December 18, 2016

Catholic author and speaker Jon Leonetti hosts parish retreat at Holy Family

REGIONAL
Story and photos by Carolee McGrath

SOUTH DEERFIELD – International Catholic speaker and best selling author Jon Leonetti asked parishioners at Holy Family Parish in South Deerfield two critical questions during a retreat held inside the church Sunday, Dec. 18, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“Who is God and why does that matter to our lives,” asked Leonetti, who wrote the book Your God is Too Boring and Mission of the Family. Both books were published and featured in Matthew Kelly’s Dynamic Catholic book program.

Leonetti, a husband and father of two, hosts a daily show on Iowa Catholic radio and “Your Catholic Life” podcast. Leonetti leads retreats and missions across the country sharing his love for Christ and his church. In his “Surge of the Heart” retreat at Holy Family Parish, he said Catholics need to understand first and foremost who God is.

“When we get to know who God is, then we understand who we are because we’re made in the image and likeliness of God,” he said. “God reveals himself to us through the greatest love story ever told, the Scriptures. So when we find him, we understand who he is and how he has revealed himself to us, and we come to better understand who we are.”

Leonetti, who spent three years in the seminary, said Catholics are called to seek God’s will for their lives, and not their own, which can be difficult. He said true joy and true peace come from Jesus, not possessions or accomplishments.

“A lot of times when we get bored or stay out of the conversation we shrink God to who he isn’t. We come up with these demigods, with a small ‘g,’” Leonetti told iObserve.

“Anything less than God, we get bored with. Talk to someone who’s a billionaire, eventually they get bored with it. Anything short of who God is, actually, inevitably bores us. So I want to try to recapture and reclaim who God is by the way in which he reveals himself to us and allow people to understand that wow, that’s a big God and he’s anything but boring.”

Father Jonathan Reardon, pastor of Holy Family Parish, said he wanted to host an event during Advent to help people spiritually prepare for Christmas.

“We do all these things during Lent, but not a whole lot during Advent,” said Father Reardon.

“We do all these things, right decorate our houses inside and out, put up the tree, Christmas cards, shopping, baking, wrapping, but what about taking the time to prepare spiritually, because Christ’s birth isn’t about lights and presents and a tree but about his entrance into humanity to save us from our sins.”

More than 40 people turned out on the cold, rainy afternoon, including teenagers from the parish confirmation program. Leonetti spoke directly to them, encouraging them to stay close to Jesus and warned them not to fall for moral relativism. He also kept the crowd laughing as he told the story of how he met his wife in a coffee shop.

“I thought he was really interesting,” said Beatrice Brynda. The fifteen year old said she hasn’t had the opportunity to hear many Catholic speakers. She also admitted it is not easy being a Catholic teenager.

“It’s so difficult. Sometimes you don’t really know what to do,” she said. “I try to do a decade of Hail Marys every night and think to God and ask him for guidance.”

Refreshments were served in between Leonetti’s presentations. People also had the chance to go to confession.

For more information about Leonetti’s books and talks, visit www.jonleonetti.com.

A video segment of this story will be featured on an upcoming edition of “Real to Reel,” which airs Saturday evenings at 7 on WWLP-22NEWS.