Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Latest Episodes:

Kerygma and Parish Touch Points Apr 17, 2019

Show notes

Calling all DREs, catechists, youth ministers, and parish volunteers! Have we got a show for you. (Yes, that was a VeggieTales reference.)

We start off today answering some tough questions about the kerygma, and then pivot to ways you can infuse evangelization into programs your parish already has like baptism prep, marriage prep, and religious education.

Our advice isn’t the only way to do it, but it is a (pretty darn good) way to do it. How do you evangelize at your parish?

We want to hear from you! Email us at eksb@ascensionpress.com with your story, question, or comment—or if you’ve got a new nickname for Dave.

Snippet from the Show
“People aren’t going to surrender their life to Christ if we’re hitting them over the head with moral issues and their failure … but there is no gospel without repentance.”

Check out this episode at ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow for shownotes and resources from the show.

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Evangelization FAQ’s: Plan B, Skipping Mass, and Non-Catholic Family Weddings Apr 10, 2019

Show notes

You’ve got frequently asked questions, we’ve got infrequently given answers. We tackle questions about what to do when you encounter someone purchasing the Plan B pill, what to do when people (especially family members) give dumb reasons for why they don’t go to church, the role of Mary in evangelization, and talking to family members about having a sacramental wedding when they’re angry with the Church and you’re long distance. (Whew.)

We want to hear from you! Email us at eksb@ascensionpress.com with your story, question, or comment—or if you’ve got a new nickname for Dave.

_Snippet from the Show

“We so desire the conversion of our friends and relatives and neighbors that we feel disappointed when the outcomes haven’t happened. But the success is in the evangelizing. The conversion is up to Jesus. One sows the seed, the other waters, God alone gives the growth.”_

Check out the show on ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow to browse the resources from the show.

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Becoming an Activated Disciple (with Jeff Cavins) Apr 03, 2019

Show notes

We’re talking to the one and only Jeff Cavins, Catholic speaker and author of the new book, The Activated Disciple. We’re pumped to interview him about discipleship and sharing the Faith (and so are our moms).

Jeff’s book really gets to the heart of discipleship. It gives us a practical roadmap to a path of discipleship and explains what it actually means to be a disciple. We also get Jeff to give us his practical tips for evangelization.

You can get Jeff's book at ascensionpress.com.

We want to hear from you! Email us at eksb@ascensionpress.com with your story, question, or comment—or if you’ve got a new nickname for Dave.

_Snippet from the Show

“There’s a difference between having a branch named Jesus on your vine vs. realizing that you are a branch on the true vine that is Christ.”_

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Bringing the New Evangelization to Your Parish Mar 27, 2019

Show notes

The New Evangelization invites baptized Catholics to renew their relationship with Jesus Christ and his Church (according to the USCCB). Started by Popes Paul VI, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI, it’s a call for the Church (aka, you and me) to reach out to fallen away Catholics and bring them back to the sacraments.

We want to talk about how to bring this movement to your parish and community. Starting with Carole Brown’s Gems for the New Evangelization: Shamelessly Pilfered from Various Treasuries of Church Teaching, we then add some additional points that we’ve discovered along the way.

There are a lot of different things you can do, but the important thing is to start.

Snippet from the Show
“My favorite thing is to take every part of the Catechism and tie it back to the Cross and resurrection, because you can do it with everything.”

We want to hear from you! Email us at eksb@ascensionpress.com with your story, question, or comment—or if you’ve got a new nickname for Dave.

SHOWNOTES

The Five Points for the New Evangelization

Recover the importance of kerygmatic proclamation.
Build explicitly Christ-centered witness testimony into everything.
Talk in the explicitly evangelical language of the New Evangelization popes.
Saturate yourself in the world of God (Bible studies, lectio divina training…)
Establish a permanent discipleship track in the parish.

