Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Welcome! Sharing Faith and the Eucharist
Fr. Frank DeSiano
Fr. Kenneth Boyack
Meeting Topic:
The Urgent Need to Proclaim the Gospel
Presenter:
Frs. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Kenneth Boyack, CSP
Date:
18 July 2013 2:00 pm ET
Audio:
Available only through internet (computer speakers or headset)
Technical difficulties call: 800800-237 237--5515
Welcome to the Webinar Today we will cover: • Our Catholic reluctance to share faith • The urgent need to share the Gospel • The personal and public spheres of faithsharing h i • The Eucharist as the source and power to share faith • Learning to share faith in the personal sphere • Learning to share faith in the public sphere
Elements of Our Catholic Culture
• “Be quiet in Church” • “Memorize the catechism” • “It’s It s about saving your soul” soul • “I’m not pushy about my faith” • “I don’t really know my faith in depth”
• “That’s Father’s job, or the DREs” • “I don’t know what to say”
The Power to Reach Out
Why Can’t Sally Speak?
Why is it so hard for Catholics tto simply i l d describe ib th their i religious li i experience to others?
Urgent Need to Share the Gospel
Do we really understand the implications of people living without the resources that God has given us in Jesus and the Spirit?
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Catholic Resources
• In the Scriptures we know • •
the deepest patterns of existence and begin to relate to God personally In the Sacraments we remember the events of salvation through encounter with Jesus and celebration with each other In our moral teaching we shape ourselves as instruments of divine love in the world
The Precious Gift of Faith To share faith with another, as the Spirit allows, is not to impose faith on the unwilling, but to offer a precious gift that can only come from Jesus Christ!
Two Spheres of Faith Faith--sharing Personal Sphere When we are able to d describe ib the h experiences i that we ourselves have in language that is open, non judgmental, not smug and arrogant, but loving, and sensitive to the other
Catholic Resources
• In our community life we support each •
other and engage in numerous charitable works for those in need In our social vision we acknowledge that we are each bound to each other because we are children of God, and we support and uphold the dignity of every person and the common good
Sally and Steve How do we get Sally to speak about her faith?
How do we get Steve to speak about his faith?
Personal Sphere
Public Sphere
When we are able to see our personal experiences in the wider stream of Catholic reflection on faith, and speak of the gifts of faith from our Catholic tradition when sharing with others
Catholics can be helped to get iin ttouch h with ith their th i own personall relationship with Jesus Christ— we HAVE the relationship, we just don’t formulate it in relational categories.
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Discovering My Experience of God
Discover My Experience
• How did faith come to me? • Who were the people who involved
English
Spanish
me in the mystery of Jesus?
• What Wh t is i the th iimage I have h off God? G d? How does it speak to me?
• What great changes have I
undergone, and how has God been involved in them?
Eucharist: Source of Faith and Power
Don’t Let Them….
From our experience as a Eucharistic people we can deepen our own encounter with Jesus Christ and gain the ability and power to articulate more fully what we believe, and why.
Don’t let them tell us that we Catholics are only l d doing i empty t ritual it l without ith t deep personal commitment!
Personal Experience of God at Mass
• • • • • • • •
Blessing with holy water upon entering church Singing with the congregation Hearing the Word of God Professing my faith Offering myself with the gifts Entering the Holy—the Eucharistic Prayer Being united with Jesus in Holy Communion Being sent on mission at the dismissal rite
• • • • • •
A case study A dynamic and effective parish renewal experience for the whole parish Takes place primarily during Lent Nearly 550 parishes across the U.S. have participated since Lent 2012 Implements Pope Benedict XVI’s The Sacrament of Charity Helps parishioners to 1) understand the Eucharist, 2) participate more fully and actively, and 3) live the Eucharist each day
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
Living the Eucharist
• Offers participants ways to reflect on • • •
their own experiences of the Eucharist Encourages faith sharing by adults, teens, and in families Provides devotional tips to link the Eucharist and everyday life Creates awareness of the connection between my personal faith and the larger Catholic community of faith
Getting Articulate
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Living the Eucharist Results Evaluation feedback from over 2,500 parishioners • 90% of adult small group participants rated their experience as “Excellent” or “Very Good.” • 92% have a greater understanding of the Eucharist. • 88% participate more fully in the Mass. • 94% are more committed to live as disciples of Jesus each day. Every component of Living the Eucharist rated overall as “Excellent” or “Very Good.”
