Resources Faith Formation Leaders
Evangelization and catechesis for the mission of forming disciples of Jesus Christ.
Evangelization and catechesis for the mission of forming disciples of Jesus Christ.
Here are a variety of tools for reference for faith formation leaders in the Archdiocese of Boston.
A native of Woonsocket, Rhode Island, Michael Lavigne currently serves as Assistant Cabinet Secretary for Evangelization and Discipleship at the Archdiocese of Boston, which includes his work as Director of the Office of Lifelong Faith Formation & Parish Support. Additionally, Michael is the President of The Institute for the New Evangelization.
Previously he was the Senior Associate to the Episcopal Vicar for the New Evangelization in Boston and prior to that he was the Director of the Office of Lifelong Faith Formation for the Diocese of Portland, Maine.
For the past 29 years he has served in the Catholic Church in a variety of leadership roles for evangelization and faith formation in diocesan, parish, and Catholic school settings. On the side he has served as a member of the school committee of his hometown and coached middle/high school sports. He is a workshop presenter and retreat facilitator who covers a wide array of topics – from Evangelization to Chastity to Family Life to the Eucharist to the Dignity of Life and more.
Michael’s most important roles, outside of being a disciple of Jesus Christ, are that of husband and father. He is married to Lori and they are the proud parents of Michael Jr., Mariana, John Paul, Therese, Julia, Chiara, Celeste, and Timothy. The Lavigne’s reside in North Dighton, Massachusetts. Michael and Lori produce a podcast on the domestic church called Raising 8: A Couple of Sinners Trying to Raise Saints (raising8.net).
Michael has earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in psychology and communications from Rhode Island College, as well as a Master of Arts degree in theology from Providence College.
Patrick has worked for the archdiocese since 2014. He works in the areas of faith formation, ethnic communities, pastoral planning, evangelization, discipleship, and leadership. Patrick has worked previously in parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston and elsewhere as a Director for Evangelization, Director of Religious Education, and Coordinator of Youth Ministry. He and his wife have two sons.
Liz is first and foremost, a daughter of God. She is married to her best friend, Tony, and enjoys his help with preparing couples for marriage. She has three adult children and loves being “Nana” to her grandkids. Liz started serving in ministry when her children were small as many moms do. Eventually, her pastor asked her to run the high school faith formation program. Equipped with a bachelor’s degree in business from Worcester State College, she knew she needed more theology. After certificates in catechesis and youth ministry, she moved on to get her Master of Theological Studies from Saint John’s Seminary. Before coming to the Archdiocese of Boston in 2016, Liz was the director of youth and young adult ministry for the Worcester Diocese. She has been blessed to serve on team for Cursillo, lead pilgrimages to Marian sites, and mission trips locally and abroad.
Chris is originally from Caldwell, New Jersey and has lived in Massachusetts since 1991. He is a graduate of Boston College with degrees in both Theology and History. After college Chris began a 31-year career in the life insurance industry where he worked in sales, distribution, and account management for the estate planning and charitable giving market. Throughout his professional career Chris was also actively engaged in serving his parish in a variety of roles including working part-time as a parish youth minister, volunteering in faith formation for both children and adults, serving on the parish RCIA team as catechist and sponsor, and coordinating parish-wide evangelization efforts by running the ChristLife series.
In 2017 Chris left the corporate world and transitioned his passion for the gospel into a full-time position with the Archdiocese of Boston, where he seeks to support parishes in the mission of forming and equipping disciples for the work of evangelization.
Chris and his wife Krissy currently live in Attleboro, MA with their sons Brendan and Kolbe.
Originally from Texas, Melissa brings to the Boston area her southern hospitality and her “y’all.” Melissa has worked in evangelization efforts for the Church in some way, shape, or form for 18 years in different areas of the country, the last 5 in the Archdiocese of Boston. Her fascination with St. John Paul II’s philosophical works led her to pursue a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of St. Thomas in Houston and her M.A. in Thomistic Philosophy from the Center of Thomistic Studies. She is also certified in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in Levels 1, 2, and 3. In her free time, she and her husband strive to discover the meaning of “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:9) in the various facets of life.
Tom Lyman, Coordinator of Divine Worship and Evangelization Consultant, has served the Secretariat since 2014, and has been immersed in the life of the Church for most of the last 20 years, whether as a teacher in Catholic high school, a leader in Catholic young adult ministry, or as a seminarian at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, MA. With a B.A. in History and an M.Ed. from Providence College, Tom has a strong interest in understanding the deeper story behind today’s evangelization landscape, and the desire to share the message of Jesus Christ with those around us and in the culture, with the belief that a rich liturgical and sacramental life can transform a parish culture. Tom and his wife Lauren live southwest of Boston with their three children, and enjoy time spent with family, visiting the beach, and singing in church choirs.
Rosemary is originally from Hingham and, after living in Minnesota and Florida, returned to the area to attend Boston College. After graduating with a degree in Marketing and Human Resources, Rosemary made Boston her home and enjoyed work in human resources roles within financial services for over a decade.
In response to the Lord’s call to use her leadership and organizational development experience coupled with her love for Christ to serve the Church directly in her daily work, Rosemary pursued a Master of Arts in Ministry from the Theological Institute for the New Evangelization, complemented with study through Loyola University in Rome and the Theology of the Body Institute in PA, and joined the Archdiocese of Boston.
