Welcome to Week 4 of our Online Catechist’s Retreat (The Spirituality of the Catechist) as we take a look at the third characteristic of our spirituality: An Openness to the World.

Thanks so much for insights posted last week on the theme of our openness to the Church! It is so enjoyable and enriching to read your thoughts and to converse with you. If you’re just joining us, you can go back and “catch up” and then come back to jump in to week four.

• Week One
• Week Two
• Week Three

As we do each week, I invite you to begin this week by viewing the following brief video introduction on the theme of An Openness to the World.

An Openness to the World

Sheep, fishing nets, pearls, coins, buried treasures, wine, wineskins, yeast, mustard seeds, fig trees, vineyards, tenants, banquets, etc.

These are just a few of the images that Jesus used when he taught. They are images that were familiar to Jesus’ audience. Jesus spoke in such a way that he was able to capture the imagination of the crowds - speaking to their everyday experiences to help them find God in all things.

Ipod, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, gigabytes, texting, webinars, bandwidth, Bluetooth, download, DVD, Blu-Ray, eBay, Google, GPS, MP3, etc.

Do any of the above words mean anything to you? For many of us, these words may seem like a foreign language. To the young people we teach, however, they are part of their everyday vocabulary!

No doubt, if Jesus were preaching to crowds today, telling them parables, he would draw from images that are current, everyday images. As catechists, we are called to teach as Jesus did. This means that, just as Jesus had an openness to the world in which he lived, we too are called to have a spirituality that is characterized by an openness to the world.

From his humble beginnings, Jesus showed an openness to the world. The Incarnation is an example of profound openness to the world. God did not disdain the mundaneness of this world but rather, he “so loved that world that he sent his only begotten Son so that whoever believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (Jn 3:16).

Jesus was sinless, yet, he entered into the Jordan River to be baptized with sinners. He did not need forgivness, but he chose to stand shoulder to shoulder with sinners.

In Jesus’ time, it was customary for Jews who were traveling betweem Judea and Galilee to avoid passing through Samaria. John 4:4, however, tells us that Jesus did no such thing: “He had to pass through Samaria.” He had to? The only reason he had to pass through Samaria was because it was part of his mission.

Now THAT’S openness to the world.  Jesus himself did not flee from the world. Rather, he plunged headlong into the ordinariness of life in order to reveal the extraordinary presence of God there. Jesus did not tell his followers to run and hide or to separate from society. Rather, he said, “Go!”

That same commission comes to us. As catechists, we are sent forth into the world. Or, perhaps I should say, the world comes to us! Each time we teach, we are called to enter into the world of those we teach. We may not fully understand “their world.” We may not approve of everything that is happening in “their world.” However, we must not think that somehow God is more present in “our world.” Our task is to enter into their world and to help them uncover and recognize the God who is already there.

I have never traveled to a foreign country where English is NOT the primary language. I believe that anyone who does so is participating in a profound conversion experience: to let go of your own language and seek to comprehend the language of another is profoundly challenging. And yet, when you are able to do so, new experiences become possible.

Quite often, those we teach “speak a different language.” In some cases, that is literally true! In most cases, it is metaphorically true. Being open to the world means learning to speak the language of those we teach. In doing so, we become capable of doing what St. Ignatius of Loyola taught his catechists to do: “enter through their door, but be sure to leave through your door.”

During this week, let’s pray for ourselves and for one another that we may have a true openness to the world - not disdaining it, but entering into it as Jesus did so that we can help others recognize God in their midst.

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Week Four Reflection Questions (click here for week-4-reflection-questions) - over the next few days, feel free to ponder these reflection questions pertaining to this week’s theme. Then, return here to Catechist’s Journey and share some of your reflections with your fellow retreatants.

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For Further Reflection: Read the Preface and Introductory Statement of Gaudium et Spes, the Pastoral Consititution on the Church from the Second Vatican Council.

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Spiritual Exercises - During the course of this week, practice one or more of the following spiritual exercises designed to deepen your openness to the world. Feel free to share the fruits of your exercises with your fellow retreatants by posting your comments any time this week.

• Spend this week praying with the daily news (whether you receive that through the TV, newspaper, Internet, or Twitter!). Scan the news to observe what is going on: events, trends, tragedies, triumphs, and so on. Then, bring these all to prayer. Ask God to help you recognize the needs of the world. Ask for the grace to see how you can bring the current experiences of the world into dialogue with the Gospel in your catechesis.