Pastoral Objective
• “Going to Mass is important for me • • •
because. . . .” “I find God to be an indispensible part of my life because. because . . .” “When I hear the Gospel it helps me to. . . .” “I get so much from Holy Communion because. . . .”
Help Catholics get in touch with the personal, l relational l ti l side id off the th Mass M through reflection, teaching, and, most of all, sharing with others.
Living the Eucharist Testimonies I’ve learned to share my faith with others. I’ve always considered it to be private.
Sally and Steve CAN talk about faith. We just have to help them do that!
‐Parishioner, Fallentimber, PA
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Public Sphere
Connecting my personal experience of f ith with faith ith the Church’s tradition and ways of speaking when I share faith with others.
Important Rule
• We can only share faith with others • •
when they have given us permission to do so. We receive this p permission when we come to know others and they trust us. They give us permission in implicit ways, asking us about our lives and our beliefs.
What Can the Church Offer Me? • • • • • •
Peace Community Wisdom Eternal Life Nourishment Support
Extend the Personal
• When I know what the Eucharist, •
and faith, bring to my life, I can find the categories to help others see what faith can bring to their lives Keeping it simple, personal, direct, and open as I share
What Can the Church Offer Me? We can learn to speak these values in our own words, with reference to our own experiences, in ways that other people p p can hear,, without being g turned off.
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
An Exercise
Short Path • This brochure gives a more formal way to share faith with someone who has little background • It is modeled on some of the ways our Evangelical friends share faith
Short Path
• Explain how union with Jesus becomes crucial to addressing life’s deepest issues
Short Path
• help people see the deeper issues of their lives, our insoluble realities of death and sin
• express how Jesus faced and destroyed sin and death on behalf of us, gaining access to God’s love and fullness for us
Short Path
• Explain how union with Jesus brings new life because we live as Jesus did; how union comes in grace through the sacraments
• Explain how Jesus brought the Kingdom of God, and we share in it through community
• Expand upon the Kingdom as a world--wide world community of those who follow Jesus and experience his life through membership in Church. . . . In the Catholic Church!
Our Catholic Church
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP Agenda for the New Evangelization
• Get Catholics in touch with their own religious experience • Help them articulate how the Mass deepens their religious experience • Free F them th tto speak k about b t faith f ith through th h small group experiences • Give them tools to facilitate their sharing • Make this agenda an ongoing part of parish life
Consider Living the Eucharist for Your Parish
• Nearly 550 parishes participating since 2012 • Overall, rated by parishioners as “Excellent” or “Very Good” • An effective Lenten experience for the whole parish • Parish pays only the cost of materials • Helps parishioners to 1) understand the Eucharist, 2) participate more fully and actively, and 3) live the Eucharist each day
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Living the Eucharist Resources
• Prayer campaign • Parish bulletin material • Daily Lenten devotional booklet • Smallll group materials l ffor adults d l and d teens • Teen videos • Family Activity Booklet • Parish Retreat These resources equip Catholics to connect the mass with their daily experience as disciples of Jesus!
Learn more at www.LivingtheEucharist.org Parish Starter Kit and Parish Resource Pack
Includes ground shipping and handling!
Order today at LivingtheEucharist.org/store
Learn About the Other Evangelization Resources Mentioned in Webinar
• Go to Paulist Evangelization •
Ministries, www.pemdc.org Search for:
Discovering My Experience of God Faith Outreach Brochures Booklet
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Year of Faith Webinar Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP and Rev. Kenneth Boyack, CSP
18 July 2013 Paulist Evangelization Ministries
Up Next…
P l th A tl T d Paul the Apostle Today Tuesday, August 13 at 1pm ET Rev. Ronald Witherup, SS Check out the schedule at www.PEMDC.org/YearOfFaith
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