In addition to an interest in igniting a love for Christ in others through the new evangelization, she has a particular interest in the Theology of the Body, the dignity of human life, the intersection of faith and business, and the intersection of faith and culture. She loves visiting with the Lord in Eucharistic Adoration and meeting Him in each individual encounter until we see Him face to face!
The following is a list of people and organizations you may wish to consider for retreats and other events in your parish, community, apostolate, or ministry. This list is neither exhaustive nor a formal archdiocesan endorsement of these people and organizations. If you would like to be considered for addition to this list or have any other questions about this resource please contact Patrick Krisak at pkrisak@rcab.org or 617-746-5753.
*Resources are listed alphabetically by title in each category.
*Please note that this list only includes resources specifically recommended by the Archdiocese of Boston and is not a comprehensive list of all available resources. We are aware that additional resources are rapidly becoming available on-line and we are working to review them as quickly as possible. For more information or to make a request or recommendation that a resource be added to this list please contact Patrick Krisak at pkrisak@rcab.org or 617-746-5753.
The Office of Child Advocacy, Implementation and Oversight is responsible for the implementation of all policies and procedures that the Cardinal promulgates in the archdiocese for the protection of children and prevention of their abuse.
Background screening is a tool the Church uses to secure the safety of our children, youth, elderly and the disabled. This office works diligently to ensure that all Archdiocesan and Religious Order clergy, educators, volunteers, parish and school staff as well as men in preparation for the priesthood and deaconate are properly screened by evaluating each individual’s CORI (criminal offender record information.)
The mission of the Office of Risk Management is to provide Catholic parishes and institutions with the highest quality professional risk management services and insurance and protection programs that are tailored and sensitive to the unique issues, relationships and risks of Catholic non-profit organizations. We strive to provide these products and services at costs that bring substantial savings to each of our participating organizations. Our services include all lines of protection: insurance, loss control and risk management, claims and litigation management, and training and consultation.
A Brief Guide to CORI, PGC/Virtus, and Safe Environment Requirements and Implementation
The Secretariat for Evangelization and Discipleship exists to help move forward Cardinal Sean’s objective of strengthening the work of the New Evangelization in the Archdiocese of Boston. The Secretariat works closely with all the offices of Central Ministries. It is our goal to be available to the clergy and the leaders of the parishes of the Archdiocese in ways that will be most helpful to them.
The Secretariat is oriented toward the direct support of all parishes and institutions as they strive to evangelize and to form disciples.
The mission of the Archdiocese is to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Pastoral Planning is the process we use to make preparations to carry out that work. Pastoral Planning is a critical tool in helping us understand our task today and work together to manage the resources available to meet the needs of the people of God.
Parish Financial Services serves the needs of Parishes within the Archdiocese of Boston by providing pastors and staff with the support and information they need to manage their parish operations. They offer guidance on financial planning, budgeting, accounting and financial reporting as well as providing information to help familiarize parishes with Archdiocesan policies, procedures, and best practices.
Faith Formation and Missionary Discipleship
Evangelization and Faith Formation in the parishes are supported by the team for Faith Formation and Missionary Discipleship. This team also presents Forming Disciples for Mission and Forming Leaders for Mission and facilitates plan writing in parishes.
Faith Formation and Missionary Discipleship for Ethnic Communities
Mirroring the work of the Faith Formation and Missionary Discipleship team, this team supports various ethnic communities in the Archdiocese.
Family Life and Ecclesial Movements
This team serves parishes in ministering to those preparing for marriage, those in a married state, divorced, and ecclesial movements.
Family Life
Ecclesial Movements
The Chaplaincy Office provides pastoral care to those in prisons, hospitals, college campuses, and parish pastoral care related to illness, addiction, and grief.
Under the pastoral leadership and guidance of the Archbishop of Boston, and in the Secretariat for Evangelization and Discipleship, the Office for Divine Worship serves as a resource for the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy through the Archdiocese of Boston.
All inquiries concerning canon law (excluding annulments) are handled by this office. This office assists all departments with canon law questions – including canonical questions related to sacramental preparation. Additionally, this office coordinates all archdiocesan Confirmations.
The Office of Lifelong Faith Formation & Parish Support, the Office of Divine Worship, and the Office of Canonical Affairs work closely together to assist parishes and parish leaders in understanding and implementing appropriate sacramental preparation catechesis, guidelines, and liturgies.
Faith Formation Models:
Respect Life Education is a joint initiative of the Pro Life, Catholic Schools, Evangelization & Discipleship, and Child Advocacy teams of the Archdiocese of Boston and is intended to help parents and young people better understand and appreciate the gift of human life and the dignity of the human person.
The Catholic Schools Office provides development, oversight, and teacher training for the mandated Created for Love middle school religious curriculum, which illustrates God’s plan for life, love, relationships, and marriage. More information on this aspect of Respect Life Education in the Archdiocese of Boston is available at https://www.csoboston.org/about/CFL.
The Secretariat for Evangelization and Discipleship provides assistance and support to parishes in implementing the mandated Created for Love grade 6-8 faith formation curriculum material. More information is available below or by contacting our team.
The Created for Love curriculum is meant to be integrated into the existing religious instruction or faith formation in every parish and school throughout the Archdiocese of Boston. It is designed to be taught over a three-year period by school teachers, catechists, and parents. It consists of a text and DVD to be used together as the student matures over time.
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