• Spend this week in the “shoes” of those you teach…as far as your prayer goes. Try to get into the mindset of those you teach. What are they concerned about? What worries do they have? What joys are they experiencing? What events are taking place in their lives? What needs and desires do they have? Bring all of these to prayer, asking the Lord to help you know the minds and hearts of those you teach and to be sensitive to their needs.

• The early disciples of Christ prayed for the courage to venture into new territories – lands they had never before visited – in order to bring the Word of God to others. Pray this week for the courage to enter into new “territories” – perhaps you can venture into some new technology that your learners are familiar with. Take some time to explore “places” like Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, YouTube, and other popular social networking sites. Pray for the courage to better understand these new places, not in order to become proficient in using them, but to simply be aware of what your learners are finding there. 

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Recommended Reading on the Topic of Openness to the World:

Movies That Matter: Reading Film Through the Lens of Faith (Richard Leonard, SJ)

They Came Back Singing: Finding God with the Refugees (Gary Smith, SJ)

Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor (Gary Smith SJ

In All Things: Everyday Prayers of Jesuit High School Students (Michael J. Daley and Lee P Yeazell)

Generation Me: Why Today’s Young Americans are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled - and More Miserable Than Ever Before (Jean M Twenge, Ph.D.)

Youth Culture 101 (Walt Mueller)

Comments for Week 3 of our online retreat for catechists are less numerous but no less profound than previous weeks. Thanks and keep them coming. Don’t forget that folks are taking vacation time so we can expect “voices” to come and go over the course of this online retreat. Also, some topics are easier to write about than others. You’re welcome at any time to share your thoughts, ask questions of me or of one another, or talk to one another by leaving your comments. To do so for this week - week 3 - click here.

In the meantime, I have something for you. Over the years, I’ve heard many people talk about using Disney’s The Prince of Egypt to help teach about Moses and the Exodus/Passover story. It’s a very engaging video but requires much clarification over discrepancies it has with Scripture (lots of poetic license taken!). To that end, I’ve put together a worksheet that can be used to engage students with both the film and the Bible accounts. Enjoy!

moses-and-the-exodus-and-the-prince-of-egypt

moses-and-the-exodus-and-the-prince-of-egypt-with-answer-key

Welcome to Week 3 of our Online Catechist’s Retreat (The Spirituality of the Catechist) as we take a look at the second characteristic of our spirituality: An Openness to the Church.

Thanks so much for insights posted last week on the theme of our openness to God! Your stories were very inspiring as we venture forth in this retreat. If you’re just joining us, you can go back and “catch up” and then come back to jump in to week three.

• Week One
• Week Two

As we did in previous weeks, I invite you to begin this week by viewing the following brief video introduction on the theme of An Openness to the Church.

An Openness to the Church

When I was teaching in the high school seminary here in Chicago some years ago, I recall talking to my students about the religious life and explaining the evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity, and obedience. After a thorough explanation, I invited the students to ask questions or make comments. One young man said, “I don’t know about this poverty, chastity, and obedience stuff…that seems pretty challenging. I think I’d rather get married.”

Right. Go for the “easy life!” 

I went on to explain that all of the baptized are called to practice the spirit of these counsels: poverty, chastity, and obedience and that those in religious life dedicate their lives to a heightened practice of what we are all called to live.  I explained that in a marriage, we practice

• poverty (a detachment from possessions - e.g. parents share all of their possessions - home, furniture, cars, stereos, money, food - with their children);
• chastity (faithfulness to one’s sexuality - e.g. married people are celibate to the entire world except for one person…their spouse);
• obedience (accountability - e.g. family members do not come and go as they please but remain accountable to one another).

In other words, these 3 counsels remind us that we are members of a community - not isolated individuals.

Today, in Western culture, individualism is worshipped. Society’s mantra, as articulated by Oprah and Eckhart Tolle is “You are your own best authority.” In other words, no one can tell you what to do. It is no wonder that all of the superheroes in contemporary movies are loners: Batman, Ironman, the Hulk…today’s versions of The Lone Ranger.

As catechists, we have a profound sense of community. We recognize that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. We are not inviting others to a “me and God” experience. We are inviting them to an “us and God” experience. We take great inspiration from men and women religious who live lives of poverty, chastity, and obedience - exemplifying for us that living in loving relationship with community is key to our salvation. The catechist’s spirituality is characterized by an openness to the Church.

