Sponsorships Wanted for Faith Formation Series

In the shadow of the 2008 Presidential campaign and election of Barack Obama, and reports that 60% of Catholics voted for this most pro-death candidate ever, thus cooperating with the intrinsic evil of abortion -- the essay argues for three things: (1) Prayer and fasting for a holiness revival in the Catholic Church; (2) Commitment of the faithful to conforming their lives to holiness; and (3) the incessant, unending implementation of a project we might call BEST PRACTICES OF FAITH FORMATION, which is described in a proposal linked elsewhere on the above linked page. (Click the title.)

In short we need sponsorships or grants to help produce The Best Practices Television Series and Print ResourceLibrary that will feature the Best Practices of Faith Formation work being developed and directed by a number of already existing Catholic orders, organizations, ministries, and NPOs. Our plan is to document the practice, showing others how it works, and then providing resource materials so the practice can be imiplemented on any parish level.

Everytime I turn around I'm reading something from the Bishops that echos what these various essays and elucidates what this Best Practice proposal describes. A participant in the Bishops Synod on the Word of God, Bishop Luis Tagle of Imus, Philippines said to a reporter on Oct 22 (CNS):

The Church is trying to avoid looking at the growing fundamentalist movement with prejudice, "suspicion or belligerence," but to humbly ask the questions, "what are they doing right, what are they doing well" that attracts such a growing number of people?

That's exactly my point. A great deal of the success that Evangelicals are experiencing is due to technique (e.g. effective communication and training methods). By being prejudice against their technique, Catholics allow Evangelicals to own it and allow thousands to be misled. Catholicism needs to understand how best to communicate and invigor people in today's society. Catholicism has the truth, but these other groups know how to communciate.

Tagle goes on, "It is really a living word for them [The Bible] because when (evangelicals preach) it, they make it alive. And is this just a question of technique -- speaking ability -- or is it a question also of interiorizing" the Gospel message?

DUH! They are one in the same. The Gospel message is not interiorized without a certain amount of enthusiasm and ability to show the Christian HOW to make it personal and HOW to move it from the head to the heart. Catholic leaders just assume right information will automatically result in right hearts. No so.

Bishop Guillermo Loria Garita of San Isidro, Costa Rica...

told the synod...the Church must "help people be protagonists in their discovery of the riches and the wisdom of the word of god, to accompany them in solid and systemtic formation..." (my emphasis)

The bishops are saying the right words, now we just need some of them to help us out demonstrating some of these best practices, which the bishops mention, and get the ideas imprinted into the minds of parish and family leaders.

I think I'll write some of them and ask if they'll sponsor a television/DVD episode on the Best Practices they have elucidated at the synod...many of the ideas are actually being impelmented in their dicoeses. But unless others can see and taste the success of these Best Pratcies, they will not be widely used.