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:

January 20 Holy Spirit Parish 6:30 pm-8:00 pm

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

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 my Monday, January 26.

Created for Greatness

Created for Greatness, our training module for Theology of the Body, requires those who teach TOB to take this course designed by the McGrath Institute in collaboration with DOSA. We normally offer this online course in the fall, but with new staff at ND, we have had to wait for them to find a suitable instructor.

The course will start on January 19. The link is below. Please make sure you choose the Diocese of St. Augustine as a partner in order to receive the 50% off. The OCF reimburses the cost of this class with receipt of completion. This course also counts as Level III continuing formation. The course runs 4 weeks, approximate time is 25 hours of contact.

Created for Greatness

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.

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



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

An Introduction to the Ministry of Care

Bringing Christ’s Presence to the Sick and Homebound

Presented by D. Todd Williamson

Director of Worship, Archdiocese of Chicago

Price: $10.00

Designed especially for those new to pastoral visitation, this workshop gently introduces the core elements of ministering to the sick and homebound. We will explore the meaning of this ministry, the essentials of making a pastoral visit, and the role of prayer and the Church’s rites in offering Christ’s peace. Participants will gain practical starting points and spiritual insight to help them serve with compassion, clarity, and a grounded sense of mission.

Our virtual workshops are conducted on Adobe Connect, a web-based online meeting platform. Each session is ninety minutes. Participants are asked to utilize a computer for these virtual workshops and to download the desktop application prior to their session. If you use a mobile device (phone or tablet), LTP’s tech team will be unable to assist you.

The Registration Deadline for this workshop is January 23rd, 2026.

Register for this class

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)

Inviting Young Adults into Dialogue

The Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis hosted a webinar on this new guide on engaging young adults in dialogue. The webinar was in held in December. Bishop Kalabat, Chairman, Young Adult Outreach Working Group and the Committee presented how to use this document for fruitful dialogue. For those who could not attend, here is the recording:

Link to webinar on the document Passcode is X@P!Q&V2

Document in English

Level III suitable

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

Receive Answers From Catholic Teaching and Clinical Psychology to Help You Overcome Anxiety and Depression

We are in the midst of a mental health crisis. Anxiety and depression are on the rise like never before, and for so many of us, it’s affecting the way we think, work, relate to one another, and even connect to God daily. With this growing need has come short-term fads, conflicting advice, and secular solutions that fail to address both mind and soul.

That is why Franciscan University created In Focus: Overcoming Anxiety & Depression. It’s a 7-part video series offering clear, compassionate guidance from both Catholic spirituality and modern clinical psychology, and today, you can access the entire series absolutely FREE.

This discussion is led by two trusted voices: Dr. Greg Bottaro, a Catholic clinical psychologist and founder of the CatholicPsych Institute, and Father Dave Pivonka, TOR, president of Franciscan University. Together, they explore how mental health, faith, and daily life intersect. They also offer tools to help you better understand anxiety and depression, support loved ones, and move toward healing and resilience rooted in God’s truth.

When you sign up using the form below, we’ll send an email with your access link so you can begin watching this incredible series today!

When you request In Focus: Overcoming Anxiety & Depression, here’s what you’ll receive access to—completely free and directly to your inbox!

• 7 expert-led video sessions exploring mental health through a Catholic lens
• Immediate, on-demand access to the full series so you can watch at your own pace
• Practical insights on anxiety, depression, therapy, and prayer.
• Real conversations on technology, relationships, and finding peace in a noisy world
• Guidance for those facing struggles personally or wanting to help others

Explore more of this resource

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)

Our Lady Star of the Sea

January 24-25

Jotform to register for Our Lady, Star of the Sea

Registration closes Wednesday, January 21 at noon.

Summer Offering:

Catholic School Special~ St. Paul, Jacksonville Beach, June 8-11, 2026

Standard certification is achieved either through courses through the McGrath Institute (STEP) or through the University of Dayton (VLCFF).

Standard Certification Options

STEP through the McGrath Institute

STEP Camino Courses Comprehensive list for the year.

VLCFF through the University of Dayton

VLCFF Calendar

Praying with the Popes toward Unity and Hope

Shannon wimp Schmidt

January 20 

3:00 PM ET

In this webinar, Ave author Shannon Wimp Schmidt will discuss how to incorporate the social teachings of the popes from Leo XIII to Leo XIV to invite discussion and prayer among parishioners in a highly politicized time.

This webinar will discuss some recent research on attitudes around religion and politics, papal writings which speak to that research, and suggestions for spiritual and formation practices around these writings.

Go to Webinar