ABOVE: Approximately 500 men gathered March 29 for the 17th annual IGNITE Men’s Conference held at Bishop Ludden Jr/Sr High School.
By Tami S. Scott, editor
Mark Mueller has attended the IGNITE Catholic Men’s Conference for 10 years. Each year, he meets up with his childhood friend, Tom Myslinski, who drives from Buffalo for the day-long event. The annual reunion between friends ignites conversations about the conference for months leading up to it. Their faith, you could say, is on fire.
“I just want to get closer to the Lord,” said Mueller, a parishioner of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Baldwinsville. “That’s all I live for. Every day. Every moment of every day. There’s nothing more important in the world.”
Mueller and Myslinski were among the approximately 500 men gathered for faith and fellowship at the 17th annual conference held March 29 at Bishop Ludden Jr/Sr High School. Many were returning attendees.
Ed Kirk of St. Mary of the Assumption in Baldwinsville has been the chairman of the IGNITE planning committee since its beginning in 2009. He provided the Sun with insight on why so many men return year after year.
“The conference helps [them] form and revitalize their faith, build community and grow in holiness,” Kirk said. “They know they will get solid teaching and enjoy a great day of fellowship.”
Peter Capponi, who attends St. Rose of Lima in North Syracuse, and Alex Van Tassel, a parishioner of Sacred Heart in Cicero, are both teachers at Bishop Grimes Jr/Sr High School. The two could attest to Kirk’s explanation that fellowship is one of many reasons they’re drawn to the yearly conference. “Everyone is friendly. The speakers are always great. You know there’s something that’s going to catch your attention, it’s gonna nudge you in some way,” said Capponi, also Grimes’ campus minister. “There’s nothing to lose” by coming to the conference, he added. “It’s just a great day for the men of the diocese.”
Each year, a trio of well-known Catholic speakers share inspiring talks based on their testimonies of faith and personal walks with God. The speakers this year included former tight end and current NFL coach Ben Steele; Fr. Chase Hilgenbrinck of the Diocese of Peoria, former professional soccer player for the Colorado Rapids; and best-selling author Bear Woznick, who also hosts EWTN’s award winning motorcycle TV show, “Long Ride Home with Bear Woznick,” heard on more than 500 radio stations.
“It’s about calling [men] back to the grit of being a man, but also to the grace of the Holy Spirit,” Woznick said of his book, “12 Rules for Manliness: Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” He went on to say how men love to be challenged, to be called to something greater and to embody grit — courage, resolve and strength of character. But: “You can’t do it alone,” he said. “You need the Holy Spirit.”
Being around like-minded people can help us grow stronger in our faith, too.
Deacon Paul Heiland of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Endicott mentioned how he hosts a men’s breakfast once a month called Iron Sharpens Iron, taken from Proverbs 27:17: “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” “I want men in our church to be able to know that it’s OK to be a Catholic man who loves the Lord and is able to share it with his friends [and] with his family,” Heiland said.
And sharing his faith is something Mueller has wholeheartedly embraced. “God has changed my life,” he said. “A few years ago, I was lying in bed, couldn’t get out of bed. [I] gave my life over to God and my life has changed 180 degrees.
“With God, nothing is impossible,” he added. “Nothing.”
