Recursos Formação da Fé
Evangelização e catequese para a missão de formar discípulos de Jesus Cristo.
Evangelização e catequese para a missão de formar discípulos de Jesus Cristo.
Nossa equipe de Formação da Fé e Discipulado Missionário oferece oficinas de evangelização e formação de fé, retiros, consultoria e treinamento principalmente para paróquias, comunidades e instituições em toda a Arquidiocese de Boston.
Natural de Woonsocket, Rhode Island, Michael Lavigne atualmente atua como Secretário Adjunto do Gabinete para Evangelização e Discipulado na Arquidiocese de Boston, que inclui seu trabalho como Diretor do Escritório de Formação de Fé ao Longo da Vida e Apoio Paroquial. Além disso, Michael é o presidente do Instituto para a Nova Evangelização (TINE).
Anteriormente, ele foi o Associado Sênior do Vigário Episcopal para a Nova Evangelização em Boston e, antes disso, foi Diretor do Escritório de Formação da Fé ao Longo da Vida da Diocese de Portland, Maine.
Nos últimos 29 anos, ele serviu na Igreja Católica em vários cargos de liderança para evangelização e formação na fé em ambientes diocesanos, paroquiais e escolares católicos. Além disso, ele atuou como membro do comitê escolar de sua cidade natal e treinou esportes do ensino fundamental e médio. Ele é um apresentador de workshops e facilitador de retiros que cobre uma ampla gama de tópicos – da Evangelização à Castidade, à Vida Familiar, à Eucaristia, à Dignidade da Vida e muito mais.
Os papéis mais importantes de Michael, além de ser um discípulo de Jesus Cristo, são o de marido e pai. Ele é casado com Lori e eles são os pais orgulhosos de Michael Jr., Mariana, John Paul, Therese, Julia, Chiara, Celeste e Timothy. Os Lavigne residem em North Dighton, Massachusetts. Michael e Lori produzem um podcast sobre a igreja doméstica chamado Raising 8: Um casal de pecadores tentando levantar santos (raising8.net).
Michael é bacharel em psicologia e comunicação pelo Rhode Island College, bem como mestrado em teologia pelo Providence College.
Patrick trabalha para a arquidiocese desde 2014. Ele atua nas áreas de formação da fé, comunidades étnicas, planejamento pastoral, evangelização, discipulado e liderança. Patrick trabalhou anteriormente em paróquias na Arquidiocese de Boston e em outros lugares como Diretor de Evangelização, Diretor de Educação Religiosa e Coordenador de Pastoral Juvenil. Ele e sua esposa têm dois filhos.
Liz é antes de tudo, uma filha de Deus. Ela é casada com seu melhor amigo, Tony, e gosta muito de poder contar sua ajuda na preparação de casais para o casamento. Ela tem três filhos adultos e ama ser a “Nana” para seus netos. Liz começou a servir em seu ministério quando seus filhos eram ainda pequenos, como muitas mães fazem. Eventualmente, seu pároco pediu que ela administrasse o programa de formação da fé do high school. Munida de um diploma de bacharel em administração pelo Worcester State College, ela sabia que precisava de mais teologia. Depois de certificados em catequese e pastoral juvenil, ela se mudou para obter seu mestrado em estudos teológicos no Seminário de São João de Boston. Antes de vir para a Arquidiocese de Boston em 2016, Liz foi diretora do ministério de jovens e jovens adultos da Diocese de Worcester. Ela foi abençoada por servir na equipe do Cursilho, liderar peregrinações a locais marianos e viagens missionárias locais e no exterior.
Chris é originalmente de Caldwell, Nova Jersey e vive em Massachusetts desde 1991. Ele é graduado do Boston College com diplomas em Teologia e História. Após a faculdade, Chris começou uma carreira de 31 anos no setor de seguros de vida, onde trabalhou em vendas, distribuição e gerenciamento de contas para o mercado de planejamento imobiliário e doações de caridade. Ao longo de sua carreira profissional, Chris também esteve ativamente engajado em servir sua paróquia em uma variedade de funções, incluindo trabalhar meio período como ministro da juventude paroquial, voluntariado na formação da fé para crianças e adultos, servindo na equipe paroquial RICA como catequista e patrocinador, e coordenando os esforços de evangelização em toda a paróquia, executando a série ChristLife.
