50 Year of Faith Activities:

Beginning this October the Church will be celebrating a Year of Faith. The beginning of the Year of Faith coincides with both the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council as well as the 20th anniversary of the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Holy Father has expressed his wishes for the Year of Faith in these terms: We want this Year to arouse in every believer the aspiration to profess the faith in fullness and with renewed conviction, with confidence and hope. It will also be a good opportunity to intensify the celebration of the faith in the liturgy, especially in the Eucharist, which is the summit towards which the activity of the Church is directed; and also the source from which all its power flows. At the same time, we make it our prayer that believers witness of life may grow in credibility. To rediscover the content of the faith that is professed, celebrated, lived and prayed, and to reflect on the act of faith, is a task that every believer must make his own, especially in the course of this Year. To that end, every Friday from today until the Year of Faith begins, I will be posting ideas for how dioceses and parishes can engage the faithful in the Year of Faith. I hope that these ideas will inspire you and your community to participate more fully in this special year. 1. Live stream the opening of the Year of Faith. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in its Note with pastoral recommendations for the Year of Faith, recommends that dioceses hold special events to open the Year of Faith. Using web cams and a service such as UStream, a parish or diocese could very easily broadcast these events

live for those people who cannot attend in person. Most of these services can also record and archive so that people can watch at a later time as well. 2. Invite testimonies. Over the course of the year (maybe once per month) invite select members of your parish to give their testimony their story of conversion, re-version, or just why they stay in the Church. These could be presented after Mass or at a special gathering during the week. Be sure to invite parishioners who are well-spoken or who have a particularly compelling story. Bonus: Record these testimonies and post them on your parishs web site. 3. Have a potluck for Mary! This one can be done by families: invite friends and fellow parishioners over to your house for a communal praying of the Rosary and potluck! These events are a great way to meet new people through food and prayer. Be sure to have a few extra plastic rosaries on hand for those who forget theirs.

Every Friday through October 5 I will be offering suggestions for the celebration of the Year of Faith. 4. Host a local pilgrimage. Making a pilgrimage doesnt have to mean traveling to far off places. There is probably a shrine or other holy place within your own diocese you can organize a day trip to! You can carpool in small groups, or for larger pilgrimages you can charge a small fee and rent a bus. 5. Put on a concert. If you have a pool of musical talent to draw on, host a concert in your parish. This could be as simple as a selection of favorites from the pew hymnal or as complex as highlighting sacred music from the great tradition of the Church. You can do even more good through the event by taking up a good-will offering for your local Catholic Charities or other charitable organization. 6. Organize a thank you note drive for godparent(s). This would be an ideal activity for Catholic schools, PSR programs, or Confirmation classes. Have the young people write thank you notes to their godparents the people who stood by as they were baptized into the faith! 7. Host a group reading of the Catechism. Some places will honor an author or work by having a continuous group reading why not for the 20th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church? Have people sign up ahead of

time to read a few sections, then come together to listen to it being read from start to finish! (Of course people dont have to stay for the whole thing.) You can make this a multi-site event by using Skype or another video conferencing service. 8. Raise money for the Pontifical Missions Societies. Celebrating our faith means sharing our faith! Hold a bake sale, rummage sale, or another fundraiser for the Holy Fathers evangelization efforts. 9. Introduce the Liturgy of the Hours in your parish. The Divine Office is the prayer of the whole Church not just the clergy and consecrated religious! As a special Lenten practice, hold a Vespers (Evening Prayer) service in your parish and invite the faithful to participate. Give some basic instruction on this largely unfamiliar liturgical prayer, and point families to resources for carrying it on after Lent is over. 10. Interview your pastor. With the ubiquity of small, cheap video cameras some embedded in the phones we all carry creating videos to post online is easier than ever. Have your youth group come up with a series of questions and then interview the parish pastor. When theyre finished, upload the interview on YouTube and then share it on your web site and Facebook page!

11. Run a monthly Year of Faith column in your diocesan paper. Dioceses can run a monthly column about various Year of Faith-related topics. Invite various participants curia staff, pastors, and parishioners to write items to be included. Possible topics include the gift of the Catechism, memories of what it was like growing up Catholic in the wake of Vatican Council II, or reflections on how the faith is lived in the local Church. 12. Take parishioners to the Rite of Election. Every year all the catechumens of a diocese gather with the bishop for the Rite of Election. It is a powerful ritual moment in the life of those seeking to enter the Church, but one in which members of their local parish are often missing! Organize a trip with your catechumens to your cathedral so that parishioners can show their support and witness this important step in the RCIA for themselves! 13. Hold a Stump the Pastor Night. Invite parishioners for a potluck and open Q&A with the pastor! Questions can be about anything connected with the faith. Be sure to bring copies of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Sacred Scripture, and other reference texts for those really tricky questions. 14. Thank your catechists. Catechists are a vital part of the parishs faith life they help to pass on the faith to children and to grow the faith of adults. Give them a token of your appreciation: a thank you note, a small gift (chocolate never hurts!) or even an end-of-year dinner to show your appreciation. 15. Start a Catholic book club. Gather a group to read and discuss great Catholic literature! You can read a book a month, or tackle a large work across multiple months. You can find lots of free study guides online; just search Google. With so many great Catholic books and authors out there youll have years worth of material to work with!