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The desired result of the Parish Missionary Disciple program is not another ministry or program for the parish. The desired result is a parish community reawakened by the person of Jesus Christ and on fire to share that encounter with others so that they, too, can be transformed and on fire in the name of Jesus.

Through monthly sessions we will be learning about ways to transform our lives and become the disciples Jesus called us to be! Below you will find our team members reviews of each monthly session.

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• Read the selected scripture passage aloud three times.
• After reading the scripture each person will get a chance to share their thoughts.

1. Share a word, phrase, or image from the reading.
2. What is something I saw or heard or noticed in the text that touches my life today?
3. How am I called to be or act?  What am I called to do or to change?

 

1. Focus Equip website and app (www.focus.org)
2. Rediscover website and app (www.rediscover.archspm.org)
3. Ibreviary website and app (www.ibreviary.org)

 

Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Rich Ragsdale, team member
April 15, 2015

The second month of our Disciple Makers training focused mainly on three subjects. First was a tool called the Discipleship Road Map. The Road Map has 5 different categories to gauge where you are in your discipleship journey with Christ. Are you a Beginning Disciple or a Spiritual Multiplier? We discussed with a partner and then the team our rating. Being honest to yourself and the group about where you stand on the Map can be a humbling experience...you realize there is much room for improvement.

The second subject was Prayer. As in most of the training you have to ask yourself (and others) questions you don't consciously think about most of the time: What is Prayer? When do you pray? How did you learn to pray? How and when did Jesus Pray? The Saints were used to provide several different explanations of prayer. Again, we engaged with a classmate to explain how we pray and then discussed prayer with our Parish team. We were introduced to Lectio Divino (Divine Reading) as a prayerful way of opening the Word every day. It consists of 4 Movements:

Read- Listen for the still small voice of God that will speak to us personally a word today.

Pray- We allow the Word that we have taken in and on which we are pondering to touch and change our deepest selves.

We then spent 30 minutes in Adoration at the Chapel in the Rigali Center and were challenged to invite another to Adoration with us at St. Joseph.

Our last subject was learning how to lead small groups in Bible study and prayer. One member of each team switched to another table and led that group in a short Bible study session. There is no chance to be an introvert in these classes! Everyone is engaged at some point.

So far the Discipleship classes have allowed us to view St. Joseph Parish from a very different perspective, to see our strengths and weaknesses and determine where change is needed and ultimately to help mold all of the Parish to become more involved in their Discipleship journey with Christ!

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Phyllis LaPlant, team member
May 19, 2015

At our third Parish Missionary Disciples meeting, we were presented with the Jesus question.  “Who is Jesus?” and “Why did he come?”   Wow, it had been a while since I had really stopped to think about who Jesus was to me.   That is one thing I love about these classes, it may be a simple question, but we get so busy with things of this world, we don’t give enough time meditating or simply talking to Jesus.  The most important definition is that Jesus is God.  Jesus is both human and divine.  Jesus is the Word, Jesus is God that became flesh.  He is the bread of life, the good shepherd, the highest authority, Jesus is the Lord.  Other Prophets say, “I found a way.”  Jesus says, “I am the way.”   And why did he come?  He came so that we might have life, a right relationship with God, the perfect relationship with no barriers or divisions, the original graced relationship God created.

I feel so honored to have been chosen as a member of our Parish Disciple Maker Team, it has challenged me to take a deeper look at my relationship with Christ and how I can better share Christ with others.  I have a sign hanging in my living room that states, “Live in such a way that those who know you but don’t know God will come to know God because they know you.”  At the meeting, we also talked about it being our baptismal call to evangelize.  Did you know in virtue of your baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples?  Every baptized person is a “cristoforo”, a bearer of Christ, as the ancient holy Fathers said.  

