Evangelization program takes root at Holy Family Parish
KIRKLANDBy Susan Eick
When Holy Family Parish started an evangelization ministry called ChristLife last fall, Laure Anne Wilbert’s sister signed her up for a spot.
“I had no intention of showing up,” said Wilbert, who recently returned to the church after being away for 26 years. “I was told there was a wait list, and then I was called and told there was a spot for me and I thought maybe I was supposed to be there.”
Since last October, Wilbert and about 200 Holy Family parishioners have been gathering weekly for ChristLife, a 21-week program that seeks to help Catholics discover, follow, and eventually share Jesus with others.
The parish had been looking for a way to “invite parishioners to have a more personal relationship with Christ,” said Pam Gunderson, Holy Family’s evangelization coordinator.
“For some people, this is the first time they have been ready to hear the invitation. Many participants have been willing to give their testimonies in front of the whole group, and that has been transformational for all of us,” she said.
Holy Family is the first parish in the state to try the program, said Dave Nodar, director of the Maryland-based ChristLife ministry. “There’s a great hunger for people,” he said.
“They’re trying to find purpose in life.”
Listen, learn, shareAt Holy Family, the evening program draws people in their 20s to their 70s. Each week, they gather in the same groups of eight to worship Christ in song, watch a video about the week’s topic, and share in small-group discussions led by core team members that include parish staff and volunteers.
The program consists of three consecutive seven-week sessions: “Discovering Christ” — hearing the good news and encountering Christ; “Following Christ” — growing as Catholic disciples; and “Sharing Christ” — learning how to personally share the Gospel.
Parishioner Jim Kirschner, a volunteer core team member, said what has surprised him most about the program is “how fast the Holy Spirit can move in people’s lives. We are becoming as a community more comfortable in sharing our faith, and it’s a step-by-step process,” he said.
“Ultimately, ChristLife is going to give people an opportunity to invite a fallen-away Catholic or even a stranger to come to our parish,” he said, where they will “feel welcomed and find out no matter what they’ve done in their life, there’s nothing that keeps God from loving them.”
A stronger CatholicChristLife, established in 1995 in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, is seeing an increase in demand from parishes responding to the need for evangelization.
“We recognize the challenge the Catholic Church faces when the attrition rate is significant,” Nodar said, noting that 23 percent of Catholics attend Mass weekly, which means 77 percent are absent. “These aren’t just numbers, these are people we know,” he said.
Holy Family joins 125 faith communities in 25 states and five countries that have implemented the program. Tory Sutton, an 18-year member of Holy Family, signed up for ChristLife because she wanted more of a connection with the parish. Some of the program’s messages “were things I really needed to hear,” Sutton said, adding that she now has made more room for Christ and the Holy Spirit in her life.
Wilbert, a lifelong Seattle resident who returned to the church in 2009, said it’s been difficult to express her faith in a region where many people have a hard time accepting any kind of doctrine. But ChristLife is helping her become a stronger Catholic and giving her an energy she’s never felt before.
“Catholicism is so incredibly universal, and I don’t know why I was ashamed of it before,” Wilbert said. “I think ChristLife empowers people to be the Catholic they want to be.”
April 25, 2013