Seven Simple Steps to Make Parishes Simply Shine (Handout)
Let your light shine so others may praise God. (Matt. 5:16). Pope Paul VI tells us that the mission of every parish is to bring Christ to others. Seven Simple Steps to make parishes Simply Shine is a booklet to help parishes evaluate what they already do and offer suggestions on how to make their light shine brighter. It was created by the Office for the Formation of the Laity of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and has had many hands in its development. It is not a finished product. Parishes are encouraged to take each step and evaluate its “shine power.” Ask, “How can these steps illuminate the way for the marginalized, the seeker, the indifferent, the stranger and the believer to encounter Christ?”
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Prayer Service for Parish Transitions (Handout)
Is your parish going through a transition? For example: the parish school closing, the sisters leaving at the end of the year, the local Catholic high school closing, the parish merging? Attached is a prayer service created by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to help parishioners through this transition.
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Stages of the Evangelization Process (Exercise)
When we hear the “great commission” of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel, 28:19-20, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations...,” it may seem clear cut. But as we try to live out this evangelizing mission in parish and diocesan life, we suspect that there is much more to this than we ever imagined. How do we translate this into action? How do we know if we are making any progress? One helpful tool is an awareness of stages in the process of parish evangelization. Here is an exercise to help think about the stages.
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Finding Grace in Bereavement
On November 19, 2009, PNCEA hosted its fifth and final Catholic Speakers Online session for the year. At a time when the holidays are fast approaching, Dr. Geraldine Fialkowski began her presentation, “Finding Grace in Loss and Bereavement,” by acknowledging that it can be an especially difficult time of year for people who have lost someone. Dr. Fialkowski is an Assistant Professor of Pastoral Ministry at Loyola University Maryland, and she specializes in loss and bereavement issues.
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Ethics and Ecumenism: Unity, Diversity, and Search for Criteria
Anyone who follows the news knows that new hurdles involving ethics and morals have been raised in recent decades on the track leading to Christian unity. So no surprise, then, that The Ethical Horizon from an Ecumenical Perspective was the theme of this year’s annual meeting of the North American Academy of Ecumenists, which took place September 25-27 in Washington, DC, at the Washington Theological Union.
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The Elephant in the Room in Relations among the Abrahamic Faiths
On September 2 the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee called on the Israeli government to freeze and begin to dismantle settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. It also encouraged a commitment to non-violence and peace negotiations, and reiterated the need for an international boycott of products and services from settlements.
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Go and Make Disciples… On the Internet
On Thursday, October 8, 2009, Dr. Tom Curran, founder and director of mycatholicfaith.org, addressed an internet audience to discuss “Go and Make Disciples… On the Internet! Evangelizing Digital Natives and Forming Catholics on the Internet.” PNCEA hosted this presentation as part of the Catholic Speakers Online series, supported by a grant from Our Sunday Visitor Institute. The more than 500 registrants came from 46 states and 7 countries.
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Using Christmas Carols to Evangelize (Handout)
Many of us experience difficulty concentrating on a prayerful and penitential Advent, especially in a society flooded with yuletide decorations, Christmas cookies, and flavored candy canes well before Thanksgiving. But both realities may be addressed and reconciled if we recall the roots of Advent and prepare ourselves to share its meaning with the world around us.
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Elements in Building A Renewed and Evangelizing Parish (Handout)
Tom Quinlan from Joliet offers us 16 elements that make up a vibrant parish community.
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Diocesan Leaders and the Internet
In August 2009, The Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association conducted an online survey of Arch/Diocesan leaders of evangelization about their use of the internet and social media for ministry. Evangelization leaders from more than 60 dioceses responded. Here are some of the results.
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The “R” Word
For us Catholics, the “R” word is not “recession” but “reluctance.”
Sometimes it’s called “resistance,” but I’m not sure that’s the case. I would say that Catholics are more reluctant than resistant to certain strategies of invitation and welcome. Fr. Frank DeSiano comments on why this is.
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From Cowards to Proclaimers (Handout)
How did the disciples go from being cowards who abandoned the Lord Jesus Christ in his hour of need (Mk. 14:43-50; Mt. 26:47-56; Lk. 22:47-53) to become witnesses who proclaimed his resurrection, willing to die for their belief in it? What are some lessons in this for us? John Boucher offers this exercise to aid our reflection.
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Be An Evangelizing Catechist (Handout)
Tom Quinlan Diocesan Director of Religious Education from Joliet shares the handout "Be an Evangelizing Catechist."
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