Whoever has encountered Christ…..has the desire to share it, to bring Jesus to others (cf John 4)  It is for all of us to ask ourselves if one who meets us perceives in our life the warmth of faith, sees in our face the joy of having encountered Christ.  (Pope Francis)

They say it is easy to talk the talk, but do we walk the walk?  That is what we are to do as a disciple of Christ, that is how others will see Christ in us.  We talked about how we grow in holiness and in our relationship with Christ thru Adoration, or Holy Hour. Have you considered making a Holy Hour?  Holy Hour is important to us as disciples because without prolonged moments of adoration, of prayerful encounter with the word, of sincere conversation with the Lord, our work easily becomes meaningless; we lose energy as a result of weariness and difficulties, and our fervor dies out, as stated by Pope Francis in ‘The Joy of the Gospel’ (262) This really struck a chord with me, as I have found myself at this place, I realize I need to spend some time in Adoration, I need to slow down and spend some quiet time with the Lord.  You cannot give what you don’t have, if I want to be a good disciple of Christ, I have to spend quality quiet time with him.

Why is it Holy?  Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is creature before the Creator.  It exalts the greatness of the Lord who made us and the almighty power of the savior who sets us free from evil.  Adoration is homage of the spirit to the “King of Glory”, respectful silence in the presence of the “ever greater” God.  Catechism of the Catholic Church #2628

Why an Hour?  The only time Our Lord asked the Apostles for anything was the night he went into his agony.  As often in the history of the Church since that time, evil was awake, but the disciples were asleep.  That is why there came out of his anguished and lonely Heart the sigh:  “Could you not watch one hour with me?”  What about you, could you watch for an hour with him?  Prepare yourself to be the disciple your baptism has called you to be by spending prolonged moments in Adoration, have a sincere conversation with the Lord, then share your encounter with others so they too can be transformed and have the same desire to share, to bring Jesus to others.  This is how disciples are formed, just by sharing our encounters with Christ to others.  Think of how the community, the nation, the world could be changed.

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Connie Grindel, team member
June 17, 2015

First of all, I am humbled and grateful to be given the opportunity to participate in the Parish Missionary Disciple program. It is a privilege to represent our parish in this way.

Session 4 was broken down in 3 sections; evaluating ourselves as disciples, sacrament of reconciliation and prayer.

In the first part of the day we were challenged to evaluate ourselves as a disciple of Christ. After the self- examination we were given tools to help us along the way to becoming a better disciple and how we can pass that along to our parish.

The second part and the one I really want to expand on is the sacrament of reconciliation. Reconciliation. Many of us cringe when we think about this beautiful sacrament.Perhaps we should look at this in another way. Think of someone you had a very close relationship with and that relationship needed to be mended with forgiveness. Think of how your relationship was with that person before it was broken. This brokenness can be caused by jealousy, gossip or even something worse. How did you feel after that relationship was mended with forgiveness?

I challenge you to think of God’s love for you. It’s hard to truly comprehend that kind of love. Let’s focus on our relationship with him. Isn’t God the one we want that closest relationship to in our life? Sin is what keeps us from having that perfect relationship with God. Reconciliation is what heals our relationship with him. He gives us the grace, through this sacrament, to draw us closer in order to become a better person so we may become the persona of Christ to others.

Now is the time to say to Jesus: “Lord, I have let myself be deceived; in a thousand ways I have shunned your love, yet here I am once more, to renew my covenant with you. I need you. Save me once again, Lord, take me once more into your redeeming embrace.” How great it feels to come back to him whenever we are lost! Let me say this once more: God never tires of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy. – Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel

To prepare for the sacrament: Pray

*pray to express our true feelings to God

*pray to ask for the desire to forgive

*pray to repent

*pray for those who offend us

Reconsider the sacrament of reconciliation. God is waiting to pour out his mercy upon you!

The third part of our day we were introduced to two kinds of prayer the first being, the Examen of Conscience (based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius)

This practice is a spiritual review of one’s day following these 5 steps:

Stillness: Recalling God’s presence

Gratitude: Expressing thankfulness

Reflection: Our interior feelings, moods, and urgings (before our actions)

Sorrow: Lack of courage and honesty in responding to God’s call

Hopefulness: Resolving to grow
 

The other form of prayer was the Imaginative Prayer also from St. Ignatius.

