Divine Mercy Conference offers prayer, education
PARK CITY — "The main dysfunction in families today statistically are the men. Today, 80 percent of men spend 80 minutes a week with their children," said Father Bill Halbing, in his talk, "Overcoming Depression" at the 2008 Immaculate Mary Eucharistic Divine Mercy Family Conference.
The conference was held at the Yarrow Resort and Conference Center in Park City Aug. 29-31. About 200 people attended the conference that was filled with prayer, a healing service, Masses, music, Eucharistic adoration, talks on overcoming depression, Saint Paul, the archangels, truth and reality, and Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska.
Fr. Halbing is from St. Antoninus Parish in the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. He said he travels all over the world and is meeting people who are stressed and depressed.
"Healing is with Jesus," said Fr. Halbing. "Jesus came to save all who are pressured by the devil."
In his talk, Fr. Halbing said the men in our families are supposed to be the spiritual healers of the family.
"How many people go to reconciliation and confess the same sin they have confessed before?" asked Fr. Halbing. "If you commit the same sin, you like your sin. You have to hate your sin. But God is not disappointed in any of us because he knows us. We are never condemned by God, we are condemned by other people. We have got to know the power of confessing our sins."
Fr. Halbing says we get to forgive and love everyone. If someone curses at you, all you have to say is "thank you for thinking of me. If you do not forgive, God will not forgive you. You have got to love your enemies and stop talking about them.
"If you forgive your spouse, you can never say, ‘There you go again,’" said Fr. Halbing. "Because if you forgive, you can never bring up the subject again. If you are going to free yourself from depression, you have got to forgive everyone.
"If you want to get rid your fears, develop a fear of God. You cannot have fears and not fear God," said Fr. Halbing. "We must also stop saying the Lord’s name in vain."
Fr. Halbing said the number one area of depression is promiscuous sexuality. Porn is a problem. The occult is also a problem. If you are involved in such mediums, you are involved in sin that will lead you to hell.
"Depression is a spirit," said Fr. Halbing. "Psychiatry and pills help to suppress the spirit. You become depressed by allowing that spirit to come into your life. Satan comes into our lives to harass and depress us. People get to the point where they do not want to wake up or live. So they try to suppress these feelings with alcohol and drugs, which are both sins. But Jesus said we can only have one master. Magnify Jesus, not your problem."
"Renounce the sins of your past. If you were involved in the occult, renounce it," said Fr. Halbing. "Break with idolatry, and stop beating up yourself. Every time you beat yourself up, you squelch the Holy Spirit.
Fr. Halbing also said we have to take authority over the evil in our lives and cast it out. The victory is ours.
"Wake up to receive the full baptismal grace of your lives," said Fr. Halbing. "Everything that is inside you that is depressed is a void. Fill it with joy. Happiness is situational."
Missionary Father Pablo Straub, of Saint Alphonsus’ Redemptorist Order, lives in rural Mexico. Fr. Pablo said God gave us the intellect for perceiving the truth.
"Jesus said ‘I am the truth, the way, and the light,’" said Fr. Pablo. "This means truth and God are one and the same being. I do not like the saying ‘Everything is relative.’ Truth is not relative, truth is absolute.
"God is absolute and God is love," said Fr. Pablo. "We are in love with the truth. Pope John Paul II said, ‘You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free. If it is not based on the truth, it is a lie and it is slavery.’
Fr. Pablo said the culture of death will draw us in if we do not fight for the truth because in doing so, we are laying down our lives for Jesus.
Fr. Pablo also encouraged the attendees to make Eucharistic adoration a reality in their parishes. He said through the rosary, prayer, and adoration, we will be led to the truth, which is God.
Father Piotr "Peter" Prusakiewica, a member of the Congregation of Saint Michael the Archangel, is based in Marki, Poland. His congregation maintains and supports orphanages and schools in Poland as well as formation houses in various countries.
Fr. Peter, as he preferred to be called, spoke about angels.
"Angels are invisible," said Fr. Peter. "If someone is deaf, that does not mean sounds do not exist. Just because we cannot see angels, that does not mean they do not exist. Faith in their presence is growing. The Catholic Church has always practiced a devotion to the holy angels.
"It is right that Our Lady should be first and the queen of angels," said Fr. Peter. "Jesus was surrounded by angels. Angels are spiritual beings. They minister to us, inspire us, and contact us even if we do not know it. Prayer is a way of communicating with the angels."
Fr. Peter said beyond man, millions of creatures exist who are far more perfect than man. We know this from the Bible and through our liturgy. The Old Testament speaks of angels 100 times, and the New Testament speaks of angels 200 times. They are mentioned from the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation.
"Angels were created by God as spiritual beings," said Fr. Peter. "God expressed his love for the angels. We believe in one God and all that is seen and unseen. Man is a bridge between the angels and animals."
