Sun photos l Chuck Wainwright
By Dc. Tom Cuskey, editor
Some parts of the greater Syracuse area and points east saw as much as ten inches of snow in the hours leading up to the annual IGNITE Men’s Conference on Saturday, March 23. Anywhere from 5 inches or more blanketed the immediate areas surrounding the host site at Bishop Ludden High School.
So what?
That was the general reaction of approximately 600 men of faith who came together to praise God, share fellowship and enjoy the wise words of the day’s trio of speakers, all courtesy of the Diocese of Syracuse conference team.
Bishop Emeritus Robert J. Cunningham was principal presider at Mass.
Ed Kirk of St. Mary of the Assumption in Baldwinsville has been the chairman of the event since its beginning in 2009, and a good number of attendees come back year after year. Why?
“I think a lot of what they see here is a group of men together, sharing their faith, all with the same goal of trying to be holier men,” he shared. This was the 15th conference in 16 years; the Covid-19 pandemic shut the event down in 2020 and attendance numbers suffered in the aftermath. “They’ve leveled off and are starting to come back … that’s good news.” The true good news , Kirk points out, comes to the attendees from the internationally known speakers the conference features each year, and from the deep faith of the locals. “Men are under attack, you know, families are under attack, and here’s a good safe haven to be and really get recharged during this Lenten timeframe.”
Anthony Maione made the trip from St. James Church in Johnson City. He’s attended all but the first gathering, an event he wasn’t aware of at the time, but he’s been part of his parish effort to recruit attendees ever since. He feels the warm spirit the conference is known for. “It’s called Ignite and you feel like you’re on fire after … you need to reignite your faith from time to time. I leave here on fire ready to fight the fight, and to be a better person in the world.”
Many of those we spoke with shared that being part of the powerful male chorus of praise that erupts from the group is worth the visit. “It just strengthens you,” Maione adds, “voices that ring out in the music at the annual Mass, and a rousing “Amen! For the Church Militant, that’s the Army. We can’t wait to serve!”
This was the first IGNITE conference for Cole Wilson of Transfiguration Parish in Syracuse, who came for “the opportunity to draw closer to the Lord and spend time with other men who are also committed in their faith.” Wilson teaches theology to ninth and tenth grade students at Ludden and saw the gathering as a path to a faith community, to “walk together on the faith journey and get closer to the Lord … (to) hear some of the insightful things that the speakers have to say and spend time with the Lord in prayer, in Eucharistic adoration.”
Wilson was part of a noticeably significant segment of younger men in the congregation. So were Jack Rose and Neslin D’Silva from the Syracuse University Catholic Center. “I’m hoping for some strength and peace and some connection with Christ. That’s what I came here for,” D’Silva shared.
The Brennan family men who made the trek from Horseheads to attend.
Joey Brennan is a 12-year-old from St. Mary Our Mother Church Horseheads who made the slippery trip from the Southern Tier with his father and grandfather. This was Joey’s first IGNITE experience. His dad and grandfather have been to three or four earlier conferences. “It’s almost like a pilgrimage,” John Brennan, Joey’s dad, shared. “If it was in Horseheads, it might not be something that we would take as seriously because there is a little bit of commitment involved with making the trek up here.”
That commitment is part of Joey’s motivation. “I love to go spend time with Jesus and go to Mass … go to confession.” Joey told us that he’s looking forward to future IGNITE conferences. “Yeah, I want to go every year.” And what might he tell a friend about why they might want to come as well?
“To open up to Jesus, if they’re not Catholic, and just feel the real reason of why I’m Catholic, and they can figure it out if they should be Catholic.”
Like Isaiah wrote, “a little child will lead them.” (Isaiah 11:9)