I am including a link to go to so you can become more familiar with these forms of prayer.

https://www.discerninghearts.com/catholic-podcasts/

I pray that you will consider making the sacrament of reconciliation a new norm for you and you will familiarize yourself with these new forms of prayer. I will pray for you as I hope you pray for me!

 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Jane Ramos, team member
July 21, 2015

In July, our team took a day from our busy lives for reflection and spiritual growth.  This month, we talked about prayer through Catholic devotions, the term “kerygma”, and effective listening skills.  

The day began with a beautiful Litany to Our Lady of Hope and a discussion of the rosary.  We were asked to bring a rosary to our training session.  Many shared their experiences in praying the rosary or the special meaning that their rosary held for them.  These shared experiences only reinforced the power of prayer in my eyes.   

  

 

We journeyed on to a discussion of St. Catherine of Siena and Christ as the “bridge” which she referred to in her writings.  In the Dialogue of Divine Providence, she describes Christ, with an unusual image, as a bridge between Heaven and earth.  This bridge offers the soul a path to sanctification: detachment from sin, the practice of the virtues, and of love, sweet and loving union with God.

 

“Christ is the bridge to the Father and we cross this bridge by allowing our hearts to be pierced by what the Lord has done for us.”

Dr. Anthony Liles, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary

 

The day’s journey continued with the term “kerygma”, a term which was unfamiliar to me.  It is a greek word meaning “the effective proclamation of salvation:  what God has done in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son.”  Kerygma refers to the initial and essential proclamation of the gospel message. The word appears nine times in the New Testament: once in Matthew (12:41), once in Mark (16:20), once in Luke (11:32), and six times in the letters of St. Paul (Rom. 16:25; 1 Cor. 1:21, 2:4, 15:14; 2 Tim. 4:17; and Titus 1:3). To put it simply, the kerygma is the very heart of the gospel, the core message of the Christian faith that all believers are called to proclaim.

 

St. Pope John Paul II summarized it best  in his writing:

 

The vital core of the new evangelization must be a clear and unequivocal proclamation of the person of Jesus Christ, that is, the preaching of his name, his teaching, his life, his promises and the Kingdom, which he has gained for us by his Paschal Mystery.

They (the faithful)are prepared for this work by the sacraments of Christian initiation and by the gifts of the Holy Spirit”. They have been “in their own way made sharers in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly functions of Christ.” Consequently, “the lay faithful, in virtue of their participation in the prophetic mission of Christ, are fully part of this work of the Church” and so should feel called and encouraged to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom.   (Ecclesia in America, 66).

We completed the day by practicing effective listening skills as we learned to LAER:

• Listen without distraction,

• Acknowledge

• Explore

• Respond

This was a wonderful day of spiritual growth, improving upon communication skills, and learning more about my faith.  I am thankful to be a part of the Disciple Maker Team for our parish. I’m blessed to share the journey of spiritual growth with the members of our team and the members of our parish family.  

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Shirley Bieser, team member
August 12, 2015

 

When asked,¨How am I growing as a Missionary Disciple?¨ I now realize through these sessions I am growing in competence and confidence in these three areas:

1. Leading Prayer- We have learned Lectio Divina, Ignatian style of prayer, the Examen and through a Catholic devotion (such as the Rosary).

2. Inviting someone to Mass, Eucharistic Adoration or Reconciliation and have had a conversation about these experiences.

3. Practiced effective listening using L.A.E. R. (Listen without distraction, Acknowledge without inserting your thoughts and feelings, Explore and reflect on others’ feelings ask question to learn more: seek clarity about their thoughts and feelings and then Respond with your thoughts)

 

There are three key differentiation in the  stages to becoming a disciple:

 

Our parish offers many things that would facilitate an encounter with Jesus such as: RCIA, Reconciliation, Adoration, Advent by Candlelight,  Fish Frys, YACHT Club and many more.

