Articles by Joe Paprocki

About Joe Paprocki

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.

Catechists as Mystagogues - text over watercolor background by Sergey Ryumin/Moment/Getty Images

Catechists as Mystagogues: Inviting Others to Take the Next Step

Joe Paprocki

Part of the mystery of life is not knowing what the future holds for us. As mystagogues, we catechists lead others into their future life, a life clouded by mystery but with one thing crystal clear: God is with them on every step of their journey! I have said before that mystagogues are like sponsors in a 12-step program, who accompany their sponsee on his or her journey from one step to another as one […]

Pop-Up Prayer: Guest Fr. Michael Rossmann, SJ

Joe Paprocki

We continue our series, Pop-Up Prayer—brief interviews on the topic of prayer with prominent people in pastoral ministry and spiritual authors from all over the country (and the world)! In this episode, Fr. Michael Rossmann, SJ, talks about how to avoid getting into a rut in our prayer lives. Fr. Rossmann is a Jesuit priest and doctoral student at the Gregorian University in Rome. He previously served as the editor-in-chief of The Jesuit Post and […]

Catechist’s Journey Anniversary Party

Joe Paprocki

Throughout 2022, we’ve been celebrating the 15th anniversary of this blog, Catechist’s Journey. Just look at what was going on in the world 15 years ago: The first iPhone was released. Ratatouille was all the rage in theaters. The Departed won the Oscar for Best Picture. Internet Explorer was the most popular Web browser. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series. Desperate Housewives was one of the most popular shows on TV. Pope Benedict […]

Spiritual Wellness Virtual Retreats

Joe Paprocki

During the pandemic, when most of us were isolated in our homes, we struggled to maintain our emotional and spiritual wellness. Even now that we are emerging from the pandemic, many of us continue to struggle to maintain our balance as we seek to find our footing and meet the challenges of a world that seems to grow more complex by the day. In response to this reality, I partnered with the good folks at […]

Pop-Up Catechesis: The Eucharist and What We Crave

Joe Paprocki

Researchers tell us that the majority of us experience regular cravings for specific foods. It’s important to remember, however, that hunger and cravings are not synonymous. The former is driven by the body, while the latter is driven by the mind. Hunger seeks to satisfy a physical need; a craving seeks to satisfy an emotional one. That’s why cravings are not limited to food. We can find ourselves craving any and all of the following: […]

Pop-Up Prayer: Guest Dr. Kathryn Bojczyk

Joe Paprocki

We continue our series, Pop-Up Prayer—brief interviews on the topic of prayer with prominent people in pastoral ministry from all over the country! In this episode, Dr. Kathryn Bojczyk talks about the importance of teaching children to pray from within an attitude of gratitude. Dr. Bojczyk currently serves as Chair of the Department of Education and Coordinator of the Early Childhood Education Program at The Catholic University of America. She has also served as a […]

A Video Game That Slows Children Down and Brings the Family Together?

Joe Paprocki

Two of the common gripes parents have about video games are that they often get children too riled up and they interfere with family time, since most games are played individually or with just one other player. Even when parents or grandparents volunteer to be the other player, we often find the game to be too fast for us to keep up with! Now, there is a video game that can actually help children to […]

Catechists as Mystagogues: Leading Others to Encounter the Risen One

Joe Paprocki

There’s a big difference between telling someone, “I can tell you a lot about __________” (Fill in the blank with the name of any celebrity.) and “I’d like to introduce you to ___________.” (Fill in the blank with the same name.) Often faith formation has been thought of and approached as a version of the first option above: a vehicle for telling others about Jesus Christ. This boils down to the teaching of a subject. […]

Pop-Up Prayer: Guest Julianne Stanz

Joe Paprocki

We continue our summer series, Pop-Up Prayer—brief interviews on the topic of prayer with prominent people in pastoral ministry from all over the country! In this episode, Julianne Stanz talks about a simple strategy for praying with others and how this way of praying is a powerful evangelizing tool. Julianne is Director of Discipleship and Leadership Development for the Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin, a consultant to the USCCB Committee on Catechesis and Evangelization, a […]