Volume XV, Issue IV January 26, 2026 | |
Echoes~
Your Weekly Catechetical News from the
Office of Christian Formation
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We were a step ahead of Pope Leo XIV in providing a series of talks on the Vatican II documents last year. The tapes of these talks are being edited and should be ready soon. We will also be providing other resources throughout the year. Here is a Youtube with background to start:
Participants Recall Vatican II (CNS - 48 minutes)
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OCIA Conference
The details for this conference are now available. With a generous donation from the Catholic Foundation and budgeted training monies, we are able to address the additional workshops you requested last year.
We are also teaming with Initiation Ministry Partners out of the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
Our host site will be:
Sacred Heart Parish, the Family Life Center
5752 Blanding Blvd.
There will be 4 workshops. Each one is $10 and you can register for one, two, three, or all four. The price for all 4 is $35 which includes lunch on Saturday.
Friday, January 30, 2026 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Forming an OCIA Teams, skills for Group Facilitation, and Engaging the Entire Parish (Erin McGeever~ English only)
Saturday, January 31 9:00 am - 10:45 am
Year-Round Catechumenate/One Year Catechumenate
(Darleine Arca Hernandez and Lorraine Miller ~Spanish and English)
Saturday, January 31, 2026 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
The Rites of the OCIA (Fr. Tom Willis ~ English only)
Saturday, January 31, 2026 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
OCIA with Children
(Darleine Arca Hernandez and Lorraine Miller ~Spanish and English)
Jotform to register if you are bringing your whole team, contact Erin for a deal.
Registrations due in by Tuesday, January 27 (noon)
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Registration of Initiation-Related Acts
(OCIA Norms 14-16)
The revised OCIA calls for sacramental registers for catechumens and those received into Full Communion. This is not new. These are kept, as all registers, in the parish archive. The revised rite, however, now calls for a Register of the Catechumens. This register is to record the name, date, time, and location of the unbaptized person into the catechumenate. This is now normative. This register has 3 purposes: to note the beginning of the catechumenate so that the parish is assuring the minimum of one year in the catechumenate, to assure that the ritual is not duplicated for an individual, and to guarantee the rights and obligations of these catechumens as described in norms 8 and 9.
There is only one company producing this new register at this time, Remey Church Goods. There sacramental registers are available at many other church supply stores. Link to purchase: https://remeychurchgoods.com/product/91 The OCF has obtained a 10% discount if you desire to purchase your register through the office. These registers are kept as official sacramental records in the parish archives. Starting with Lent of this year, all new catechumens should be entered in this register upon their entrance into the catechumenate.
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Discover Your Path to Service, Leadership, and Faith Formation ~ the Diocesan Ministry Formation Program
The Diocesan Lay Ministry Program (MFP) is a path for those who desire to be recognized leaders in faith formation in the Diocese of St. Augustine. Now entering its 35th year, the MFP has formed several hundred of the faithful for service to the mission of Jesus Christ.
As we begin our initial recruitment for suitable candidates for the Class of 2029, we invite pastors and current leaders to help us look for these individuals and to invite them to at last learn about the benefits of commissioned lay ministry. if we are planning for the current and future mission of the Church, we need capable and formed people to lead the way.
The MFP Office is hosting 6 information sessions across the diocese for people to learn more about the program, its benefits, its requirements, and to begin a period of discernment for this upcoming year that begins in August.
Sessions will be held:
Sunday, February 8 at Holy Faith, Gainesville 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm (following 11:15 am Mass) and hours before the Super Bowl
February 17 at San Sebastian Parish, St. Augustine 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
March 3 at Mary Queen of Heaven Parish 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
March 24 at Sacred Heart, Fleming Island 6:30 pm- 8:00 pm
A RSVP is very helpful, but not absolutely necessary. Please share.
Email Ann at Lay Ministry Email
| | Parishes and Lay Groups: Get your banners ready for the procession at St. Joseph Parish! | |
Our Diocesan Eucharistic Encounter event will be held March 6 and 7, 2026 in two locations. On Friday night, we will be at Queen of Peace in Gainesville. On Saturday, we will be at St. Joseph Parish in Jacksonville. This Eucharistic Encounter will have at its heart an evangelization focus, particularly in how it the Eucharist draws us closer to Christ.
Our keynote speaker for both days will be Julianne Stanz. She will be joined by our other main speakers, Fr. Stephen Gadberry and Dr. Gerardo Salazar. This is a Level III opportunity.
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Julianne Stanz is the former
Director of Evangelization in the Diocese of Green Bay, a consultant to the USCCB Committee on Catechesis and Evangelization and the current Director of Evangelization and Formation for Loyola Press. Loyola is sponsoring some of the costs of Julianne’s visit here.
Sample Youtube
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Dr. Gerardo Salázar will present in the Spanish tracks at both locations. Dr. Salazar is the former Director of Evangelization and Catechesis with Hispanics for the Archdiocese of Galveston Houston. Gerardo is the National Bilingual Consultant for Sadlier Religion, who will sponsor him for us. He is a popular and engaging speaker on the topic of evangelizing catechesis.
Sample Youtube
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Fr. Stephen Gadberry will be speaking in both the English and Spanish tracks. He is a priest of the Diocese of Little Rock and a Fellow of the Word on Fire Institute. A man of many interests, he appeared on season 10 of American Ninja, enjoys making music, archery, and also preaching the Gospel.
Sample Youtube
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NEW!
Welcome to Catechesis
A Four-Session Online Introduction to the Church’s Vision of Catechesis
A great way to educate your catechetical team about catechesis in today's Church.
Only $100 Program Registration Fee!
