鈥淭here is a lot of excitement,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not exactly sure what to expect and who might turn up, but we鈥檙e prepared to celebrate with whoever comes our way.鈥�
The theme of the event, 鈥淐hange on the Rise; Ushering in the New Springtime,鈥� suggests a desire to turn the page on the two-year COVID-19 pandemic and focus on the future of inspiring men to be witnesses of Christ.
The theme combines John Paul II鱿鱼视频app call for a new springtime of Christian life that he made in a 2000 apostolic letter, with the Avi Kaplan 2019 song title 鈥淐hange on the Rise.鈥�
鈥淭he song is a very powerful anthem,鈥� said Lynn. 鈥淭here is a line in there that says, 鈥榳hat good鱿鱼视频app a man who lost his soul, can鈥檛 take a stand when his flame鱿鱼视频app gone cold.鈥� We want to ignite the flame and get men across Canada involved in moving our Church forward.鈥�
Calgary Bishop William McGrattan opens the celebration with Mass at St. Michael Catholic Community church on Friday night.
Brett Powell, a long-time evangelist for Catholic Christian Outreach (CCO) who now serves as Archbishop Michael Miller鱿鱼视频app Delegate for Development and Ministries in the Archdiocese of Vancouver, will deliver his first of two talks. He will speak about leaders of this new springtime and being sons of The Father.
Jeff Cavins, the creator of the Great Adventure Catholic Bible series and partner of Fr. Mike Schmitz on the popular Bible in a Year podcast, will deliver talks about how men are called to be disciples and preach the Gospel. Cavins is a close friend of Lynn. In 2016, they completed a 6,500-km motorcycle trip together.
鈥淚 have known Jeff for over 25 years and he always delivers a powerful message. This is our first time working with Brett Powell. We鈥檙e so happy to have a homegrown speaker who is going to challenge the men.鈥�
The conference at St. Michael will also feature open discussions that will encourage attendees to share their take on how to build leaders within the Church and how men can participate in the Synod on Synodality.
God Squad Canada has a few initiatives in the works to foster a return to in-person fellowship in addition to the conference. They are planning a series of disc golf events to bring men and families together and they intend to host a live concert version of its Litany to St. Joseph musical project.
Lynn is also involved in the Catholic Men鱿鱼视频app Leadership Alliance (CMLA) that is present throughout North America. The group seeks to empower men to experience Christ in every Catholic diocese. Lynn is responsible to realize this mandate in Canada.
鈥淲e are going to see if we can light the spark in Calgary and get that going again,鈥� said Lynn. 鈥淲ith the pandemic, a lot of our programs have been on life support. Let鱿鱼视频app see if we can re-ignite hearts here in Canada.鈥�
Lynn sees potential on the horizon as participation in online prayer sessions organized by God Squad Canada has continued trending upward.