Em 2017, Chris deixou o mundo corporativo e transferiu sua paixão pelo evangelho para um cargo de tempo integral na Arquidiocese de Boston, onde busca apoiar as paróquias na missão de formar e equipar discípulos para o trabalho de evangelização.
Chris e sua esposa Krissy atualmente moram em Attleboro, MA com seus filhos Brendan e Kolbe.
Originalmente do Texas, Melissa traz para a área de Boston sua hospitalidade do sul e sua saudação “y’all”, típica desta região. Melissa trabalhou em esforços de evangelização para a Igreja de alguma forma, forma ou forma por 18 anos em diferentes áreas do país, os últimos 5 na Arquidiocese de Boston. Seu fascínio pelas obras filosóficas de São João Paulo II a levou a buscar um B.A. em Filosofia pela Universidade de St. Thomas em Houston e seu mestrado em Filosofia Thomistic do Center of Thomistic Studies. Ela também é certificada no Programa de Catequese ‘The Good Shepherd’ nos níveis 1, 2 e 3. Em seu tempo livre, ela e seu marido se esforçam para descobrir o significado de “provar e ver que o Senhor é bom” (Salmo 34:9) nas várias facetas da vida.
Tom Lyman, Coordenador de Culto Divino e Consultor de Evangelização, atua na Secretaria desde 2014, e esteve imerso na vida da Igreja durante a maior parte dos últimos 20 anos, seja como professor no ensino médio católico, líder de jovens católicos ministério adulto, ou como seminarista no St. John’s Seminary em Brighton, MA. Com um B.A. em História e um M.Ed. do Providence College, Tom tem um forte interesse em entender a história mais profunda por trás do cenário de evangelização de hoje e o desejo de compartilhar a mensagem de Jesus Cristo com aqueles ao nosso redor e na cultura, com a crença de que uma rica vida litúrgica e sacramental pode transformar uma cultura paroquial. Tom e sua esposa Lauren moram a sudoeste de Boston com seus três filhos e aproveitam o tempo passado com a família, visitando a praia e cantando nos corais da igreja.
Rosemary é originária de Hingham e, depois de morar em Minnesota e na Flórida, retornou à área para cursar o Boston College. Depois de se formar em Marketing e Recursos Humanos, Rosemary fez de Boston sua casa e gostou de trabalhar em funções de recursos humanos em serviços financeiros por mais de uma década.
Em resposta ao chamado do Senhor para usar sua experiência de liderança e desenvolvimento organizacional juntamente com seu amor por Cristo para servir a Igreja diretamente em seu trabalho diário, Rosemary obteve um Mestrado em Ministério do Instituto Teológico para a Nova Evangelização, complementado com estudo através da Loyola University em Roma e do Theology of the Body Institute em PA, e ingressou na Arquidiocese de Boston.
Além do interesse em despertar o amor por Cristo nos outros através da nova evangelização, ela tem um interesse particular sobre Teologia do Corpo, dignidade da vida humana, na junção da fé e dos negócios e na junção da fé e da cultura. Ela ama visitar o Senhor na Adoração Eucarística e encontrá-lo em cada encontro individual até vê-Lo face a face!
Abaixo você encontrará informações sobre alguns dos muitos programas e recursos excelentes disponíveis para ajudar os adultos a crescer em seu conhecimento e prática da fé. Por favor, não hesite em contactar a nossa equipa para mais informações.
An ACTS Retreat is a parish-based event which offers parishioners an opportunity to experience the love of Jesus Christ. This in turn fosters a desire for intentional discipleship. ACTS Retreats are given by parishioners for parishioners, and serve to build Christian community at a parish.
The ACTS Retreat begins Thursday evening and ends with Sunday Mass in the parish. While utilizing prayer, service, and teaching, the ACTS Retreat meets people where they are in their spiritual journey and invites them to experience God in a manner that is both personal and communal. ACTS stands for “Adoration, Community, Theology, and Service.”