Dave and Mike’s added points for parish evangelization

Establish a formalized intercessory prayer group to bring about conversions.
You can’t do it alone.
Start with the programs that people must attend, to draw in people who might not be involved otherwise.
Start trying to meet everyone at your parish and learn their names.

The Five Practical Takeaways

Read paragraphs 1- 21 of the Catechesi Tradendae by Pope John Paul II.
Consider joining or starting a Bible study at your parish.
Begin a conversation with the pastor, DRE, or director of religious evangelization about evangelization at the parish.
Look for touchstone moments (baptism class, marriage prep class) and how you can be a volunteer in those ministries.
Buy a Catholic Bible for someone who doesn’t have one in your life.

Resources Mentioned in the Show

Michael Gormley – Radical Communities
Bible Studies from Ascension Press
The Great Adventure Timeline Catholic Bible

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Evangelizing and Morality: Birth Control and Same-Sex Attraction Mar 20, 2019

Show notes

We tackle the biggest, most complicated, stickiest moral issues–contraception and same-sex attraction. How is a Catholic evangelist to approach such a minefield when proclaiming the gospel?

In John 14:15, Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” So we know that we have to tell people about moral issues, but we need to make sure we’re doing it in a way that actually helps.

We talk about when, how, and why to bring these issues up, and examples of times these strategies have actually worked (we promise we’re not using you as guinea pigs).

We want to hear from you! Email us at eksb@ascensionpress.com with your story, question, or comment–or if you’ve got a new nickname for Dave.

Snippet from the Show
Holiness and happiness are coterminous in God. Me seeking my own happiness is what God made holiness to be–seeking union with him forever in Christ Jesus.

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How to Share the Faith BOLDLY Mar 13, 2019

Show notes

Mike and Dave give practical advice about how to get over that awkward feeling and share the Faith BOLDLY.

Telling someone the good news about Jesus isn’t hard ... if you really, truly believe it. You’re not imposing your arbitrary morality and spirituality on someone, you are proposing to them the truth of God’s love for them and their elevated status as creatures made in the image and likeness of God.

Like Mike says, “If you discovered the cure to cancer, and you kept it to yourself–you would be a monster ...We have even greater news, but so often we keep it quiet.”

Mike also gives solid advice to a listener who asks about how to talk to her husband, who is a Muslim, about Christianity.

Check out the shownotes at ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow to see practical tips on how to be BOLD when you share the Faith.

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Ask a Catholic Evangelist: How Can I Share the Gospel with My Family, Parish, and Community? Mar 06, 2019

Show notes

Mike and Dave answer your questions about how to get programs going at your parish, how to share the gospel with fallen-away family members, and how to invest in Catholic evangelism as well as catechesis when funds are short.

Snippet from the Show
“You have a mission as a layperson ... To not proclaim Jesus Christ and just wait for a priest to do it is a fundamental corruption to your baptismal dignity. Christ is inviting you on this mission. You don’t need anyone else’s permission.”

Listener Questions:

“My priest isn’t into evangelization, what do I do?”
“I have three children, none are truly evangelized, except my oldest daughter who is now evangelical, but ‘at least she has Jesus.’”
“I am a DRE who got caught up in the catechesis game. I now want to invest in evangelism, but am at a poor parish.”

Resources mentioned:

Christifideles Laici, Chapter 3
The Great Adventure Bible Studies
No Greater Love by Edward Sri
The Life of Christ by Rev. Fulton Sheen
To Know Christ Jesus by Frank Sheed
Radical Communities by Michael Gormley
Redeemer of Man by Pope St. John Paul II
Catechesi Tradendae, 19-20

5 Practical Tips:

Kerygma: Refresh yourself on what the kerygma is and isn’t.
Community: Meet up for Eucharistic Adoration and drinks.
Reading: Jesus Shock by Peter Kreeft.
Intercession: Pray a decade of the Rosary every day for clergy who need conversion.
Lent: Don’t let Lent pass you by, be intentional! Prayerfully consider what God wants from you this Lent. Take an hour and figure it out.

