Dear TEC Community, May the peace of Christ reign in your heart! The other day I was in the company of a young adult who was on TEC #28. He shared with me that from his early years he and his family annually attended the Triduum services. He said, "However, this year's celebration of the Triduum had a completely different meaning and value for me." He related how the meditations of the retreat humanly framed the experiences of Christ. Sharing a new insight into fidelity, trust and faith, he now realizes that dying to oneself is actually affording and providing the opportunity for new life. It is not "solely spiritual" but comments on every aspect of one's being. The words Eucharist, Dying, Rising and Going Forth are not solely historical icons of the past but are ways of life for now and all times.

Let us go to live what we have celebrated!!!! Until we are together, blessings of ... Peace and all good things, Fr. Linus DeSantis, Atlanta TEC Spiritual Director

Top

by Delores Schweitzer TEC#14

As TEC's 40th Anniversary on July 8-10, 2005, draws closer, it is exciting to see how the schedule for this celebration is coming together to honor the past, reflect on the present and plan for the future of TEC throughout the world. Thanks to all who responded to my prior newsletter article and have shown interest in coming on our road trip to Belleville, Illinois, for this fun-filled weekend. I know that this field trip to the Midwest will be an exciting adventure. All we need now is YOU!

If you would like more information about the TEC 40th Anniversary Road Trip to Belleville, Illinois, on July 8th- 10th, you can find the registration information at www.TECconference.org . Once you have decided to come, email me so that I can add you to our growing list and let you know as we start to make plans. Since it takes 9-10 hours to get to Belleville, I am starting to envision a "Road Trip Retreat" of sorts, where we can build community and grow as we travel there and back again. If you have any ideas or suggestions for making this trek exciting, let me know!

Another way to get involved, whether attending the 40th Anniversary or not, is to share your TEC experience with us. TEC Conference has asked us to collect stories of our favorite TEC memories and how TEC has impacted our lives, so you can participate in this celebration just by answering one or both of these questions:

1. What is your favorite TEC memory? [Example: My favorite TEC memory was packing up the storage unit after an exhilarating but exhausting TEC 24, when Larry Labbe scooped Louie Hlad up in a fireman's carry and locked him in the equipment cage on his trailer while Mark Foster climbed all over the cage and made threatening monkey noises. I laughed about that for weeks afterwards, and it still makes me smile to this day.]

2. How has TEC impacted your life? [Example: TEC has been an experience in personal accountability for me. With every weekend, whether I am on team or not, I grow spiritually by leaps and bounds because I know that God will be picking some bad habit of mine and forcing me to die to myself in order to grow in my faith and my authenticity as a Christian. It is a hard, but inspiring road, and the faith community I have found in Atlanta TEC challenges me to strive for holiness and humility through their patience and love of me in the times when I do well, but more importantly, in the times when I completely make a mess of things. TEC is my strength when I am weak.]

If you would like to respond to these questions, please email me at dasmarhi@hotmail.com and put "TEC Stories" in the subject line.

Top

Joseph Campbell, when explaining the spiritual importance of rituals in society, wrote in The Power of Myth that "the function of ritual is to pitch you out, not wrap you back in where you have been all the time." Think about that. Rituals are not supposed to be comfortable and easy. Sure, there are comforting aspects to them. The music, the smells and bells, familiar prayers and readings, the drone of the deacon's homily, and the predictable pace of Mass can all lend a relaxed atmosphere to the experience. But if Campbell is to be believed, then that is not the point of Mass, or any of our most sacred rituals. We are supposed to be pitched out, thrust from our comfort zones and pulled into something new-a new perception of life or a new understanding of reality.

Obvious examples of rituals that draw us into new life come from the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, where water and oil are blessed and become tangible reminders of the seal of the Holy Spirit and our invitation to a new life in Christ. Marriage, too, is a creation ritual, whereby two individuals, united by God, become one. Holy Orders also have transforming qualities as well when men and women wed themselves to Christ and his holy Church. Reconciliation is a call to leave the old ways behind and begin anew, trusting in the Holy Spirit to strengthen us. The second sacrament of healing, the Anointing of the Sick, also calls for the Lord's love and mercy and the grace of the Holy Spirit to provide peace, comfort, and knowledge that the community is assisting in prayer as the suffering individual is transformed.

