Catechist's Journey

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist series by Joe Paprocki

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist #4: Don’t Avoid the Cross

It is a fairly common practice in advertising to garner attention by making a claim about a product or service that is counterintuitive or defies commonly accepted reasoning. For example: a diet plan promises that you can lose weight in 30 days while eating all the bacon you want; a light beer promises robust flavor with only 64 calories; a body lotion promises to physically reshape your body; a bracelet promises to relieve arthritic pain. […]

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist #3: Proclaim Jesus’ Mighty Deeds

Joe Paprocki

Some years ago, TV commercials for a food-processing appliance proudly proclaimed that this new innovation “slices, dices, and makes Julienne Fries!” Today, that phrase continues to be used, tongue-in-cheek, to convince people of the amazing capabilities of any new gadget and is emblematic of what we refer to as the advertising “claim”—the part of the ad that seeks to create a perception of superiority. It is the job of the advertiser to then convince consumers […]

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist #2: Introduce Jesus as Savior

Joe Paprocki

We began our series on how to be a more evangelizing catechist by talking about the need to proclaim an alternate reality (the Kingdom of God) to our brokenness. Today, we continue by emphasizing that the way to this alternate reality is Jesus Christ and that we are incapable of getting there on our own; we need a divine intervention. I’m sure you are familiar with the concept of an intervention: a carefully planned gathering […]

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist #1: Proclaim an Alternate Reality to Our Brokenness

Joe Paprocki

Welcome to the first post in my series on How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist. In my introduction to the series, I talked about how marketing efforts often rely on nine formulaic strategies for persuading people that they need to purchase the product or service being advertised. They kick off their efforts by emphasizing that something is missing from your life or that something in your life, as you live it now, is broken […]

How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist (Series Intro)

Joe Paprocki

I am happy to announce a new series of posts that I will be writing right here at Catechist’s Journey titled “How to Be a More Evangelizing Catechist.” I’d like to begin by introducing you to Claude C. Hopkins, an advertising pioneer and the reason you brushed your teeth this morning! To make a long story short, Hopkins made brushing one’s teeth popular in the early 20th century, when few felt the need to do so. […]

Make No Mistake: Disciples Make Disciples!

Joe Paprocki

OK, I know! The Holy Spirit makes disciples! But the point that I want to make is that the Holy Spirit makes disciples through other disciples. I bristle at promotions for catechetical resources (books or videos) that claim to do it all on their own and promise to make it “so easy” for catechists that all the catechist needs to do is, in essence, get out of the way, so that the resource can work […]

Discipleship Pledge Cards for Pentecost

Joe Paprocki

Pentecost is right around the corner, so it’s not too early to talk about how the parish can approach this important day in our Church calendar. Too often, we stop at the perfunctory: ask everybody to wear red, sing some Holy Spirit hymns, and invite people to read the Prayers of the Faithful in different languages. If we really want to form adult disciples, however, and honor this day for what it truly stands for, […]