August 19, 2018

Hundreds gather at local parish for Faith on Fire

REGIONAL
Story and photos by Carolee McGrath

FEEDING HILLS – Under sunny skies, hundreds of people gathered on the lawn of Sacred Heart Parish in Feeding Hills for the sixth annual Faith on Fire prayer service, Thursday, Aug. 16, from 6 to 9 p.m. The two-day event, also held Friday, Aug. 17,  included speakers, personal testimonies, praise and worship music, eucharistic adoration, confession and the laying on of hands.

“There’s someone I met in the last couple of weeks who had a lot of questions about it. I answered them and I saw them come in tonight and I’m elated. That’s why we do it,” said Deb Briancesco, pastoral minister at Sacred Heart. Briancesco organized the event.

“We do this for our lost, but even for the folks deeply rooted in Christ, but they want to continue to praise him and have that community,” she said.

Springfield Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski spoke to the crowd on Thursday evening about intercession.

“Intercessory prayer first of all means we can pray for each other. When we are going through a tough time, we can ask people to pray for us,” the bishop explained before his talk.

“We can also go to the saints. Some people have patron saints or favorite saints. In going to the saints, we are asking them to pray for us, to intercede for us because they’re close to the throne of God. And those who are close to the throne of God certainly have the ear of God,” said Bishop Rozanski.

Father Donald Lapointe spoke Thursday evening. Father Lapointe oversees Mary’s House of Prayer in Chicopee, which is the Diocese of Springfield’s Center for the Ministries of Healing and Deliverance. Friday’s speakers included Sister of St. Joseph Melinda Pellerin, who focused her talk on repentance. Chris Stearns, who has been active in the cause of persecuted Christians, spoke on evangelization.

Tasya Ward attended the event for the first time with her fiancé Leo Marinak. Ward, is converting to Catholicism.

“The community is really rallying to get me ready for RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults). It’s exciting. I haven’t actually felt this loved in Agawam before,” said Ward.

Marinak was raised Catholic, but has grown in his faith, now that his fiancé will be attending RCIA. The 25-year-old recently joined the Agawam Knights of Columbus Council 5585. He helped during the laying on of hands service, standing behind people who were being prayed over.

“It should be a really good experience and hopefully I have the strength to catch a lot of people and take good care of them. And we’re here just to celebrate God. We love Jesus,” he said.

There was no charge for the event, but there was a free will offering. Food and beverages were available for sale, organized by the parish St. Martha’s Guild. The event was sponsored the Hampden West Deanery and the Diocese of Springfield’s Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

A video version of this story will be featured on an upcoming edition of “Real to Reel,” which airs Saturdays at 7 p.m. on WWLP-22NEWS.