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Faith explored in Alpha course

Seekers as well as those who want to develop their faith in God may find an Alpha course to be an intriguing way to learn about God.

The 11-week course consists of informal settings that explore such questions as: How Can We Have Faith? Who is Jesus? Why Did Jesus Die? and Is There More to Life Than This?

An Alpha will be held at 6 p.m. Mondays beginning Sept. 11 at St. Thomas Parish in Ashville, the fourth parish in the area to host the class.

Each session will begin with a free dinner, then a video on that night’s topic, followed by small group discussion where people express their thoughts and ask questions. Groups are organized according to age to allow people to converse their peers.

“It’s like dinner and a movie,” said Sister Linda LaMagna, CCW, ministerial coordinator for evangelization for the Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown.

She has coordinated previous sessions at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament and at Our Lady of Lourdes parishes. In addition, Father Mark Begly has held Alpha sessions at his parish, Our Mother of Sorrows Church in Johnstown.

Alpha is based on kerygma or the proclamation of Jesus Christ and his teachings, especially as taught in the gospels, Sister Linda said. The program is open to Catholics and Protestants, and Sister Linda said Protestants would be comfortable taking the course.

It was started by Nicky Gumbel, a former barrister and now a vicar at HTB Church in London. Since 1993, millions of people in 69 countries have taken the course.

Among them is Dori Britton, a parishioner at Our Lady of Lourdes Church. She took the course at her parish and at the Cathedral as well.

“It’s a great message that brings order to things,” she said. “I love the message.”

She said Gumbel is a fact seeker, and he looks for facts to determine who is Jesus and bases his findings not only on the Bible but other writings as well.

About midway through the study, a weekend retreat is held. Britton said it was during the retreat that she came to realize that the Holy Spirit lives inside of her and intercedes for her.

Sister Linda said the retreat is held on a Friday evening and through the day Saturday at the church. She said the thrust of the retreat is about who is the Holy Spirit and who he can be for you in your life. It also includes a pray ministry for specific intentions.

She said Alpha is only conducted at the invitation of the parish priest and the hope is that pastors throughout the diocese will request one. Assisting with the Alphas are members of the evangelization team, many who served when inspirational speaker Matthew Kelly spoke in 2014 at Saint Francis University.

To register for Alpha, contact Sister Linda at 934-0699 or email srllamagna @verizon.net. Deadline to register is Tuesday.

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