8 minute read
A Fisher of Men: Jim Beadles and
A Fisher of Men
Karen Dill, Spiritual Director
Advertisement
Several times in recent years I have had the privilege of serving as a sponsor for an OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults, formerly RCIA) candidate wishing to join the Catholic Church. As part of that process, on a Sunday in February the candidates and their sponsors attend the Rite of Election at St. John Berchmans Cathedral, where the bishop formally acknowledges the candidates and catechumens from each parish. Every year, our parish participants took up a couple of pews in the church. The group from St. Joseph’s parish in Shreveport usually occupied most of the front quadrant of the Cathedral. “How are they motivating so many people to want to become Catholic?” I began to wonder. Then I ran into Suzanne Beadles in the grocery store. Her husband Jim heads up the OCIA program at St. Joseph’s. When I asked her that question, she smiled and told me, “Put Jim in a room full of strangers and in about ten minutes, he’ll have every one of them wanting to join the Church!” I decided I needed to sit down with him and find out what the St. Joseph’s OCIA Team is doing right. Jim exudes the energy of the Holy Spirit. A convert himself, he was appointed director of the OCIA program at St. Joseph’s just a few years after he joined the Church. He started out by explaining that he belongs to a vibrant parish where many parishioners are involved in evangelization, led by an enthusiastic priest, Fr. Long, who strongly supports this ministry. He sees a real hunger for Christ in his parish, which of course is the work of the Holy Spirit. Of the 150+ converts he has helped usher into the parish, the average age is 28 with outliers ranging from elementary school children to senior citizens. He began by stressing that OCIA at St. Joseph’s is a team effort. His team is made up of over 20 parishioners, each with his or her explicit task. These include: administrative coordinator; sponsor coordinator; facility coordinator; communications coordinator; resource coordinator; alumni coordinator; Advent and Lent coordinator (Suzanne fills that role); even a medical advisor who keeps him current on the Covid restrictions. The whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. By working together, his team creates the OCIA “family” that Jim lovingly refers to often. And by delegating these tasks, he can devote himself to his two chief roles of teaching and developing relationships. Jim keeps two OCIA groups running all year, depending on each individual’s circumstances. Classes meet for one hour on week nights. He teaches most of them but brings in team members to present specific topics. He opens with prayer and the Scriptures for next Sunday’s Mass, followed by a brief introduction to one of the Church Father’s teachings on the topic for the evening. He strongly encourages sponsors to attend class as well. The topics for the next four weeks are listed in
the church bulletin, encouraging anyone from the parish who’s interested to attend. The success of the program is achieved by the relationships that he and his team strive to create with each individual class member. If a person is interested in exploring OCIA, he or she can go to a link on the church website and contact Jim by e-mail. He is adamant about responding within the hour! When that candidate (or catechumen depending on whether the person has been baptized or not) comes to class, he goes through an orientation period for a few weeks and then is strategically appointed to a sponsor. From the beginning of the program, Jim reminds his group that OCIA doesn’t end at the Easter Vigil when the candidates are officially confirmed. He stresses the importance of “mystagogy,” or the period after confirmation when the candidate is encouraged to take an active role in the parish and/or community. Jim and his team keep each candidate on the collective radar screen throughout the OCIA period and the years to follow. Candidates know that Mass attendance and class attendance are both expected. If they begin to miss either one, he contacts them by e-mail or phone to check in and see if he can help in any way. Then he offers them an individual make-up class on-line. He has created a website, www.ask-ocia.com, where any parishioner can ask a question about the faith and Jim will e-mail back an answer or point to a resource. Even after candidates join the Church, they become part of an alumni group that the alumni coordinator contacts at least once every few months to keep track of how things are going and inform them of anything new they might be interested in. When I asked Jim what he does personally to stay in the game spiritually, he identified several practices. He constantly reads current and classic Christian literature because, as he put it “I never want to stop learning.” He attends a silent men’s retreat at Manresa each year and usually attends a national OCIA conference in Chicago if he feels the theme that year is pertinent to this program. These along with prayer and the sacraments all combine to keep him spiritually fed for the task he feels certain God has given him.
In Luke’s gospel, Jesus encounters Simon Peter on the shore of Lake Gennesaret. Although Simon and his companions had been fishing all night with no luck, Jesus instructs him to “Put out into deep water and let down the nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4) When Simon and his companions do so, they catch so many fish that their nets begin to break. Jesus assures them, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (Luke 5:10) In his recent book written to help others who are considering joining the Church, My Reason for Hope, Jim describes his own encounter with God during a retreat at Manresa as he was considering joining the Church himself:
At His ascension into heaven, Jesus gave all of us disciples the Great Commission—to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth. Jim Beadles has inspired me to go fishing. With whom can I share the beauty of my Catholic faith? In this post-Covid season, it’s time for all of us to call on the help of the Holy Spirit and cast out our nets.
If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about the Catholic faith, please visit https://www.dioshpt.org/ocia or reach out to your local parish’s OCIA Coordinator.
The Diocese of Shreveport Welcomes New Director of Youth Ministry, Laurie Nick
Kierstin Richter, Editor & Public Relations Director
“Young people, do not be afraid to be holy!” -Saint Pope John Paul II
The Diocese of Shreveport is proud to welcome Laurie Nick as our new Director of Youth Ministry. Laurie is originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, where she graduated from Mount St. Mary Academy, Summa Cum Laude. Laurie has a strong background in youth ministry, as she served on the Faith Formation Committee on the Youth Advisory Team for Christ the King Catholic Church in Little Rock, as well as chairing the prayer committee for the Youth Advisory Council for the Diocese of Little Rock. She completed her Master of Science in Education from Arkansas State University, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Middle-Level Education in Math & Science from the University of Central Arkansas. Laurie moved to Baton Rouge, where she taught Middle School Science and Religion at St. Aloysius Catholic School for four years. Laurie truly has “a teacher’s heart” and the desire to love and help those around her. “This is something I’ve prayed about and take seriously,” she says. “I want to go out and meet everyone in the diocese to assess the needs of youth ministry, seeing where we are and where we’re going. Although she’s a native of Arkansas, Laurie says she loved her time in Baton Rouge, and she’s excited to stay in Louisiana and become a part of the community of the Diocese of Shreveport. Laurie will handle youth ministry on a diocesan level, providing leadership training and resources for the adults who assist and participate in youth ministries at the parishes, as well as implementing and coordinating retreats, workshops, networking events, meetings, and other opportunities. Laurie loves the outdoors and enjoys biking, swimming, and running, which fuels her love for triathlons. (She actually competed in the River Cities Triathlon here!) Her patron saint, from who she takes a lot of inspiration, is St. Gianna Beretta, who once said, “The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day.” Laurie lives by this in her ministry and embraces every moment God has given. Everyone please extend a warm welcome to Laurie as she joins our team here in Shreveport. Keep her and the youth of our diocese in your prayers as this academic year begins. Laurie will join us August 15, 2022. If you’d like to welcome her or have any questions, email her at lnick@dioshpt.org.
