evangelization Archives - Page 2 of 2

Healing the Wounds of a “Create-Yourself” Culture: Part III- Outreach

Once we are ready to reach out to those suffering from addiction, abuse, or any other pain, and we have discerned that the Lord is calling this ministry, it is good to take inventory.

Each community has a different demographic with different resources available, so it is always helpful to do a bit of research. For example, if you notice a need to help adolescent girls struggling with body image – take a look at what is already offered. Are there workshops, educational resources, therapists, dieticians, or other organizations and providers that can help? Are there professionals and volunteers that can join your initiative if you are starting something yourself?

Another tip, especially for adolescents and teens, is finding positive influences to counter the negative messages they are constantly receiving. I have heard of modesty fashion shows, group exercise classes followed by body image talks, cooking classes, fun runs, and other group activities aimed at building self-esteem and promoting self-care, in addition to providing the spiritual component which is the most essential piece. The key is to find a strategy to replace what is destructive e.g. media, magazines, clothes, and replace those negative influences with believable, relevant, and genuinely positive influences that will speak to the age group and culture.

Most importantly, your role as a catechist, youth minister, parent, etc. is to love them where they are wounded- to be Christ to them. Just as Christ has come to us and revealed His love for us, we are now called to share this Good News. The challenge, as I am sure all of you know, is to “re-propose” these truths of the Gospel in ways they can hear it, amidst the ear buds, “beats,” and bluetooths.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but this culture- more than anything else- needs to hear that they are loved, that they are loved with the “flaws” they may see in themselves, and even despite the flaws other people see in them. Underneath the make-up, clothing (or lack-thereof), dyed hair, piercings, tattoos, and bad attitudes is a wounded and lonely heart. Underneath the quiet, seemingly perfect kids who “have it all together” is a heart trembling from uncertainty and potential failure. Every person in this world craves love, and as “missionary disciples,” to quote a Pope Francis-ism, we are called to offer that love we have first received.

Being who you are, comfortable with how God made you, and living with a spirit of joy and gratitude is the best gift you can give. The Lord fills a heart prepared to receive Him, transforms it, and makes it a Tabernacle to whom those who need the Lord can find a home. I pray that the light of Christ which dwells in your hearts becomes a source of grace for all of those you encounter.

Healing the Wounds of a “Create-Yourself” Culture: Part II- Bringing Our Hearts to the Lord

By Maureen Smith

The first step in helping others is always taking a look at our own lives to see where we need healing. To be a trusted catechist, minister, parent, friend, etc. we all must make sure that we are pursuing our own healing, especially in the areas that we wish to focus on in our ministry. In my case, I learned that a significant amount of healing needed to happen before I was able to authentically reach out to others.

In this first step, we place ourselves before the Lord and ask Him to shed light on our own woundedness to see where we can heal, regardless of whether it “feels” related to our area of ministry.

The fact of the matter is that we are all broken, and the process of healing is the same. I may not be able to understand completely the pornography addiction of another but I can feel a similar shame that comes from my body image/eating disorder. I can see many similarities in the behaviors and symptoms. Although the object of my addiction is different the core wound is the same. All of us are wounded by that first sin in the Garden of Eden, and we all struggle at some point to believe that we are really lovable the way we are.

When we grapple with our own wounds, bring them to the Lord, and unite them to His own Wounds, we find mercy and healing and thus prepare ourselves to help others. We are also able to be in solidarity with those who suffer and can be more patient in their healing process.

The advantage of this is two-fold. First, we will be more other-focused, since we have dealt with our own wounds. At the same time we will be able to draw from our own experience and come from a place of understanding. Since we have experienced the healing power of Christ, the example of our life- which is lived with greater joy and freedom- will strike a chord in the hearts of those who know they are not free.

I pray that each of us will place ourselves under the Gaze of the Divine Physician in order to deepen our intimacy with Christ who desires to free us from all fear, all pain, and all sin.

What I Did

By William O'Leary

All too often, religious education programs help prepare children for their First Reconciliation but struggle to assist the parents in preparing their children. They, after all, are the primary educators or might I say “prepare-rs”. This year I really wanted to look at our First Reconciliation parent meeting in a different way. I wanted to touch parents lives so that in return they would be able to impact their children. I found a very powerful video and showed it (outline below). I didn’t want the meeting to just be me or someone talking up front, but since all these parents are part of our church family I wanted them to grow together and share their lives together. That is why I then had them interact at tables with small group discussion questions. Below I have additional details regarding what I did but first and foremost it was about touching the hearts of the parents because if we can engage their hearts and minds it will naturally overflow onto their children. I was grateful to hear that it was well received and parents were in fact touched by what they experienced.

I opened with a prayer and then went right into this video:

Forgiveness Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9J6xOT3Ldw

Then I had parents answer some questions about the video and about how they have taught their kids about forgiveness and hope to prepare them as they prepare their child for their First Reconciliation.

Following the small group discussions our Pastor spoke for about 5 minutes encouraging parents and then I showed the following video:

Sacrament of Reconciliation Explained: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtbpOERgMvk

Afterwards, I shared a few thoughts and went into some specifics from a folder of material we give about helping their children prepare for their First Reconciliation.

I ran out of time but I wanted to then share this video:

Beautiful Things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is6weMrenls

What do you do to impact the parents at meetings like this? I’d love to hear from you!

