SUPPORT GROUPS
Courage
Courage is a group of Catholics who experience same-sex attractions and who are committed to helping one another to live chaste lives marked by prayer, fellowship and mutual support
Our Goals:
- To live chaste lives in accordance with the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching on homosexuality. ( Chastity )
- To dedicate our entire lives to Christ through service to others, spiritual reading, prayer, meditation, individual spiritual direction, frequent attendance at Mass, and the frequent reception of the sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Eucharist. (Prayer and Dedication)
- To foster a spirit of fellowship in which we may share with one another our thoughts and experiences, and so ensure that no one will have to face the problems of homosexuality alone. (Fellowship)
- To be mindful of the truth that chaste friendships are not only possible but necessary in a chaste Christian life; and to encourage one another in forming and sustaining these friendships. (Support)
- To live lives that may serve as good examples to others. (Good Example/Role Model)
This confidential support ministry is sponsored by our diocese. For details about attending this meeting you may email courage.tampabay@gmail.com or call 727-223-1666. For more information about Courage International and view resources please go to www.couragerc.org
Encourage
EnCourage is a spiritual support group for family members and friends of men and women who experience same‐sex attractions.
- to grow spiritually through spiritual reading, prayer, meditation, individual spiritual direction, frequent attendance at Mass, and the frequent reception of the Sacraments of Penance and Holy Eucharist;
- to gain a deeper understanding of the needs, difficulties, and challenges experienced by men and women with SSA;
- to establish and maintain a healthy and wholesome relationship with their loved ones with SSA;
- to assist other family members and friends to reach out with compassion and truth, and not to reject, their loved ones with SSA;
- to witness to their loved ones by their own lives that fulfillment is to be found in Jesus Christ through His Body, the Church.
This confidential support ministry is sponsored by our diocese. For details about attending this meeting you may email encourage.tampabay@gmail.com or call 813-591-3766.
To learn more about Courage International and view resources please visit www.couragerc.org
https://watch.formed.org/invited-to-courageous-love
https://everlastinghills.org/movie/
Grief Ministry
This group is for those who have experienced a loss within the past 12 months & would like to be in a setting with others on a similar journey. The group meets for 8 weeks at a time on Thursdays at 1:00 pm. All are welcome to attend. Contact Katie Holland at kholland@ctk-tampa.com.
Stephen Ministry
Do you have a friend, neighbor, coworker, or relative who has suffered a loss or is going through a difficult time? Here’s a great way you can help them—tell them about our Stephen Ministry!
Stephen Ministers are members of Christ the King Parish who have received special training to provide high quality, confidential, one-to-one, Christian care to hurting people. Stephen Ministers meet weekly with their care receivers to listen, care, encourage, and provide emotional and spiritual support. (Males are matched with males, and females are matched with females.) The caring relationship lasts for as long as the person needs care. It’s free, and it’s a powerful way you can help a hurting friend.
To learn how to connect someone you know with a Stephen Minister, talk with one of our Stephen
Ministry Leaders: Mary Ann Edgar at 202-368-3668. Our Stephen Ministers are there to care!
Walking with Moms in Need: Resources to Help
If you are going through a challenging pregnancy or a difficult time with your pregnancy, we are here to help. Please visit our Walking with Moms in Need page to view resources that can assist you according to your need. If you don’t see something you’re looking for, please contact Katie Holland at kholland@CTK-Tampa.org
PRAYER SUPPORT GROUPS
Hearts for Healing Prayer Team
Focuses on the healing mission of Jesus Christ. Two prayer team members to one person needing prayer. For more information call Bernadine Wright at 813.251.6532.
Homebound Ministry
Assist clergy in taking Holy Communion to the hospitalized, homebound and those living in assisted living or skilled nursing facilities. For more information contact Katie Holland at kholland@ctk-tampa.org or 813.876.5841 ext. 2233
Life Ministry at CTK
Pray to protect & defend the sacredness of human life on the first Saturday of every month, 9:30 to 11:00am at All Women’s Health Center, 3330 W. Kennedy Blvd. Contact Falon Warren with questions by email, embracelife911@gmail.com.
People of Praise
A lay-led, ecumenical, covenant community. Call Tom or Jackie Brophy at 813.877.6416 for more information.
Salesian Cooperators
Salesian Cooperators are single or married lay men and women, or diocesan clergy, who dedicate themselves to the welfare of young people. The movement of laity into the Salesian Family was created by Don Bosco in 1876 in service to the young and the poor through reason, religion, and loving kindness. The core of the Salesian Cooperator’s commitment is to live his or her life as a good Christian and Catholic, and to bring Christ to society, especially the young. Contact Mike Hahn by email for more information.
Stephen Ministers
Are you a good listener? Christ the King’s Stephen Ministry trains and equips parishioners to care for those going through a challenge or transition in their life, one-on-one (male to male or female to female). During training, you will learn effective ways of bringing Christ’s healing love through listening and prayer. Contact Katie Holland at kholland@ctk-tampa.org to learn more.
Unbound Healing Ministry:
What if you could reach out and touch God’s love, and NEVER be the same? Everyone is fighting an invisible battle:
– negative thoughts, secret sins, and unhealthy relationships
– destructive habits, idols, and false identities
– resentments and bitter wounds that never seem to heal
Unbound is a ministry of healing in which a trained prayer team prays with individuals to assist them in overcoming the spiritual obstacles they encounter in their path of Christian discipleship and take hold of greater freedom in Christ. This ministry uses the Five Keys of the Unbound model of deliverance developed by Heart of the Father Ministries (heartofthefather.com). Individuals who come for Unbound prayer share their personal story related to the area where they sense they need freedom and are led by the prayer team through a series of prayers based on the Five Keys of Unbound:
▪First Key: Repentance and Faith ▪ Second Key: Forgiveness ▪ Third Key: Renunciation
▪Fourth Key: Taking Authority ▪ Fifth Key: The Father’s Blessing
Examples of situations where Unbound prayer can be an effective help for individuals include:
- Marital/family discord
- Inability to forgive
- Relationship struggles
- Habitual sin
- Persistently negative view of God or self
- Chronic fear, anxiety or sadness
- Stalled spiritual life
- Anywhere in your life where you feel “stuck” and desire greater freedom
Unbound Prayer does not replace the ordinary means of growth in the Christian life such as personal prayer and the sacraments. Nor does it replace the ordinary means of human development such as counseling and other forms of psychological support. It serves as an additional tool that addresses the specifically spiritual influences that are frequently a part of any personal problem.
If you would like to schedule an Unbound prayer session, send request to unbound.prayer.ministry@gmail.com.
Contact Dale Kennedy, Unbound Ministry Lead at Christ the King, with any questions at (813) 485-6616.