local Cenacle Council
•		This council is composed of all the Associates and Candidates of the local Cenacle.  It shares the responsibilities for decisions affecting the local Cenacle. 	
•		The Custodian should make sure that all members have a voice in the decision-making process, although the final decision rests with the Custodian. 	
•		In council, Custodians shall be open to the views of others, even if they differ from his/her own.	

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Have we as a group taken counsel about anything recently (even if we weren’t naming it as such)? In what ways was it effective?

To support the living out of our apostolic vocation in our daily lives, what are examples of concerns or “cases” we as individuals might bring to this group for counsel?

Session #3: Identity
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “Why We Are Special!”

We hear the word “identity” so frequently these days.  In the computer age many worry about Identity Theft. Identity Crisis is a big issue for adolescents and young adults. We certainly hear a lot about Catholic identity in Catholic institutions and among Catholic politicians, etc.  

So it’s no wonder that the first section of the Rule of Life and Constitution as well as the Policy and Norms of the MCA is dedicated to Identity and Purpose. The identity of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate was born in the vision of its Founder, Father Thomas Augustine Judge, C.M.  Even as a young seminarian he contemplated the laity’s power for good.  As a recently ordained Vincentian priest he noticed that when people returned to the Church and the sacraments it was usually through the invitation of a neighbor, a friend or perhaps a coworker; in short, a layperson, not a priest or a religious.

He was also inspired by a pharmacist in Philadelphia who had a great concern for the Italian immigrants in his neighborhood who were rejected by other Catholics, and even by the clergy whose duty it was to minister to them.  Because of this rejection many began to find their spiritual home in other churches.  This phenomenon came to be understood by us in the Cenacle as leakage. Through the efforts of this young priest and a layman eventually a parish was founded to serve the spiritual needs of these immigrants in their own language, in a church where they would feel at home. 

How relevant is Father’s vision today! The Church today is experiencing leakage not only among immigrants, but among families and peoples whose spiritual home has always been the Catholic Church.  

We know that Father was, I hope it’s not too strong to say, “persecuted” by his own Congregation, the Vincentians and other clergy as well for his belief in the power and the ministry of the laity.  

What if he had lived to read Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution of the Church from Vatican II, speak of universal call to holiness (Chapter 5)?  Or in this same document in Chapter 3, “The obligation of spreading the faith is imposed on every disciple of Christ, according to his state.”  Isn’t his vision echoed? 

In Evangelii Nuntiandi Pope Paul VI states, “Lay people, whose particular vocation places them in the midst of the world and in charge of the most varied temporal tasks, must for this very reason exercise a very special form of evangelization.”

Pope John Paul II in Christifidelis Laici and Redemptoris Missio restates the privileged role and responsibility for spreading and nurturing the faith. Father's vision and the identity and purpose of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate have been more than confirmed and validated in recent years.

What about the identity of the MCA within the Missionary Cenacle Family?
While all members of the Missionary Cenacle Family have an affinity to “providence of everyday life,” this is an especially privileged place for the MCA member.  

What can be done to inspire, to provoke, to lead the everyday Catholic into the missionary work in the providence of his everyday life? What is meant by the providence of his everyday life? You meet certain people, you have contact with certain persons or places, your life has a certain circumscription, God overshadowing and intervening in all. This is called your daily providence. It is yours indeed; it does not belong to anybody else. Like the skin on your face it is yours personally, nobody else ever had it, nobody else ever will have it. (MCM p. 226)

In this excerpt we see the influence and the large arena of the laity spoken of in Vatican II and post Vatican II documents.  The missionary possibilities are endless, much more so than those of the religious branches.  

Compare these different versions of a key sentence in Article 8:
•		MCA Rule of Life: “It is our particular responsibility as members of this family to spread the Cenacle spirit.”	
•		MSBT/ST Rule of Life: “It is our particular responsibility as religious members of this family to conserve this Cenacle spirit and to be the sanctuary where that fire is kept.” 	
The MCA has a large arena in which to spread the Cenacle spirit: the home, the parish, the workplace, etc.  Ideally, the MCA finds support and encouragement, refreshment and renewal from the religious branches.  Each branch needs to encourage and challenge each other to live out these responsibilities that are our heritage.

What about the identity of the MCA within the Church and Parish?
MCA members, passionate about their Faith, encouraging and developing other lay apostles are truly a force and a power for evangelization within their parishes and within the Church.  MCA members are what all Catholics are called to be, apostles, missionaries in the providence of their everyday lives, inviting others to be the same.  It is the invitation every Catholic receives at his or her Baptism, but unfortunately and most likely, has not been encouraged to live out.

MCA members are not just catechists, participants in social ministry programs, parish councils, etc.  In the back of their mind and in their heart, they are always calling others to a deeper relationship with God, to be apostles.  The salvation of souls is ever before them.  

There are other lay groups within the Church that are also part of religious families, such as:  Secular Franciscans, Third Order Carmelites and Lay Dominicans.  They live out the charism of those orders.  They meet on a regular basis and very often members of the religious families of those branches meet with them.  However, I don't believe any of these groups has the intimate relationship or mutuality with the religious branches that the MCA does.  Nor do any of them have the missionary thrust of the MCA.

Questions for personal reflection:

1.	What or who attracted you to the MCA?	

2.	Can you remember a time when you felt you really had the opportunity to be a missionary in the providence of your everyday life?  How did that feel?
	
3.	How do you participate in the missionary life of your parish?	

4.	Do you see your vocation to the MCA as a vocation within your vocation to the single or married state?

Session #3: Identity
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture   Acts 8, 26-31
The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, “Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.” So he got up and set out. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury, who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home. Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. The Spirit said to Philip, “Go and join up with that chariot.” Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.

Father Judge   Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 119
Remember, I am trying to place a trouble before you. Where is the hope to come from? It is to come from you, to come from an enlightened laity, a laity enforced with a missionary spirit, enforced with a Catholic spirit. Think of those whom you could bring under your influence, if you wish to. Think of the attractive power of a good woman, a wise woman. It is tremendous. We know that from the Church, we know that from the state. Now in the hearts of our people there are great impulses for good. All they crave is leadership. Think what will happen if we can coordinate those good influences! Scripture says, “Woe to him that is alone.”(Eccles.4:10) The lone man or woman gets nowhere today. This is a cooperative age. This is an age of mass production and why should we not have mass production of good?

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time together. We offer you our lives. We ask you to deepen within us a missionary spirit that is led and guided by your Holy Spirit. 
Grant us the grace to truly live out our Missionary Cenacle vocation every day of our lives. We ask this in Jesus’ Name.  Amen.

Readings from our documents

Part 1:	Rule 2, 2.1, 2.2                                     
Part 2:	Norms 1.1, 1.2, 1.2.1, 1.2.2, 1.2.3
Part 3:	Norms 2.1, 2.1.1, 2.1.2, 2.1.3

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....	
As we end this session, I feel....	
As we end this session, I have learned....	
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, Refreshments, Secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #3

Part 1

From Rule of Life
2.  We, the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate (MCA), are a self-governing, international association of the Catholic faithful, who have been called by God to be missionaries in the providence of our daily lives. We have a special relationship with the Missionary Servants of the Most Blessed Trinity, the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity, and the Blessed Trinity Missionary Institute. Together we comprise the Missionary Cenacle Family.

2.1  Originally called the Outer Missionary Cenacle, the MCA was founded by Fr. Thomas Augustine Judge, C.M. in 1909 in Brooklyn, New York. The religious and secular institutes of the Missionary Cenacle Family find their origin in this Outer Missionary Cenacle.

2.2 The MCA is comprised of Catholic lay persons eighteen years of age or older, who are called to holiness of life while sharing in the apostolic goals of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t understand?

Sharing
What is the nature of my own relationship with the other branches of the Cenacle Family?

Part 2

From Norms and Policies
1.1	Statement of purpose 
We believe that the most urgent priority for the MCA is to develop committed lay apostles in the Church passionate about their faith, filled with enthusiasm and eager to share it.  Drawing upon the richness of the Missionary Cenacle charism, we are to foster an apostolic spirituality as broadly as possible among the Catholic laity. In the process of doing this, we will respond to an urgent need of the Church and the world, encourage our own personal and leadership development and foster vocations to the MCA and to the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family. 

1.2   Identity
1.2.1  Although every Catholic is called to be an apostle, not all have a vocation to the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.  Membership in the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate is a call to live an apostolic life as a layperson in the providence of our everyday lives.

1.2.2  When possible, we collaborate with the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family in apostolic works in a spirit of mutual respect and complementarity.  Together with them, we strive to promote a missionary spirit among the laity.  In addition to collaboration in mission, we are to build healthy and caring relationships with the members of the other branches in our areas.