Forming Missionary Disciples

By William O'Leary

In virtue of their baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples (cf. Mt 28:19). All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization, and it would be insufficient to envisage a plan of evangelization to be carried out by professionals while the rest of the faithful would simply be passive recipients. The new evangelization calls for personal involvement on the part of each of the baptized. Every Christian is challenged, here and now, to be actively engaged in evangelization; indeed, anyone who has truly experienced God’s saving love does not need much time or lengthy training to go out and proclaim that love. Every Christian is a missionary to the extent that he or she has encountered the love of God in Christ Jesus: we no longer say that we are “disciples” and “missionaries”, but rather that we are always “missionary disciples”. – Pope Francis in EG #120

The Church at this very moment is in great need of missionary disciples willing to say yes to not keeping their faith too close to the vest but to share and live the faith with boldness and with the confidence that human happiness is found most fully in modeling Christ and giving our lives away in service and sacrifice.

What does this mean for Catechesis?

1) Christ came to seek and save the lost — we have to go and search for the lost. And as Pope Francis numerous times in his apostolic letter, we must invite “everyone” into the fold. Pope Francis said: “The Church is called to be the house of the Father, with doors always wide open” ( EG #46).

One of the most profound statements in Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter is paragraph#49:

Let us go forth, then, let us go forth to offer everyone the life of Jesus Christ. Here I repeat for the entire Church what I have often said to the priests and laity of Buenos Aires: I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security. I do not want a Church concerned with being at the centre and which then ends by being caught up in a web of obsessions and procedures. If something should rightly disturb us and trouble our consciences, it is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters are living without the strength, light and consolation born of friendship with Jesus Christ, without a community of faith to support them, without meaning and a goal in life. More than by fear of going astray, my hope is that we will be moved by the fear of remaining shut up within structures which give us a false sense of security, within rules which make us harsh judges, within habits which make us feel safe, while at our door people are starving and Jesus does not tire of saying to us: “Give them something to eat” (Mk 6:37).

We must never tire of welcoming the weak, broken, sinners into the loving arms of the Church which is an icon of Christ Himself.”

2) When we transmit the Faith, the Pope calls for a “missionary style” in Proclaiming/announcing the Gospel Message. It must be with joy, it must be with vigor and it must communicate the crucified and risen Lord (Cf. EG #11). It’s the basic Gospel message which we should never assume that those we teach have embraced. Our style is always missionary in order to announce with joy the Good News of Jesus Christ and it’s always drawing people more fully into the riches of Christ.

3) Inculturate the Gospel. Finding new expressions of announcing the Gospel so that it will be received is vital for the handing on of the Faith in the Third Millennium. Pope Francis said:

69. It is imperative to evangelize cultures in order to inculturate the Gospel. In countries of Catholic tradition, this means encouraging, fostering and reinforcing a richness which already exists. In countries of other religious traditions, or profoundly secularized countries, it will mean sparking new processes for evangelizing culture, even though these will demand long-term planning. We must keep in mind, however, that we are constantly being called to grow. Each culture and social group needs purification and growth. In the case of the popular cultures of Catholic peoples, we can see deficiencies which need to be healed by the Gospel: machismo, alcoholism, domestic violence, low Mass attendance, fatalistic or superstitious notions which lead to sorcery, and the like. Popular piety itself can be the starting point for healing and liberation from these deficiencies.

The three points specify ways we can be missionary disciples today in our world and to our students. May Our Lady be our model and intercede for us to bring forth the Good News of her Son!

Our Lady of Good Success

By Lisa Mladinich

I am most grateful to Lisa who asked if I would write reviews on some of the Lighthouse Catholic CDs. They provide a wonderful opportunity to evangelize ourselves as well as our family and friends.

Take for instance, a recent CD entitled Our Lady of Good Success by Matthew Arnold. This approved apparition was not widely known until the last century. Our Lady appeared to a holy sister, Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres (1563-1635) at various times during her life.

Matthew tells of his visit to Quito, Ecuador where the apparitions took place. In a very engaging way, he draws you into the celebration of this dire, yet hopeful message that mirrors the events of our time. In fact, in the apparition, Our Lady warns of terrible events that would occur in the last half of the 20^th century.

Given three hundred years before Fatima, these prophecies seem to tie directly to Our Lady’s messages in Portugal. But these warnings are particularly detailed. The listener is struck by the amazing accuracy of predictions that we have seen unfold over the last 50-60 years.

Imagine Our Lady speaking to someone in that time about:

A total corruption of customs – Matthew points to attendance at the Holy Mass. He mentions a statistic that in 1958, three out of every four Catholics attended Mass. Now, he says, it is more like one in four.
A loss of innocence – He relays that Our Lady said that innocence will almost no longer be found in children, nor modesty in women. Look at the decline in women’s religious orders and of course the assault on our children with television and the internet.
An attack on the sacraments – For example, Our Lady said that there will be attacks on the Sacrament of Marriage and laws will be passed making it easy to sin.

Mathew conveys more of these dire prophecies from Our Lady to Mother Mariana. However, I said that this is a message of hope. It is in a very real sense.

You see, with the moral chaos that exists in our world, Our Lady said to Mother Mariana that when almost all would seem lost and paralyzed, there would be a restoration of the Church. Signs of that restoration have begun. Matthew shares some of these near the end of the talk.

In 1906, they opened the sarcophagus of Mother Mariana and found her body and that of some of the other founding Mothers to be incorrupt. She is currently declared Servant of God and on the path to Sainthood.

I recommend this inspiring message for our times. You can order this CD/MP3 at Lighthouse Catholic Media. Then, spread the word about Our Lady of Good Success!

God Bless

« Previous Page