RECongress 2019 - Period 6: Saturday, March 23, 2019

CONGRESS 2019 WORKSHOPS & LINKS
THURSDAY	• Youth Day Info • Youth Day Schedule • Youth Day Workshops
WORKSHOPS FRIDAY: SATURDAY: SUNDAY:	Text Page Links • Period 1 • Period 2 • Period 3 • Period 4 • Period 5 • Period 6 • Period 7 • Period 8	PDF Downloads • Friday Workshops • Saturday Workshops • Sunday Workshops
EN ESPAÑOL VIERNES: SÁBADO: DOMINGO:	CONFERENCIAS • Sesión 1 • Sesión 2 • Sesión 3 • Sesión 4 • Sesión 5 • Sesión 6 • Sesión 7 • Sesión 8	• conferencias en español
	• Horario • Eventos • Información de Congreso
REGISTER	• Register • Order Registration Book • View the Registration Guidebook • View the Program Book
2019 FEATURES	• Livestream • Youth Day • Spotlight • Schedule • Speakers • Updates • Workshops • Entertainment • Hotels • Travel • Congress Chat • Topics • Handouts • Book Signings • Order Recordings • Exhibitors • Statistics • Exhibitor Categories • Tech Center • Theme Songs • Photos • Closed Workshops

The Gospel story of the Raising of Lazarus is among the most powerful of stories. What does Jesus’ greatest miracle have to say to your own life? What are you being called to leave behind in the tomb? And where is Jesus calling you to new life?

Based in New York, Jesuit priest Fr. James Martin is Editor at Large of America magazine. He is author of numerous award-winning books including “My Life with the Saints,” “The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything,” “Between Heaven and Mirth” and, most recently, “Building a Bridge.” Fr. Martin is a frequent presenter to parish groups and at retreats and national conferences. He has given presentations at the Religious Education Congress for the past several years and has appeared on various CNN documentaries.

When students arrive on colleges campuses they are seeking meaning, acceptance and forming their identity. During their college years a lot of transition is happening in their lives. They are discovering who they are and discerning careers and some even their vocations. How do we, as college campus ministers, encourage and support them in their vocational discernment? Part of this discernment is equipping college students to continue their journeys of faith after graduation. How do we form students to transition beyond campus ministry? Join us for this crucial discussion.

Katie Diller is Director of Campus Ministry at St. John Catholic Student Center at her alma mater, Michigan State University, and Coordinator of Campus Ministry for the Diocese of Lansing, Mich. She has led international mission trips and taught for study abroad course for college students and served as National Coordinator for the ESTEEM Leadership Program for four years. She also holds an appointment to the Alliance for Campus Ministry, an advisory body to the Secretariat for Catholic Education within the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Fr. Michael Martin, a Conventual Franciscan, has served as Director of Duke Catholic Center at Duke University in North Carolina since 2010. A lifelong educator, he has held a variety of teaching, coaching and administrative positions, including campus ministry, school leadership, personnel and facility planning. Fr. Martin has served on a number of boards and commissions and is a presenter on strategic issues facing campus ministry and Catholic schools today. In 2007, he received the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal service to the Church from Pope Benedict.

Southern California native Rosie Shawver was at the University of New Mexico before becoming Parish and Faith Community Outreach Liaison for Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, N.M. She is now Director of Campus Ministry at Our Savior Parish & USC Caruso Catholic Center at the University of Southern California. She is on the Board of the Catholic Campus Ministry Association and is a consultant for the Secretariat of Education at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

6-03 Eye-Witness Report: Defining Humanity from Heart of Today’s Global Humanitarian Crises

Having worked for years at the center of humanitarian and refugee crises, Caroline Brennan of Catholic Relief Services will share insights from current international humanitarian backdrops, revealing insights and aspects far from news reports or coverage. Having returned recently from the field, she will bring real, pressing and relevant stories and perspectives home for deeper understanding, and in a way that directly links to people’s lives and connects to our greater world, and each other.

