RESOURCES FOR

Fostering Missionary

DISCIPLESHIP

Every parish is called to make missionary disciples. We need to create a discipleship pathway that will plant and water the seeds of discipleship in people’s hearts. If you’re looking for the most effective ways to foster missionary discipleship, be sure to check out these resources.

The Signs of an Evangelizing Parish

What separates a stagnant parish from a vibrant, evangelizing one? We’ve compiled a list of key indicators of a healthy missionary parish based on models of parish renewal and observations of vibrant parishes.

Learn More About Your Parish Community

We offer a special mapping software that reveals key data from your parish community. You can use it to discover your parish, pastorate boundaries, and valuable demographic information about who is in your community and who will be there in the future.

Core Mission Priorities

Our ultimate goal is missionary conversion—the result of a personal encounter and friendship with Christ. We’ve identified six core mission priorities, as outlined in Light Brightly Visible 2.0, that fuel and sustain missionary discipleship in parishes.

Mission-Based Plans

As the Emmaus teams work with parishes and pastorates, they can facilitate the development of an evangelized-based strategic plan, rooted in prayer and framed by the Core Mission priorities. See some examples of these plans here.

Parish Renewal
Menu

The Emmaus Teams, as part of the Office of Parish Renewal in the Institute for Evangelization, are here to accompany your parish in your goal of creating missionary disciples. Our “menu” is a listing of current workshops, retreats and formational opportunities that we can provide to assist you in your parish’s renewal efforts.

OUR GUIDING DOCUMENTS

A Light Brightly Visible

Read Archbishop Lori’s 2015 Pastoral Letter on the Core Mission of the Church of Baltimore.

A Light Brightly Visible 2.0

Read Archbishop Lori’s 2021 Pastoral Letter recasting a shared vision of creating parish communities as neighborhood centers of evangelization, where Christ is proclaimed, taught, and celebrated, and where missionary disciples are formed and sent forth.

The Joy of the Gospel

Read Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation calling us to a robust and joyful Catholicism that is utterly committed to the New Evangelization.

CONTACT YOUR
EMMAUS TEAM

Inspired by the Gospel story of the road to Emmaus, our Emmaus Team members travel in pairs to parishes to help them implement their missionary discipleship initiatives. The goal is to provide every parish or pastorate with an Emmaus Team.

INSTITUTE FOR

Evangelization

The Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Institute for Evangelization is a new model for engagement with parishes seeking to realize their evangelizing mission more fully.
The Institute is composed of four offices that collaborate closely to ensure that support is never “one-size fits all” but can adapt to the changing needs of each parish community.