“Is this heaven?” “No, it’s Iowa!”

It seems that most years, I resume my travel schedule (after the summer lull) with a beautiful 5 hour drive to Iowa! This year, my destination was Waterloo, IA, where I met with about 160 Catholic School Administrators and Parish Faith Formation Leaders as they kicked off their year. I also had the privilege of meeting the new Archbishop of Dubuque, the Most Reverend Michael O. Jackels, who celebrated a beautiful Mass for the whole group, joined us all for lunch, and then stayed for the afternoon presentations!

I particularly enjoyed speaking with the 90 Parish Faith Formation Leaders in the afternoon as we talked about recruiting and forming catechists. 90% of them said they still have slots to fill! With that in mind, I’m going to post these next few days about Recruiting and Forming Catechists!

Thanks to all the good folks out in the Archdiocese of Dubuque and I hope I contributed to getting your catechetical/academic year off to a good start!

Here I am with my headset which they told me would make me look like Britney Spears. I think I'm better looking actually!
Here I am with my headset which they told me would make me look like Britney Spears. I think I’m better looking actually!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me and some of my “groupies!”

 

More happy faces!
About Joe Paprocki 2758 Articles
Joe Paprocki, DMin, is National Consultant for Faith Formation at Loyola Press, where, in addition to his traveling/speaking responsibilities, he works on the development team for faith formation curriculum resources including Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts and God’s Gift: Reconciliation and Eucharist. Joe has more than 35 years of experience in ministry and has presented keynotes, presentations, and workshops in more than 100 dioceses in North America. Joe is a frequent presenter at national conferences including the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, and the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership. He is the author of numerous books, including the best seller The Catechist’s Toolbox, A Church on the Move, Under the Influence of Jesus, and Called to Be Catholic—a bilingual, foundational supplemental program that helps young people know their faith and grow in their relationship with God. Joe is also the series editor for the Effective Catechetical Leader and blogs about his experiences in faith formation at www.catechistsjourney.com.

4 Comments on “Is this heaven?” “No, it’s Iowa!”

  1. Joe,
    What a great way to start the year. Your tips on calling catechists are already being put to good use! Thanks for all you do.

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