Fr. Peter said angels have an effect on us. We are God’s children and the angels are his servants. God put the angels to a test. Some fell under the command of the Archangel Saint Michael, and some refused to fulfill God’s command and were under Satan. Satan’s group rebels against God and are lost forever. They want us to join them.
Angels are God’s ambassadors. They are distant beings, unseen spirits. People are born, and angels are created and immortal. They have no gender, no age, no sickness or pain, or death. By nature, angels occupy the highest position (Psalm 8:6). Angels are pure spirits higher than man. When they appear to a human, they adopt a human appearance. Angels have great knowledge, but are not all knowing like God.
"Angels protect us, rescue us from harm, try to stop our temptations, and they work all the time," said Fr. Peter. "There are only three angles we have seen: Saint Michael, St. Gabriel, and Saint Raphael. Saint Gabriel appeared to Our Lady before she conceived Jesus, and to the shepherds.
"Saint Michael the Archangel is considered to be the guardian angel of Christ.
"Ask your guardian angel to support you in your morning prayers or before the Lord in Eucharistic adoration for care and guidance," said Fr. Peter. "Ask them to strengthen you when you are suffering. Angels can help us when we are struggling with other people. We can also pray to other people’s guardian angels. It is also good to wear the guardian angel medals around our necks, and to be more aware of our angels’ presence."
Fr. Peter also spoke about Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, whom Jesus chose and appeared to, to reveal the Divine Mercy Chaplet to the world.
"Saint Faustina only lived 33 years," said Fr. Peter. "She was chosen by Jesus to be the secretary of the Divine Mercy. Saint Faustina said, ‘My mission will not end upon my death, but will begin.’ That is why she is so powerful. God can work in us in many ways.
"I would like to draw your attention to the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Sacrament of the Eucharist," said Fr. Peter. "Jesus was not a showman, he was shy. There is a story in the gospel where a man comes to Jesus who is handicapped. A crowd had gathered and they were expecting to see a miracle. But instead of performing a miracle, Jesus said, ‘Your sins are forgiven. I came to forgive people of their sins so they can look God in the eye again.’
There is a special time for receiving God’s mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
"In Saint Faustina’s time, Jesus said to tell souls they are to look in the tribunal of mercy. Saint Faustina wrote in her diary that Jesus said ‘Souls are looking for solace, but how miserable are those who do not take advantage of the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the miracle of God’s mercy.’
"The sacraments are visible signs of invisible graces," said Fr. Peter. "Just as we cannot see Jesus in the Eucharist, we can be transformed through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We go to confession to be forgiven and to be healed. At Mass, we say the words ‘Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed.’ This healing power comes to us through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We know that by Jesus’ death on the cross, he set us free from the power of sin. It is not that we will never sin again, but sin’s hold over us is broken. Jesus made freedom from the power of sin possible.
"Jesus said to Saint Faustina, the blood and water which came forth from my heart always flows down upon your soul," said Fr. Peter. According to the diary of Saint Faustina, Jesus said, ‘Come to confession in the shelter of the rays of mercy which are visible in the Divine Mercy image.’ By going to confession often, we deepen our relationship with Jesus. That is why we should go once a month. When we meet Jesus present in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we develop a friendship with him.
"Christ said to Saint Faustina, if it were not for this imperfection, you would not have come to me," said Fr. Peter. "Confession is a time of grace, and a special time for meeting Jesus who is alive and present in the sacrament."
Fr. Peter said to realize how great the grace of forgiveness is we receive through the sacrament, we have to be aware of the meaning of sin and its consequences. Sin is a kind of spiritual equation. It destroys people. It does not matter if they are believers or nonbelievers. When you commit sins, you always lose something. Sin is connected to immediate pleasure, otherwise nobody would sin. But after the pleasure is gone, our conscience starts to bother us, we feel remorse, and sometimes we even hate ourselves."
Fr. Peter said it is very easy to silence our consciences and get used to living in a state of sin. It is like living in a dark basement, after a while your eyes get used to the darkness and you can see images. But we should remember our sins wound and crucify Christ.
"We should be aware of our sins," said Fr. Peter. "Jesus suffered such a cruel death. His mercy obliges us to try to overcome temptations and stop committing sins. The recognition of sin should awaken a healthy sense of guilt in us, which is a sign of a sensitive conscience. We cannot hide from our sins because they are still within us. A psychiatrist cannot absolve our sins, only Jesus can. That is why Jesus gave us the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
"Christ knows it is not easy for us to go to confession," said Fr. Peter. "Because after committing sins, we have a tendency to hide like Adam and Eve. But God is looking for us and loves us unconditionally. His mercy is greater than our sins."
Fr. Peter said the Sacrament of the Eucharist is the time we receive Jesus’ body and blood during Communion. The Eucharist, which is heavenly bread, strengthens us. It transforms our hearts into the heart of Jesus. The Eucharist gives us something we can actually see, touch, and taste. Jesus transforms us through the Eucharist, even if we cannot see it.
