Basic Christian Community of Hawaii
Basic Christian Community of Hawaii is a lay movement of the Roman Catholic Church, operating with full Diocesan approval. Our spiritual guides and advisors are Fr. Gary Secor, Vicar General of the Honolulu Diocese; and Fr. Michael Sawyer, O.S.B. and Sr. Mary Jo McEnany, O.S.B. of the Benedictine Monastery of Hawaii.
It is designed to bring together small groups of people to support one another (community), to study and know Jesus' Word (the message), and to live more fully the life of a believer (the mission). When you stop and think about it, community has always been an essential part of the Christian life, right from those wondrous days recounted in the New Testament. Just as fish swim together in schools for protection against their predators, we too need the strength of one another to shield us from worldly temptation and to help us continue on our own spiritual journeys. The Basic Christian Community of Hawaii was organized in 1985 and it has been growing ever since. It's modeled after a success-proven format that is some 2000 years old. After Jesus' death and resurrection, the disciples were the original basic Christian community. After they were banned from using the temples for they're meeting place, they met in homes to continue the spreading of His Word. This format must have worked, because those original twelve disciples have now grown to some two billion Christians in the world. Now, that's a success story! BCC is nothing more than an attempt to recreate the closeness of such small communities, to recapture some of the fire of the apostles, and to spread the Good News, both through personal witnessing and life style changes. Community is very important to our relationships, too. We cannot separate how we relate to God from how we relate to one another, because the very things that keep us from closer relationship with our neighbor also separate us from God. The goal of Basic Christian Community of Hawaii is for us all to develop closer ties with both the Living God and His people. BCC holds five adult retreats and three youth retreats each year and we welcome anyone who wants to experience God's love in a more powerful way. The presence of His Spirit is truly felt and you can truly see Him in the face of others, so we encourage new members to use these weekends as both an introduction and a jump-start to their own BCC experience. Although most new BCC members attend……wish to experience their faith more fully. Our weekly meetings then provide a continuation of the brotherhood experienced at the weekend as we give praise and thanks to God, share what He has done in our lives, and study His Word. Contact any of the hosts listed on the insert or one of ' the BCC leaders if you are interested in attending ' either a retreat or a weekly cell meeting. They are held in communities around the Island and their number is increasing. We look forward to you making your faith journey with us -- we need one another! 
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 Here are some excerpts from testimonials from people who have made a BCC retreat: "Being away from the Catholic Church for over 30 years, I continued to live the way I thought best and found justifications and excuses for my lifestyle, in other churches and belief systems. Going to a BCC retreat has brought me home. BCC has brought theMass alive to me. " - Melissa Valerio "The retreat changed my life. It was at that retreat where I fell IN LOVE with God, where I realized what Jesus did for me and His love for me, and where I fell in love with my Catholic church. Since that retreat I have been in service to BCC because I believe that it is a great evangelizing tool to bring others to Christ. " - Sheree Pokipala - St. Anns Kaneohe "Because of BCC, my faith in the Lord has jumped in leaps and bounds. I have become closer to Mary, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit... I have used my BCC experience to witness for the Lord. " - Sally Ishikawa, Star of the Sea Church "The person I was is now dead and I feel as though I have been born again... I have found that serving is much more rewarding experience than I can ever repay. " - Deacon Richard Abel, Sts. Peter & Paul Church, Honolulu |