You and I have been called to serve as catechists. We have a vocation. Vocations come from the Church. We serve the mission of the Church and have been authorized (entrusted with the responsibility) to proclaim the Gospel message faithfully.

Living in community is not easy. It requires sacrifices. Sometimes the life of a lone ranger is appealing. Our true calling, however, is to live in the image of God who is, in essence, loving community: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In all that we do as catechists, our goal is to initiate/apprentice others into the life of the faith community. It is our responsibility, then, to know what the Church teaches and has entrusted to us to transmit. We dedicate ourselves to learning about the Church and its teachings so that we can more effectively invite others to enjoy the fruits of belonging to Christ’s community of faith, especially if we teach that the Church is a hospital for sinners (like ourselves) and not a museum for saints. We are all broken and in need of healing grace. The Church is the vehicle of this healing grace and we are blessed to participate in its life.

In the days and weeks ahead, let us continue to deepen our openness to Jesus’ Church - the Church that has called us and sustains us.

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Week Three Reflection Questions (click here for week-3-reflection-questions; a downloadable pdf) - over the next few days, feel free to ponder these reflection questions pertaining to this week’s theme. Then, return here to Catechist’s Journey and share some of your reflections with your fellow retreatants.

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For Further Reflection: Saint Anthony of Padua taught his monks to love the Church: http://www.saintanthonyofpadua.net/portale/santantonio/spirito/francescano/fra8.asp

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Spiritual Exercises - During the course of this week, practice one or more of the following spiritual exercises designed to deepen your opennes to the Church. Feel free to share the fruits of your exercises with your fellow retreatants by posting your comments any time this week.

• Think about your oldest Church-related possession. Is it your First Communion prayer book and Rosary? Is it a scapular? Is it your baptismal gown? Locate this special heirloom that represents your relationship to the Church. Place this treasured heirloom in the space where you pray for the coming week as a reminder of your relationship with the Church. Read and reflect on John 17, Jesus’ prayer for the Church.

• In the coming week, pray each day for a different person who was instrumental in entrusting the Catholic faith to you. Reflect on how these people did so and how you can emulate them in your vocation as a catechist. Prayer in a special way for the leaders of the Church: the pope, bishops, clergy, and lay ecclesial ministers who are responsible for transmitting the faith.

• In the coming week, spend some time reflecting upon your own understanding of the 4 “pillars” of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: the Creed, the Sacraments, Morality, and Prayer. Reflect on one pillar a day over the next four days. Journalabout your own understanding of these pillars: (Creed) what beliefs are at the core of your Catholic faith? (Sacraments) how have you/do you encounter Jesus in the Sacraments? (Morality) what is your understanding of Catholic morality? (Prayer) Why and how do you pray? Which of these areas do you feel you need to work at in terms of deepening your understanding of the Catholic faith/your openness to the Church? Commit to pursuing an opportunity this year to do just that.

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Recommended Reading on the topic of openness to the Church:

My Life with the Saints (James Martin, SJ)

A Well-Built Faith: A Catholic’s Guide to Knowing and Sharing What We Believe (Joe Paprocki)

May Crowning, Mass, and Merton: 50 Reasons I Love Being Catholic (Liz Kelly)

My Best Teachers Were Saints: What Every Educator Can Learn from the Heroes of the Church (Susan Swetnam)

Ecclesiology: The Church as Communion and Mission (The Catholic Basics Series)

I’m looking forward to our third week together in this online retreat for catechists, as we continue to look at the spirituality of the catechist. Thank you for sharing your thoughts about the first characteristic of our spirituality: an openness to God. Please continue to do so throughout the weekend! Click here for this past week’s experience.

Next week, we will be taking a close look at another aspect of our spirituality as catechists: an openness to the Church. In the meantime, let’s pray for each other as we celebrate the Eucharist this Sunday, the 12th Sunday of the year.

BTW, I have a favor to ask of you! Thanks to my colleague, Linnette, we now have the capabilities of taking polls! Would you kindly take the poll below to test this new feature? Thanks!