1.2.3  We are to foster positive relationships with the pastors of our local parishes and with the bishops in whose dioceses we work.  It is recommended that the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate be registered in the diocese as a lay apostolic group and be so listed in any diocesan directory of lay organizations.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t understand?

Sharing
Does the Statement of Purpose work for me? What one word or phrase stands out for me?

Part 3

From Norms and Policies
2.1  General Principles
2.1.1  Our apostolic life is founded on our Baptism and Confirmation, by means of which we are sealed with the Holy Spirit and intimately united to the redemptive mission of Jesus, Priest, Prophet, and King.  As a community of laypersons we recognize that we are called by God to be missionaries in the Church.  We recognize two forms of participation in the apostolic life of the Church:

As individuals:  
“Above all, each member of the lay faithful should always be fully aware of being a 'member of the Church' yet entrusted with a unique task which cannot be done by another and which is to be fulfilled for the good of all.  Regardless of circumstance, all lay persons are called to this type of apostolate and obliged to engage in it.  In the apostolate exercised by the individual, great riches are waiting to be discovered through an intensification of the missionary effort of each of the lay faithful.” (cf. Christi Fideles Laici, # 28)

In Community:
"Church communion finds its specific expression in the lay faithful's working together in groups. In reality, a ‘cultural’ effect can be accomplished through work done not so much by an individual alone but as a member of a group, of a community, of an association, or of a movement.  Such work is, then, the source and stimulus leading to the transformation of the surroundings and society as well as the fruit and sign of every other transformation in this regard....."  (cf. Christi Fideles Laici, #29)

2.1.2  By “apostolate” we mean the work, duties, and mission we do as apostles in the Church and in the world.  It includes everything in our daily lives that contributes directly and indirectly to the preservation of the faith and the sanctification of the world.  We are not restricted to any particular work, but are open to those apostolic opportunities within our reach, including our families, the workplace, and all aspects of public life.  We find our apostolates in the providence of our everyday life, where, guided by the Holy Spirit, we reach out to others in the spirit of charity and self-sacrifice, each according to his/her unique gifts, abilities, and circumstances.

2.1.3  Although we are not to neglect our family responsibilities because of other apostolic commitments, we are to organize our personal lives so that we will be able to fulfill our Missionary Cenacle obligations.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t understand?

Sharing
Is there anything new or surprising in this? What stands out as something I should reflect further on?

Session #4: Devotions
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	“Practical, Particular, Personal and Relational”

The Church has long used the term “Devotions” and the Missionary Cenacle Family speaks of Devotional Knowledge of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, the Incarnation, the naked, abandoned Jesus of Calvary, the Eucharist.  What does this mean for us as missionaries?

Knowledge of our faith that is devotional means that our faith is “restless until it finds expression in good works; our good works, in turn, nourish our life of faith and bear fruit in apostolic holiness.”  The word devotion has a Latin root that means “total dedication”. This is a far cry from sentimentality. It is an out-pouring way of knowing, professing and living the deepest truths of our faith. In its original usage, it referred to one who vowed to die for one’s country. Does this not sound like Jesus’ saying “No one has greater love than this to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” ? (John 15: 13). While we may not be called upon to give our actual lives, we will be asked to sacrifice our time, our attitudes, our inconveniences because of our faith.

Fr. Judge took to heart the legacy of St. Francis De Sales who said: “True love of God not only prompts us to do good, but also to do this carefully (with care), frequently and promptly.  Charity and devotion differ no more than does flame from the fire.  Charity is spiritual fire and when it bursts into flame, it is called devotion.”

Another way of expressing this same thought is our Cenacle expression that zeal is the white heat of Charity. Zeal is Charity aflame! Fr. Judge asks us to take our temperature. How on fire with God’s love are we?  This does not mean we spend 24/7 being about the mission.  It means that the quality rather than quantity of our love in our time of prayer and in even one brief encounter with another in the providence of our daily life flows from our heartfelt devotion to our Triune God.

In our Missionary Cenacle Spiritual Exercises are excerpts from Fr. Shaun McCarthy ST’s book, The Dance of the Three-Personed God. In it he describes Devotional Knowledge as practical, particular, personal and relational. “Devotional knowledge is practical....  It is faith that leads to action that becomes real in ordinary, down-to-earth expressions of love that bring forth growth in others as well as in self.... Devotional knowledge is particular. It finds specific and concrete ways of giving our beliefs and values flesh.... Devotional knowledge is personal and relational. [For example] how does the Incarnation lead me to relate to all persons and creation itself as holy?”

Genuine relationship lasts over time.  It lasts through the “ups” and “downs” of affection.  When love cannot be affective (felt), it can still remain effective in many ways. As with the mystery of the Trinity in whose image we’re made, the love between devoted friends is a self-giving, mutual and long-lasting love. Fr. Shaun understood the key to growth in devotional knowledge is the cultivation of a contemplative attitude.  One must pay attention to the holy dimension of everyday experience.  
Fr. Judge frequently expressed that who we are, as individuals and together as the missionary Cenacle, grows out of our devotions, especially to the Trinity, the Incarnation, the naked, abandoned Jesus of Calvary, the Eucharist, the Holy Spirit and Mary, Queen of the Missionary Cenacle. 

Even our devotional prayer life is not to be narrow, but is to embrace others:
“Our prayer should not be narrow, personal prayer; it should reach the throne of God only after having touched the farthest bounds of God’s creation and mourned in every human misery, and rejoiced in God’s goodness to men.” (Article 22)

There is a story told by Fr. Lawrence Brediger, MSSsT in Missionary Cenacle Review:
“The Cenacle at Saint Jerome’s in the Bronx, New York, offers a simple illustration of the way many began their missionary work. When Father Judge’s mission was ended, and he was gone, the Bronx group met in the rosy ‘glow’ of the zeal he had stirred in them. They were determined to do something. But what? …The best thing they could come up with was a little catechism class for their younger sisters (saving the saved!) …

But the Holy Spirit, to whom they were praying faithfully, needed no more than their simplicity and good will to get them into what He planned. One of the younger sisters brought a girl friend with her one day. The class went on longer than planned and since it was growing dark, two of the cenacle members walked the new youngster home.  They explained to her mother just where she had been and what she was doing.

The mother was an immigrant, in this country just a few years, and to her they represented the Church. She poured out to them the whole story of her situation.  She and her husband had come to this country in a hurry; married only civilly, intending to have the church wedding in America, but alas, what they had once put off was put off again and again. There were five children now, none of them baptized, and the oldest was of an age to receive Holy Communion.  The distraught mother was ready to do anything to right matters.

The two young missionaries flew into a flurry of excitement. They rushed back and forth between the home and the rectory, setting up an appointment, helping get the children ready, encouraging the timid parents and calming their fears.  Finally the wonderful day came when they saw the whole family at peace with God.  The girls who had been the instruments in this were awed at it all and grateful to God for having used them.  They scarcely believed it had all happened.  But that case led to another in the same neighborhood, and another, and by the end of the year they were veterans.”

Questions for Personal Reflection
1.	How is your devotion to the central Cenacle mysteries (the Trinity, Incarnation, Holy Spirit, abandoned Jesus of Calvary, Eucharist, Mary, Queen of the Missionary Cenacle) practical, particular, personal and relational?

2.	What is a “contemplative attitude”  in the providence of your daily life?

Session #4: Devotions
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture		James 5: 14-17, 24
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.... You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

Father Judge	Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 243
Any evangelical work, whether it be the preaching of the Gospel or personal missionary efforts for the conversion of a people will never be successful if attempted apart from an appeal to the Holy Spirit. We are anxious that nations enter the Church, or that they return to the allegiance of the See of Peter; that the Faith spread, that sinners be converted. ...The work that we have in hand is for the conversion of sinners and for the spread of Faith. The members are anxious, therefore, that there should be a widespread, far reaching, practical devotion to the Holy Spirit. We are anxious that none may refuse their cooperation, that God's Holy Name be hallowed, that His kingdom come and His holy will be done.

Prayer
Father, we beg you to send us your Holy Spirit. Teach us how to be practical and particular, personal and relational in how we live our faith. We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Readings from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule   9, 11, 14; Norms 5.1.3
Part 2:		Rule 4; Norms 2.1.4, 7.4.3
Part 3:		Rule 21, 36, 36.1; Norms 6.2.1, 7.3.1

Conclusions (for group sharing)
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #4

Part 1

From Rule of Life
9.  The Cenacle spirit is a Christ-like spirit of “faith working through love” (Gal 5:6) We are to confess in our hearts the mysteries of faith: the Trinity, the Incarnation, and the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. We are to aspire to a devotional knowledge of these mysteries, that is, a deeply personal and interior faith that is restless until it finds expression in good works; our good works, in turn, nourish our life of faith and bear fruit in apostolic holiness.