The primary reason for evangelizing is the love of Jesus which we have received. We must move from a habit of Faith. Pope Francis says, ¨It is now more necessary than ever for all the faithful to move from a faith of habit, sustained perhaps by social context alone, to a faith which is conscious and personally lived.

 

In this session we learned what Prayer is. Being a prayerful person helps you pray. It is not about us, it is always about God! There are two types of prayer.

1. Liturgical prayer-is the official, public prayer of the church: Mass, Liturgy of the Hours and other Rites

2. Devotional prayer-can be highly scripted: Stations of the Cross, Novenas, the Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet or it can be spontaneous which can be related to an immediate experience or reflects something about those gathered.

 

What stops us from praying more spontaneously with others? Are we afraid, inhibited, uncomfortable, have a fear of what others might think or will it be accepted? Most of the time we are:   1. unprepared-(what should I say?)

2. uncertain-(is there a right or wrong way to pray?)

3. unclear-(what is the purpose of a prayer right here, right now?)

 

When you pray always be aware of what is needed. Be authentic because the focus should be on God. Be reverent because God is already present. Be hospitable and use words that are inclusive rather than exclusive. Be structured.

 

I know you are probably wondering  what is meant by the word structure. It is really simple. Your prayer should contain the following:

    BEGINNING: a call to prayer            BEGINNING: ¨Let us Pray¨

    MIDDLE:                    MIDDLE:

• Praise                      Name God

• Thanksgiving          Name what God has done    

• Petition                    Name what we ask of God           

    END: a conclusion through Jesus        End:¨Through Christ our Lord. Amen¨

 

We grow closer to God when we pray! I challenge each of you to say a spontaneous prayer by yourself or with a group this week using the structure I have listed above. Hit the ¨refresh button¨ and change what might be stagnant to what is fresh.

 

                       Gifts of the Holy Spirit

         These help us know what God is asking us to do:     

                            

        Knowledge                         Fortitude (courage)

        Understanding                         Piety (reverence)

        Wisdom                         Fear of the Lord

        Counsel (right judgement)                
(Wonder and Awe in Godś presence)

 

God gives us so very much. Which of his gifts help us? All of them!

 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Risha Gaines, team member
September 15, 2015

If these stones could talk…….We were all asked to bring a stone to session 7 of our Parish Disciple training.  We reviewed something that we all learned early on in our elementary education, the three ways that stones can be formed; Sedimentary, Igneous, or Metamorphic.  How did this relate to becoming a disciple for Jesus?  In one of these three ways your faith and love for God evolved.  In realizing which way your faith has evolved you will better be able to develop and share your testimony.   

1. Sedimentary (stepping stones)

Were you shaped and supported over time by many people and experiences of God?

2. Igneous (Eruption)

Did you have an unexpected, intense experience that completely changed your life direction toward God?

3. Metamorphic (moment)

Was there a definite moment when you surrendered your will with a complete “yes” to God?  

    After we determined how our faith was formed we all worked on developing our testimony.  There is a real difference in knowing your story of faith and preparing it and being able to share it with others.  It is so important that we are able to share our testimony with others.  It is a firsthand account of what God has done in our own life.  It communicates that your life is different and more meaningful with Christ, and shows that Christ’s work is real.  

    There are three key elements to consider when developing your testimony.

1. What was your life like before your current relationship with God?

• Would you show up for mass and just go through the motions?

• Was faith on the back burner?

• Did you have a constant yearning for more or feel like you were constantly searching for meaning?

• Did you ignore God and always take credit for your own happiness or success?

2. What happened to bring you to your current faith in God?

• What type of rock formation is most similar to how your faith was formed?

• What were the pivotal moments that lead you to your current faith?

3. What is your life like now?  How is different?

• How are you different? (thoughts, attitudes, motivations)

• How is your daily life different?

• Do you feel a freedom from fear and have a peace of mind?

