An Advent Day of Reflection with Fr. Eickhoff Dec. 19
WAVERLY (SNR) – All are invited to meditate on the closeness of God, by attending a Day of Reflection at Our Lady of Good Counsel Retreat House Saturday, Dec. 19, “God is not Socially Distant.”
Father Jeffrey Eickhoff will help men and women of all ages to prepare to celebrate Christmas with this retreat day, to rejoice in the Savior “born for us today” who comes into the world to save all from sin and to show His love.
“Unlike many other religions, Christianity believes that God is intimately involved in our lives,” Father Eickhoff explained. “He is not just a Creator who rejoices in His creation, but is also a Provident Father who continually watches over His children. He is not just a spiritual force in the world, but a Holy Spirit that inspires and moves us in our everyday actions.”
The reflection day will examine the nearness of God in the Three Persons of the Trinity, beginning with the Father and Holy Spirit, then concluding with the Son. Passages from Sacred Scripture will be used to hear God speak, and the papal audiences of Pope St. John Paul II on the Father, Son and Spirit in his Catechesis on the Creed series (Pauline Media) will be used to reflect upon God’s word in one’s life.
Father Eickhoff invites all to “join me in looking at the nearness of God. In this time of ‘social distancing’ and limitations in being able to join together in prayer with others, we can still find God close to us. How do you see God? Is He distant at times, even absent? What kind of Father does He want to be for us? How does He spiritually move us from within? How can Advent and Christmas remind us of His nearness to us?”
Father Eickhoff was ordained in 1995, and was assistant pastor at several parishes in Lincoln and taught at Pius X High School. He was pastor in Colon and Cedar Bluffs while teaching at Bishop Neumann in Wahoo. He then studied philosophy in Rome in order to serve at the new seminary that Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz had established in Seward.
Father Eickhoff was assigned to St. Gregory the Great Seminary and is now in his 19th year of teaching philosophy to college seminarians. He has served as academic dean and formation advisor, and in 2013, he was assigned by Bishop James Conley to be the rector of the seminary.
The reflections are available either live-streamed or in-person with social distancing and occupancy restrictions. The in-person day begins with coffee and a 9 a.m. conference, confessions and Mass. After lunch, in-person participants may go to Eucharistic Adoration. The day will close with a 3 p.m. conference.
Our Lady of Good Counsel Retreat House has published its spring schedule, and invites all to be “Transformed by Grace” at one its retreats. See www.goodcounselretreat.com or contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 402-786-2705.