IN AN EFFORT TO BETTER SERVE YOU AS WE MOVE FORWARD, I’D LIKE YOUR OPINION. I USED 2 DIFFERENT FILMING TECHNIQUES FOR THE VIDEOS FOR THE FIRST 2 WEEKS OF THE RETREAT. WEEK ONE (6/8) AND WEEK TWO (6/15). WHICH FILMING TECHNIQUE DO YOU PREFER?

As we move along in Week Two of our Online Retreat for Catechists (The Spirituality of the Catechist), here are a few reminders of what to do this week:

• If you’re just joining us, you can go back to Week One and catch up.
• For Week Two, watch the introductory video and then read my post on Openness to God.
• Over the next few days, ponder the reflection questions.
• Likewise, over the course of this week, practice one or more of the suggested spiritual exercises found at the end of the Week Two post.
• As you know from week one, the true richness of this online retreat resides in the sharing that you, the retreatants, are doing. AT ANY TIME THIS WEEK, CLICK ON COMMENTS-ADD ONE NOW (below to the left) AND SHARE YOUR INSIGHTS ABOUT THE THEME OF OPENNES TO GOD.  You can share thoughts (or ask questions) that are in response to the video intro, the week 2 post, the reflection questions, the spiritual exercises, or just your own experience of being a catechist and striving to be open to God and to call others to be open to God.
• Throughout this week, let’s continue to pray for one another!

P.S. Check this out for inspiration! http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=16268

Welcome to Week 2 of our Online Catechist’s Retreat (The Spirituality of the Catechist) as we take a look at the first characteristic of our spirituality: An Openness to God.

Thanks so much for the wonderful introductions posted last week as we began our retreat! Your stories were very inspiring and they helped to form a sense of community as we venture forth in this retreat. If you’re just joining us, you can go back and experience Week One here and then come back to jump in to week two.

As we did last week, I invite you to begin this week by viewing the following brief video introduction on the theme of An Openness to God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

An Openness to God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

In my book, A Well-Built Faith, I tell the following story:

A stunt man was thrilling crowds gathered at the Niagara Falls, making his way across a tightrope that stretched from one end of the Falls to the other while riding a unicycle and carrying another person on his shoulders! As he and his passenger successfully dismounted on solid ground, the crowd broke into wild applause. The stunt man thanked the crowd and asked, “How many of you truly believe that I can do that again?” Having just witnessed the amazing stunt, everyone in the crowd raised their hand. The stunt man then mounted his unicycle and pointed to his shoulders asking, “Alright, then, who’s next?”

To believe is to enter into relationship with another and to place our trust in that person. It is to stand on their shoulders and allow them to carry us. Such trust is not easy!

In my 8th grade class this past year, I began a class on the topic of “placing our trust in God” by having the kids listen to a song by Linkin Park called From the Inside. Take a look at the lyrics here. The song captures the angst that young people feel when it comes to the issue of trust.

And along we come as catechists, telling them to place their faith (trust) in God! No easy task!

On the other hand, we’re not asking them to do anything that we ourselves have not already done: place their trust in God. As catechists, we have come to the conclusion that our lives need to be centered in God. We have tried to find fulfillment in other places and, like Saint Augustine, have come to the conclusion that, “our hearts are restless, Lord, until they find their rest in You.” Like any other human being, however, we struggle with this and need to continually remind ourselves of where we need to place our trust. To do this, we practice an opennes to God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

To be open to God is to be open to a relationship with the Trinity - a relationship of self-giving love. All relationships involve trust and to trust is risky. Perhaps the greatest risk of our lives was the risk we took in baptism - the day we gave our hearts to God…the day we climbed on God’s shoulders and said, “I trust you.” Time and again, throughout salvation history, God has proven that he is worthy of that trust. This is what we teach to our students: that God is worthy of their trust!

During these summer months, let’s take the time to renew our openness to God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Let’s reflect on how God has shown, in our own lives, that he is worthy of our trust. Renewed by this, we will be inspired to confidently teach others that their placing trust in God will not be in vain!

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Week Two Reflection Questions (click here week-2-reflection-questions1 for downloadable pdf) - over the next few days, feel free to ponder these reflection questions pertaining to this week’s theme. Then, return here to Catechist’s Journey and share some of your reflections with your fellow retreatants.

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For Further Reflection: Pope Benedict XVI spoke about how our openness to God’s love can heal humanity.

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SPIRITUAL EXERCISES - During the course of this week, practice one or more of the following spiritual exercises designed to deepen your opennes to God. Feel free to share the fruits of your exercises with your fellow retreatants by posting your comments any time this week.