Based in Chicago, Caroline Brennan is Senior Communications Officer of the Global Emergency Response Team for Catholic Relief Services. As the CRS Emergency Communications Director, she travels to the front lines of humanitarian emergencies documenting people’s incredible challenges. Brennan has worked in 24 countries. Recent travels include Bangladesh for the Rohingya refugee crisis; Uganda for the South Sudanese refugee crisis; Jordan and the Middle East region (regularly since 2012); Iraq; and Bulgaria.

In the Lord’s Prayer, we encounter a very unusual word. It is the word “daily” used to describe the “bread” that we pray for. Analyzing the single Greek word behind this English translation is like a detective story! This confusing Greek word is found nowhere else in all of recorded Greek literature. In this session, we will carefully study this word and see how our examination takes us to an exciting, deeper level in our understanding and love for this prayer.

Fr. Bill Burton, a Franciscan friar priest of the Sacred Heart Province, has taught for more than 20 years. He is currently Professor of Scripture at the Dominican School of Philosophy & Theology in Berkeley, Calif. Outside the classroom, he has guided hundreds of students and pilgrims on study tours and pilgrimage travels throughout the Holy Land, Greece and Turkey. He has many published articles and several DVD series, including “The Biblicist Series.”

In ministry, we often hear that we must “meet people where they are,” but at the same time we hear the frustrations about youth for being so connected to their digital devices. Instead of looking at technology as a barrier to reaching kids, we must embrace it as the powerful tool it is for communication, building relationships and enhancing our ministry practices. In this workshop, we will examine how to meet youth where they are in a digital space and share specific techniques to walk with them in their relationship with technology as well as empower them to become digital disciples.

Based in Virginia, Andrea Chavez-Kopp is Assistant Director for Educational and Formation Programs for the National Catholic Education Association. She has served in several leadership capacities within the schools and parishes, and had 18 years of teaching and ministry experience when she joined the NCEA staff in 2015. Chavez has presented numerous professional presentations at local parishes to national conventions. She has served on several national committees and has numerous articles published in Catechist Magazine, Momentum Magazine and NCEA Talk.

6-06 The Good Kangaroo: Songs and Stories of Faith and Justice for the Early Childhood Classroom

Join Andrew Chinn and James Wahl as they journey from Down Under and across the States, with stories and songs from the Bible, our faith traditions and various cultures. Educators and music leaders will learn strategies that help develop a sense of Christian justice and social awareness in their early childhood and elementary classrooms. Andrew was an elementary and early childhood teacher in Sydney for 20 years before becoming a full-time children’s music minister 16 years ago. James brings a wealth of experience as a pastoral musician, liturgist and composer, with an emphasis on music for children.

Andrew Chinn worked as a classroom teacher in Catholic elementary schools in Sydney, Australia before moving into full-time music ministry as Director of Butterfly Music. With over 35 years of experience in teaching, leadership and liturgy, he has presented at Catholic education conferences in 30 dioceses across Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States. Chinn has released numerous CDs, DVDs and picture books that are widely used. In 2013, He joined the WLP family that now publishes and distributes his music in North America.

WLP composer James Wahl has been performing children’s music for nearly 20 years. Over the past 10 years, he has presented at various youth events, including the National Catholic Educational Association convention in Pittsburgh, the Archdiocese of Atlanta Eucharistic Congress, and the GO! Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference in New Orleans. Wahl is presently Director of Liturgy and Music at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Raleigh, N.C. He has two CD/songbooks of music for young children.

Can you find God through dating? The world of modem romance may not seem a match for a contemplative lifestyle. Yet, finding real connection may hinge upon exploring the very places where contemplation brings us. It’s not about finding the right person, it’s about being the right person. Along the way we’ll provide a strategy to approach dating differently and introduce a “Safe Conversations” communication practice to help keep things moving. Don’t bumble around or get down. Swipe right and come learn what contemplative dating is all about!

Dr. Michael DiPaolo is a clinical psychologist and certified Imago Relationship Therapist in private practice in Los Angeles who works with individuals and couples. He has counseled over 1,000 couples in marriage preparation throughout the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Dr. DiPaolo is a speaker, workshop presenter and retreat leader who has presented for several years at parish and archdiocesan gatherings. He is author of “The Impact of Multiple Childhood Trauma on Homeless Runaway Adolescents.”