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Christ and Culture: How to Be in the World but Not of the World Feb 27, 2019

Show notes

What does it mean to be in the world but not of the world and how does this affect evangelization?

Many people assume there are two ways to approach this notion.

On one side is the thought of Christ against culture—that to be loyal to Jesus or the Church I need to run completely away from the world.
On the other side is the Christ of culture—that Jesus is the peak and pinnacle of all culture’s greatest desires, aspirations, and hopes.

Which one is right? What balance should we strike?

Today, Mike and Dave take these two basic concepts and break them down into practical, real life situations. They explain what we should do in regards to the world around us and stress the importance of finding the distinctive Christ element that sets your life apart. We walk a delicate line being in the world and not of it, but Mike and Dave make this line a bit easier to see.

Snippet from the Show:
“We as Christians have to present some difference from the culture at large, the culture of the world. There has to be something different about our life.”

5 Practical Tips:
1) Spiritual Practice: Do an examination of conscience of a secularist mindset. What parts of your life have you brought in from the culture that you really should not have?
2) Read: Jeremiah 29 (the whole chapter).
3) Go Fishing: Do small pious acts in public.
4) Community: Become a regular at one restaurant.
5) Intercessory Prayer: Pray for the conversion of your favorite secular artist.

Resources Mentioned in the Show:
Christ and Culture a book by Richard Niebuhr

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Spiritual Warfare in Everyday Christian Life Feb 20, 2019

Show notes

Spiritual warfare is more than just an analogy.

It is a reality.

Quite literally, it is a struggle between two kingdoms—a battle between man and that which draws man away from God.

This fighting and resisting evil is a common experience, yet many don’t believe they are at war. Therefore they come unprepared to fight the battle.

Today Mike and Dave approach this topic from the viewpoint of evangelists. They discuss the Church Fathers’ understanding of spiritual warfare, the context behind the Church’s teachings on the subject, and practical ways you can resist evil and equip yourself with the best possible resources.

Snippet from the Show
“This is a battle. This isn’t an analogy, it’s not an allegory … We are actually at war.”

Two mistakes we assume about spiritual warfare:
1) Looking at it as a personal faith issue, that the victory comes from you.
2) That this is just a small part of the Faith.

Resources mentioned in the show
Gaudium et Spes
1 Peter 8
Anima Christi

5 Practical Tips:
1) Pray the St. Michael the Archangel prayer
2) Rekindle your relationship with your guardian angel
3) Read about St. Joseph terror of demons
4) Read Colossians 1-2
5) Do a Marian consecration. There are many different forms.

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Evangelization in a Post-Christian Society: The Purpose of the Church Feb 13, 2019

Show notes

Do you want to evangelize in a post-Christian society? There are a few things you need to know.

We all proclaim the same gospel, but we all need to use different methods. The methods that St. Paul used in Athens or Rome and the approach of a missionary in India, Southeast Asia, or parts of Africa will be different than someone who lives in a post-Christian society.

There are, however, universal principles that stand the test of time. Today, Mike and David go through three ages of evangelization, explain how to overcome four hurdles in evangelizing, and also three different types of evangelizing.

Snippet from the Show:

“No matter how opposed someone is to Christianity, you have to understand that deep down, it is what they want. It is what they most desire. It is the answer to all their questions.”

SHOWNOTES:

*5 Practical Takeaways: *
1) Read Evangelii Nuntiandi
2) Fast for someone at your parish
3) Pray and reflect on St. Augustine’s Prayer to the Holy Spirit
4) Read 2 Timothy 4
5) Write down and reflect on this quote “She exists in order to evangelize.” What parts of your life exemplify this? What parts do not?

Resources Mentioned in this Podcast:
Gaudium et spes
Evangelii nuntiandi (Paragraph 9 and 80)
Redemptoris Missio
Podcast, This Cultural Moment
Introduction to Philosophy by Daniel Sullivan

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