• Pray fervently at the beginning of each day to give your heart to God. If it has not already been a practice for you, begin each day this week by praying the Suscipe of Saint Ignatius of Loyola.

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,

my memory, my understanding

and my entire will.

All I have and call my own.

You have given all to me.

To You, Lord, I return it.

Everything is yours; do with it what you will.

Give me only your love and your grace.

That is enough for me.  

• Openness to God leads us to open ourselves up to possibilities. This, in turn, leads us to live in hope. As you progress through this week, jot down in a journal or just on an index card, at last TEN things that you are hoping for. Do so by completing this sentence: “I am hoping for/that…” Keep this list nearby during the week so that you can glance at it frequently. When you do so, pray Psalm 62:

My soul rests in God alone, from whom comes my salvation.

God alone is my rock and salvation, my secure height; I shall never fall.

How long will you set upon people, all of you beating them down,

As though they were a sagging fence or a battered wall?

Even from my place on high they plot to dislodge me.

They delight in lies; they bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse.

My soul, be at rest in God alone, from whom comes my hope.

God alone is my rock and my salvation, my secure height, I shall not fall.

My safety and glory are with God, my strong rock and refuge.

Trust in God at all times, my people! Pour out your hearts to God our refuge! (New American Bible)

• Openness to God is manifested in openness to others. Each day this week, make a specific plan to perform an out-of-the-ordinary act of hospitality that opens you up to another person or group of people. This act can be done at home, at work, or in your community. Before or after performing the act of hospitality, pray an Act of Love (Charity)

O Lord God, I love you above all things

and I love my neighbor for your sake

because you are the highest, infinite and perfect good,

worthy of all my love.

In this love I intend to live and die. Amen.

Thanks so much to all of you for participating in this online retreat for catechist and for your inspirational introductions (133 as of today) ! And they’re still coming in!

Keep ‘em coming! You can jump in at any time!

I’m amazed at the variety of our retreat group. Since the week began, we’ve averaged nearly 400 visitors each day, now from 26 countries! As of today, 319 people have viewed the introductory video. We’ve heard from 46 of the United States of America alone! We have people who are in the first year of ministry (or preparing to begin) all the way to people who have been in the catechetical ministry for 30, 40, even 50 years!

So many of your stories are inspiring, poignant, uplifting, and even funny.

Let’s continue to spend the last few days of this week getting to know one another. If you’ve not yet introduced yourself, please consider doing so. Click here to go to the introductory post: view the video, read the post, and then follow the directions to post your introduction.

If you’ve already posted your introduction, I invite you to return over these next few days for a few minutes to read the introductions of your fellow retreatants and to get to know one another better by using the convenient reply link at the end of each comment to offer affirmation, ask a question, or just chat.

Come Monday morning, we’ll turn our attention to the first characteristic of the spirituality of the catechist: an openness to God.

In the meantime, let’s continue praying for one another and for all of our fellow catechists!

P.S. I couldn’t resist adding this little bit of levity that catechists everywhere can relate to!  Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQak6ng0RXQ

We’re off to a great start with our Online Catechist’s Retreat on the Spirituality of the Catechist!!! Thank you to all of you who have joined in thus far.

• On the first day, our retreat was visited by 433 people from 13 countries!
• 129 people viewed the introductory video
• Over 40 of you posted personal introductions (comments), sharing information about yourself, your ministry, and your spirituality (I’ve read them all…so inspiring!).
• A growing number of you are commenting on one another’s introductions.

Remember, this first week is dedicated to us just getting to know one another. It’s not too late to add your own introduction if you haven’t done so yet. Click here to go to the introductory post: view the video, read the post, and then follow the directions to post your introduction.

If you’ve already posted your introduction, I invite you to return each day this week for a few minutes to read the introductions of your fellow retreatants and to get to know one another better by using the convenient reply link at the end of each comment to offer affirmation, ask a question, or just chat.

And, most importantly, let’s pray for one another as this week turns into the next!

Welcome to this “little getaway!” This Online Retreat for Catechists - The Spirituality of the Catechist - is an opportunity for those of us in the catechetical ministry to be renewed in spirit and to deepen our bonds with the Lord and with one another.