11.  We are to make the Holy Spirit better known and loved.  By steadfast prayer in our Cenacles we seek to attract the Holy Spirit so that our own hearts may be enkindled with God’s love and that we may spread this fire to others.  We ask to be filled with the gifts of the Spirit, wisdom and fortitude especially.

14.  We hold the Word of God in high esteem. We cherish the Gospels in particular because they depict Jesus showing by word and example the way to the Father. By reflection on the providence of everyday life in the light of the Gospels, we come to a devotional knowledge of the mysteries of faith and a deeper understanding of our own experience. Each member shall have a copy of the Sacred Scriptures and make frequent use of them in prayer and proclamation.

From Norms and Policies
5.1.3  It is a Cenacle tradition to pray a Novena to the Holy Spirit in preparation for the feasts of Pentecost and the Annunciation.  In addition to these, each local Missionary Cenacle is encouraged to participate in the perpetual Novena to the Holy Spirit, which began in 1913.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Which of our major devotions: Trinity, Incarnation, naked, abandoned Jesus of Calvary, the Eucharist, the Holy Spirit, Mary, Queen of the Missionary Cenacle, has the most meaning in your life? How does this lead you to reach out as a missionary in the providence of your daily life?

Part 2

From Rule of Life
4.  The missionary thought, the missionary idea, the missionary spirit should be dominant in our Missionary Cenacles. In thinking with the Church we strive to meet the pressing needs of our day by undertaking works that are good and necessary, and have their focus on the poor and abandoned. In all our apostolic works, we recognize the authority of the bishops and their special role as signs of unity and as pastors in the local churches.

From Norms and Policies
2.1.4 We give priority to the spiritual works of mercy, without neglecting the corporal works.

7.4.3  During the period of candidacy, formation shall focus on:
•		the development of a practical devotion to the naked and abandoned Christ of Calvary, to the Holy Spirit, and to the Blessed Trinity;	
•		the further development of the custom of daily reflection on the Scriptures and the meditations of Father Judge;	
•		the practice of the Cenacle virtues;	
•		shared reflection on a variety of apostolic experiences in the providence of everyday life, both personal and communal (should include the witness of a holy life, work for justice and peace, and outreach to the poor and abandoned, especially those who do not know the love of God);	
•		continued integration into the community life of the local Missionary Cenacle, including sharing in the various responsibilities and tasks of the local Cenacle, the mutual support of the members, and Cenacle stewardship of time, talent, and treasure;	
•		a greater awareness of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate in the region and internationally and with the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family;	
•		a deeper understanding and living out of the Rule of Life and Constitution and observance of the Norms and Policies; especially the Rights and Responsibilities; 	
•		training in the practice of taking counsel; and	
•		the forgiveness of offenses and the healing of wounds.	

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
What are a few “pressing needs” in our geographic area? (Shall we note any of these to take counsel on at a later time?)

Part 3

From Rule of Life
21.  In our Missionary Cenacle Family we have a special devotion to Mary, Queen of the Missionary Cenacle; to Joseph, an unfailing and powerful friend; to the Apostles, ardent followers of Jesus; and to Vincent de Paul, patron of charity and humility.

36.  Each region of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate elects a Regional Custodian and an Assistant Regional Custodian.  Policies relating to the office and responsibilities of the Regional Custodian and Assistant Regional Custodian are specified in the Norms and Policies. 
36.1  Regions may be divided into areas under the direction of an Area Custodian elected by the Associates of the area. The Regional Council is made up of the Area Custodians Policies relating to the office and responsibilities of the Area Custodian Custodians and the Regional Council are specified in the Norms and Policies.

From Norms and Policies
6.2.1 Regions
Regions are large geographical areas containing a number of active Cenacles.  The General Custodian and the General Council shall determine the number and boundaries of the various regions.  The Missionary Cenacle Apostolate is currently divided into six Regions:
•	Incarnation Region in the Northeast USA
•	Trinity Region in the Southern USA
•	Holy Spirit Region in the Western USA
•	San Juan Bautista Region in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean
•	Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe Region in Mexico, and 
•	Reina de Los Angeles Region in Central and South America

7.3.1  The Reception into Candidacy shall normally take place at the annual retreat, on the Feast of Pentecost, Christ the King, the Incarnation, the anniversary of Father Judge or Mother Boniface, or on one of the other feasts of the Cenacle.  It may also take place at special Cenacle gatherings.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
The spectrum of our devotions is visible in our traditions, names, feast days, and celebrations. How do you suppose these visible expressions might affect our behaviors and/or attitudes in concrete ways?

Session #5: Sacraments
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection “The Fountain of Life”

Sacraments!  These are so Catholic!  They are at the heart of our faith, at the center of our Church, but how do we in the Cenacle relate to them in our apostolic lives?

First, what are they?  They are those things, those signs, those objects that put us in touch with our God.  We know them.  We love them.  O how we should love them!  Throughout the history of our Church how many have died for the Sacraments.  I recall the stories of Andrew Kim (Korean), Miguel Pro (Mexican), Oliver Plunkett (Ireland) and John Fisher (England), who against all odds spread the Faith, baptizing and celebrating  the Eucharist during times of persecution.

How Fr. Judge loved these gifts of the Church.  He spoke of how important they should be in our lives.  He told us that the Eucharist should be the “center and sun of our apostolic lives.”  (Rule of Life, Article 15)  He reminded us that we must always remain aware of our need for God’s Mercy, and he encouraged all  “to approach the sacrament of Penance frequently for reconciliation and healing.” (Article 16)

As missionaries we need to continually strive to bring others to these fountains of grace and love, but we cannot do this if we first don’t love these sacraments, understand them, and finally make them part of our lives.  The Second Vatican Council reminded us that these sacraments are not private devotions, but rather the action of the “whole Christ” that is they are celebrations of the Church  (Catechism #1136, #1140) and that we have been called “to that full, conscience, and active participation in the Liturgical celebrations” of our Church.  (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy #14)

It was at our Baptism that we were first “plunged” and “immersed” into Christ’s death.  It is here that we are “regenerated and renewed by the Holy Spirit”. (See Article 10)  How frequently then, do we need to call on this Holy Spirit in our apostolate.  At the beginning of our day, as we begin a trip, as we begin a new missionary venture; we need to sign ourselves again with those living waters and profess again  our belief in the Triune God.  As St. Ambrose reminds us:  
See where you are baptized, see where Baptism comes from, if not
 from the cross of Christ, from his death.  There is the whole mystery:
 he died for you.  In him you are redeemed, in him you are saved.

What a grace today to bring an individual to these Life Giving waters, to prepare to welcome them as new members of the Body of Christ!

The central core of our devotion, our source of strength, and the bond among us is the Eucharist.  We need to recall Father’s great encouragement to prepare to celebrate this sacrament.  His encouragement to have read the Scriptures before arriving at Mass, to salute the presence of Our Divine Lord in prayer as we pass a Church, as well as to stop and make a visit when possible.  Our personal love for Jesus can be deepened as well by our devotion to the Eucharist.  As Father said, we should have a “holy hunger and thirst for the Precious Body and Blood” of the Lord.

We might ask, how am I preparing for the next Eucharistic celebration I will attend?
Have I read, meditated, perhaps even looked at a commentary of the Readings of this liturgy?  What is my favorite part of the liturgy?  What are my favorite words at Mass?

Father told us to “strive to spread devotion in every way to the Blessed Sacrament…” He prayed that we might have the “grace to instruction and lead little ones to Him in the act of First Communion.” From the earliest days Cenacle members helped to bring children to the sacraments for the first time, as well as to lead those who had been away to return to them.

One of the choices at the end of Mass is the phrases; “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.”  As Cenacle members, what more beautiful words could we hear to remind us of our vocation–we who have been blessed with that “apostolic spirit, that rare spirit, that priceless spirit”?  We need to announce to the world these great sources of love, of grace, of comfort, of healing.  We in the Cenacle need to celebrate these sacraments and signs of God’s love and bring others often to this great fountain of life.

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	Reflect what your Baptism has done in your life.   Have you ever thought that the words “my Beloved” heard at Jesus’ Baptism are also addressed to you?  How does that make you feel?

2.	Recall a meaningful and wonderful celebration of the Eucharist.  What made this so special?  What are some practices you can adopt that would help Mass be more meaningful for you?

3.	Have you brought a visitor to Mass?  What was that experience like?  Were you able to explain the mass and guide your visitor adequately?

4.	When was your last confession? In what way(s) do you experience the grace of this sacrament? In what ways do you invite or encourage others to come to this sacrament?

Session #5: Sacraments
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture   	2 Corinthians  4: 1, 5-7
Since we have this ministry through the mercy shown us, we are not discouraged.
For we do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves
for the sake of Jesus.  For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone 
in our hearts to bring to light the knowledge of the glory of God on the face of Jesus
Christ.

