mentoring Archives - Catechist's Journey

stand-up paddle boarding - photo by Tiana on Pexels

What’s SUP? Catholic Mentoring on the Deck of a Stand-Up Paddle Board

“I’ll meet you on the beach tomorrow morning in front of lifeguard station 9B.” Bernadette is a force to be reckoned with. Smart, bold, and athletic, she spent months attempting to convince me that I was capable of mastering a stand-up paddle board (SUP) on the open ocean. I finally agreed to give it a try. So there I stood, scrunching my toes into the sand in front of station 9B, awaiting her arrival and […]

healthy salad - image by RitaE from Pixabay

Lent: Helping People to Live Differently

Joe Paprocki

Many advertisements not only entice us to purchase a product, but they also invite us to prioritize our lives around an idea. Some of the best examples of this are diet plans, which are no longer just about losing a few pounds but adopting a new lifestyle. When I stroll into the kitchen at Loyola Press during lunchtime, I see various coworkers meticulously preparing their dishes according to the philosophy and strategy of whatever plan […]

The Six Tasks of Catechesis #5: Education for Community Life, or Mentoring our Faith

Special Contributor

The fifth of the Six Tasks of Catechesis is education for community life, or in terms of the remembering phrase HELP ME, mentoring our faith. In other words, this task prepares the Christian to live in community and participate actively in the life and mission of the Church. Read how our bishops challenge us to carry this out: Catechesis encourages an apprenticeship in Christian living that is based on Christ’s teachings about community life. It […]

Four Things My Mentor in Ministry Taught Me

Becky Eldredge

Accepting the invitation to work full-time in ministry felt like coming home. My initial arrival into the full-time ministry world, however, was overwhelming at times. Thankfully, there was a wise teacher, boss, and mentor, Charles, to walk alongside me and “show me the ropes.” As I look back on those first six months at the Diocese of Baton Rouge, I can name four things that Charles was intentional about teaching me that I make sure […]

How to Use Mentoring as a Tool for Adult Faith Formation

Joe Paprocki

When the topic of adult faith formation comes up, we Catholics have a tendency to immediately shift to a default mode which is the classroom model: there must be a topic, a presenter, and “students.” The topic is usually doctrinal, the presenter is typically the only one who speaks, and the students are passive receptors of the speaker’s wisdom. More and more parishes are recognizing the reality that adult faith formation must come in many […]

“I Owe it All To…” – Stories on the Journey

Joe Paprocki

Becky shared the following about her mentor: For me, my colleague and mentor, Charles Jumonville, from the Diocese of Baton Rouge is who I “owe it all to.” Charles sought me, when I was 24 years old, to come and work for the diocese. My initial reaction was “you have to be kidding!” After much thought and prayer, I finally said “yes.” His invitation changed the direction of my professional life. St. Ignatius suggests us […]

Stories on the Journey – “I Owe it all to…”

Joe Paprocki

Welcome back to Stories on the Journey, our summer experience of sharing stories about the ups and downs and ins and outs of being a catechist. So far, we’ve shared stories on the following topics: Week One: How Did I Get Into This? Week Two: Kids Say/Do the Darndest Things Week Three: Touching the Sacred Week Four: Oopsies! I Goofed Our topic for this week is, “I owe it all to…” which means that we […]

Spiritual Mentoring: Free Online Resources

Joe Paprocki

Since the days of the early Church, Christians have realized that the spiritual journey is not meant to be walked alone. We find our way by walking with others who are guided by the same vision. A person who has a sense of direction and who can assist others in learning how to incorporate spiritual practices into daily life is called a mentor. Spiritual mentors can walk with others on the journey, whether informally or […]