February 22nd is the date on which the Church celebrates the Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter. This year, it also marks the twenty-second anniversary of the incorporation of The Christopher Inn International as a non-profit organization.
In the audio clip below, foundress Joan Johnson describes how Christopher Inn, Inc., received its non-profit status on the feast of the Chair of Saint Peter in the Jubilee Year 2000.
Happy feast of Saint Patrick! On this day, ten years ago, the team of Christopher Inn International gathered for Mass and to consecrate the apostolate to Mary, Queen of Apostles.
Just the day prior, Pope Benedict XVI had announced that the Church would celebrate a Year for Priests.
Today, members of the team of CI International will pray the consecration prayer anew and ask Our Lady that the graces of the Year for Priests continue to bear fruit in the lives of every priest worldwide. Please join in praying with us if you feel so inspired:
Prayer to Mary Queen of Apostles
Immaculate Mother of God,
Queen of the Apostles,
we know that God's commandment of love
and our vocation to follow Jesus Christ
impels us to cooperate in the mission of the Church.Realizing our own weakness,
we entrust the renewal of our personal lives
and Christopher Inn International to your intercession.\We are confident that through God's mercy
and the infinite merits of Jesus Christ,
you, who are our Mother,
will obtain the strength of the Holy Spirit
as you obtained it for the community of the apostles gathered in the upper room.Therefore, relying on your maternal intercession,
we resolve from this moment
to devote our talents, learning, material resources,
our health, sickness and trials,
and every gift of nature and grace,
for the greater glory of God and the salvation of all.We wish to carry on those activities
which especially promote the renewal of priestly life,
and, through this renewal,
the revival of faith and love among all the people of God
and so bring all men and women
into the faith of Jesus Christ.And if a time should come
when we have nothing more to offer serviceable to this end,
we will never cease to pray
that there will be one fold and one shepherd Jesus Christ.In this way,
we hope to enjoy the results of the apostolate of Jesus Christ
for all eternity.
Amen.based on a prayer by Saint Vincent Pallotti
On Thursday, September 11, 2014, Vatican Radio released a feature story about The Christopher Inn International. It includes an interview with founder and director Joan Johnson.
In an age in which the Church is discovering the full meaning of the co-responsibility of the laity, in continuity with the whole history of the Church and in consonance with the Church’s divine constitution, many lay faithful are asking: what can we do to help our shepherds? Seeing the great good that so many priests do, and appreciating the irreplaceable role of service that those in ordained ministry carry out, a small but dedicated group of lay faithful are seeking to provide a space in which priests and bishops can find the encouragement and sustenance they need – a place apart – and yet created with a view to helping priests in their vital service of shepherding the faithful: a place they are calling the Christopher Inn International.
To learn more about Joan and the team of CI International, visit the About Us page.
Wondering how you can help support the mission of CI International?
Visit our How to Help page.
From Sunday, March 4, through Tuesday, March 6, 2012, a small group of Irish priests gathered at the Adare Manor in County Limerick for the first Priestly Renewal Program conducted by The Christopher Inn International. These priests were sponsored by Catholics in the U.S. as a gift of gratitude for the ministry of Irish clergy in the U.S. throughout the centuries.
The program gave priests an opportunity to come together for prayer (Liturgy of the Hours, Benediction, and Mass), study, and priestly fraternity, all in a very beautiful setting. The topic of the seminar was a recently-released document from the Congregation for the Clergy entitled The Priest, Minister of Divine Mercy. Fr. D Vincent Twomey, SVD, facilitated the seminar.
At the end of the final session, the priests commented on their experience at The Christopher Inn International and shared their thoughts with the team:
“There’s no ideology, just generosity.”
“This was superb! Absolutely superb!”
“How wonderful that there is a family at the heart of this. It is like a home, not an institution.”
“It was a wonderful couple of days spent in fraternity.... For me as a priest our few days spent together was a time of reflection, rest and fraternity... something I think all priests need from time to time.”
Again and again, the priests thanked the team and asked us to thank those who sponsored them. One priest later summarized in an email what they all shared with us:
Renewed thanks to yourself, your family and benefactors for our wonderful time together at Adare. Please be assured that your very good self, your family and all benefactors are remembered in my prayers and Masses. I believe the work the Lord has entrusted to you is very necessary.
Another priest wrote:
I wish to thank you sincerely and all connected with the Christopher Inn movement for giving me the opportunity to spend three days in Adare Manor. It was a truly memorable experience. What struck me was how much the whole operation is inspired by the faith and generosity of so many faithful Catholics in the U.S. May the Lord continue to shower his choicest blessings on all involved in this inspiring project.
It was exciting for the team of CI International to hear the priests confirm so many details of this apostolate’s mission and vision.
To all of our benefactors, who have supported our apostolate with prayer, sacrifice and financial contributions: Thank you for responding to Our Lord's call to support our priests in such a generous manner.
Today, on the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the World Day of Prayer for Priests, Vatican Radio released a story about The Christopher Inn International. It’s an interview with founder and director Joan Johnson.
Friday, July 1st, 2011 marks the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus – a feast that since 2002 has also been the World Day of Prayer for Priests. The founder and president of the Christopher Inn International, Joan Johnson was recently in Rome to present the CI International project, which is for a completely lay-funded and operated house of retreat and ongoing formation for Catholic clergy from throughout the world. Chris Altieri asked Joan to share her thoughts about why it is important for laity to support priests with prayer.
To learn more about Joan and the team of CI International, visit the About Us page.
Wondering how you can help support the mission of CI International?
Visit our How to Help page.
On the feast of Saint Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, the team of Christopher Inn International gathered for Mass at the home of Howard and Joan Johnson. Father Tom McDonough, a priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, presided at the liturgy.
At the close of Mass, the members of the Christopher Inn International prayed a consecration prayer to Mary, Queen of Apostles, asking for her intercession for this new apostolate at the service of Catholic clergy. This was the culmination of a novena of prayer to Our Lady, Queen of Apostles, a title by which Mary is recognized for her motherly patronage and prayers for the apostles, and, by extension, for all who have followed the apostles in priestly service.
The celebration of the Mass of consecration on this day was significant because the project will be based in Ireland, the land where St. Patrick offered his service to the Gospel. Moreover, just one day earlier, on March 16, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI announced that a Year for Priests would be celebrated worldwide: “In order to favor [the] tendency of priests toward spiritual perfection, upon which the effectiveness of their ministry principally depends, I have decided to call a special ‘Year for Priests’ which will run from 19 June 2009 to 19 June 2010.” (source)
After Mass, the group enjoyed a meal together to commemorate the occasion.