Father Judge	Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 228
Remember that you are in training not so much to learn this or that art as you are to become apostles.  Never forget that this will be your work – to save souls.  Whatever will conduct to develop in you an apostolic, missionary spirit will be a grace.  The essentials of such a spirit are the love of God and your neighbor, sacrifice and fortitude.
 
Father Judge	The Judgments of Father Judge (J. Benson), pp. 20-21
“Did you ever think of gathering children on the street and bringing them to Mass or seeking out some poor lost sheep and guiding him or her to the confessional and to the Communion rail?  …Do you realize there are countless homes where the parents have never been married by a priest?  And did you ever think that by your prudent sympathy and patient kindness in going from home to home you could bring these souls to Christ?”  

Prayer
Lord, look with love on all gathered here, who are committed to do your apostolic work. Help us to accomplish what is good. Arouse in our hearts a love for you, a desire to spread your Gospel. Grant this through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Readings from our Documents

Part 1:	Rule 5, 5.1-3, 10, 23, 23.1
Part 2:	Rule 15, 16, Norms 2.2, 5.1.4
Part 3:	Rule 12, 41, Norms 7.1

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business

•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #5

Part 1

From Rule of Life
5.  Our specific mission is the preservation of the faith in the areas and among those people who are spiritually neglected and abandoned. Our chief effort is to develop a missionary spirit in the laity with the goal that every Catholic be an apostle.

5.1  We especially look for those Catholics not practicing their faith or who are in danger of losing the Catholic faith which is their heritage.

5.2 We are to manifest a particular concern for family life, especially for the spiritual and moral development of children and youth.  

5.3 Recognizing the power of the laity to be apostles, we seek to empower those around us to do the same.

10.  We have a personal love of God our Father, of his Son, Jesus, and of the Holy Spirit who abides with us. In a particular way we cherish in our prayer and labor the naked, abandoned Jesus on Calvary.  We express our love through personal service to his poor and abandoned members.

23.  We seek to imitate Jesus who calls us to follow him with liberty of spirit and to share in his emptying of self for others. (Philippians 2:7) In Baptism we were anointed with the Holy Spirit and united to Jesus in his mission as a personal response with faith, to God, whose love, the Holy Spirit was spread in our hearts. (Romans  5:5)

23.1   We affirm with the Church that all Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love. (cf. Lumen Gentium, No. 40) 

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
What good is our Catholic Faith? Why is it so important to publicly and communally “practice” it? Why should we care if someone loses it, or leaves it?

Part 2

From Rule of Life
15.  The Eucharist is the center and sun of our apostolic lives. We are to worship God in the frequent, even daily, celebration of the Eucharist. The Eucharist is our sacramental participation in the mystery of Jesus' death and resurrection. We should so prepare and celebrate the Eucharistic Liturgy that it will be a genuine expression of community and source of apostolic vitality. We are to have reverence for the sacramental presence of the Lord Jesus and for all that relates to the Eucharist.  

16.  Because of our need for God's mercy in our brokenness, we are to approach the Sacrament of Penance frequently for reconciliation and healing. By our experience of sacramental forgiveness, we grow in mercy and compassion towards others.

From Norms and Policies
2.2  Parish Involvement
2.2.1  As missionaries, we may work within parishes to further the apostolic mission of the Church. Cenacle members are to work along quiet lines within their parishes.  We are to be like leaven in bread, infusing a missionary spirit wherever possible.  We are to bring the missionary idea, the missionary thought, the missionary spirit to all that we do.

2.2.2  Cenacle works within parishes are understood to be a part of the parish mission and under the direction of the pastor.  We are to invite other parishioners to participate in our apostolic ministries as a way of making every Catholic an Apostle.

2.2.3  Local pastors are to be kept informed of the Cenacle activities in their parishes. However, we should be attentive to maintaining our identity as a part of the Missionary Cenacle Family rather than a parish group.  As Missionary Cenacles, we maintain our own organizational structure and spiritual life according to our Rule of Life and Constitution and Norms and Policies.

2.2.4  Missionary Cenacles shall avoid involvement as Cenacles in parish fund-raising, governance, administration, or other activities that might divert it from its apostolic mission.  As individuals we are to support our parishes, each according to his/her abilities and circumstances. 

5.1.4  Daily mass and communion are recommended whenever possible.  When this is not possible, members are encouraged to read and reflect on the readings of the day.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Does my pastor know anything at all about the MCA or the Cenacle Family? Is my parish the main source of my sacramental life, or do I feel more nourished elsewhere?

Part 3

From Rule of Life
12.  The Cenacle spirit is a Gospel spirit. In order to follow Jesus more closely, as set forth in the Gospels, we consecrate ourselves to be apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ within the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate as a fuller expression of our baptismal consecration. The uncompromising message of the Gospel calls us to exercise our prophetic role as witnesses to truth.

41.  Jesus is the Way and the Truth and the Life. The Rule of Life and Constitution help us to walk in this Way, to live this Truth and to find this Life. The Associates shall esteem the Rule of Life and Constitution, hold them sacred and keep them faithfully. They shall read them, meditate upon them and aspire to live them.

From Norms and Policies
7.1  Basics of Cenacle Formation
7.1.1  Formation is understood to include:

•		development of the personal and liturgical prayer life of the member;	
•		shared reflections and instruction on the experience of the apostolic life;	
•		participation in the community life of the Cenacle;	
4.	instruction in Missionary Cenacle history, Rule of Life and Constitution, practices and devotions; and
5.	appropriate celebration to mark the progress of the person.

7.1.2  The Cenacle program of formation is divided into three levels:

•		orientation of prospective members;	
•		basic formation of Candidates; and	
•		continuing formation of Associates.	

7.1.3  The principal celebrations of the program of formation are:
1.	the Rite of Reception into Candidacy,
2.	the Act of Consecration, 
3.	annual renewal of the Act of Consecration.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
In what concrete ways do members of the Missionary Cenacle exercise our role as “witnesses to truth”? In what ways does reflection on our Rule and Constitution help us do this?

Session #6: Daily Providence
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “Yours, Mine, and Ours”

At the time I joined the MCA many years ago, a common understanding among the Cenacle Family was that every MCA group had a common apostolate of a very specific nature. For example, one Cenacle we knew of worked together at a soup kitchen once a month. Another Cenacle took on prison ministry at a nearby state prison. And there was one that was located in a “rich” community, and they roamed the neighborhoods on Saturdays to invite their neighbors to attend mass.

Our Cenacle couldn’t come up with anything we were all willing and able to do, so each member did something different. After some discernment, I decided to establish a Girl Scout troop with kids from a nearby housing project. It seemed like the perfect fit for me! We all supported one another in our apostolates, and I remember how great it was when the people in my Cenacle showed up for the “Flying Up” ceremony, since none of the girls’ parents could come.

As we’ve grown in our understanding of the “theology of the laity,” we have come closer to what Father Judge was really talking about when he talked about divine providence being “as personal as the skin on your face.” People who are raising families, who are taking care of elderly parents, who are working long hours just to make ends meet, often do not have the luxury of time to adopt an additional, long-term commitment such as a Girl Scout troop or a soup kitchen ministry. Father Judge certainly would have approved of such works, but he was getting at something far more individualized.

This personalized view of daily providence is both much easier and much harder. You don’t have to go anywhere or spend any money on your apostolate: it is the people you normally encounter as you go about your daily life! But what is it God is asking of you in regards to these ordinary people around you? Figuring out who needs your particular attention, who is spiritually neglected, who needs to hear some words only you are there to say–that kind of discernment requires attentiveness, listening.

Once you know who you’re called to reach out to, you still have the much harder job of discerning what approach to take, what to say, when and how to say it. Opportunities come and go in a heartbeat. Only by making a daily effort to be conscious and aware of an opening to share your faith can you hope to speak what the Spirit gives you at the right moment. So you have your daily providence, and I have mine. Each of us is personally responsible to be attentive, to act, to invite and encourage others whose faith is weak or gone astray.

But there is still great merit in participating in a group apostolate. Missionary Cenacle Spirituality is Trinitarian in its essence, which means it is relational. I have my personal daily providence, but I also have another kind of providence that flows from my membership in my local Cenacle. My local Cenacle might be located in a town which has many undocumented workers of Catholic heritage, or in a neighborhood being targeted by sects prowling for converts, or in a diocese suffering from scandal or bankruptcy, or near a mission run by MSBT or ST. What is the daily providence of my cenacle? What might the Holy Spirit be asking of us as a group? This kind of discernment can only be achieved by taking counsel together.

On the one hand, my apostolate flows from my personal daily providence. I do not need to go in search of it, because it is right in front of me. On the other hand, I am part of something bigger than myself. I can “be good, do good, and be a power for good” through my local Cenacle in ways I could never manage on my own. It is not an “either/or” proposition! Both approaches respect the lay vocation and reflect our Missionary Cenacle charism.