Offered in February & March
Welcome to Catechesis is designed for parish leaders, catechists, and interested adults in the parish who want to learn about the Church’s vision of catechesis today.
Each weekly 75-minute online session addresses a key question for handing on faith in our time:
· Why does the Church offer catechesis?
· What is evangelizing catechesis?
· Who is involved in catechesis?
· How do we put the vision of catechesis into practice?
Click this link for more information
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A Special Program for Parish Leaders in the Catholic Families Project
Accompanying Parents of Young Children:
From Baptism to First Eucharist
Our local cohort for the NCCL Family Grant will be participating in a special series of workshops as part of the grant. I asked and was granted permission for anyone who is interested to participate in this series. We discussed this at the catechetical leader meeting last week.
This program of training and program development is led by Ron DeVries and Anna Radclife who lead the Generation Spark Project, funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. Generation Spark partners with church leaders to provide a research-based action plan that builds successful, authentic, and safe intergenerational mentoring relationships that spark intimacy with Jesus, a sense of mission, and meaningful connection.
For more information and to register, see the flyer Catholic Families Mentoring Program
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Spring Lecture Series
The Loyola Institute for Ministry invites you to its Spring 2026 Virtual Lecture Series,
Walking with the Migrant: Jubilee, Justice, and Hope. This three-part series is designed for all who seek to reflect more deeply on the spiritual, scriptural, and ecological dimensions of migration through the lens of Catholic faith. Together, we will explore migration as both a lived human experience and a call to solidarity, justice, and hope in today’s world.
Each one-hour lecture, presented via Zoom Webinar, will explore a different aspect of migration, offering theological insight, real-world context, and practical applications for ministry:
- Stranger and Sojourner: Scripture's Migration Narratives
- Explore how stories of migration in Scripture reveal God's presence among those on the move.
- Creation on the Move: Ecological Migration in an Integral Ecology
- Examine how climate change and ecological degradation drive migration, and how Catholic social teaching calls us to respond.
- Encountering Christ at the Border: Contemporary Migration Stories
- Hear firsthand accounts and pastoral reflections that reveal Christ in today’s migrants and refugees.
Level III suitable
Register for the Zooms (free)
| | If you ordered through the office, 2/3 of the publishers have sent their books. | |
FDLC FREE WEBINARS – ORDER OF THE Anointing of the Sick AND THEIR PASTORAL CARE
The FDLC is pleased to provide another series of free webinars on the latest liturgical text to be released. Each session will air live at 1:30 (eastern) and will be 75 minutes in length. As before, they will be recorded for further viewing. Plan now to register attend and invite others to join you!
Part One: Wednesday, January 28
The Order of the Anointing of the Sick and Their Pastoral Care
Featuring Bishop Michael Woost (Chair of the BCDW) and Father Dustin Dought of the BCDW Secretariat.
All about the new liturgical text. How does it differ from the current USA translation? What is the same?
Part Two: Wednesday, February 11
A Theology of the Care of the Sick
Featuring Father Jan Michael Joncas
With Scriptural and pastoral insights, we will examine the role of the Sick within our parish community and our obligation (and privilege) to care for them.
Part Three: Wednesday, March 4
Pastoral Issues
Featuring Ms. Tish O’Hagan (Diocese of Boise) and Msgr. Rick Hilgartner (Archdiocese of Baltimore)
A look at some practical matters of visiting the sick -- including visiting a sick child, a sick adult, home visits, hospital visits, and nursing homes. Who are the proper ministers of the rites? What can a Deacon do? What can a lay person do? What can only a Priest do?
FREE REGISTRATION NOW OPEN: Register for these
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With a generous 5-year grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., the National Community of Catechetical Leaders (NCCL) and the Loyola Institute for Ministry have designed the Pathways toward a Thriving Parish project to help parishes create their own paths toward a thriving, vital community of faith that is living its mission in today’s world. The Project will work with your parish to:
§ Equip a parish leadership team with the knowledge, skills, and practices for creating pathways toward thriving for your parish community.
§ Form leaders in the processes of listening to the needs, hopes, and hungers of the community; discerning how the Holy Spirit is calling the parish to respond and grow; and acting by creating pathways for thriving designed for your parish community.
§ Discover and empower the gifts and abilities of the parish community – individuals and teams – for ministry and service in the parish and in the world.
Register today for the free 5-session online course Becoming a Thriving Parish in Today’s World 1. February 12: A Theological Vision to Guide Today’s Parish
2. February 19: Pathways for Creating a Thriving Parish Community
3. February 26: Skills for Leading a Thriving Parish
4. March 5: Cultivating the Dispositions and Habits for Parish Transformation – Becoming a Listening Church
5. March 12: Developing Your Parish’s Pathways toward a Thriving Parish
Register for the 5-part Free series
| | Basic Certification (Level I) | | |
Basic Certification (Level I)
Summer Offering:
Catholic School Special~ St. Paul, Jacksonville Beach, June 8-11, 2026
Registration will open in April.
| | Standard Certification (Level II) | | Continuing Formation (Level III) Opportunities | |
Beyond Translation: Unlocking the Evangelizing Power of Latino Culture
Deacon Charlie Echeverry
February 17, 2026
3:00 PM ET
Latinos may be the most influential cultural force in the Catholic Church in the U.S. today—and unlocking their potential could transform, even renew, the post-pandemic Church in America. Yet many parish efforts have focused primarily on translation, unintentionally creating “two churches within one parish” rather than a truly integrated community.
In this webinar, Deacon Charlie Echeverry, author of Blind Spot: The Evangelizing Power of Latino Culture, explores ministry strategies that move beyond language alone. He examines the shared responsibility of clergy and laity in this work and what it means for your parish and ministry—especially if you are not Latino.
Go to this Webinar
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