St. Anne and St. Patrick Parish Conclude First Alpha Course

St. Anne and St. Patrick parish recently completed its first Alpha session, a program that fosters spiritual enrichment, invites people to bring friends for a conversation about faith, and serves as an exercise in community building. More than 30 parishioners and non-parishioners participated. 

Alpha embraces three key ingredients: Connect, Watch, and Discuss. At St. Anne and St. Patrick participants first connected over a meal, prepared by the Alpha team of 14. 
The participants then watched a talk on one of life’s biggest faith questions and broke into small group sessions where they were encouraged to freely express their thoughts and personal opinions. 

During these informal conversations participants explored the larger issues in life and faith, examining the basics of Christianbelief. For example, the group addressed questions related to who is Jesus, why and how do you pray, how does God guide us in everyday life, and other critical ideas. 

After exploring the faith-related questions, participants had the opportunity for further discussion, and contributed their own perspective in a welcoming, non-judgmental environment. The facilitators served as conversation starters without preaching or teaching.

After attending the first session, Sue Kinsella said, "I feel that I evolved in my intellectual understanding and experienced a deeper spiritual connection.” She added that the videos helped her develop new perspectives. 

For Kathy Cole, the experience helped to deepen her faith. She expressed gratitude to the entire Alpha team for sponsoring the program. 

Alpha is not limited to those who practice the Christian faith but is open to those from all faith journeys or those with no faith. 

The program runs for 11 weeks; people are encouraged to participate for the first few weeks to see if Alpha is right for them. 

One of the team members, Ashley C., first experienced Alpha in college where she learned more about the basics of her Christian faith. “It was nice to revisit the concepts in a deeper way coupled with life experience,” she said, referring to this Alpha session. 

She added that the diverse group of participants shared their enthusiasm for the program and praised its positive impact, noting, “The Alpha team looks forward to hosting another session this January. It's perfect for those reconnecting with faith or exploring it for the first time. Consider coming and also inviting someone you know!” 

To learn more about Alpha, visit https://alphausa. org. Click the QR code for a video that explains the program and to register. A video can also be accessed at https://alphausa.org/ what-is-alpha/. 

For more information on the Alpha program at St. Anne and St. Patrick, please contact alphasturbridge@gmail. com. The Alpha program is open to the public.