DANBURY—On a dark, overcast Sunday afternoon, a choir of voices can be heard coming down State Street in Danbury, walking toward Elmwood Park, singing “Alleluia,” amid drums, tambourines, and guitars. The voices of children, youth and adults grow louder as they approach the park.
The group of 50 that has gathered is comprised of members of Sacred Heard of Jesus parish in Danbury, others from around the area who had been invited to this Great Mission, and also members of the Neocatechumenal Way from throughout Connecticut.
This Great Mission is a direct answer to the call of Pope Francis to “invite everybody to bring the Good News in every environment of life. Go into the squares and announce Jesus Christ, our Savior!” These Great Missions are being coordinated with the communities of the Neocatechumenal Way in tens of thousands of public squares and parks throughout the world in these weeks of Easter.
The Neocatechumenal Way is an itinerary of adult faith formation within the Catholic Church sent by the last five Popes (beginning with Blessed Pope Paul VI) to go out and re-evangelize the baptized—the far away, the strayed, and even the faithful whose faith has waned. The charism has been active in the diocese of Bridgeport for over 40 years, and communities are currently active in five parishes.
Fr. Peter Towsley, pastor of Sacred Heart in Danbury, begins the mission with a prayer, after which many take their seats while the rest huddle under the canopy of trees providing a little shelter from the passing rain showers. After Psalms from evening Vespers are recited, and a few songs are sung, two young women from the diocese of Norwich speak individually about their discovery of the love of God for them through the sufferings, temptations, and failures of youth. They speak about how through a small community of faith along with others like them who were looking to grow into an adult faith, they discovered the deep and merciful love of God.
Afterward, David Rak, a Catholic missionary from Illinois, relates the story of the blind man in John’s Gospel to the fact though we’re not always looking for God in our lives, but that Jesus Christ wants us to live the Resurrection as a tangible event in our lives. The rain then tapers off and the sun begins to peak out from the clouds, and after a closing prayer, the crowd gathers in the center of the park and once more begins to sing, “Alleluia”, amid the pockets of sunshine.
The Great Mission in Danbury continues in Elmwood Park through all the Sundays in May (rain or shine), and after will continue on Monday and Thursday evenings at 7 pm in the Salvation Army through the third week of June. All are welcome. Come and listen!