Parents of young adults have the same care, concern and worries for their young adult children as they did when they were little, but now they don’t have as much contact time or control. Many, too, are concerned about the faith life of their young adult sons and daughters. Our influence as parents is different but we’re not finished. It’s time for a conversation. This workshop is for parents of young adults, young adults and pastoral leaders. Together, we will explore some of the starting points for important faith conversations and patterns of support for young adults today.

Based in Gig Harbor, Wash., Tom East is Director of the Center for Ministry Development, He is editor and author of numerous books, including “Leadership for Catholic Youth Ministry.” Previously, he served as Director of Youth Ministry and Associate Director of Religious Education for the Los Angeles Archdiocese. East is a popular speaker at youth ministry and religious education conferences nationwide and has presented at conferences sponsored by the Center for Ministry Development and all the major national conferences.

6-09 Building Bridges with Catholics Who Are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or questioning

How do we incorporate the gifts of all Catholics into the life of the Church? This workshop will begin by presenting best ministry practices for building bridges to welcome LGBTQ Catholics, who are trying to be faithful, (back) into the life of the parish. We will then discuss the value of moving from “welcome” toward an “appreciation/acceptance” so that LGBTQ Catholics can share in full and active participation in our Church communities, universities, schools and parish life.

Dr. Arthur Fitzmaurice is a freelance speaker who currently resides in Tanzania, in east Africa. He has served 13 years in ministry with LGBTQ Catholics as Chair of the Catholic Ministry with Lesbian and Gay Persons for the Los Angeles Archdiocese and has received their Lumen Christi Award. Dr. Fitzmaurice has spoken at various professional and religious conferences. He also appears on several YouTube episodes produced by the Ignatian News Network.

Los Angeles-native Fr. Chris Ponnet serves as Director of the Office of Catholic HIV/AIDS Ministry for the Los Angeles Archdiocese and as the archbishop’s Spiritual Director for Catholic Ministry with Lesbian and Gay Persons. Since 1994, Fr. Ponnet has also served as Pastor and Chaplain at St. Camillus Center for Spiritual Care in Los Angeles. He has spoken for many years at the RECongress and regional congresses in addition to other local and national gatherings.

Welcome to an exciting, experiential presentation combining the power of leadership with the gift of technology to support the learning of all students. Using “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and demonstrating the power of iPads within the learning environment, Dan Friedt will take you on a journey of learning. From describing how each habit supports learning and behavior, to connecting with apps to unleash student creativity, this presentation will impact your classroom immediately. Bring your iPad and be prepared to try something new for all your students. Learn how the determined teacher (no matter how many failures) has a different approach.

Dan Friedt is a Sessional Instructor at Concordia University of Edmonton, Canada, and a recently retired principal with Edmonton Catholic Schools. He has more than 38 years of teaching experience from kindergarten to grade 12, with 20 years of administrative experience. Friedt is recognized as an Apple Distinguished Educator who has presented throughout North America, including British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec and even California.

6-11 The Church’s Banquet: Retrieving Neglected Insights on the Eucharist and the Church

One of the great contributions of Catholic theology over the last century is the rich recovery of the full breadth of Eucharistic theology. In spite of this, too many Catholics remain captive to a reductive and inadequate understanding of the role of the Eucharist. This workshop will draw from a variety of theological perspectives to both deepen and broaden our appreciation for the role of the Eucharist in the life of the Church.

Dr. Richard Gaillardetz is the Joseph Professor of Theology at Boston College, where he is also Chair of the Theology Department. He has authored or edited 13 books and over 100 pastoral and academic articles. His major books include “An Unfinished Council: Vatican II, Pope Francis, and the Renewal of Catholicism” and “Go Into the Streets! The Welcoming Church of Pope Francis.” In 2019, Barry University in Florida conferred on Dr. Gaillardetz the Yves Congar Award for Theological Excellence.