In the Archdiocese of Boston, St. William’s in Tewksbury, St. John the Baptist and St. Thomas the Apostle in Peabody have used the ACTS retreat.
Alpha é uma série de sessões que exploram os fundamentos da fé cristã, normalmente ao longo de onze semanas. Cada sessão é projetada para criar conversas informais e honestas sobre as questões que as pessoas têm sobre a fé cristã. O formato é muito adaptável, mas os três elementos principais são uma refeição, uma palestra ou apresentação de vídeo e uma discussão em pequenos grupos.
Maria Rainha dos Apóstolos em Salém e o A Colaborativa Apple Valley Catholic em Acton e Stow está usando este programa na Arquidiocese de Boston, entre outros. A Paróquia de São Bento em Halifax, Nova Escócia, teve, utilizando Alpha, um dos maiores sucessos entre todas paróquia católica do mundo. Os católicos que apoiam o uso do Alpha incluem o Cardeal Seán e o Arcebispo Fisichella, Presidente do Pontifício Conselho para a Promoção da Nova Evangelização.
Ascension Press provides resources and study programs to facilitate small group discipleship. Program offerings include Bible studies, Church history, prayer, marriage enrichment, baptismal preparation, divorce support, and more for those in middle school through adults. Many resources are also available in Spanish.
Called & Gifted is a workshop which typically takes place in a parish over the course of one evening and the following full day. The workshop is actually only the first step in a three-step discernment process. The second step is a gifts discernment interview and the third step is a small group discernment process, a period of testing and evaluating one’s charisms and learning how best to use them in one’s life. This process has been designed to help Christians discern the presence of charisms, particular gifts of strengths given by God, in their lives.
St. Dominic Catholic Church in San Francisco CA and Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Santa Clarita CA have both used this process extensively to transform the culture of discipleship in their parishes. They report that attendees consistently become more involved in the parish and more committed to bearing witness through their life and work outside the parish.
ChristLife is a three-part evangelization process that begins with a seven-week kerygmatic series titled “Discovering Christ,” followed by two more similar series entitled “Following Christ,” which addresses Catholic discipleship, and “Sharing Christ,” which addresses sharing Christ with others. There is a day-long retreat in week five.
The series is hosted at your parish and includes dinner, welcoming, prayer, a 30-minute video presentation, and small group discussion. The materials are available in English and Spanish. St. Andre Bessette in Laconia NH reports success with this program, as do a number of Archdiocese of Boston parishes.
Cursillo is three-day weekend retreat experience; a short course in Christianity. It helps its participants encounter Christ in a profound way so that they will be equipped to answer Christ’s call to “go out and make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:19). There are talks by priests and lay people, small group discussions, prayer, reconciliation, and Mass. It is followed up by optional monthly group reunions called Ultreya as well as small faith sharing groups. The weekends serve men and women separately. Cursillo is offered in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Portuguese in the Archdiocese of Boston. For more information, contact the Cursillo community that works best for you:
Entertaining Angels is a one-day hospitality training seminar rooted in the mission of the Catholic Church to make disciples and geared toward those who are “first contact” staff and volunteers. Those who are the first to interact with parishioners and visitors have a crucial role in determining whether or not those parishioners and visitors will ever want to return regardless of their job or volunteer duties.
Participants will come away feeling greater confidence about sharing Christ with whoever might visit the parish. They will learn what to say even during brief interactions. Those who attend will benefit from a presentation including times for reflection, prayer, and chances to practice evangelizing conversations in a low-pressure setting.
Evangelical Catholic Reach More is a way of building a culture of community and discipleship formation in your parish through small groups. An on-line system supports the local coordinator in leading the establishment of the small groups and the training and ongoing support of the small group leaders. By design it is a flexible platform for small group discipleship. St. Matthew Parish Billerica has used Reach More, among others.
Light of the World (LOTW) is a parish-based weekend retreat experience designed to provide an encounter with Jesus Christ through the kerygma and a renewal of the Sacraments of Initiation over the course of the weekend, with small group follow-up. It involves parishioners coming to the parish days and evenings over the course of the weekend but does not involve an overnight stay. The program is also available in Spanish. St. Mary’s Uxbridge in the Diocese of Worcester is reporting tremendous success. St. Thomas the Apostle in Crystal Lake IL has been running Light of the World longer than any other parish.