In TEC, along with the celebration of the sacraments, there are also paraliturgies ["para" means "beside, beyond, or helping in a secondary way"]-additions designed to bring forth new understanding and awareness through supplemental ritual. Bible Enthronement, Stations of the Cross, the Resurrection Prayer Service, the anointing with oil in the Covenant Rite, and the Sending Forth Rite at the end of the weekend are all examples of paraliturgies. It is fitting to use Campbell's words when speaking of the latest paraliturgical addition to the TEC weekend. In the "Coming of the Spirit Prayer Service," we are most definitely being prepared to be "pitched out" of the comfortable space we have occupied for the past two days.

The TEC Manual defines four truths essential to our faith awareness that should be present in this service:

1. The assurance of Christ that he will never abandon us as we strive to live in his love

3. The commission by Christ for us to be his witnesses and reveal his presence and power as we build the kingdom of God

4. The sharing of the Holy Spirit to empower us with spiritual insights and energies necessary to live this new life

However, making these core truths tangible is far from easy. Whereas on previous TECs, the Sunday Morning Prayer made mention of the coming of the Spirit, the guidelines were vague and the content of the prayer was mainly left up to the speaker. The new prayer service combines Sacred Scripture, music, and candlelight to ritualize the experience of the fire of the Holy Spirit descending upon the disciples at Pentecost, and thus, the Holy Spirit is invited into our midst in a very personal way. Next, the participants and team learn more about the actual gifts of the Holy Spirit-how they are specially chosen to show Christ's love for us, how they are given to us to be used for God's glory, and how these gifts energize our soul and motivate us to share the love of Christ with others. The service concludes with the team and participants acknowledging openness to these gifts and requesting that the Holy Spirit fill them with these promised blessings. And so, what begins with the comfortable cocoon of our community in the safety of the retreat center ends with an endowment of the Spirit to guide and protect as we go forth.

We speak of 4th Day in TEC because we are constantly going forth, so think about that the next time you participate in a sacrament in the Church, be it daily Mass, your nephew's baptism, or your best friend's wedding. Look at the signs and symbols-statues, candles, incense, holy water, bread and wine, colorful altar cloths. Listen carefully to the words of the prayers and Sacred Scripture. Feel the music in your soul, and be sure to sing, because to sing is to pray twice. Then consider how these tangible sensations-whether they be smell, sight, touch, taste or hearing-are uniting you with the divine, pulling you forward, pitching you out, lighting a fire, and making all things new in you.

Come, Holy Spirit! May this Divine Fire fill your hearts! Happy Pentecost!

Top

The TEC community is off to to a good start with its annual fundraising appeal. To date we have raised over $1,700.00. These efforts take on a new significance this year as we continue our efforts to move to a new location. After a successful TEC 28 at Kings Retreat we hope to continue to offer facilities of the same calibre in the future. All of this is only possible with your continued financial support. Your contribution also helps provide scholarships for participants and team members, purchase crosses and bibles and provide all the other items that make the weekend happen. This year we are also offering our community the opportunity to tithe or pledge monthly. If you are interested in making a contribution please contact Ana Nagel at anagel@archatl.com for a pledge card.

Top

by Dawn Stark TEC #20

On the last TEC retreat, our community had the honor of a special guest speaker for the Peace meditation; Brother Garvin Augustine from Mustard Seed Communities. Brother Garvin has been working with Mustard Seed Communities, a non-profit organization headquartered in Kingston Jamaica that serves abandoned and orphaned children in 14 communities, throughout five nations.

In 2002, Brother Garvin was asked to start ministry work in Zimbabwe, a country that is in constant political upheaval, where nearly one of every three adults is currently dying of AIDS. This epidemic is leaving an entire generation of children abandoned and orphaned. In pursuit of his ministry, he faces danger of prison or worse on a daily basis. Brother Garvin shared with the TEC community some of his current experiences with the people he encounters on a daily basis. One story that stands out is one he shared regarding a woman who offered him a chicken as a sign of thanks. To her, the chicken was everything, it was her sole means of feeding her family, yet she gave it to Br. Garvin with no thought for herself and her family. Instead she wanted to honor him and his help in her village.

Brother Garvin puts his life in jeopardy every day in order to serve some of our world's most vulnerable children. He trusts in God's plan for his life and knows that God will provide for him. He finds his peace in saying YES on a daily basis to his Heavenly Father.

Top

Anonymous (2), Chris Biggie, Megan and Brian Burkett, Mary Ellen Cenzalli, Kristin and Alan Dinkle, Louis Edwards, Matthew Gardner, Susan Gerdvil, Lucille Hodges, Jennifer Kilfin, Gerilyn Kleinwaechter, Chris Murray, Isabella Rusike, Amy and Danny Ryan, Tammy Thornton, Karen Treleven, Lisa Warren

Top