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	In the past seven days, who have I encountered that might be in need of spiritual support? What might the Spirit be asking of me specifically?

2.	Does my local Cenacle currently or have we in the past ever had a “group apostolate”? What are the pros and cons of that approach for us? Should we take counsel on this topic in the future?

3.	What is the daily providence of my local Cenacle? What kind of spiritual or charitable needs, “work that the Church wants”, are out there in our neighborhood, town, or diocese? Who are the abandoned?

Session #6: Daily Providence
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture	Luke 4:18-19
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me! He has anointed me to preach the Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, to proclaim recovery of sight to the blind, and to set free those who are being oppressed. He has sent me to proclaim the Year of Jubilee of the Lord!

Father Judge		Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 226
What can be done to inspire, to provoke, to lead the everyday Catholic into the missionary work in the providence of his everyday life? What is meant by the providence of his everyday life? You meet certain people, you have contact with certain persons or places, your life has a certain circumscription, God overshadowing and intervening in all. This is called your daily providence. It is yours indeed; it does not belong to anybody else. Like the skin on your face it is yours personally, nobody else ever had it, nobody else ever will have it. Everyone of us is a center of a particular bit of Divine Providence. How can we get our people to realize that in their everyday providence they are the Catholic Church, that they are responsible for the Church, that they should act for the Church, be vigilant for her interests and plead her cause?
How, in a word, can we effect that every Catholic, no matter in what circumstances he or she may be, will be a missionary? If this can be effected then every one of these vexing problems will be solved.

Prayer
God our Father, we offer you this time together. Send us your Spirit to guide us as we grope for understanding of what it is you are calling us to do. We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule 4, 4.1, 7, 25, 27, 28
Part 2:		Rule 39;  Norms 1.1,  4.2.5 #1 and #5-9, 5.1.1

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #6

Part 1

From Rule of Life
4.  The missionary thought, the missionary idea, the missionary spirit should be dominant in our Missionary Cenacles. In thinking with the Church we strive to meet the pressing needs of our day by undertaking works that are good and necessary, and have their focus on the poor and abandoned. In all our apostolic works, we recognize the authority of the bishops and their special role as signs of unity and as pastors in the local churches.

4.1 In the providence of our everyday lives we look for opportunities to serve the economically and spiritually poor and abandoned, especially those who do not experience the love of God. We strive to live out Gospel teachings in our homes, our communities, and in our places of work and recreation.

7.  The Cenacle spirit is a Catholic spirit, a living, burning, operating love of God and neighbor.  We are to share this spirit by promoting and supporting the ministries of the laity in the mission of the Church. We acknowledge “different gifts but the same Spirit, different ministries but the same Lord” (1 Cor.12:24).  We carry out our apostolates in such a way that we inspire and encourage others to participate more fully in the work of the Church.

25.  We strive to imitate the self-sacrificing love of Jesus by a life of service for the love of God and neighbor.

27.  Jesus “made himself poor though he was rich, so that we might become rich through His poverty” (2 Cor. 8:9). This inspires us to depend upon the providence of God, to heed the cry of the poor and to live simply, using what we have for the honor and glory of God.

27.1  The lay vocation demands a profound involvement with the mission of Jesus in the world. We witness to our reliance on God as the source of all blessings in our daily work and service for the building up of the reign of God.

27.2  The Gospel urges us to a simple lifestyle. We frequently examine our lives, attitudes, decisions, and possessions in light of the call to simplicity and to freedom from attachment to worldly standards.

27.3  Associates and Candidates pledge to give freely of their time, talent and treasure to further the work of the MCA.

27.4  Our cenacle heritage directs us to be generous in sharing with others and in offering hospitality, according to the circumstances of our life. 

28.  Jesus, “humbled himself, obediently accepting even death, death on a cross.” (Phil. 2:8) His example inspires us to daily surrender to the will of God. Our obedience should be humble and of the heart, simple and entire, constant and strong in everything.

Part 2 

From Rule of Life
39.  The apostolic spirit is a rare spirit, a priceless spirit, a spirit high above that of those who are ordinarily devout.  This is the spirit of those great, self-denying, sacrificing lovers of Jesus Christ who strive to be good, to do good, and to be a power for good in the providence of everyday life. 

from Norms and Policies
1.1	Statement of purpose 

“We believe that the most urgent priority for the MCA is to develop committed lay apostles in the Church passionate about their faith, filled with enthusiasm and eager to share it.  Drawing upon the richness of the Missionary Cenacle charism, we are to foster an apostolic spirituality as broadly as possible among the Catholic laity. In the process of doing this, we will respond to an urgent need of the Church and the world, encourage our own personal and leadership development and foster vocations to the MCA and to the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family.”  (Approved by the General Council, April 2004.)

4.2.5  Cenacles are required to:
1. meet twice a month.  Once a month if this is not possible; 
...
5. participate in the stewardship program of the MCA;
6. submit a list of members to the Regional Custodian and Director of Communications;
7. submit reports requested by the Regional Custodian in a timely manner;
8. maintain regular communications with the Regional Custodian directly or through the Area Custodian; and 
9. abide by the procedures as outlined in the Rule of Life and Constitution and the Norms and Policies. 

5.1.1  Our vocation calls us to continuing conversion and growth in holiness according to Missionary Cenacle spirituality.  In this, we find the field of sanctity in the circumstances of our every day providence.  An important way this can be accomplished is for each member to continue the traditions and practices that have come down to us from our beginning.  All of these practices involve prayer, the foundation upon which all our lives must be built if the Cenacle is to continue to flourish.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I am not sure about?

Sharing
What is the “providence” or characteristics of our geographic region? In what ways are we different from other regions?

Session #7: Prayer and Study
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “The Marks of Cenacle Prayer”

So often we begin our prayer together with the leader saying: “Let us take a moment and remember that we are in God’s presence.” Prayer is our response to an awareness that God is always with us and ready to listen when we put aside the many distractions that come into our lives. Prayer is our desire and willingness to give our attention to the God who sustains us in the daily providence of our lives. What are the ways that mark or shape our prayer as members of the Missionary Cenacle Family?

Our prayer is nurtured by Community! Our prayer is like the cry of an infant who is convinced that someone is there to attend to its most basic needs. When these needs are met, the child learns to trust that it is cared for, loved and treasured. As we grow in human trust we then learn to entrust ourselves to others who will witness to us about the truth of a loving, nurturing and compassionate God. This fundamental faith is celebrated and affirmed when we are baptized as Children of God, surrounded by loving family, godparents and friends. Over a lifetime we learn more about this loving Triune God and the many ways we pray to him as a community and as a Church.

Our prayer is to the Triune God! It is Jesus who teaches us how to pray to God by his word and example. He points the way to the Father’s heart and invite us to linger there. He invites us to call on the Holy Spirit to help us pray even when we have no words. Jesus is ever ready to respond to our cries for mercy and forgiveness. He reveals to us that prayer is a shared gift of self-giving love which we give and receive from the God who has known us from the moment of our conception.

Our prayer is apostolic! The Cenacle Family prays together when we gather, when we celebrate the great prayer of the Eucharist with the universal Church and when each member goes to his or her heart room to be alone with our loving God. Father Judge exhorts us: “Our prayer should not be narrow personal prayer; it should reach the throne of God only after having touched the farthest bounds of God’s creation and mourned in ever human misery and rejoiced in God’s goodness.” Prayer this deep and broad will always move us to action.

Our prayer is nurtured by study! A living faith continually seeks to know the mind and heart of our Triune God. This hunger for more leads us to read, reflect, and share faith with other believers. We strive to grow in the Spirit’s gifts of Understanding and Knowledge. Bible study, reading the Catechism, and reading the apostolic letters from our Popes and Bishops all help us to “think with the Church.” As we grow in our understanding of our Catholic faith, we grow in our ability to witness to it and act out of it. In the end, prayer is the expression of our human desire that seeks to know the breadth and depth of the love of God who created us, redeemed and sanctifies us for the building up of the Reign of God.

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	When have I recently felt the presence of God? What was the gift of that experience?

2.	What is my personal prayer life like? What works for me and does not work for me? What can I commit to doing to grow in prayer?

3.	What are Church doctrines I don’t understand or feel uncomfortable with? Which doctrine can I commit to reading about in order to grow in understanding?

Session #7: Prayer and Study
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture	Ephesians 3:14-21
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power, through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than we can ask or imagine by the power at work within us, to him be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.

