 |
|
|
|
|
LAMP Ministries is a Catholic lay
missionary association, comprised of people
who serve among the materially poor, with a
focus on evangelization. LAMP’s call has drawn us into the beating Heart of Jesus as that Heart of Compassion embracing those most in need, with our Blessed Mother’s Heart united to His. |
|
|
|
A Call
To Holiness |
|
Are you called to
the mission of Lamp? |
|
|
The Eucharist |
|
The Eucharist is
central to LAMP's spirituality. The mission of the Church is a continuity of the mission of Christ and draws spiritual energy from communion with
His Body and Blood. |
|
|
|
|
Make
A Donation |
|
Although you may
not be able to visit a materially poor person or
family in a crowded shelter or walk-up apartment
in the New York City Metropolitan area, you can
help to make it possible for a LAMP Missionary
to do so. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
"You,
Lord, give light to my lamp; my God, You brighten the
darkness about me."
- Psalm 18:28 |
LAMP's History
(continued)
The plan to return to New York City was hampered by
the fact the Scheurings didn’t have the money to
rent an apartment for their family. On the Feast of
St. Joseph (May 1, 1981, they received a phone call
from Mr. Mike Burke, an elderly shop keeper in the
Riverdale section of the Bronx. He had heard of the
Scheurings and their desires, and wanted to offer a
small apartment to them for a year, which he usually
offered to missionary priests. They only had to pay
the utilities.
Upon returning to
New York, Tom acquired a job (to feed the family)
serving two days a week at St. Nicholas of Tolentine
Parish in the Bronx, developing a Baptism program
for the parish. The rest of the time Tom & Lyn
began developing LAMP and prepared a brochure for
recruiting purposes and fundraising. They met with
Archbishop Gerety of the Newark Archdiocese and
Bishop Mugavero of the Brooklyn Diocese to receive
their blessing and permissions to have LAMP in their
Dioceses. Contacts began to be made with pastors who
would be open to having a LAMP Missionary serve in
their parish.
During that first year, longtime friend of the
Scheurings, Marybeth Mutmansky (later Greene)
desired to serve with them. She left her job as
Campus Minister at Manhattan College to assist in
the administration of LAMP when there were not even
any funds to pay her. Mike Burke also provided a
desk in his little store to serve as LAMP’s first
“office”.
On July 1, 1982, the
Scheuring family and LAMP’s office moved to 2704
Schurz Ave. in the East Bronx where their family
lived on the second floor of the house and LAMP’s
office and meeting space was on the first floor.
Further aspects of LAMP’s history and subsequent
development can be found in the book: The Poor and
the Good News: A Call to Evangelize, with the
Foreword by John Cardinal O’Connor (1993: Paulist
Press).
Page 3 of 3 [Previous]
|
|
|
|
|
