The Church needs men to be active, involved, open to the Spirit

Catholic men need to be involved in their Church; the Church needs its men to be involved. These were two strong messages that emerged from the Leadership Summit for the Men of the County Seat Deanery held at Mary Mother of God Parish, Hillsborough, on Friday and Saturday, April 26-27. The event was organized by the diocesan Office of Evangelization and Communication.

More than 40 men from the nine parishes of the Deanery attended the sessions on Friday evening and Saturday. The speaker for both days was John Edwards, founder of Pew Ministries, an organization dedicated to bringing the person of Jesus Christ to the person in the pew in a relatable way. He is also the host of the podcast “Just a Guy in the Pew.”

After Msgr. Joseph Curry, pastor, welcomed participants, Adam Carlisle, Secretary for Evangelization and Communication, began the Friday evening session with some sobering and frightening statistics about the state of the Church in the United States today: since 2000 infant baptisms are down 28%; Catholic sacramental marriages have decreased by 41%; one in three Catholic men have stopped practicing their faith and many who remain are at best casual Catholics.

Carlisle suggested one potential solution to this crisis is, “the need to make the Church more attractive and welcoming to fathers who might lead their families back to active participation of the faith.”

Edwards then shared his conversion story entitled, “from addict to evangelist.” It was the story of a man who had lost his way and contact with the Church and how his journey back to the faith inspired him to develop a proven method of building a brotherhood of Catholic men who aspire to virtue. After Edwards outlined the program for the next day, there was an opportunity for informal discussions and fellowship.

Saturday began with Mass, followed by the first of four sessions outlining the program and steps to implement it. Edwards said that men are taught to hide and repress their feelings and emotions and this reticence tends to hold them back from visible displays and practice of their faith, but from his experiences, he learned, “Catholic men want to live and share their faith with other Catholic men. They need other Catholic men to support them as they seek to become better husbands, fathers, and disciples of Jesus.”

Frank Ratkowsky a parishioner at Immaculate Conception, Somerville, said he realized from listening to the presentations and in discussions with other men at the sessions that “Catholic men must learn to be vulnerable and open to the Spirit if they are to have any impact on their Parish.”

“This program for a ministry to and with other Catholic men sounds great and I believe it is where the Lord is leading me,” said Patrick Dillon of St. Matthias Parish Somerset.

Edwards said many men’s groups get started but eventually seem to run out of steam. His program has been successful because it deals directly with that problem, it is structured to provide what men want and need.

Kevin Hart from the Church of the Holy Trinity, Bridgewater, felt that Edwards’ presentation highlighted a fact that “many Catholic men are in the same boat.  We are looking for a means to join with other men in celebrating and sharing our faith.” Hart believes that the program as presented might be very successful here in New Jersey if two or more parishes coordinated in developing and hosting such a program.

John Edwards’ message throughout the summit was that the success he has had in his own parish and 30 others can be duplicated in many parishes if men are inspired to develop and lead programs that offer what men want in their Church.