St. Paul Street Evangelization offers in-person and virtual training to proclaim the Gospel in the public square using the method: Listen, Befriend, Proclaim, Invite.
Word on Fire offers a variety of podcasts, videos, blogs, study programs, and other resources on particular topics.
A área de Boston abriga uma alta concentração de jovens adultos, especialmente dentro e perto da própria cidade. A equipe de Formação de Fé e Discípulos Missionários apoia paróquias, apostolados e outros grupos envolvidos no ministério de jovens adultos em esforços para acompanhar jovens adultos na evangelização e discipulado. A equipe também ajuda os jovens adultos a se conectarem às atividades do ministério de jovens adultos. Para obter informações sobre grupos de jovens adultos locais em inglês, conectar-se a outros líderes de jovens adultos ou formar um novo grupo de jovens adultos, entre em contato com Chris Donoghue. Se você é atualmente um líder de um ministério para jovens adultos, ou está pensando em se tornar um, você pode achar alguns dos recursos abaixo úteis para seus esforços.
A ministry structured around a series of events centering on faith topics of interest to young adults. These events can be held in a restaurant, a parish hall, a coffeehouse, even in a bar—places where young adults already are comfortable and feel welcome. These events feature an engaging speaker presenting a theological topic, time for discussion, faith sharing, and community building.
The idea behind Nightfever is simple: to open the church during the night and invite everyone who walks by, especially young people, to a moment of tranquility and to an encounter with God. Whoever goes out on a Friday or Saturday night usually have other destinations like restaurants, pubs, dance clubs or cinemas on their mind. We want to address these people and invite them to pause for a moment and to come into the church, offering them a candle to light inside. The church is illuminated almost exclusively by candles, and there is quiet live music that goes on throughout the night with people available for conversations and prayer if desired.
A ministry initiative for young adults that creates monthly “Disciples’ Nights” to help deepen personal conversion, foster communion, and grow in an understanding of what it means to be a Catholic disciple in the world today. The meeting consists of Mass, dinner, and a compelling talk centered on discipleship. Every member is encouraged to join a Men’s or Women’s “Discipleship Group” to provide a smaller environment where effective material can be examined and applied, and to develop life-giving relationships where members can be encouraged, challenged, loved, and held accountable. Two video series, “Foundations of Discipleship” and “Our Deepest Identity”, comprise the foundation of each Discipleship Group session.
Invigorated by a community of peers and mentors, young, Catholic professionals are empowered to witness to their faith at work and through work, performing their professional vocations for the glory of God and seeing the workplace as a natural site for joyful evangelization. Central to YCP’s mission of engaging young Catholic leaders is the importance of connecting them with seasoned Catholic professionals who have already made the choice to live out their faith in all aspects of their life. Young Catholic Professionals offers its members an avenue to engage with prominent Catholic executives in a way that is unique among young adult ministries.
FOCUS is a Catholic collegiate outreach whose mission is to share the hope and joy of the gospel with college and university students. Trained in Church teaching, prayer, sacred Scripture, evangelization and discipleship, FOCUS missionaries encounter students in friendship where they are, inviting them into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and accompanying them as they pursue lives of virtue and excellence. Through Bible studies, outreach events, mission trips and one-on-one discipleship, missionaries inspire and build up students in the faith, sending them out to spread the good news and to live out the Great Commission: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations (Mt. 28:19). Many free resources for ministry to young adults beyond a college campus are also available.
A Discipleship Quad is a group of four people who journey together as disciples through weekly gatherings of fellowship, ongoing conversion, and learning. This 12-month path of accompaniment fosters growth through prayer, accountability, and authentic relationships. Here’s what makes Discipleship Quads different than anything else you’ll find: The size of the Quad is four, allowing for a greater intimacy among members. Choosing who to invite into a Quad is discerned through prayer. There is a rotation of leadership during the Quad’s time together. Fellowship is a meaningful part of the experience. This model has had over three decades of success. It is all free of charge, there’s no cost to you or your parish!
