News Scrapbook 1988

San Diego, Cal if . Sou th ern Cross (Cir W. 27 ,500) 2

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988

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OPENING NEW DOORS - Father Michael Kennedy, SJ, former pastor of Christ the King Church, San Diego, ad- dressed participants at " Connections," a conference for young adults held April 23 at the University of San Diego. Father Kennedy invited the group to open new doors by experiencing the world around them. The priest Is now associate pastor at Queen of Angels par- ish in Los Angeles and works at a refugee resettlement house in LA.

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COMMUNICATING - Christina Jimenez of St. Mlchae1 parish, Paradise Hills, listens to Marc Payne, right, of St. Brigid parish, Pacific Beach, as Eddie Goan of Santa Sophia, Spring Valley, observes as they work on improving their communication skills during a workshop at Connections, the San Diego diocesan young adult conference, April 23 at the University of San Diego. Father Daniel DIiiabough, judicial vicar of the diocesan Tribunal, conducted the workshop on "Improving Important Relationships." Young adults 'connect' at conference By Maureen Nuesca Southern Cross

door by listening as he described the experiences of a 22-year--old Salvadoran man, who was beaten, poisoned and left to die in an El Salvador gully because he was a Christian. The young man now resides in and is receiving medical treatment at Casa Grande, a refugee resettlement house in Los Angeles where Father Kennedy works. Father Kennedy urged the young adults to become followers of Jesus and open their lives to new experiences, rather , t han being "Joe averages" whose daily existence has become a monotonous routine. Look at Jesus and see ~hat type of man he is, said Father Kennedy, former pastor of Christ the King pansh in San Diego . " He is not a plastic sissy. He is a man of strength, always challenging the status quo," he explained. He challenged the young adults to continue opening doors that reveal fiving conditions and experiences of other peoples . "Jesus said, 'The kingdom of God is near, open that door.' Ours is a world of resources in which we can help others," Father Kennedy said. If those gathered continued to open

doors , they would realize what a tiny world they live in, he explained. After the general assembly, participants attended two of seven workshops offered at the conference. Father Dan Dillabough, judicial vicar of the diocesan Marriage Tribunal, was among the speakers . His lecture, ''Improving Important Relationships,'' focused on the importance of relationships and improving personal communication skills. Communication is integral to life, Father Dillabough said. He stressed the importance of using communication skills to improve relationships. Listening requires more than hearing, he noted. Posture , eye contact and environment are involved in listening, he said, adding that a person can clarify what has been said by asking open-ended questions. "Communication skills are crucial in improving relationships. Relationships say who we are and what we believe," he said. During her presentation, "Connecting with God in Prayer," Susan Stark, a retreat consultant for the San Diego diocese, stressed the development and

maintenance of a prayer life . "We each have restless hearts and a longing from within points us to the Spirit," Stark said. Developing a "life of the Spirit" conflicts with society because "praying is not materially productive and it does not hold any type of power or control over anyone," she noted. "Prayer is opening our hearts to the Spirit, staying in touch with the spiritual world, and listening to the spirit," Stark explained. A sign of prayer in one's life is the growth of virtues, she added. "Without prayer, we become paralyzed, deaf and blind, spiritually. " Reflecting upon the day, conference participant John Thomas Sperrazzo said, "It was beautiful . The workshops were so rich . Connections, indeed, were made. I feel that prayer in my life is going in a better direction, thanks to Susan Stark's workshop." Another conference pa rticipant, Lorraine Brzozowski told The Southern Cross, "I'm new in town and this has given me a chance to meet people with similar bac,~grounds. Overall, I'm r:

ALCALA PARK -

The keynote

speaker at

this year's "Connections"

young conference urged participants to continue opening doors to new experiences throughout their lives. "The day you don ' t open any new doors in life, you die inside. To be a human being means to open doors and be expanded into the real world," Jesuit Father Michael Kennedy , associate pastor of Queen of Angels parish in Los Angeles, told the 200 participants at the April 23 conference at the University of San Diego. Sponsored by the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries and the campus ministry programs at _USD , the University of California, San Diego, and San Diego State University, the gathering's purpose is to "discover how we can become more connected : with each other, with ourselves, and with our God, " according to a youth office spokesperson. At the opening assembly, Father Kennedy invited the group to open a new adult

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