Father Judge		Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 324
Prayer is the whole secret of perfection. Prayer is the whole secret of sanctity. We should strive and wish to attain to a prayerful spirit. “Always pray and not lose heart.” (Lk 18:1) You have heard so many instructions on prayer. You know what prayer is. Prayer is a cry of dependence. It is a cry of helplessness, lifting our minds to God to adore, praise, and thank him – to let him know that we are his and we cannot do without him. In proportion as we are convinced of our helplessness, we will be prayerful. That is the difficult thing to do. We are so consumed with self-sufficiency, our self-love, our pride, our concern and our vanity. God has given us so much that we seem to think we can afford to be independent of him. We know that we are dependent upon him more than the baby in its mother’s arms, we are going to be prayerful.

To pray and to pray well, we must recognize some truths. First of all, to whom do we pray? We pray to a Being who is greater than ourselves. One to whom all things are possible. That is the first thing. Secondly, we pray to One who knows that we are praying to him. Sometimes we speak to our friends and they won’t listen. They are distracted. But God always knows. We must recognize this – we simply cannot do without him. He can do all things; He knows all things; He must help us or we perish.

Prayer
O Triune God, we thank you for this time to reflect and grow in the spirit of prayer. Send your Holy Spirit to guide our minds and hearts as we share our life of prayer and our need for your constant care. May the witness of the Lord and all the saints teach us to entrust our Missionary vocations into your hands for your honor and glory. Amen

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule 17;  Norms 3.6.1, 3.6.9, 5.1.1, 5.1.5–8 
Part 2:		Rule 20; Norms 8.1.1–4 
Part 3:		Norms 8.1.5, 8.1.6, 8.1.9

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #7

Part 1

From Rule of Life
17.  The Cenacle spirit is a prayerful spirit. We recognize that only a spiritual person can lead an apostolic life, and that we cannot be spiritual without prayer. Great value is placed upon periods of prayerful silence and recollection. We are to devote suitable time each day to personal prayer, meditation, and spiritual reading. Our reading should include Missionary Cenacle writings and, in keeping with our maxim sentire cum ecclesia (to think with the Church), we are to reflect prayerfully on the documents of Church.

from Norms and Policies
3.6.1  Members who are sick are to be given special consideration.  Other members are to remember them in their daily prayers and, when possible, to visit them. (Custodians shall submit requests for prayers to the Office of Communications.) 

3.6.9  Upon the death of a Candidate or an Associate the local Custodian shall immediately notify the Regional Custodian, the office of Communications, and, in the case of Associates, the head of the committee for the Missionary Cenacle Ordo.  The local Cenacle is encouraged to visit the family of the deceased and offer help and to have a mass in the memory of the deceased.

5.1.1  Our vocation calls us to continuing conversion and growth in holiness according to Missionary Cenacle spirituality.  In this, we find the field of sanctity in the circumstances of our every day providence.  An important way this can be accomplished is for each member to continue the traditions and practices that have come down to us from our beginning.  All of these practices involve prayer, the foundation upon which all our lives must be built if the Cenacle is to continue to flourish.

5.1.5  Cenacle members are encouraged to develop a particular Cenacle virtue or practice.  On Tuesday of each week, this virtue should be the subject of their meditation, always looking to Christ, Mary and the Apostles as models of the Cenacle virtues. (Missionary Cenacle Meditations  pp. 352-353). 

5.1.6  It is an important Cenacle practice that each member makes an annual retreat at some time during the year.

5.1.7 Members are to remember the sick in their daily prayers and, when possible, to visit members who are sick or confined. 

5.1.8  Upon the death of a MCA member, members of the local Cenacle, as well and other nearby Cenacle members, are expected to attend the wake and/or funeral services. The local Cenacle should have a memorial Mass offered for the repose of his/her soul. The Custodian is to inform the Communications Office and the editor of the Cenacle Ordo of the death.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
What kind of retreat experiences or prayer days have I had in the past that I really liked?

Part 2

from Rule of Life
20.  Our prayer should not be narrow, personal prayer; it should reach the throne of God only after having touched the farthest bounds of God's creation and mourned in every human misery and rejoiced in God's goodness. We are to pray, therefore, for the needs of the entire Church and the world, especially for the Holy Father, for bishops, priests and religious; we pray for youth and for those who are sick, suffering, or abandoned. We have a special obligation to pray for our living and deceased relatives, friends, benefactors, and members of the Missionary Cenacle Family.

From Norms and Policies
8.1  Local Spiritual Guides
8.1.1  A Spiritual Guide is one who cares for the spirit of the Cenacle and who helps form others in the Cenacle vocation.

8.1.2  Each Cenacle is encouraged to have a Spiritual Guide.

8.1.3  By preference and tradition, Spiritual Guides are selected from within the Missionary Cenacle Family.

8.1.4  The term of office of the local Spiritual Guide is the same as that of the local Custodian.  A new Custodian, upon taking office, may choose to continue with the present Spiritual Guide or may select a new one.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
How has the spiritual leadership of others helped my spirituality to grow?

Part 3

From Norms and Policies
8.1.5  The primary responsibilities of the Cenacle’s Spiritual Guide are:
•		to assist the Custodian in caring for the spiritual life of the Cenacle and its members;	
•		to promote the formation and spiritual growth of the members in the Cenacle vocation;	
•		to give counsel to the Custodian and Cenacle members.	
•		to get to know the members personally so as to develop a relationship of mutual trust and respect;	
•		to pray for the Cenacle that all may be guided and strengthened by the Holy Spirit;	
•		to act as a sentinel, encouraging all that is positive and warning against all that threatens the Cenacle spirit;	
•		to assist the Custodian and other leaders as needed in planning and carrying out quality Cenacle meetings;	
•		to maintain the spirit of counsel in the Cenacle by assuring that important decisions are made through the regular practice of taking counsel;	
•		to collaborate with the Custodian in the formation of the Candidates and the ongoing formation of the Associates in the Cenacle vocation;	
•		to promote a spirit of peace and unity in the Cenacle, and self sacrifice and zeal in its mission;	
•		to work with the Regional Spiritual Guide to provide days of reflection, retreats, and workshops for the ongoing formation and spiritual growth of the members;	
•		to see that the Rule of Life and Constitution and the Norms and Policies are followed in the Cenacle;	
•		to be alert to the needs of the Cenacle. 	

8.1.6  Care should be taken that Spiritual Guides are properly trained and qualified for their roles. ...

8.1.9  Spiritual Guides do not engage in formal spiritual direction of individuals unless they are qualified to do so.  However, they may assist Cenacle members in discovering the will of God in the circumstances, events, trials, and challenges of their lives.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t really understand?

Sharing
Having a spiritual guide is encouraged but not required. If this group has one, is there more we might ask of him or her? If not, should we take counsel at a later date to explore this option?

Session #8: Membership
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “Membership has its Privileges”

I first met members of the MCA in 1984 when I was a Missionary Cenacle Volunteer; some of the volunteers were long-time associates who were volunteering now that they were retired.  During the 4 ½ years I was serving in Holy Trinity, Sr. Josepha McNutt, MSBT, of happy memory, did her best to get me to “sign up” with the local cenacle.  I resisted mightily.  Frankly, I just didn’t “get” the MCA: What did they do?  What were they about?  Did I really have to become a member to be a missionary?

It was a very practical reason that led me to join the MCA in 1989.  I had moved to Silver Spring, MD to work for the STs and I didn’t know anyone except a few priests and brothers.  When a co-worker invited me to come to an MCA meeting, I readily agreed.  But I have to admit, for many months, the same nagging questions I had in Holy Trinity kept cropping up.  Why should I become a member of the MCA?

With what was no doubt the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I did stick it out and eventually became a full member of the MCA.  At some point during the ensuing years, it hit me: Membership does indeed have its privileges!  Not the kind of “privileges” touted by American Express, the company that made the advertising slogan famous.  Membership in the MCA wouldn’t get me exotic vacations and gourmet meals at fancy restaurants as an American Express card might, but I gained something more valuable
 . . . a community, a family, a spirituality, a vocation.

For me, the most profound privilege of being in the Cenacle is the opportunity to be part of something important, something greater than myself.  It is the opportunity to be part of this incredible movement Fr. Judge began over a century ago. It gives meaning to my life.  My favorite lines of Fr. Judge remind us that with the privilege of membership in the Missionary Cenacle comes a great responsibility:

“Do give this much thought, do hold yourselves responsible for the future of the Cenacle; do remember that as you are, so others will be. What more beautiful legacy can you leave than that of an example and life fragrant and rich in the Cenacle traditions! This means that even after your death you will be continuing your apostleship through others whom your virtue has attracted to the service of God. Such will be my constant prayer for you; do make it your constant effort.”

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	Who invited you to be a member of the MCA?  What feelings did you have?  How has your understanding and appreciation of membership grown?

2.	What do you see as the “privilege” of membership in the MCA?  Make a list and use it for prayer for a week.  Do you have any new insights about being a member of the MCA?

3.	Reflect on Fr. Judge’s words.  How do you feel about being responsible for the future of the Cenacle?  Is there something you desire to do or change about yourself in order to leave a richer legacy?  Pray for the grace to act on your desire.

