In 10 days, I am headed down to Dallas for a priest and deacons conference being put on by the Evangelical Catholic (https://evangelicalcatholic.org/), the organization our parish has been consulting with since shortly before COVID. This is the group that has provided the materials and guidance for our Missionary Training (small group leader) programs, who put on the first two nights of our parish retreat last summer, and who provided the Next Step program we went through this Fall. They are also currently working with two members of our Hispanic Community to offer a Missionary Training in Spanish.
I love two things about the EC. First, they are deeply grounded in the Second Vatican Council’s reemphasis of lay mission. By their baptism, all Christians have a mission to preach the Gospel, but in many eras of the Church that mission has been entrusted exclusively to a professional class, sometimes priests and religious, sometimes paid parish staff. But the fact of the matter is that all Christians must preach the Gospel, and the EC’s programs are entirely oriented towards giving laypeople the tools they need to carry this mission out. [I suppose it is ironic that, given this commitment, the EC would offer a conference exclusively for priests, to which they later added deacons; but even if all Christians have a mission, it is the job of the clergy to call people to that mission and to help guide that mission, so you do often have to start with the priests who run parishes.]
The second thing I love about the EC is that they are competent. They produce a lot of materials, all of which seem grounded in pastoral experience and a real understanding of the path of discipleship. With my background in engineering, I love a good system. The EC is deeply systematic, and their systems seem to work. When I am frustrated with slow progress or lack of results in my work with the EC, it almost always ends up that the struggle comes on my end, from failing to implement their system as rigorously as they are suggesting.
We are two-and-a-half years into our work with the EC, so you might be wondering why you haven’t seen any effect on our parish if I am this invested in them. The answer is that the EC system – and really any good parish program – is not evaluated by fliers or advertisements or even awareness; it is evaluated by lives brought into deep relationship with Jesus Christ. If there has been any effect, it will be seen in the prayer life and devotion of your fellow parishioners, in their dedication to the Lord Jesus, and in their increased frequency in inviting their family and friends into conversations about faith and salvation. If you desire any of these things for yourself, maybe start with the Next Step cards, which are still in the backside of our bulletin board kiosk. And stay tuned. Right now, we are in a season of solidifying the work we have already done with the EC, but this conference may help me discern what happens after that.
Fr. Moore 