By Sr. Natalie Sayde Salameh, MSCL
We attended the National Apostolate of Maronites (NAM) Convention in Miami, Florida from June 26th to June 30th, 2019 and were blessed to be with over 1,000 of our Maronites who attended from across the US. We had an evangelization table in the exhibitors area which gave us the opportunity to share the faith and meet with many of the people.
Some highlights: we attended a Theology on Tap, hosted by Fr. Tony Massad and Sister Therese Maria. An outdoor venue was also booked where the young adults had a BBQ and a vocation panel.
We also attended the Bishops’ Panel Commission on the affairs of Lebanon in its current political and economic state, we listened to the many concerns and issues currently affecting Lebanon. The evangelical concert of Lebanon’s Christian singer, Carla Ramia, who moved the audience to tears by her strong faith, radiant joy and sweet angelic voice.
Bishops Elias and Gregory also made themselves available for all the conventioneers in a Q&A discussion, where they could be asked on any matter of faith. The Bishops were very engaging, and at times quite humorous, as they also fielded personal questions relating to their lives as Bishops.
In addition to the activities, the sisters enjoyed praying with the clergy and the faithful every morning and evening, and each day’s Divine Liturgy, with included a unique message from each of the Bishops.
May God bless the efforts and work of all those involved in this year’s Convention. It was a great success. We look forward to attending next year in Cincinnati, Ohio, God willing.