Session #8: Prayer and Study
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture		Ephesians 1:11–14 
In Him we were also chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of His glory, we who first hoped in Christ. In Him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in Him, were sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit, which is the first installment of our inheritance toward redemption as God's possession, to the praise of His glory.

Father Judge	Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 141
Prayer is the whole. What a grace to think the thoughts of an Apostle! What a blessing to pray the prayers of an Apostle. What a privilege to make the confession of an Apostle. What a destiny to be of the Church of the Apostles. What a promise to be of their Faith! 
Unworthy would we be of these graces, disloyal would we be to their cause, if we did not wish to exert ourselves to follow them, at least in our poor, humble, faulty way. What we have through them we must share with others. Here is where that same charity grips us to do our share that God's Name be hallowed, that His kingdom come, and that His Holy Will be done.

Prayer
O Triune God Almighty God and Father, all we are comes from you. Send us your Holy Spirit to bind us together in your love, and gift us with what is needed to follow the path of Jesus our Lord.

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule 8, 40;  Norms 1.2.4, 2.1.5, 2.1.6
Part 2:		Rule 23, 26; Norms 3.1, 3.4.1–4, 3.6.2, 3.6.6, 3.6.7
Part 3:		Rule 37; Norms 3.8, 4.2.5

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

NOTE:
Section 6 of Norms and Policies, “Ministry of Authority,” is not included in any ReGrounding sessions due to its length and detail. However, members should be familiar with this information, some of which is new.  Section 6 would fit well in this session. You are strongly encouraged to read through this material on your own.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #8

Part 1

From Rule of Life
8.  We are to call forth apostolic men and women from everyday walks of life to become Associates in the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate and to encourage those who feel called to other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family. We demonstrate a family spirit by having a loving regard for all the members of the family and, when possible, by collaboration in apostolic works. It is our particular responsibility as members of this family to spread the Cenacle spirit. Father Judge declared that: 
if the right spirit is maintained, if the primitive spirit is passed down, this family idea will engender the most beautiful fruits for the honor and glory of God and for the edification of the Church.

40.  We are each to encourage and foster vocations to the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate. We look for candidates who manifest a love of God, a zeal for neighbor, and a spirit of sacrifice.  

40.1  Candidacy is a period of formal preparation leading to a mature commitment expressed in an Act of Consecration. It is a time to consider deeply his or her vocation, to experience the apostolic way of life, to become formed in the Cenacle spirit, to accept the responsibility of membership, and to test suitability for a vocation in the MCA.
 
40.2  Candidates who are to be admitted as Associates shall make an Act of Consecration according the Rule of Life and Constitution. The Act of Consecration is made to the Triune God in the presence of the Regional Custodian or delegate. 

from Norms and Policies
1.2.4	Recognizing that cultural differences exist between regions, we encourage adaptations of the MCA charism to accommodate these differences, so long as these do not compromise or dilute the norms and policies of the MCA.

2.1.5  We shall make every effort to promote the development of apostolic leaders and, where appropriate, shall encourage them to assume responsibility for Cenacle works.

2.1.6  We shall strive to promote vocations to the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
What is the difference between inviting someone to join a group and encouraging them to discern a vocation?

Part 2

from Rule of Life
23.  We seek to imitate Jesus who calls us to follow him with liberty of spirit and to share in his emptying of self for others. (Philippians 2:7) In Baptism we were anointed with the Holy Spirit and united to Jesus in his mission as a personal response with faith, to God, whose love, the Holy Spirit was spread in our hearts. (Romans  5:5)

26.  In the spirit of the Missionary Cenacle, we are to offer each other support and understanding, rejoicing with those who rejoice and sorrowing with those who sorrow. In a special way, our love is given to our sick and aging members.
  
26.1  In that same spirit we also pray for the sick and aging members of the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family.

26.2  Associates who are sick know that they are united with the suffering Christ for the salvation of the world. They grow in holiness, accepting their sickness with faith.

26.3  Associates who are no longer able to fully participate in the life of the Cenacle due to aging or other infirmities are encouraged to take as their apostolate a ministry of prayer for the members of the MCA and the other branches of the Missionary Cenacle Family. Members shall treat these Associates as the treasure they are, seeking out their gift of wisdom and including them as much as possible in the activities of the Cenacle.

From Norms and Policies
3.1  Eligibility:  Catholic women and men eighteen years of age and older, who are not already members of a religious order (including any third order), who feel called by God to live out their Baptismal consecration within the charism of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, and who possess the qualities listed in 3.2, are eligible for membership in the MCA.

3.4.1  All members have the right to:
•		attend regularly the meetings of the local Cenacle, the days of recollection, and the annual retreat;	
•		receive spiritual guidance and direction from persons who are well-versed in Missionary Cenacle spirituality; 	
•		leave a local Cenacle or to form a new Cenacle; and to 	
•		request the prayers of the Cenacle in time of need.	

3.6.2  A member who moves away from a Cenacle remains a member of that Cenacle until he/she joins another Cenacle.  The Custodian of the original Cenacle is responsible for maintaining communication with the member who has moved away.  The member is considered active as long as he/she remains in contact with the Cenacle and indicates a desire to remain an active member.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?
Sharing
How have I personally experienced support by belonging to the MCA?

Part 3

from Rule of Life
37. In the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, full authority is exercised in an ordinary manner by the General Custodian assisted by the General Council. This authority encompasses leadership and governance of the MCA, the call of the members to our apostolic way of life, and responsibility for administration of the temporal goods of the MCA. Policies relating to the office and responsibilities of the General Custodian and Assistant General Custodians are specified in the Norms and Policies. 

From Norms and Policies
3.8.1 Affiliates are not members of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate, but they have a special relationship with the Missionary Cenacle Family. Affiliates include: 
•	prospective members of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate;	
•		junior Cenacle members and Angel Cenacle members;	
•		persons who live an apostolic life and wish to be formed in Cenacle spirituality but who are not currently seeking membership in the MCA.	

3.8.2  An Affiliate may be permitted by a local Missionary Cenacle to participate in its retreats and days of recollection and to collaborate in apostolic works.  An Affiliate may be permitted to attend meetings of a local Cenacle by a consensus of the Associates.

4.2.5  Cenacles are required to:
•	meet twice a month.  Once a month if this is not possible; 	
•	form members in Cenacle spirituality using sacred Scriptures, the teachings of the Catholic Church, and the writings of Father Judge and other Cenacle literature; 	
•	elect a Custodian and Assistant Custodian according to the Norms and Policies;	
•	hold annual Cenacle retreats, days of recollection, and training workshops;	
•	participate in the stewardship program of the MCA;	
•	submit a list of members to the Regional Custodian and Director of Communications;	
•	submit reports requested by the Regional Custodian in a timely manner;	
•	maintain regular communications with the Regional Custodian directly or through the Area Custodian; and 	
•	abide by the procedures as outlined in the Rule of Life and Constitution and the Norms and Policies. 	

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Why isn’t being an affiliate good enough for me? Why be a member?

Session #9: Consecration
Personal Reflection Before Meeting

Reading for Reflection	 “I already am what I’ve always wanted to be”

I run the fund development office for the STs.  I've been there since 1989!  While it is a professional office, and we employ many practices from the business world, I have made a concerted effort through the years to try to instill in the other lay people with whom I work the idea that they are missionaries, too, in the providence of their daily lives.  Mind you, not all of them are Catholics–through the years my co-workers have included a Muslim, a Coptic Christian, a Buddhist, members of various Protestant denominations and a fair share of non-practicing Catholics.  My assistant–who took the job because we are called Trinity Missions–is an ordained minister!  

One year we had an off-site staff development day.  As part of the program, the facilitator had asked me to share with the staff my story of being a Missionary Cenacle Volunteer in Alabama in the late 1980's, and how that had led me to working for the STs in Maryland.  I told them about my experience on the mission and how it continued to motivate me in my work in the office.  I explained how I still thought of my work as “missionary work” even though it provided practically no contact with the actual “missions.”  The next day, one of my co-workers, a devout Baptist woman, sent me an e-mail thanking me for the day.  She told me that she had always wanted to be a missionary but for one reason or another it had never worked out.  After hearing my talk, she said, she realized that she was a missionary and that I had helped her see, as she put it, “I already am what I've always wanted to be.” 

I already am what I always wanted to be!  What a wonderful notion!  For me, that sums up the essential element of the MCA Act of Consecration.  We are saying that we recognize that we are missionaries, a vocation we received at baptism.  We are saying that we recognize that we are being called to live our baptismal vocation in the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.  We are saying that we recognize the special gift we bring as laity to the Missionary Cenacle Family, to the Catholic Church, and to the world.

