{"id":1854,"date":"2016-06-23T19:14:25","date_gmt":"2016-06-24T00:14:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/?p=1854"},"modified":"2016-06-24T11:38:52","modified_gmt":"2016-06-24T16:38:52","slug":"encountering-christ-in-the-mountains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/2016\/06\/encountering-christ-in-the-mountains.html","title":{"rendered":"Encountering Christ in the Mountains"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"IMG_1718\"<\/a>
Chapel of Saint Stephen, Covecrest, Tiger, Georgia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Last week I spent a few days in the Georgia Mountains.\u00a0 While driving through the town of Clayton, I saw a large sign that read \u201cWelcome \u2013 Bienvenidos.\u201d\u00a0 It was the sign for Saint Helena Catholic Church.\u00a0 I took a left turn down a beautifully landscaped road and after a few seconds, the parish stood to my left.\u00a0 Its white tower stood in contrast to the green, wooded mountain behind it.\u00a0 I parked and approached.\u00a0 The door was unlocked so I entered and remained praying inside for about thirty minutes.\u00a0 Though there was no usher or greeter present to welcome me, I felt welcomed.\u00a0 I had read the sign, and the door had been unlocked.\u00a0 I had been welcomed by Christ himself who had been waiting for me in the utter silence of this parish nestled in the Georgia Mountains.<\/p>\n

In the exhortation Evangelii Gaudium<\/em>, Pope Francis described the Church as a mother with an open heart whose doors are always open to go forth toward others.\u00a0 He taught that the Church is called to be the house of the Father, with doors always wide open.\u00a0 Just as the father in the Parable of the Prodigal Son always kept his door open hoping his son would return, the Church must not create obstacles when her children return to her.\u00a0 The Pope wrote, \u201cthe Church is not a tollhouse; it is the house of the Father, where there is a place for everyone, with all their problems\u201d (EG<\/em>, 47).\u00a0 Pope Francis commented that a concrete sign of the Church\u2019s openness is that the doors of churches should always be open.\u00a0 I benefited from this while visiting Saint Helena, and I am grateful for it.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_6152\"
Saint Helena Parish, Clayton, Georgia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Before reaching Clayton, I visited Camp Covecrest in Tiger, Georgia.\u00a0 Covecrest is a Catholic camp that provides experiences for high schoolers so they may encounter Christ in a new, more profound way. \u00a0During my brief visit, not only did I feel welcomed, but I felt at home.\u00a0 Those who work at the camp \u201cwelcomed me home.\u201d\u00a0 A young lady (whom I had met a few months ago) gave me a tour of the camp.\u00a0 While there, I saw several people I knew from before, and I did not know they were at camp that week.\u00a0 One young man I met ten years ago while I was studying in Rome!\u00a0 We have a friend in common and I had not seen him since 2006.<\/p>\n

Hospitality, the ministry of welcoming, is real within the Church because we are all united in Christ.\u00a0 In welcoming the other, we welcome Christ.\u00a0 United by our common baptism, we are called to welcome others because we are already one.\u00a0 I saw no familiar faces at the parish, and many familiar ones at Covecrest, but the experience was the same: it was an encounter with Christ who opens his arms to me, to you, in a warm welcome, as he nestles us towards his heart.<\/p>\n

The pictures are mine, all rights reserved.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week I spent a few days in the Georgia Mountains.\u00a0 While driving through the town of Clayton, I saw a large sign that read \u201cWelcome \u2013 Bienvenidos.\u201d\u00a0 It was the sign for Saint Helena Catholic Church.\u00a0 I took a left turn down a beautifully landscaped road and after a few seconds, the parish stood […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2533,"featured_media":1855,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[217],"tags":[398,245,399,400],"class_list":["post-1854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-covecrest","tag-hospitality","tag-mountains","tag-welcome"],"yoast_head":"\nEncountering Christ in the Mountains<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Last week I spent a few days in the Georgia Mountains.\u00a0 While driving through the town of Clayton, I saw a large sign that read 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