As the domestic church, the family home is “a community of grace and prayer, a school of human virtues and of Christian charity” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1666). Parents, therefore, are the “first preachers of the faith to their children” (Lumen Gentium, 11). In fact, their role in educating their children in the faith is “so decisive that scarcely anything can compensate for their failure in it” (Familiaris Consortio, 36).
Intergenerational faith formation supports parents in their role as “first preachers of the faith”, facilitates lifelong faith formation for all generations, encourages missionary discipleship in addition to catechesis, and engages the talents of the whole parish community.
Intergenerational faith formation programs often consist of monthly or bi-weekly gatherings of all families at the Church and some include weekly sessions in each individual family home. A combination of textbooks, videos, speakers, arts/crafts, home grown curricula with take home lessons is used to create dynamic content for learning. Successful programs incorporate check-in calls from catechists or other volunteers to families between the sessions to accompany them in the family faith journey, training and support for catechists between sessions, and prayer teams dedicated to praying for a fruitful program. If a parish community is introducing an intergenerational faith formation program for the first time it is prudent to host multiple informational sessions for parishioners and training sessions for catechists.
Parishes typically host families in the intergenerational faith formation program once a month, or bi-weekly, (often after Mass) for seven months. Each session typically covers a specific topic related to the chosen theme for the year (e.g. session topic: Baptism, theme for the year: Sacraments). Depending on the needs of the community, multiple sessions might be made available. It is helpful to host the sessions in a Church facility that can accommodate a large group session and small group breakout sessions.
Communities often host the monthly session after Mass. The morning or evening often starts in the large group with a meal (provided by the parish, parents, or volunteers), followed by prayer which can incorporate the theme for the session. Then participants break off into small groups (often by age, although some programs arrange groups including a diversity of ages to encourage mentorship) for a lesson on the same topic and an opportunity to grow in faith. If small groups consist of multiple ages, guidance on mentorship is crucial to ensure older children are having a fruitful experience and fully engaging as mentors. Adults meet separately to enjoy a session geared toward their level and learning style; curriculum for adults might include a miniseries like The Catholicism Series or live speakers and sessions focused on relationship building and evangelization. The groups then often come together for a group session, closing prayers and announcements.
In between these sessions, the faith is lived out and learned in the home, possibly through weekly sessions led by parents and daily within the context of family life. Parents lean on the take-away sheets they received at the last parish session to lead their children in easy-to-understand weekly sessions (about an hour each) that bring the whole family together for dynamic and prayerful sessions often using hands-on activities, videos, and prayer. Families are encouraged to live out these lessons daily as they grow closer with one another and with Christ. Catechists check in to offer prayerful support and accompaniment during this time in between sessions. Also during this time, parish teams typically host catechists for a preview of the next month’s session.
Communities that have embraced this model have seen great fruit in increased sense of community, strengthened families, heightened adult engagement, stronger Mass attendance, and growth individually in relationships with Christ.
USCCB Evangelization and Catechesis
Sophia Institute Family of Faith curriculum
Loyola Press: Christ Our Life; Loyola Press: Finding God
Sadlier
FamilyFormation.net
Our Sunday Visitor Take Home Sheets
Sagradas Escrituras
Catecismo da Igreja Católica
Evangelii Gaudium
Evangelii Nuntiandi
Lumen Gentium
Diretório Geral da Catequese
Diretório Nacional de Catequese
Formed; Augustine Institute
Dynamic Catholic Blessed videos
Word on Fire
Little Oratory
Ascension Press
Se você está considerando em oração a implementação de um programa de formação de fé intergeracional em sua paróquia, por favor, entre em contato com Rosemary Maffei com quaisquer perguntas e para se conectar a comunidades que tiveram sucesso com este modelo de formação de fé.
A equipe de Formação de Fé e Discipulado Missionário trabalha para apoiar os esforços do ministério jovem em toda a Arquidiocese.
Experienced youth minister and speaker Everett Fritz considers the challenge of encouraging youth engaged in youth ministry and large church events for young people to remain committed to lifelong discipleship.