6-12 Spiritual Tools for Important Life Decisions: The Sacred Art of Discernment

Each of us will be faced with issues that require making critical decisions that will impact ourselves and those we love. The great mystical traditions offer profound, practical insight and tools for how to approach life’s most challenging times. While we typically trust our heart and intellect during periods of stress and transition, the soul can offer more trustworthy guidance. For the past 20 years, workshop presenter Richard Groves has offered one of the world’s first inter-spiritual, international training programs for spiritual directors. This presentation offers the core of its teaching and experience for every spiritual seeker regardless of age or profession.

Richard Groves is Executive Director of the Sacred Art of Living Institute in Bend, Ore., which he founded with his late wife Mary in 1997. He has spent more than 30 years as a health-care educator and hospice chaplain. Groves is an internationally popular teacher, author and retreat director. His work has appeared in numerous national and international journals. He is co-author of “The American Book of Living and Dying,” which has been translated into many languages, and author of “The Soul and Science for Caregivers.”

From “woe is me” to “praise the Lord!” – the psalms are a rich emotional journey through faith and a great gift to the church. They invite us to connect with God at a deeply powerful place. Still, facilitating prayer with psalmody is no easy task, sometimes bewildering musicians and catechists. This workshop presents pastoral ministers with the opportunity to engage their hearts in the psalms and to learn how to engage the hearts of those we serve. Come ready to dig deep, sing with gusto and pray the psalms in a renewed way, with great stories and fresh musical settings that draw upon the rich and often underappreciated meaning of the psalms.

Based in Nashville, Tenn., Sarah Hart is a singer, songwriter, retreat author and keynote speaker. The “itinerant minister” has authored four retreats for parish missions, women’s retreats and adult catechesis, which she presents nationally. Hart has performed for countless conventions and events, and for Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Square. A Grammy-nominated songwriter, her songs have been recorded by numerous recording artists, and have appeared in TV, film and commercials. Her works are visible in hymnals across the globe.

Musician, composer and youth minister, Steve Angrisano has made countless appearances from diocesan gatherings to major events around the world. He has been featured at numerous conferences, including seven World Youth Days. Angrisano served as MC for several National Catholic Youth Conferences, the National Pastoral Musicians Conference, and the L.A. Congress & Youth Day. He has shared his music – songs like “Go Make A Difference” and “We Are the Light of the World” – with thousands of people in more than 200 dioceses for nearly 20 years.

6-14 Our Story and Our Vision: The Heritage of Scripture in Christian Sung Prayer

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, … singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16). From the very beginning, the Church has prayed, celebrated, given thanks and cried out to God through the song of Scripture. The Hebrew Scriptures (especially the Psalms) and the New Testament (especially the life and teachings of Jesus) have been an inexhaustible source of wisdom and inspiration, ever-ancient and ever-new, in every language and culture. We will explore how God’s Word is singing to and through us today, to a world thirsting for justice.

For nearly 40 years, composer Marty Haugen has presented workshops, concerts and presentations across North and Central America, Europe, Australia, Asia and the Pacific Rim. His music appears in hymnals for United States, Canadian and Australian Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians and other Protestant denominations. Haugen’s most recent work, “Choose to Hope,” is set for release in 2019. He and his wife, Linda, live in Minnesota.

6-15 Pope Francis’s Guide to Holiness: Becoming Friends of God and Prophets

Last year Pope Francis released his third Apostolic Exhortation, Gaudete et Exsultate (“Rejoice and Be Glad”), which focused on the universal call to Christian holiness in the modern world. In this workshop, Fr. Dan Horan will explore the meaning, significance, background and application of the pope’s recent guide to holiness by drawing on the text itself as well as the work of theologian Sr. Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ, and the late Trappist monk and author Fr. Thomas Merton to aid us in becoming the saints God is calling us to be today in a world that is thirsting for justice!

Franciscan friar and theologian Fr. Dan Horan is Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology and Spirituality at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He previously taught at Boston College, at Siena College and St. Bonaventure University in New York, and has lectured across North America, Europe and New Zealand. Fr. Horan is author of numerous academic and popular articles; his latest book is titled “All God’s Creatures: A Theology of Creation.”