"We pass through three stages," said Fr. Peter. "The first stage, the moment of conception to birth, is the shortest. The second stage is longer. It is from birth until death. The third stage is everlasting life after death.
"We all know that the life between birth and death is full of wonders," said Fr. Peter.
There are two truths from God’s teaching about human life. The first is the transient nature of human life. The goal of human life is to gain eternal life.
"The second goal is interdependence of the stages," said Fr. Peter. "Just like the time spent in the mother’s womb prepares us for life in the world, similarly life in this world prepares us for eternal life after death. Just like we have no idea of life in the world when we are in the womb, we have no idea of what eternal life will be like in our present life. And just like in the womb, our nourishment is the blood of our mother, similarly the Eucharist or Christ’s body and blood is our nourishment for the world yet to come.
"Jesus said if you eat my body and drink my blood, you will have everlasting life," said Fr. Peter. "So we should remember that the importance of the Eucharist is to transform us so we are prepared for the next world. It also will help us in this stage of life to deal with our problems. Jesus did not promise us our lives would be easy, but said the Eucharist would help us with our problems. He did promise us the Eucharist would bring us to eternal life.
Jesuit Father Mitchell Pacwa is the founder and president of Ignatius Productions, a Catholic media production apostolate whose mission it is to teach people the scriptures, educate Catholics about their faith, and promote unity and understanding within the mystical body of Christ. Fr. Pacwa hosts "EWTN Live."
Fr. Pacwa spoke about Saint Paul by discussing the second letter to the Corinthians. He said this letter often confuses people because they do not understand what Saint Paul is talking about. Saint Paul is teaching about the cross.
"We stopped talking about the theology of the cross and focused on the optimism of the 1960s in terms of the resurrection," said Fr. Pacwa. "We saw the crosses and tabernacles start to disappear from the churches.
"This letter is based on the false notion of who Christ is," said Fr. Pacwa. "We believe that God is man but remained divine.
"We have to try our best to be reminded of our limits of understanding. Part of that limit comes in terms of understanding God’s eternity," said Fr. Pacwa. "God has no past and no future. Everything is now. I emphasize that because this is key to understanding Saint Paul’s teaching about the cross throughout his letters. If Christ is God and is therefore timeless, then the crucifixion is not in the past. For us, yes, but not for him.
"Because of that aspect of our faith, the cross is still powerful to us as is the resurrection," said Fr. Pacwa. "They are the very power behind the Eucharist and baptism. The death and resurrection are at the core of every sacrament.
Fr. Pacwa said in relation to the letter from 2 Corinthians, the cross and resurrection are also at the core of our daily experience. Fr. Pacwa said because of Corinth’s location, sailers preferred to sail to Corinth and pull their ships across to the other side. This made Corinth’s reputation one of prostitution.
Saint Paul writes this is a problem community, and a conversion may not come easy because it is not easy to give up certain habits. The livelihood of the city depended on that of ill repute. Saint Paul addresses that in the opening of his letter. There was also a group of super apostles who were claiming to do more healing and more miracles.
Fr. Pacwa said the community included Greeks and Jews and Saint Paul was treating them equally by saying "Grace and Peace." He then goes on to give thanks to God, which was very important. "He is the father of Mercy and the God of all comfort."
"The super apostles were going around saying Saint Paul was not such a hot shot. He is getting in trouble wherever he goes," said
Fr. Pacwa. "God is favoring us. So Saint Paul acknowledges his afflictions, and says it is God who comforts us. God gives us a grace of comfort in our affliction. Saint Paul further says when God comforts me, I can comfort you because God has given me a grace of his comfort that is available for me to give to you. He is teaching his people how they ought to pray."
Another key part is Christ’s suffering on the cross which is precisely what gives meaning to our suffering here. Saint Paul says this to the Corinthians. He learned that from Jesus Christ himself. When our Lord appeared to Saint Paul on the road to Damascus, he said, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
"This is a short line, but it is the beginning of Saint Paul’s theology," said Fr. Pacwa. "That is where he began to understand that the church is the body of Christ. Saint Paul was a very educated Pharisee. He knew his scripture, and he had an ability to think profoundly. He also learned that when we are suffering, Christ is suffering with us."
Saint Paul wrote about the suffering of the Corinthians, who had to give up the sin industry and how they made money, which led to a sense of isolation. He is doing it for their salvation, which becomes part of the teaching of our Church. Their suffering became an example for the salvation of others.
Fr. Pacwa said our own reflection needs to begin at this point because suffering is a part of life. We cannot live without suffering. Babies cry when they are hungry. We have a disorder if we cannot feel pain. That suffering saves our lives. People also become numb to pain.
"What is at stake is our willingness to deal with our own suffering because one day we hope to be with God," said Fr. Pacwa.
© Copyright 2024 The Diocese of Salt Lake City. All rights reserved.
Stay Connected With Us