For several years I was part of a group of Catholic leaders who helped shape and lead a week-long campus ministry formation program every summer. We had funding from a large Catholic foundation and were officially a project of the US Bishops (USCCB). At the end of the week, we gave each participant an official certificate stating they completed the formation program and then...

Many of the Old Testament prophets could be called reluctant in fulfilling their calling. I understand the feeling. I have the charism of prophecy myself and certainly don’t always like using the gift. To explain a bit better, I need to back up and fill in some blanks, before I launch into this post, which I am reluctant to make public.

Yes, it is a provocative statement - the American dream has killed Catholic discipleship. But, I not only believe the argument bears consideration, but that we will never truly win the nation to Jesus until we jettison the idea that Catholicism and American idealism are 100% compatible.

If you have been Catholic long enough, you have seen the Catholic version of the military draft that many parishes enact annually. Before or after Mass, someone gets up for the announcements and tells the parish that...

The more I listen to the experiences of Catholics, the more I get the sense that we are facing a quiet epidemic of loneliness.

In 2013, the Barna Group did a large survey on the importance of sharing the faith of Christians. Though probably not a surprise - the demographic which had the lowest number of people who actively shared their faith was Catholics. Here is the truly sad part...

A parish or diocesan budget tells us what the leadership finds most valuable. It is a statement of belief. But, that isn’t the only statement of what we believe (and value). We also make statements with time, staffing, and more. If we reflect on the different areas of parish / diocesan life, it can tell us a lot about...

The culture of the Catholic Church in the USA over the last 30 years, has had seismic shifts. Several generations have come and gone, the outlook and expectations of the Church have morphed, we have had several Popes and hundreds of bishops turnover, and many other fluctuations have happened. I think the changes can be summed up by three questions that have been the primary driver behind the changes over the last 30 years. Each decade focusing on a different question.

Ask yourself - if my organization (e.g., parish, diocese, school, apostolate, etc.) has done some kind of long-range or strategic planning, did it help significantly impact the organization in a positive way? If not, then why not? Was there institutional renewal? Can we say that the planning process helped change our culture? Most Catholic leaders who have been through these processes in the last few generations would say...

There is a large and growing distrust with institutions in the US. In fact, it has reached record lows according to a new Gallup poll. Trust in “the church or organized religion” is at 31%, down from 37% a year ago. Read another way...

If you work in a parish, diocese, apostolate, or ministry, then you probably know what it is like to work long hours and feel the weight having to get things done. You probably have a heart for serving God and the Church. But, you may feel over-worked, under-appreciated, and stretched thin. It doesn't have to be that way.

Evangelization is a skill that must be learned and practiced. Here are 22 helpful tips to help you be a better evangelist.

I know the title of this blog will get some people up in arms, but before you get the pitchforks out, bear with me a bit and I will try to make my argument. Before I get to the nitty-gritty, let’s examine a few facts:

The email she sent me was pretty blunt. A woman wanted to ask some questions about baptism, so she called her local parish. The parish worker who answered the phone was blunt and not very nice - NO! You can’t have your child baptized without being registered at the parish. There was no way around it. The woman was distraught....

When another person self-describes as "raised Catholic", what assumptions do you make about them? Many would assume they go to Mass. Others would assume they know Catholic teaching or that they pray regularly. It could mean...

She once worked in full-time ministry jobs, but stopped going to Mass 2 years ago and most of her family and closest Catholic friends don’t even know she stopped. She reached out to tell me her story after reading my previous post on lonely Catholics. But, that isn’t the end of the story.

Ash Wednesday is a good day to share your Catholic faith with others. In fact, Ash Wednesday Masses generally have more people attend that even Christmas and Easter - which shows a high level of engagement. Below are some suggestions on how to evangelize on Ash Wed.

When we entered the E.R., the waiting room was packed, but we didn’t have to worry about the line - they ushered right to the back, because my baby boy turned blue. He really did, he was blue. Dominic (who is now 17), was only a few months old and had RSV. He was having trouble breathing and by the time we got to the hospital, he had turned blue.

Waiting is hard. Waiting on God can be very hard. Some of the most common questions Christians are asked (or ask themselves) are about the seeming contradiction between God’s goodness and human suffering - the waiting on God.

For many years we have had the same plumber (George). He is no longer a young man and we have had several conversations through the years about the lack of young plumbers (and young people taking on other trades). In one visit to our house, George had a new apprentice, who had recently graduated from High School. I told George that I was happy to see he had a new apprentice, but he responded by saying...