It takes courage to acknowledge discouragement, disillusionment, sadness, loneliness, cynicism. Aren’t we the ones who are supposed to have it all together? Isn’t it a sign of weak faith if we were to admit, “I feel afraid” or “Listen, I don’t have all the answers.” Find freedom in facing weaknesses and learn to “strengthen your drooping hands and your weak knees” (Hebrews 12:12). In her dynamic, unique style of presentation, ValLimar Jansen will inspire us to support one another, as together we face the challenges of the ministry God has entrusted to each of us.

ValLimar Jansen serves the Church as a composer, singer, storyteller, speaker and evangelizer. She received critical acclaim for her solo albums “You Gotta Move” and “Anointing,” winning UNITY Awards recognition in 2008 and 2010. Jansen was MC for the National Catholic Youth Conference in 2011 held in Indianapolis and co-MC for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ gatherings at the 2016 World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland and in 2017, she was an invited panelist for the USCCB’s Convocation on Evangelization.

As we search for role models that resonate with our faith, popular culture provides us with the “seeds of the Gospel.” Turning to the saints, we see how grace works in them, and us, to inspire us to achieve our own heroic virtue.

Based in Coden, Ala., Maria Johnson is an award-winning Catholic author whose books include “Our Lady of Charity: How a Cuban Devotion to Mary Helped Me Grow in Faith and Love,” “Super Girls and Halos: My Companions on the Quest for Truth, Justice, and Heroic Virtue” and “My Badass Book of Saints: Courageous Women Who Showed Me How to Live.” Johnson taught in high schools and colleges before setting out in 2008 speaking at Catholic conferences and leading retreats.

Did you know that conversations with young people have the potential to shape how the Church ministers to them now and in the future? Come learn more about how you can be a part of the mission of listening. Come discover the power of engaging young people in conversation and leave with a tool that can help you make a difference in how you listen to young people and how you minister in your parish or school. Young people will enrich this presentation with their presence and witness.

Christina Lamas made her way into the field of Youth Ministry after 10 years of volunteering at her home parish. She went on to serve as Associate Director and Division Coordinator of Youth Ministry in the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Lamas has presented to national and international audiences. Currently, she is Executive Director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry and brings with her more than 20 years of experience in catechesis and youth ministry.

We are commissioned to act justly at every sacrament we celebrate and sustained to do so by the gifts of God we obtain there. Most sacramental resources, however, are either for the neophyte or for the serious theological scholar. This workshop will explore an accessible, engaging and educational approach to the history, liturgy and theology of the seven sacraments, as well as the Rite of Christian Burial, where our faith and our thirst for justice intersect.

Jesuit priest Fr. Richard Leonard is Director of the Catholic Office for Film & Broadcasting, based in Sydney, Australia. He has been a Visiting Professor at the Gregorian University in Rome and a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Los Angeles. A popular speaker at the Religious Education Congress, Fr. Leonard is author of 10 books, including his latest, “What Does It All Mean? A Guide to Being More Faithful, Hopeful and Loving.”

“I have given you an example”: Christian morality is much more than a set of commandments. Its aim is to make us disciples of Jesus, adults who live our lives patterned after his own. This session looks at an ethics inspired by the life of Christ, that is, a life of virtue that is a morality for adult believers.

Fr. Bryan Massingale, a priest of the Milwaukee Archdiocese, is Theology Professor at Fordham University in New York. A noted authority on Catholic moral theology and social ethics, he has lectured extensively on ethical and racial justice issues throughout the United States and internationally. A previous Religious Education Congress keynote, Fr. Massingale is former President of the Catholic Theological Society of America and has been a leader of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium.

Much of the biblical narrative is told through the experiences and character of three great men – Abraham, Moses and David. Their leadership, personal qualities and life challenges provide us tremendous insight into the greatest teachings and principles of the Hebrew Bible. Abraham is the man of faith who enters into a covenant with God; Moses leads his people through a physical and spiritual wilderness; and David creates a nation as a poet warrior. Their examples of imperfection, integrity and faith are examples to us through the ages to our own day.