The Baltimore Catechism gave us a definition most of us of a certain age know by heart:  
“A sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace.”  Today our understanding of sacrament goes a bit deeper.  If we think of sacraments not so much as something we receive but something that we are,  we recognize that in a very real way, then, we are sacrament–instruments of grace.  We are the ordinary way God gives grace to the world today.

Similarly, our Act of Consecration doesn’t give us anything new; rather, it bears witness to the fact that we are children of God by virtue of our baptism.  It provides a framework, if you will, for living and for growing spiritually.  I remember when I made my Act of Consecration in what is now Trinity House in Stirling, NJ, all I could think of as I recited the words is: “I’m home.”  Here is where my heart is. Here is where I am being called.  Here–in this community, with this spirituality, within this family–is where I will be able to be my very best.  Here is where, in my ordinary everyday life, God will use me to be an outward sign of grace in my little corner of the world.

As you reflect on your own experience of living the MCA Act of Consecration, may you also treasure being able to say each and every day, “I already am what I’ve always wanted to be.”

Missionary Cenacle Apostolate Act of Consecration

O God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, through the mysteries of the Holy Trinity and the Incarnation, I freely choose this day to consecrate to you my love and service as an Associate of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.

I renew my Christian commitment made at Baptism and at Confirmation to be an apostle of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I pray for your abiding presence to strengthen me in my vocation so that I may lead an apostolic life according to the Rule of Apostolic Life of the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.

O Holy Spirit, I pray that I may receive the gifts of charity, humility, sacrifice, self-denial, patience, prudence, and simplicity.   I pray that in the providence of my everyday life, I may be ever mindful of the poor and abandoned who do not experience your love.

With Mary, my blessed mother, St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse, the apostles, the saints and in the presence of all gathered here, I offer you my life, all that I am, for the building of your kingdom where you rule forever and ever.  And I joyfully acclaim with all believers:  

Blessed be God the Father who has created us.
Blessed be God the Son who has redeemed us.
Blessed be God the Holy Spirit who sanctifies us.
Blessed be the Holy and undivided Trinity,
now and forever.  Amen.

Questions for Personal Reflection

1.	Think back on the day you made your Act of Consecration.  Where did it occur?  Who was there?  Do you recall how you felt?  Write down a few lines that describe what it meant to you and bring it to prayer for a few days.

2. 	Where are you now in terms of what Fr. Judge called your “spiritual temperature?”  How does it compare to the day you made your Act of Consecration?

3.	How has God used you to be a sacrament in the world?  What sense of being consecrated do you bring to your daily providence?  Has it made a difference?  If so, how?

Session #9: Consecration
Meeting Outline

Opening Prayer

Scripture		Matthew 5:13-16
You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket, but on a stand. And it give light to everyone in the house. Let your light shine before everyone, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Father Judge	Missionary Cenacle Meditations, p. 183
The Missionary Cenacle has a mission, and there are many sides to that mission, but what more beautiful side is there than this, that you, by zealous practices, by living up to the conditions of the Missionary Cenacle, are going to do your share to conserve the fire Jesus came to cast upon earth, that you will be that light that is to be placed on the mountain, that you will be the good odor of Christ, that you will be the salt of the earth. ... Isn't it a matter of extraordinary consolation to think that we can enter into the very plan of the Son of God? The Catholic spirit is beautiful! What a dreary world this would be without a Catholic spirit; and again, what would become of the sanctuary, of the cloister, of Catholic life, if the Catholic spirit did not flourish. ... Understand, I am speaking of the Cenacle spirit, for when I speak of the Cenacle spirit I speak of the Catholic spirit. If you have been trained for any purpose or made at all useful, it is that you might show forth that Christlike spirit, charity in good works. ... I wish that during this meditation you would, as it were, take your own temperature. How is that fire within me? ... The Spirit of God wants to use you; you are His instruments. You are tools with which He is going to chisel out salvation for many souls.

Prayer
Father, give us your abiding presence to strengthen our vocation so that we may lead an apostolic life according to our Rule. Holy Spirit, send us the gifts of charity, humility, sacrifice, self-denial, patience, prudence, and simplicity.   Help us in the providence of everyday life, to be ever mindful of the poor and abandoned who do not experience your love. We ask this in the name of our savior Jesus, your Son. Amen.

Reading from Our Documents

Part 1:		Rule 1, 9, 13
Part 2:		Rule 22, 24; Norms 7.5

See the questions for clarifying and sharing at the end of each part.

Conclusions (for group sharing)	
As we end this session, I remain unclear about....
As we end this session, I feel....
As we end this session, I have learned....
Any questions or issues I think we should return to later?

Taking Counsel on our Future
	Having completed the ReGrounding Series, this might be a logical time to plan a “Regrouping” meeting. Some questions you might want to take counsel on at a future meeting (not at this meeting!):
•		Do we want to continue to meet in the same pattern, or reconsider the time and place of our meetings? What are the advantages and disadvantages of our present system?	
•		What format(s) do we want for our meetings? Review Norms 4.5 regarding this question. What content or resources will we need?	
•		Is our Cenacle open to new MCA vocations? Should we seek to establish and mentor a new Cenacle in our area? A Youth Cenacle? Are we looking for new MCA vocations? Who do we know who might benefit from an introduction to the MCA?	
•		When will it be time to elect new leadership? What do we need from our custodians? Do we need a secretary and/or treasurer?	
•		Do we want to consider the possibility of a “common apostolate”? What are our individual apostolates? Where do we need to focus?	

Closing Prayer	 Missionary Cenacle Doxology

Closing Business
•		Date and location of next meeting:	
•		Facilitator, refreshments, secretary:	
•		Who will contact absent members?	

***

Notes for continued personal reflection. (Additionally, if any of the parts were not completed, note it here so that you can take time on your own to review it.)

Notes from discussion requiring further action. Include here any questions for clarification you may need to take to someone outside the group, any deeper issues that arose which you may want to explore together after this series is complete, or any ideas or suggestions that came up which you want to try out.

Readings for Session #9

Part 1

From Rule of Life
1. Our Lord had very much at heart the creating of a spirit, a missionary spirit, an evangelical burning that would sweep over the whole world. He came to cast a fire on the earth, and he willed that it would be enkindled (Luke 12:49).  The Holy Spirit has enkindled this fire in our hearts.  This is our heritage: an apostolic spirit, a Gospel spirit, a Catholic spirit. The Missionary Cenacle spirit is charity, charity aflame.

9.  The Cenacle spirit is a Christ-like spirit of “faith working through love” (Gal 5:6).  We confess in our hearts the mysteries of faith: the Trinity, the Incarnation, and the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. We aspire to a devotional knowledge of these mysteries; that is, a deeply personal and interior faith that is restless until it finds expression in good works; our good works, in turn, nourish our life of faith and bear fruit in apostolic holiness.

13.  Our act of consecration unites us in faith, hope and love. We strive to emulate the early Christians who had one heart and one mind and were nourished by the teaching of the apostles, the breaking of the bread, and the common prayers (Acts 2:42; 4:32).

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
How does my faith life affect my “good works,” and vice versa?

Part 2

from Rule of Life
22.  The Cenacle spirit is an apostolic spirit, which finds its perfection in zeal, the white heat of charity. We are to become perfect in the spirit and virtues of the Cenacle, to live and die simple, prudent, humble, charitable men and women of sacrifice, of patience, of self-denial whose lives are spent consecrated to the service of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

22.1  Our spirituality is nurtured by the practice of the virtues of faith, hope and charity and the Cenacle virtues.

24.  Our Act of Consecration joins us together for the sake of apostolic mission through the grace of the Holy Spirit. Our consecration encourages the expression of a more generous love of one another as a community. Community, in turn, contributes to the faithful living of our commitment to the Triune God and to the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate.

24.1   The act of consecration brings one into full membership as an Associate of the MCA, whereby we commit ourselves to live the Rule of Apostolic Life.

From Norms and Policies
7.5  The Act of Consecration

7.5.1  The Act of Consecration is to be understood as the commitment to live one’s Baptismal consecration to Christ as a member of the MCA. It is a public recognition that the Candidate has embraced a vocation to the Cenacle Rule as a way of life.

7.5.2  The Act of Consecration is normally celebrated on the Feast of Pentecost, Christ the King, the Anniversaries of Father Judge and Mother Boniface, or the annual retreat.  Wherever possible, it shall take place in a gathering of the Cenacle community and in the context of the celebration of the Eucharist.
     
7.5.3  The Candidate shall make the Act of Consecration in the presence of the Regional Custodian or his/her delegate.  New Associates shall receive the Cenacle pin as a visible sign of membership in the MCA.

Clarifying
Is there anything here which I don’t fully understand?

Sharing
Having completed this ReGrounding Series, do I feel the process has been of benefit to my MCA vocation? Specifically, how? Or if not, why?