Men's Conference to include both dioceses

The annual “Answer the Call” conference of the Catholic Men’s Fellowship of Northeast Ohio this year will be a combined gathering of men from both the Cleveland and Youngstown Diocese for the first time.

Bishops George V. Murry of Youngstown and Richard G. Lennon of Youngstown will concelebrate the closing Mass for the conference on Saturday, March 20, at Archbishop Hoban High School. :Last year there were 600 men at the conference including 25 from St. Paul Parish.

Registration fee for the conference is $30, but there will be signups in the narthex in coming weeks for a group from St. Paul with a $20 registration. There is no fee for religous who attend.

Featured speakers this year will be Fr. Larry Richards, author of a new book titled “Be A Man: Become the Man God Created You to Be.” and Ralph Martin, president of Renewal Ministries in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and host of a weekly TV program, will be the featured speakers.  Msgr. Robert J. Siffrin, vicar general of the Youngstown Diocese, will give a talk on Reconciliation and there will be a Clergy Affirmation Ceremony for the Year for Priests.  Radio personality Ray Somich will again be master of ceremonies.

Father Larry Richards is a gifted and captivating speaker, preacher and retreat master,
Father Richards was born in Pittsburgh. After high school, he attended the college seminary at Gannon University and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Mental Health Counseling in 1983. Father Richards continued his studies at the major seminary at St. Vincent in Latrobe, PA, and received his Master’s of Divinity degree in 1987. He will soon conclude his studies at the University of Notre Dame and be awarded a Master of Arts degree in Liturgy. Ordained to the priesthood in 1989 for the Diocese of Erie, Fr. Richards serves as pastor of St. Joseph Church/Bread of Life Community in Erie. He is also the Spiritual Director of the TEC (To Encounter Christ) Retreat Program for the Diocese of Erie.

Ralph Martin has been a leader in renewal movements in the Catholic Church for many years. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame, he did graduate work in philosophy at Princeton
University and holds an MA in Theology, from Sacred Heart School of Theology in the Archdiocese of  Detroit. He was the founding editor of New Covenant  Magazine, as well as the founding director of the International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Office, currently located in Rome. Martin is the Director of Graduate Theology Programs in Evangelization and an assistant professor of theology at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in the Archdiocese of Detroit. He is also president of Renewal Ministries (www.renewalministries.net), an organization devoted to Catholic renewal and evangelization.

Here is the conference schedule:

8:00am - Registration begins (along with coffee and donuts)
9:00am - Start of Conference
12:00pm - Lunch and Confession
4:00pm - Closing Mass with Bishop Richard Lennon
5:00pm - Adjourn

For complete information, visit the website at http://www.cmfneo.com

The website address (url) was printed incorrectly in a brochure.