Unfruitful tree:
Gardener sees life-giving potential

		Living the Scriptures  with St. Paul University  Catholic Center  Becky Stuczynski

In reading this week's Gospel I am drawn to the parable Jesus tells us about the unfruitful fig tree. I am particularly sensitive to the request by the tree's owner to have the tree cut down for "why should it exhaust the soil?"

This made my heart twinge as I felt connected to the tree at that moment. A reasonably healthy tree, although not very productive and not fulfilling its primary purpose, suddenly faced a terrible fate.

Third Sunday of Lent (March 14, 2004) Ex 3:1-8a, 13-15 Ps 103: 1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8, 11 1 Cor 10:1-6, 10-12 Lk 13:1-9

But, the Gardener saw something good. He saw the unmet needs of this tree and its life-giving potential.

Looking back at my life, I can honestly say that I was not much different from that fig tree in a spiritual sense. I had been stuck for a long time in distractions, bad habits, and feelings of worthlessness and loneliness.

I had lived my life with little sense of purpose and with little direction. I never really learned to tend to my soul, to cultivate and fertilize my personal needs and my personal relationship with Jesus.

My prayer life had not changed much from when I was a child. I never took the time and care to nurture my soul and grow with life.

I know that many people come to know God and themselves better after a life crisis. It is the acute awareness of our weaknesses and powerlessness at those times that pushes us to change.

My major crisis came about three years ago when my marriage fell apart. When trying to figure out what went wrong, I didn't have to look very far to see the many faults in both of us that led to the end. There was little cultivating or fertilizing; we were merely exhausting ourselves and each other.

The experience of divorce has led me, with some reluctance and fear, on a path of growth and fruitfulness. I think I've only produced a few figs so far, but I see the potential now, the potential for life and joy and peace in God's love and mercy.

My reluctance to keep digging deeper in my faith life still pops up now and again. There are setbacks.

But in general I have been on a path of growth. I have learned many things about myself and I have let people, gardeners, into my little world to cultivate my soul and feed me with their love and compassion.

	Reflection questions • What do you do daily to cultivate and fertilize your soul? • Do you look for the life and potential in others, especially those who are easily overlooked?

Without them and without Jesus to love me in all of my weakness and faults, I would not have been able to move forward on this faith journey.

Their love makes me better able to do the same for others. I think that's my favorite fruit. When I experience moments of true connectedness with other people, when I see Jesus in others, when I help others see Jesus, then it is all very good.

Becky Stuczynski is a member of St. Paul University Catholic Center and works as a registered nurse at St. Marys Hospital in Madison.

St. Paul's Web site is www.stpaulscc.org

Faith Alive!

In a Nutshell Adults today seek educational opportunities of many kinds in many fields. Adult faith formation takes many forms: Saturday miniretreats, mothers' sharing groups, Lenten series, Bible study, brief courses on prayer or groups for young adults, parents of schoolchildren, the newly married. Adult faith formation strives to excite adults about deepening their understanding and appreciation of faith, its doctrines, Scripture, moral issues and more. Catholic News Service 3211 Fourth St NE Washington DC 20017 202.541.3250 cns@catholicnews.com	Food for Thought   If I were to communicate just one point about the small, adult faith-formation groups I've participated in, I'd focus in on how supportive they have been. I think it is common for adults to seek out support from others in all areas of life. We find places and opportunities to ask each other questions, talk over immediate concerns, share advice and insights about challenges we're facing. We adults "go it alone" a whole lot less than we may consciously realize -- at least a whole lot of us do. It's this way in parish small groups too. Often they become contexts of trust where adults lend each other real support by seeking advice and sharing insights about ways of approaching the everyday challenges of life in the light of faith. I'm talking about the kinds of challenges that relate to experiences of loss, work, the raising of children or living in a diverse society where not everyone shares the same beliefs. Naturally, the small-group, faith formation contexts I'm describing, where adults trust each other enough to address their real concerns, also can be learning contexts. For example, it's amazing how the Bible relates to challenges adults actually face in 2004. It's amazing how the struggles and examples of saints can illuminate our struggles. full story   The "Look" of Adult Faith Formation in a Parish By Father Herbert Weber Catholic News Service In many parishes, there seems to be a gap between those who offer adult programs and those who desire to participate. Bridging that gap is the challenge of creating adult formation programs today. One of the primary principles of all education is that people learn best when they want to learn. So the first step in creating adult formation is to excite adults about deepening their understanding and appreciation of the faith, its doctrines, the Scriptures, moral issues and more. full story  What Parish Adult Faith Formation Teams Do By Jack McBride Catholic News Service Often parish adult faith formation teams, such as at the very small and urban St. Joseph Parish in Madison, Wis., follow the liturgical calendar. St. Joseph's invites adults to gather for a Catholic Update Series during Advent or Lent. Team members have found that offering a simple fish dinner every other Friday in Lent prior to the Update Series provides the kind of hospitality that "really brings adults out." The St. Joseph parish team also tries to pay attention to small groups of people in the parish. By inviting parishioners to listening sessions and asking how the parish might better assist parishioners on their spiritual journey, the idea arose of holding quarterly Saturday miniretreats after the 8 a.m. Mass and lasting until noon. full story  Faith Formation, Family Style By Father Dan Danielson Catholic News Service Some years ago, I finally tuned in to the fact that, though the church is 110 percent in support of family life, the church is in reality one of the institutions that frequently keeps family members apart from one another. We bring one parent out for a parish meeting, have the children attend separate faith-formation classes, even sometimes schedule different family members at different Sunday Eucharists for their assigned volunteer ministries. So we decided to try to become a more family-friendly parish. Among other things, we decided to offer a different way of going about our faith-formation effort. For the last several years then, we have been offering a Family Faith Formation program. It has two levels, an initial level and then, after they have been in Level 1 for a couple of years, a permanent small Christian community level (Level 2). full story
	Faith in the Marketplace   This Week's Discussion Point: How does your parish collaborate with other parishes in adult faith formation?     Selected Response From Readers:
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