We were all given quiet time to reflect on our own faith journey and to write our testimony.   A good testimony will include these three key elements and take no longer than 5 minutes to share.  It should take into consideration who your audience is.  For example if your audience is Catholic you could use words such as the Holy Spirit or Confirmation, these might not be appropriate if you are giving your testimony to someone who is not Catholic.  It is important to not over-dramatize your story and never be negative about others or other churches/parishes.  You should never claim what God will do for someone else.  

    After we had a rough draft of our testimony we broke up in groups of three and practiced sharing our testimony.  I encourage you to write down your testimony.  At some point we will all be asked what drew us closer to God.  There is a big difference in knowing your story and sharing your story.  God want to hear you share your story!

 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Rich Ragsdale, team member
October 28, 2015

I would like to share with my fellow Missionary Disciples, yes you! what we as Parish Missionary Disciples experienced together at Session 8 of our program. 

  The following 3 topics were the the main thrust for the day:

       1.Sharing your Testimony

       2. Opportunities for Encounter (knowing where people are)

       3.Cardinal Virtues and Habits of Disciples

For me, these topics all coalesced to reinforce why we came together from the beginning. Pope Francis, in his book The Joy of the Gospel tells us all this: "In virtue of their baptism, all members of the People of God have become missionary disciples(cf Mt 28:12) All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization, and it would be insufficient to envisage a plan of evangelization to be carried out by professionals while the rest of the faithful would simply be passive recipients.....anyone who has truly experienced God's saving love does not need much time or lengthy training to go out and proclaim that love" Wow! I bet you didn't realize all this power and authority you have! 

This message was reinforced again through our Bible reading for the session from the Book of John and Jesus's encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well. The Samaritan woman became a missionary immediately after speaking with Jesus and many Samaritans come to believe in him "because of the woman's testimony" (Jn 4:39) 

So , we refined the 5 min testimony we shared with the group from the previous session down to 1 min. Why? You may only have 1 min to share this experience with someone else so that they may come to believe in Jesus "because of your testimony" 

The importance of this personal encounter with Jesus Christ, and sharing it with others is always at the center of the message we are trying to learn to bring back to the parish. Pope Francis has said "In our time we often encounter an attitude of indifference toward faith, which is no longer relevant to human life. We need the oxygen of the Gospel, the breath of the Spirit of the Risen Christ, to reignite [hope] in our hearts" That's where you, my fellow missionary disciples, come in to the plan!  You must use that supernatural Grace received through your baptism to breath that Spirit into your parish and beyond! 

We used some tools and  examined where we are at again in our Discipleship Journey.and how we respond to those around us, who may are may not be religious.

We used the virtues of Prudence, Justice, Virtue and Fortitude to build around 4 Principles to Implement Evangelization and where we are in our Discipleship health.

As always, it was a great day to share that Spirit with others and especially the companionship we have shared together in our parish group!

 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Phyllis LaPlant, team member
December 15, 2015

Parish (community) • Missionary (somebody doing church work) • Disciple (follower of Jesus Christ)

Wow, it has already been 9 sessions, I can hardly grasp that, but each session is filled with so much interesting material, I can hardly wait to see what it is and how we can bring that back and share it with our fellow disciples in the pews with us.

How detailed do we get when we go to church? Do we pay attention to what is going on around us, or do we just stay in our own little world and think about ourselves and what is going on with us? Remember, we are being called to be disciples, and not just disciples, but Missionary Disciples. So that will not allow us to just think about ourselves anymore. How do we see our fellow parishioners? How can we go from seeing people plainly to seeing them as our brother? Everyone needs someone just to listen to them. Can you recognize those people? Who is disengaged and gone? Have you noticed someone has not been at church lately? Have you checked on them? Have you noticed who is showing up but disengaged with the community? Where do we walk among others and not see? Or maybe we see, but think it is none of our
business. It is our business, we are the body of Christ and if one member is hurting, or disengaged, we are incomplete. Talk to that person, you may be just what they needed that day, someone just to show they care. We have to be a caring community, we have to pray for and love one another because to be a follower of Jesus Christ, we want to live as he did, so we must be aware of his people and be aware of those in our community as to whether they are engaged or are they hurting?

