How Can I Welcome Someone at Mass?
None of us want our parishes to be a place that’s not welcoming, that’s not hospitable to the outsider, visitor, guest, or occasional-attender. The question is how? What to do? What…
Faith Library
Tag: share the faith
What is Salvation?
If our idea of salvation isn’t God’s idea, then (spoiler alert!) by extension the Good News that we proclaim and announce isn’t going to be truly Good. Earlier this…
Empathy Means Stepping Out
Which comes first in your parish–Believe, Belong, or Behave? Are people expected to conform to a certain (hidden at times!) code of behaviors about where kids are sent…
Learning from Jesus’ Conversations
How often do we have conversations in ministry and wonder, was I imitating Christ? Yes, it’s an impossible standard. But, by examining the way we converse with others through…
Introducing “Living as Missionary Disciples”
Have you ever wanted a CliffNotes version of doing evangelization in parish life? Look no further. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recently released the leadership resource Living…
He is Risen. Now What?
As Jesus the Risen Christ prepares to ascend to His Father, he announces: “you will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my…
Healthy Relationships. Healthy Parish Life.
Evangelization demands from us, calls us to, and compels us toward healthy parish life. Why? Because the normative path in Christian life, after conversion, is into Christian community.…
Pitfalls for Modern Evangelizers
I happened upon a discussion of The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. For those who haven’t read this comically disturbing book, do so as soon as possible. It’s…
Paul in Athens: Pre-Evangelization Primer
I love the account of Paul speaking at Mars Hill in Athens in Acts 17. While pre-evangelization includes witness without words, we’re often called to converse or speak…
What’s a Visioning Homily?
So your parish has a vision, and maybe even a catchy vision statement–now what? Vision that’s not communicated broadly falls flat. Because the point of vision is that…