Cultivation Ministries offers training, resources, and support to adult and student youth ministry leaders and grew out of Frank Mercadante’s successful parish youth ministry experience.
This post-synodal apostolic exhortation of Pope Francis provides important insights regarding accompaniment and engagement of young people in the life of the Church today.
DFYM is an approach that focuses in on Discipleship and uses the fruits of Discipleship to make more disciples. This is the approach that Christ taught us. While having the vision to reach the entire world, He did so by investing in a few (His Disciples). Those Disciples then invested in others (Discipleship) in order to make more Disciples.
Life Teen is a movement within the Roman Catholic Church, Life Teen leads teenagers and their families into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church.
Experienced youth minister and speaker Christopher Wesley offers youth ministry coaching and resources.
This groundbreaking, long-term, study directed by Christian Smith, Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame, began in August 2001 and provides a wealth of information regarding the religious lives of American youth from adolescence into young adulthood.
ProjectYM exists to equip Catholic youth ministers for success.
Young Life doesn’t start with a program. It starts with adults who are concerned enough about kids to go to them, on their turf and in their culture, building bridges of authentic friendship. These relationships don’t happen overnight — they take time, patience, trust and consistency. Simply put, the mission of Young Life is introducing adolescents to Jesus Christ and helping them grow in their faith. Young Life is a Christian organization, not a Catholic one. Here is an article on why Catholic dioceses are teaming up with Young Life. Here is a blog post on Young Life’s attempts to build bridges with Catholic dioceses.
This book by experienced Evangelical Protestant Youth Minister Doug Fields is a helpful resource for new coordinators of youth ministry and parishes considering starting youth ministry or hiring a coordinator of youth ministry.
As you are prayerfully discerning the faith formation model that would work best for your community, check out the these descriptions of common models and the strengths and challenges of each.
Para encontrar paróquias que oferecem catequese para pessoas com necessidades especiais, entre em contato com Kathryn Griffin, Consultora de Movimentos Eclesiais, ou visite a página do Ministério de Pessoas com Deficiência.
Helping your children develop a relationship with God begins in the home.
“The Christian family constitutes a specific revelation and realization of ecclesial communion, and for this reason too it can and should be called ‘the domestic Church.’… [and] like the greater Church, needs to be constantly and intensely evangelized: hence its duty regarding permanent education in the faith…[for] future evangelization depends largely on the domestic Church.” (Familiaris Consortio, 21, 51, 65)
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) is a Montessori-based religious formation program for children ages 3 through 12 which focuses on the child’s relationship with God and assists the child as he or she learns to follow Christ, the Good Shepherd. Catechesis of the Good Shepherd was developed almost 75 years ago in Italy and now takes place throughout the world.
A typical session includes prayer, a presentation on Scripture or the liturgy, and time for the children to work with materials from the presentation and silently ponder the mysteries presented. CGS philosophy has the child first ponder God’s love for them and then teach them how to live out the Catholic faith. It is not a classroom style of teaching and allows for more flexibility to teach at the child’s own pace. For this reason, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is also very effective for children with learning disabilities.
If you have questions or would like to see if it is possible to bring Catechesis of the Good Shepherd to your parish, contact Melissa Kalpakgian.
Originalmente do Texas, Melissa traz para a área de Boston sua hospitalidade do sul e sua saudação “y’all”, típica desta região. Melissa trabalhou em esforços de evangelização para a Igreja de alguma forma, forma ou forma por 18 anos em diferentes áreas do país, os últimos 5 na Arquidiocese de Boston. Seu fascínio pelas obras filosóficas de São João Paulo II a levou a buscar um B.A. em Filosofia pela Universidade de St. Thomas em Houston e seu mestrado em Filosofia Thomistic do Center of Thomistic Studies. Ela também é certificada no Programa de Catequese ‘The Good Shepherd’ nos níveis 1, 2 e 3. Em seu tempo livre, ela e seu marido se esforçam para descobrir o significado de “provar e ver que o Senhor é bom” (Salmo 34:9) nas várias facetas da vida.
Envie-nos uma mensagem e retornaremos o mais breve possível.