Lifest kicks off in Oshkosh today; July 9-12, Matt Maher Saturday at 6pm

Lifest 2015

July 9-12, 2015

Diocese of Green Bay is sponsoring Matt Maher concert Saturday, July 11, at 6:00 p.m. on the Main Stage, and Sunday, July 12, at 8:00 a.m. on Cafe Stage! Fr. Dan Felton, Diocesan Vicar General, will celebrate Mass on Sunday, July 12. Please join us!

We're also hosting daily interactive activities for the whole family, plus hot dogs each evening, at the Shady Acres camp area. Our presence will include daily Mass, Confessions, and Rosary.

Lifest 2015 will feature Music | Comedy | Speakers | KidZone | Food | Marketplace | Cybercafe | Camping | 5K Fun Run | Art Space and more. Catholic recording artist Matt Maher will be among the more than 150 acts on performing on six stages.
Come for food, fellowship, and fun!

details at Diocese of Green Bay

Not my cup of tea beer, but it's a big deal up there.  The first parish I ever saw a Life Teen Mass some 20 years ago was in Oshkosh.

Thank you to my friend @boblenzlife and @Lifest for partnering with us to bring @MattMaherMusic to Oshkosh this Saturday.

— Bishop David Ricken (@BpDavidRicken) July 9, 2015

Bishop Ricken leads Mass as Lifest ends in Oshkosh

Bishop David Ricken always wanted to go to Lifest. But since taking over as head of the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay in 2008, something else always came up.

“So last year I put it on the schedule to be here today,” Ricken said Sunday. “I’ve heard just wonderful things about it, so I’ve got a lot to learn. I just need to be around as many young people as I can. They’re not only the future but the present, so we’ve got to reach out to them and thank them for what they’re doing.”

Ricken led 9 a.m. Mass from the Thrivent Café Stage on the final day of the 13th annual Lifest celebration at Sunnyview Expo Center. Hundreds worshipped as intermittent showers trickled down on the large tent.

“It’s exciting that the bishop is taking time out of his day and out of his Sunday to be here,” Becky Livingstone of Oshkosh said.

Sharon Oberkrieser of Oshkosh, who attends St. Raphael’s in Oshkosh with husband Bill and son Jacob, appreciated the Mass after having enjoyed the music, ministry and prayer at Lifest, she said.

the rest plus photos at GB Press Gaz.

...at least the male altar servers are vested well. 

Made me think of how well the altar was done at the Men's Conference in Milwaukee. 

I think youth respond better to "living tradition" than they respond to "target marketed."

Lifest: The next generation

Musical festivals require countless hours of preparation, hundreds of volunteers to bring the event to life and musical acts that knock fans' socks off — all the better if it's sandals weather.

But for Bob Lenz, Lifest is just one big laid-back party with a purpose.

"I wanted to throw a party for my friends, and it just has grown a little bit," said Lenz, the president of Appleton-based Life Promotions and founder of Lifest.

Look for about 20,000 "friends" to show up this week as the 13th annual Christian music festival runs Wednesday through July 10 at Oshkosh's Sunnyview Expo Center.

This year's lineup of keynote speakers — another staple of the festival — includes Lenz; speaker and author Justin Lookadoo; motivational youth speaker Reggie Dabbs; Greg Stier, founder and president of the California-based Dare 2 Share Ministries International; and Greg Laurie, who Lenz puts on his personal Christian heavy hitter list, which also includes Billy Graham and last year's speaker, world evangelist Luis Palau.

Lenz also looks forward to melding religions this year. Bishop David Ricken, head of the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay, leads Mass at 9 a.m. July 10.

"We continue to say it's not about a denomination," Lenz said. "It's about knowing Jesus, and we want all churches to come together. … You can be a Lutheran or a Catholic or don't even have to go to church, but if you want to have a party around Jesus, come on out."

more at GB Gazette 

Free tattoos at Lifest

GREEN BAY — The Diocese of Green Bay will again have a presence at Lifest, the summer Christian music festival being held at the Sunnyview Fairgrounds in Oshkosh July 6-10. This year, Bishop David Ricken will join area Catholics at Lifest. He will be the principal celebrant at Mass on Sunday, July 10, 9 a.m., at the Café Stage. Admission fee to Lifest is waived on Sunday.

The diocese will operate an exhibit table inside the main exhibit hall from Wednesday to Saturday. Visitors can stop at the table to make bracelets or necklaces with cross or saint pendants. Free tatoos(sic) will be available, as well religious literature and information. 

The Compass

Okay, okay, they are probably the wash off kind.... right?

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