Bishop Larry Silva has invited a limited group of “Catholic professionals” to a Friday evening of “conversation, pupus and cocktails” Sept. 20 at St. Stephen Diocesan Center to discuss how faith and career intersect.
Invitations went out to approximately 80 persons working the fields of medicine, law, politics, media and education.
The evening will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the bishop’s library — the large, high-ceilinged, dark-paneled sitting room with a fireplace located below Bishop Silva’s residence at St. Stephen Diocesan Center.
The first-time event emerged from diocesan planning for the observance of the Year of Faith.
Pope Benedict XVI announced the Year of Faith, Oct. 11, 2012 to Nov. 24, 2013, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council as an opportunity for Catholics to rediscover their faith through new encounters with Jesus.
The bishop’s evening is being organized by Kristina M. DeNeve, the adult faith formation coordinator for the Diocese of Honolulu and a member of the Year of Faith planning committee.
DeNeve said the event will include informal socializing, small group discussions and an open dialogue by the entire group.
Members of the diocesan Year of Faith planning committee will facilitate the activities.
According to DeNeve, the bishop wants the conversation to focus on how professionals can “influence the world in which they work with the light of the Gospel.”
It’s not about how the church can support professionals, she said.
DeNeve said that the Second Vatican Council documents “call us [laity] to be in the world, but not of the world.”
She said she expects the discussion to explore “the blessings and challenges of trying to be Catholic and living out our faith as Catholics in our professional lives.”
DeNeve is hoping for 30-40 attendees plus their guests.
According to DeNeve, Bishop Silva limited the scope of this first-time event to professions in the fields of medicine, law, government, news media and education.
The event has no pre-determined outcome, she said, but the bishop hopes that the group itself will decide if the evening will lead to further discussion or new action.
“The purpose of this is not to form another committee or to start an association or post-hoc group,” she said.
It’s more of a way for the bishop to share his thoughts on the subject and listen to what his guests have to say, she said.
DeNeve said Bishop Silva would also like to address this topic in some way on the neighbor islands.
