Graymoor Today Summer Issue Online 10th Anniversary of September 11 Memorial Service at Graymoor Sponsor Appreciation Day at Graymoor, September 7th Website Feature: Buddhist Christian Dialogue Conference Video Charitable Gift Annuity Update

BECOMING MORE CHRIST-LIKE

Greetings from Fr. Bob ...

I receive many letters each week. Some express sadness, but thankfully many are brimming with hope and happiness. One of the most common comments is: “… I feel better already by writing to you.” This sentiment keeps me humbly opening my mail! In these troubled times, many write asking for prayers that they may get a job or for intervention to help keep a family home.

Recently, a young man in his twenties wrote to ask – “How can I become more Christ-like? I have a feeling that there is more to life than what I have experienced so far.” I thought to myself that a whole book could be written to answer that question. Then I realized, that to answer this question, could very well be the answer to almost all of the letters I receive.

To become more like Christ, one needs to try to imitate Christ, to follow Him. This does not mean to copy His every action. After all, there is a great deal that Jesus never experienced. He was a man, not a woman. As far as we know He never experienced serious illness or old age, or Alzheimer’s disease.

Becoming more Christ-like means that you become motivated by the same principle that motivated Him: “I seek not my will but the will of Him who sent me” (Jn 5:30). As a point of fact, most of us say this every day and at every Mass – “Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” If you want to become more Christ-like, you must accept unconditionally that sometimes God’s will for us is not our will. Do not feel guilty, take the time to try to obtain a deeper understanding and realize that Christ himself experienced that in the Garden of Gethsemane.

His prayer there reads so poetically on the printed page – “Father, if it is your will, take this cup from me, yet, not my will but yours be done.” (Lk. 22-42) He knew His Father’s will and it traumatized him so much that he sweated blood. What the human nature of Jesus was saying at that moment was – God, do not let me die. He was in anguish so much so that God sent an angel to strengthen Him, to help Him to do God’s will.

Remember when Jesus found his disciples asleep he told them to wake up and pray. He would say the same to us. You want to be my disciple, then wake up and pray. Pray that you come to know God, not just know about Him. Ask Him to show you the way. You may have to ask and ask, but through this I assure you, God’s grace is taking root in you. In the very asking you are building a relationship, and day by day becoming more Christ-like.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Bob Warren

GRAYMOOR TODAY SUMMER ISSUE ONLINE

BUDDHIST / CHRISTIAN DIALOGUE CONFERENCE HELD AT GRAYMOOR

Over the weekend of May 13-15, the Friars sponsored a Buddhist-Christian Dialogue at Graymoor. Through presentations and panel discussions speakers from Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Buddhist traditions examined the differences of their respective beliefs while offering insights into how they each strive to seek a common path to truth and peace.

View a Video of the Dais Discussion from this Event >>

ANNUITY RATE CHANGES GO INTO EFFECT

By funding a Charitable Gift Annuity, you not only secure your own future; you secure ours as well. New rates have been issued and the link below provides a brochure with the pertinent details.

Thank you for supporting the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement. It is only through the long-term commitment of friends like you that we can continue the mission of healing, peace and unity that began with Father Paul Wattson, S.A., more than a century ago. God bless you for your kindness!

Learn More about Charitable Gift Annuities >>

St. Francis Chapel, Graymoor

Franciscan Friars of the Atonement

Headquartered at Graymoor in Garrison, NY, the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement is a Roman Catholic religious community with social, pastoral and ecumenical ministries in the United States, Canada, England, Italy, and Japan.

Graymoor Spiritual Life Center

In the Franciscan tradition of hospitality, Graymoor Spiritual Life Center welcomes individuals and groups of all faiths for spiritual retreats, meetings, conferences and pilgrimages.

Located on a mountaintop overlooking the Hudson River Valley, facilities include overnight accommodations, large dining room, a library, three chapels, as well as meeting/seminar facilities.

Centro Pro Unione
Christian Unity and
Ecumenical Research

The Centro Pro Unione, founded and directed by the Society of the Atonement, is an ecumenical research and action center. Its purpose is to give space for dialogue, to be a place for study, research and information in ecumenism: theological, pastoral, social and spiritual.

Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute

Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute promotes Christian unity and interreligious dialogue in North America through its monthly (except August) journal, Ecumenical Trends, Lecture Series, and Week of Prayer for Christian Unity resources.

St. Christopher's Inn
Residential Shelter & Substance Abuse Treatment Center

St. Christopher's Inn is a temporary shelter dedicated to the rehabilitation of men in crisis. Today the Inn shelters over 1,200 men per year, most of whom suffer from alcohol and/or drug addiction.

Our mission is to offer a continuum of quality health care services that facilitate physical, emotional, and spiritual healing by providing chemical dependency treatment, primary health care, and temporary housing.