Pope Francis tells us, “Every Christian community must be a welcoming home for those searching for God, for those searching for a brother or a sister to listen to them.” No one is saved by themselves. We are asked to be channels of grace for one another in spite of our limits and our sins. We are a community of believers and the communal dimension is not only an outline but an integral part of the Christian life witness, and evangelization. We talked about ways we could make our parish more welcoming and accepted.

We talked about the Drifters, in our time, we often encounter an attitude of indifference towards faith. They have to believe the church is critical to their needs. The drifter will say they are spiritual, just not religious, their life is pretty good, they don’t see a need for church, or ... ”I just sort of drifted away”...or...”we are just so busy”. When talking with someone who has drifted, acknowledge your own experience and emotions on their form of indifference. Ask questions, be curious and listen deep, for needs and fears. A lot of time they just need to belong, to be accepted.

We also talked about Purposeful Intercessory prayer. That is when we ask for something specific for someone. Intercessory prayer is very powerful, we should always acknowledge God and we should always thank God. Fill in the blanks with a particular persons name you have been praying for.

• God, make ______’s heart receptive to your Word.
• God, open ______'s spiritual eyes.
• God, give ______ ears to hear.
• God, give ______ faith to believe.
• God, give ______ the will to respond to you.
• God, set ______ free from spiritual captivity.
• God, send people into ______ life to witness to him.
• God, help me build a caring relationship with ____.
• God, bring me opportunities to witness to ______.
• God, give me boldness to witness to ______.

 

Blessings, Phyllis
 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Connie Grindel, team member
January 14, 2016

Session 10 as well as all others began with sharing our experiences of what we learned and what we had shared since our last session. This sharing opportunity is fruitful in itself because it holds each team accountable to pass on what we learned.

Each session consists of 5 topics which are Prayer, Scripture, Sacraments and Tradition, Discipling, and Leadership. I will share our discipling topic of Teaching Testimony and our leadership topic of Values “Point of View”.

The Christian testimony consists of:
• Our firsthand account of what God has done in our own life and the difference that has made.
• It communicates your life is different and more meaningful with Christ.
• It is an authentic personal experience of Christ’s work in someone - real, heartfelt, relevant.
• It is not abstract nor tutorial.
• It includes reasons why we are committed to Christ
• It helps others relate to us and to the realities of who a Christian is.

Our testimony should consist of three key elements:
1. Our life before our current relationship/level of trust with Jesus.
2. What happened to bring that about? Here they asked us to identify ourselves in our journey of faith and used different types of stones to help us describe ourselves.
• Sedimentary Stepping Stones (progression over time)
• Igneous Eruption (did-not-see-it-coming event)
• Metamorphic Moment (complete “yes,” faith solidified)
3. Current experience: how Jesus is acting in your life now, making life meaningful; the daily relationship with God.

We were then asked to look closer into our God incidents and share with another person. This gave us a starting point in our testimony. Many of you are familiar with sharing God moments from the DC trip on the way home. These God moments in our life give us the ah-ha moments that can give us a jump start in sharing our faith testimony.

It is hard to express the appreciation I feel for the opportunity of the Parish Missionary Disciple experience. It gave me the tools to better share my faith with others and reinforced what we are put on this earth for, to spread the good news! Our faith is not to be kept to ourselves. We are all called to be parish missionary disciples, within our parish and also beyond our parish boundaries. I would encourage all of you to read books, listen to cd’s, watch dvd’s, whatever is easiest for you. We have numerous opportunities for spiritual growth within our parish with FORMED, with Lighthouse books and cd’s in the parish center, with the RCIA program and the additional group studies offered in our parish. I promise the more you learn about our beautiful Catholic faith the more empowered you will feel to share your faith with others!

Please pray for me as I pray for you!
 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Jane Ramos, team member
February 11, 2016


Coming Soon!

 

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Parish Missionary Disciple Team
Shirley Bieser, team member
March 9, 2016


Coming Soon!

 

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