Magnificat Speaker Will Tell Of Special Children

GRETCHEN KEISER, Staff Writer

Published: October 21, 2004

LILBURN—Mary Therese Jennings of Conyers will speak at the November Magnificat breakfast for women about her life as a mother and grandmother, which was spiritually tested and enriched by the lives of three of her children born with cystic fibrosis.

Looking back over a full life, which she recently chronicled in a book, Jennings will reflect on how the gift of these children brought her into a more intimate relationship with and love for Jesus Christ, which she would not trade for anything in the world. The mother of nine children, she was born and grew up on a farm in the rolling hills of South Dakota in a large Catholic family. Seeing her parents deal with the loss of her 5-year-old brother, and speak of him always as part of the Communion of Saints, helped her later to accept the lives and loss of three of her children. Her story is one of following the Lord throughout her life, experiencing and embracing the spiritual lessons of the cross and proclaiming the joy that comes from her sturdy faith.

A member of St. Pius X Church in Conyers, she served as parish secretary for three years after retiring from her job at Georgia Pacific. Among her ways of quietly serving the church, she has been a volunteer at and friend of the Gift of Grace House run by the Missionaries of Charity in Atlanta, a parish religious education teacher and Cursillo volunteer. Serving others is for her an essential part of following Jesus.

Her book is entitled “The Fire of Christmas Love Thunders Across the Sky.”

The women’s breakfast will be held Saturday, Nov. 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Killian Hall, 908 Killian Hill Road, Lilburn. The doors will open at 9:15 a.m.

Magnificat is a Catholic ministry to women, inspired by the friendship between Mary and Elizabeth in which they shared faith, gratitude and praise for God’s work in their lives, and strengthened one another. The ministry originated in the Archdiocese of New Orleans and has chapters across the United States and internationally. The Atlanta Joyful Visitation chapter is led by a service team coordinated by Susie Goodrow of St. John Neumann Church, Lilburn.

Magnificat breakfasts are held quarterly at Killian Hall. In addition to the speaker’s talk about God’s work in her life and the breakfast, the Magnificat music ministry will lead a time of prayer and praise. The meal ends with intercessory prayer for the intentions of all who attend. The sacrament of reconciliation is offered following the meal and religious books, tapes and devotional items are also made available for sale.

Tickets for the breakfast are $5 apiece and must be ordered in advance. No tickets are sold at the door. Tickets for priests and Religious are complimentary, but reservations are still requested in order to plan for the meal.

To obtain tickets please send name, address, parish name, phone number and number of tickets required, along with a stamped, self-addressed return envelope and check made payable to Magnificat, to Lynda Cupell, 2140 Briarwillow Drive, NE, Atlanta, GA 30345.

Tickets will be sold through Nov. 6. Please mail ticket requests by Nov. 3.

Since the program is designed to speak to the hearts of women without distractions, it is respectfully requested that children not be in attendance. Regrettably there are no childcare arrangements at this time. For ticket information call (404) 634-8303.