CATHOLIC MEN FORMING JOINT GROUP IN AREA; PROMISE KEEPERS' STYLE USED.

Byline: Mary Schubert Daily News Staff Writer

Although widely known as an evangelical Christian movement, Promise Keepers preaches a message of male responsibility that, some local Catholics say, is just as relevant to their ranks.

So on Nov. 1, men from three Santa Clarita Valley parishes will gather at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church for a six-hour conference to learn about the principles of Promise Keepers and discuss how the organization can be adapted to Catholic congregations in general and their parishes in particular.

Reservations are being taken for the Men of Promise conference, the name for the Catholic spinoff of the Promise Keepers organization. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the OLPH parish hall. Admission price of $10 will include lunch and Men of Promise materials.

For reservations, call the church at [phone]. There is room for 300 in the hall.

The Promise Keepers rally Oct. 4 in Washington, D.C., drew hundreds of thousands of men from all over the United States for six hours of prayer, song and oratory. ``Stand in the Gap: A Sacred Assembly of Men'' was the biggest gathering yet for Promise Keepers, founded in 1990 by former University of Colorado football coach Bill McCartney.

The group and the rally drew criticism from feminists, most vocally the National Organization for Women, whose leaders characterized the Promise Keepers movement as a threat to women's rights.

``During the Promise Keepers rally, you had some negativity coming from people who said that this is just to try to oppress women, and that's crazy,'' said the Rev. Joseph Shea, pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church in Glendale. Shea, who will be one of the speakers at the Nov. 1 conference, has helped several parishes establish Men of Promise chapters.

Cardinal backs idea

Men of Promise won the endorsement of Cardinal Roger Mahony, although it is a fledgling movement in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Chapters have been established in about 15 parishes in the archdiocese, said Stephen Ruda, a Los Angeles Fire Department captain who is active in the movement.

Ruda brought the organization to Mahony's attention. He wrote the cardinal a letter after attending a June 1994 Promise Keepers rally at Anaheim Stadium.

``Something happened there of great importance,'' Ruda said in his letter to Mahony. ``My hope is to work with you and others in providing a Promise Keepers program for the men of our parishes,'' he added.

The cardinal was receptive to the idea. ``I am very intrigued by the whole concept. It is obvious that the Promise Keepers have advanced this practical discipleship in a very substantial and affirming manner for men,'' Mahony said in a letter to Ruda.

``I would be very interested to know how the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and I could be of assistance in the fuller promotion of Promise Keepers and how we might be able to work closely together to encourage this deeper level of discipleship for our Catholic men.

``I would be open to any suggestions that you . . . might have on moving forward with an expansion of the Promise Keepers concept among our Catholic men,'' the cardinal added.

Priest expects interest

As a priest at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a diverse parish of 5,000 families, the Rev. Norm Supancheck said he thinks the Men of Promise idea will be well received by Catholics across the Santa Clarita Valley.

``There are a lot of men who are looking for a way to get closer to God and to . . . build stronger families,'' Supancheck said. ``People have come to this valley to get away from the city and its problems.''

Like members of Promise Keepers, those who join Men of Promise are asked to adhere to several principles of moral behavior. ``The promises are basically the same. It's the promise to be faithful and responsible to your family, to your job, to your community and to your church,'' Supancheck said.

He recalled growing up in Long Beach in an era when Catholic men in his parish seemed to come together for socializing as well as community service through groups like the Knights of Columbus and the Holy Name Society. ``I haven't seen that a lot lately,'' Supancheck added.

Guest speakers - laymen and clergy alike - will discuss each of the promises: to be a man of God, a man for others, a man of integrity, a man of discipline, a man of responsibility, a man of heroic love and a man on a mission for Christ, Supancheck said.

The mission encompasses many types volunteer service to the community and ``being a person who tries to influence the world to make the world a better place,'' Supancheck said.

``There really hasn't been much of a ministry to challenge Catholic men to have a closer relationship with Christ,'' Ruda said.

United feeling sought

Larry Allwine already is an active parishioner at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, serving as an usher, Eucharistic minister and member of the Knights of Columbus. He is helping plan the Nov. 1 conference, also open to men from the Catholic congregations of St. Clare's in Canyon Country and Blessed Kateri in Saugus.

Men of Promise could help Catholic parishes create a sense of community, Allwine said. Because weekly Masses are at several times on Saturdays and Sundays, church members may feel like a flock of strangers rather than a unified congregation, he said.

``At OLPH, there are seven services every weekend (that draw) 4,000 to 6,000 people,'' Allwine said. ``You don't get to know as many people.''

The Men of Promise chapter would strive to make its Catholic members into better husbands, better fathers and better men overall, he said.

``It's not just the wife's job to run the house and raise the kids. We were joined as one when we got married,'' Allwine said.

Shea pointed to society's ever-growing number of single mothers raising children alone as evidence that there's a need for men to become more responsible - the message behind Men of Promise. Even men whose families are intact may spend too much time away from them because of career demands and could come to reassess their priorities if they subscribe to the principles of Men of Promise, he said.

Ruda said he'd like to see the movement spread across the archdiocese. ``Our hope is to bring a Men of Promise (chapter) into every one of those parishes,'' he said.