Rabbi Michael Mayersohn is a Reform Rabbi who teaches the Bible, both Hebrew and New Testament, offering Jewish insights into Sacred Scriptures. Since 2003 the rabbi has taught and spoken at over 20 churches in Orange County, San Diego and Arizona, teaching Jewish roots of Christianity and Bible studies. He has presented at the Religious Education Congress since 2010. His latest book is entitled, “I Was There: The Jewish Olive Grower Who Knew Jesus.”

Your parish doesn’t need to be rebuilt ... it needs to be renewed, re-energized and transformed! In this unique session, five dynamic and popular RECongress speakers will deliver an engaging, high-energy TED-style talk designed to provide you with concrete suggestions for renewing, re-energizing and transforming the way your parish: 1) thinks; 2) functions; 3) worships; 4) forms people in faith; and 5) engages the world. At a time when so many are thirsting for justice, your parish must (and can!) be the place where that thirst is quenched.

Joe Paprocki has over 35 years of experience in pastoral ministry and currently serves as National Consultant for Faith Formation at Loyola Press, based in Chicago. He has presented in over 100 dioceses in North America, including Canada, Alaska and Hawaii. Paprocki is author of numerous books on pastoral ministry and catechesis, including “A Church on the Move: 52 Ways to Get Mission and Mercy in Motion” and “Beyond the Catechist’s Toolbox,” and also serves as a catechist and blogs about the experience.

Based in his hometown of New Orleans, Dr. Ansel Augustine has worked for over 18 years around the country. He is currently Residence Minister for Student Leadership and Faith Formation at St. John’s University and is on the faculty of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana. Dr. Augustine serves on the Board for the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry. He has presented at various national conferences and has written for numerous publications related to ministry.

Fr. David Loftus worked at the Office of Religious Education at the Los Angeles Archdiocese as Coordinator/Consultant of Catechist Formation and Adult Education before taking up his current assignment as Pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Northridge, Calif. He has consulted with parish staffs and presented at diocesan offices and national conferences both in the United States and abroad. Fr. Loftus has authored various articles for Catechetical Leader, magazine of the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership.

Dr. Veronica Rayas is Director for the Office of Religious Formation in the Diocese of El Paso, Texas. She formerly served as Program Coordinator for the Tepeyac Institute in the diocese and previous to that served as Co-Director of Youth Ministry in the New York Archdiocese. Dr. Rayas has extensive experience in various ministries, including roles as pastoral associate, catechist, youth minister and Catholic school teacher. She has presented in different dioceses and at several conferences in Dallas and Washington D.C.

Born in Ireland, Julianne Stanz is a nationally known speaker, retreat leader and storyteller. She has extensive workshop and presentation experience both locally and nationally and is author of several articles and books, including her two most recent: “Developing Disciples of Christ” and “The Catechist’s Backpack: Spiritual Essentials for the Catechist’s Journey.” Stanz is Director of Discipleship and Leadership Development for the Diocese of Green Bay, Wis., and a consultant to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Catechesis and Evangelization.

“Justice” in the Bible does not mean that everyone gets what they deserve. Rather, biblical justice is right relation with God, self, others and all creation, which is achieved first by God’s initiative and boundless mercy along with our response to this gift. We will explore God’s justice in relation to God’s mercy and biblical portraits of justice toward the neighbor and the stranger (Luke 10:29-37; John 4), economic justice (Matt. 6:12; 20:1-16), justice in the face of aggression (Matt. 5:38-48), forgiveness and justice (Matt. 18:21-35), and the virtue of persistence in the pursuit of justice (Luke 18:1-8).

Sr. Barbara Reid, a Dominican Sister of Grand Rapids, Mich., is Professor of New Testament Studies at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, where she has taught since 1988. She maintains speaking engagements throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Guatemala, Bolivia, Peru, Ireland, New Zealand and Australia. Sr. Reid is General Editor of the Wisdom Commentary Series and General Editor for the forthcoming revision of the “New Jerome Biblical Commentary.“ Her most recent book is titled “Wisdom’s Feast: An Invitation to Feminist Interpretation of the Scriptures.”

