Evangelizing through Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving This past Sunday as we reflected on our Lenten resolutions at my parish, our pastor encouraged me to consider resolutions that will not just benefit me but that will bear fruit for the kingdom. What if we chose resolutions that build up the kingdom in active ways? What would […]
Uncategorized
Lenten Reflection 2016
I am on the road to an alliance, and as I sit in the rectory of a parish in a very small town in northwestern Ohio, I’m trying to come up with something profound to write for a reflection for Lent, and having prayed for days about what to write, I face my own poverty. […]
I Dreamt that My Son Died – A Good Friday Meditation
It seems eminently clear that the more perfect one’s love is, the more pain lies in wait. The longer couples date, the more the break-up hurts. The closer the relative, the more gut-wrenching the death. The more we would sacrifice for someone, the greater the hole left within us when they are gone. The more […]
Seek the Lord in the Bible Every Day… Seriously!
Does it surprise any of us that we’re in desperate need of daily spiritual nourishment? Do not our hearts hunger and thirst every day, or even every minute? Mark Rose wrote in our last EC blog entry about how we hunger for connection to people and to God. I know that I hunger for a […]
“Do not be afraid, for I am with you”
I remember growing up being terrified of my basement. It was unfinished- uncarpeted stairs and floors, random poles everywhere, medieval washer and dryer, and some creaky exercise equipment. Unfortunately, it also housed the foosball table. If I wanted to engage in some competitive leisure, I had to venture down to the basement. What definitely scared […]
Catholic Small Groups Are Critical – But They’re Not the Answer
Small Groups Are Not the Answer Everyone is doing it. It’s the latest thing. It’s the answer for this generation of Catholic ministry. Small groups! All I’m hearing at conferences is “you have to start small groups.” Campus ministries and many parishes around the country are buying in. It’s at the core of the EC’s […]
Pope Francis is an Evangelical! Part I
It shows in everything he says and does – Francis’ pontificate exemplifies what it means to be both evangelical and Catholic. As many know, “evangel” means “good news.” Followers of the EC will have heard us stick “ical” on the end of the English translation to make “goodnewsical.” People sit up, attention arrested, because when […]
5 Things Parishes are Doing Wrong for the New Evangelization
1) They spend 8 months crafting a new mission statement. So your parish wants more unity – a vision to run with. Your staff sees a disunified, scattered community. Most people who attend Mass are unengaged with parish life. Maybe a mission statement will build the necessary unity upon which we can build. Problem is, […]
Holistic Love: Seeking Integrity as a Child of God
“So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” –2 Corinthians 5:17 Very few Scripture verses have eluded my experiential conviction like 2 Corinthians 5:17. How I long to be a new creation with a pure heart, with holy and faith-filled action, with a […]
Waiting: How my pocket knife taught me about the Holy Spirit
During the summer when I was 9 or 10 I really wanted a pocket knife. I asked my dad and he said he would think about it. I hated it when he used to say that. I waited…and waited. I dreamed of all of the cool things I could do with it. Making arrows, carving […]