There’s no need to register. There’s no fee. You’ve arrived at this virtual retreat house, so come on in and find out what it’s all about! Start by clicking on and viewing the following brief video clip.

Here’s a bit more about the 6 themes we will be looking at over the next 6 weeks:

In 1993, the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (an office of the Vatican), issued a document titled Guide for Catechists. In that document, the bishops of the Church spelled out the spirituality of the catechist. In a nutshell, that spirituality, which is grounded in the spirituality of the laity that flows from baptism, is characterized by the following 6 characteristics:

 

·         An Openness to God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) –This is an openness to a living Word – a Person – to whom we desire deeply to invite others to encounter. Our desire is to be transformed by this relationship and to invite others to this saving transformation.

 

·         An Openness to the Church – Our call to serve as catechists comes from the Church. We’re not lone rangers…we are sent on a mission that’s not our own, and we’re equipped with a message that has been entrusted to us.

 

·         An Openness to the World –The Holy Spirit was poured forth so that we could proclaim the Gospel to all nations. With that in mind, catechists are called to be uniquely in touch with the needs of the world – especially the “world” of those we teach.

 

·         A Coherence and Authenticity of Life – As catechists, we don’t teach a subject or a skill set. We invite others into a way of life that defines who we are. Being a catechist is not a “hat” that we put on and take off. The simple fact is, we can’t teach what (or who) we don’t know. That means that we have to strive to authentically know Jesus, to know his message, and to know the Catholic way of life that leads to him.

 

·         A Missionary Zeal – the vocation of the catechist takes the baptismal call to proclaim God’s Word and heightens its intensity. For catechists, the desire to share Christ with others is powerful, it’s almost overwhelming.  We can’t help but to preach the Gospel to others! Our hearts burn within us and we’re compelled to share faith with others. As a result, our spirituality HAS to keep that flame burning.

 

·         A devotion to Mary – Good catechists learn from other catechists. We have the best example to learn from in our Mother, Mary. She was the first teacher of Jesus and the first disciple. Mary is a “living catechism” and a “model of catechists.” The spirituality of ALL the baptized is enriched by devotion to Mary, but, as catechists, our ministry is especially enriched by devotion to the Blessed Mother.

These six characteristics of the spirituality of the catechist are going to serve as the focus for this online catechist’s retreat. Each week, we’re going to delve more deeply into one of these 6 characteristics, reflect on them and apply them to our own lives and our own vocation as catechists.

Take a look at the Guide for Catechists, Section II, 6-10, to see how the document itself talks about the spirituality of the catechist.

Week 1 Exercise

For this first week (June 8-14), let’s just get to know one another! Please introduce yourself by clicking on the “Comments” link at the end of this post (and then click on “add one now”) and, in 75 words or less, share the following:

•  a first name/username/or initials
• your ministry/position
• your general location
• years in this role
• then, complete the following sentence: “My spiritual life right now can best be described by comparing it to __________________.” Then, choose one of the following to complete the sentence and explain how it describes some aspect of your spiritual life.
  • your patron/confirmation/favorite saint
  • your favorite Church hymn
  • your favorite liturgical feast/season

Examples

“Hi, I’m Ben. I’m a 5^th grade catechist in Wyoming and I’ve been doing this for 11 years. My spiritual life right now is best described by comparing it to my Confirmation saint, Saint Peter. I want so badly to be Jesus’ “best” disciple, but I continually find ways to screw it up! J

 “Hi, I’m Kirsten and I’m in my first year as a coordinator of religious education at a parish in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. My spiritual life right now is best described by comparing it to the hymn “Here I Am , Lord.” I feel that God is calling me to this ministry and I want to respond with eagerness and enthusiasm. I want to do God’s will.”

“G’day fellow catechists! My name is Sara and I’m a youth minister in Australia! I’ve been in youth ministry for 6 years. My spiritual life right now is best described by comparing it to Good Friday. My position is being eliminated and I’m experiencing the “death” of what I love so dearly. I still have hope, though, because I’ve applied for a position at the diocesan youth ministry office and I’ve got my fingers crossed!” 

 P.S. Feel free to comment on one another’s introductions! You’ll notice that I’ve added a feature that allows you to reply/comment directly on someone else’s comment! I’ll be moderating vigilantly to keep our conversation current and flowing!

Recommendation: For a good introduction to the concept of spirituality, I recommend The Inner Compass by Margaret Silf