Do you have trouble knowing what God is calling you to? Are you scared God might call you to something you don’t want? Stacey Sumereau was living her dream as a Broadway performer when she felt pulled toward a radically different lifestyle, that of a nun. Her discernment took an unusual path as a star of Lifetime’s reality docu-series called “The Sisterhood: Becoming Nuns.” Sumereau will share her journey with humor and a heavy dose of empathy for those making big life decisions. You’ll leave better equipped to understand and interpret God’s voice in your life.

Stacey Sumereau serves as Program Coordinator for the Avila Institute of Gerontology, the educational arm of the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm, based in New York, where she also coordinates mission trips. Sumereau has spoken to groups ranging from local young adult, youth and middle school to national youth conferences in addition to TV appearances on the “Today Show,” “Access Hollywood” and “Fox & Friends.” She is a contributor to “The Living Word: Sunday Gospel Reflections and Activities for Teens.”

What is true stewardship spirituality all about? Let’s tear away all the layers of misconception out there and reveal the life-changing power of everyday stewardship spirituality. This is a workshop about everyday stewardship in everyday language for everyday people.

Based in Milwaukee, Tracy Welliver is Director of Parish Community and Engagement at Liturgical Publications Inc. (LPi). He has experience as an author and Gallup-certified strengths coach. For more than 25 years he has served as a catechist and public speaker, speaking across North America, New Zealand and Australia. Welliver also serves on the Board of Directors for the International Catholic Stewardship Council, which awarded the Archbishop Murphy Award for stewardship excellence to St. Pius X Catholic Church in Greensboro, N.C., the parish where he served for 22 years.

Tại sao nhân loại phải trực diện với đau khổ và những đau khổ có công bằng hay không? Làm thế nào để chúng ta nhận ra ơn cứu độ qua những nỗi đau buồn trong cuộc sống? Thuyết trình viên sẽ dùng chính những kinh nghiệm bản thân, đồng thời dựa vào linh đạo Thánh Giá “Lâm Bích” để tìm giải đáp cho một câu hỏi thật khó trả lời: Tại sao con người phải đau khổ? Đây là một buổi nói chuyện thực tế, năng động với các hình ảnh và sẽ đòi hỏi sự tham gia của người nghe. Bên cạnh đề tài chính, sẽ có những sinh hoạt và trò chơi giúp đem lại niềm vui và sự hy vọng.

Why is humanity inundated with suffering, and where is justice in our struggles? How can we transform our pain and sorrow into redemptive suffering? In this highly visual, practical, interactive session, Sr. Grace Đuc Le will base this presentation on both her own experience of struggles and the Lambertian Spirituality of the Cross to help answer the difficult question of why one suffers. Throughout the session, she will share different activities and games that bring about joy and hope.

Grace Đức Lê thuộc Hội Dòng Mến Thánh Giá Los Angeles, một Hội Dòng đã được thành lập do Đúc Cha Lambert de la Motte. Soeur có trên 24 năm kinh nghiệm làm việc với nhiều lớp người khác nhau: 8 năm dạy học ở trường Công Giáo, 8 năm làm Giám Đốc Ơn Gọi cho Hội Dòng, và 8 năm làm Giám Đốc Chương Trình Giáo Lý.

Sr. Grace Duc Le is a member of the American Branch of the Congregation of the Lovers of the Holy Cross founded in Vietnam in 1670 by Bishop Pierre Lambert de la Motte. She has more than 24 years of working with different groups of people: eight years as a Catholic schoolteacher, eight years as Director of Vocations for her community, and eight years as a Director of Faith Formation in a thriving parish.

2019 RECongress Period 6

Religious Education Congress
Saturday, March 23, 2019
3:00 - 4:30 pm

2019 RECongress Period 6

Religious Education Congress Saturday, March 23, 2019 3:00 - 4:30 pm

Religious Education Congress
Saturday, March 23, 2019
3:00 - 4:30 pm