Stay informed about Catholics Come Home!
Have you ever had people tell you that they think Mass is “boring” or that they don’t really get anyting out of it? Perhaps you have even felt that way at some point in your life.
Check out this great article: 8 Reasons to Go to Mass.
“If you really thought about who you are, who God is, and how much thanks you owe Him, you would want to go to Mass. The Mass would become the source and center of your spiritual life.” – JAMES STENSON
CatholicsComeHome.org Receives Wonderful Messages of Support From Around the Globe…Check-out this E-mail We Received from Jenny in Australia:
“Every time I see your ad on EWTN or look at your web site I am reduced to tears.
We are trusting that it will have the same effect on those who see it on the cards that we will be letter box dropping in Brisbane suburbs with an invitation to join us in giving glory to God.
Catholics Come Home is truly inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Yours in the mercy of Christ,
Jenny
Brisbane, Australia”
Help invite friends and loved-ones back to the faith with ‘CCH Evangelization Cards.’
Which of our testimonial commercials resonates with you? Why? Join in the discussion at our Catholics Come Home Facebook page.
“Grant that we may be one flock and one shepherd. Do not allow your net to be torn, help us to be servants of unity.” -Pope Benedict XVI
Rome Reports TV News Agency announces the launch of EncouragePriests.org:
EncouragePriests.org: A new website to show support to priests
Date: 2010-06-18 19:00:00
18 June, 2010. On this Father’s Day, June 20th, a new interactive website to show appreciation to priests will be launched.
Today we celebrate the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul! What do we know about these wonderful saints of the early Church?
Check out this article by the Catholic News Agency about these courageous saints:
“CNA STAFF, Jun 27, 2010 / 05:05 am (CNA).- On Tuesday, June 29, the Church will celebrate the feast day of Sts. Peter & Paul. As early as the year 258, there is evidence of an already lengthy tradition of celebrating the solemnities of both Saint Peter and Saint Paul on the same day. Together, the two saints are the founders of the See of Rome, through their preaching, ministry and martyrdom there…”
Words from the saints:
1 Peter 1:8-9 “Without having seen him you love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls.”
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Happy Feast Day!
The National Catholic Register featured CatholicsComeHome.org in their Friday June 25th article entitled, “Catholics in New Media: Catholics Come Home:”
Maybe you’ve seen the commercials on TV in your area or online. Most people still haven’t. Everyone needs to.
“Catholics Come Home, Inc. is an independent, non-profit Catholic apostolate that creates effective and compassionate media messages and broadcasts them nationally and internationally, in order to inspire, educate and evangelize inactive Catholics and others, and invite them to live a deeper faith in Jesus Christ, in accord with the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church. […]
Each of our television commercials invites people to come to Catholics Come Home.org, where they are given the opportunity to learn (or relearn) the truth about the Catholic faith, find their local parish and return home. As our site says, coming home to the Catholic Church has never been easier!”
I still get all pumped up when I see their “Epic” movie commercial:
Check out their other videos here.
They’ve done a few campaigns now in various dioceses with great success:
“Currently, Catholics Come Home campaigns are launching in numerous archdioceses and dioceses across the United States. The results in the initial dioceses of Phoenix and Corpus Christi, Texas, prove the effectiveness of our campaigns, which bring hundreds of thousands of souls home for less than $2 per person. Most would agree that this is an amazing return on investment! This effort is critically needed in our society now.”
It’s an impressive operation from top to bottom – from the leadership team, to the marketing, to the material. And it’s all anchored by a top-notch website – which they continue to improve.
Upon visiting the website, you are given three choices: I’m Catholic, I’m not Catholic or I used to be Catholic. Depending upon your choice, the website then offers more relevant information according to where you are in your faith journey. It’s an excellent concept and more people need to know about it and share it with their friends and family.
click here to read entire article
Visit CatholicsComeHome.org each day to grown in your faith and love of Christ and His Catholic church!
CATHOLICS COME HOME.org CHICAGO SUMMARY REPORT
Information from Responding Parishes Finds Increased Mass Attendance
Chicago, IL (June 23, 2010)– The Chicago evangelization initiative, CatholicsComeHome.org, has released a Summary Report indicating an increase in Mass attendance following a major media effort this past December and January that included 2,000 commercials that aired on ten local television stations and cable outlets.
The Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Evangelization recently released the report showing that between October 2009 and February 2010, average Mass attendance increased 8.1 percent at 269 out of 368 parishes and missions in Cook and Lake Counties that responded to the survey. The Report noted that the Archdiocesan Office of Research and Planning conducted the special February attendance count at the beginning of Lent, when traditionally more people attend Sunday Mass.
The Chicago CatholicsComeHome.org Summary Report recaps the results of two separate surveys given to pastors and the designated parish program contact. A total of 440 surveys from 201 pastors and 239 parish contacts provided the statistics for this report. The survey evaluations by pastors and parish contacts were considered generally positive, with more than 90 percent of the parish contact people reporting that their parishes were positively engaged in, and enthusiastic about, planning for the initiative. Additionally, two-thirds of responding pastors suggested that the CatholicsComeHome.org commercials be used again in the future.
Other survey findings from the 201 responding pastors include:
The CatholicsComeHome.org diocesan partner evangelization initiative was a collaborative effort among the Archdiocese of Chicago and the Dioceses of Joliet and Rockford. The viewing area for the ads consisted of 20 counties across northern Illinois.
Click here to read the entire Archdiocese of Chicago CatholicsComeHome.org Summary Report.
Check out Chris Findley’s short reflection on Devotion: What Really Matters at the IntegratedCatholicLife.org, reminding us, “Do not love the world or the things in the world” (1 John 2:12).
“Earthly goods are not bad, but they are debased when man sets them up as idols, when he adores them. They are ennobled when they are converted into instruments for good, for just and charitable Christian undertakings. We cannot seek after material goods as if they were a treasure. Our treasure is Christ and all our love and desire must be centered on him.” -St. Josemaria Escriva
ATLANTA, Ga. (June 22, 2010)—The new lay Catholic outreach effort EncouragePriests.org™ has just launched its new interactive and expanded website to support priests. The apostolate launched on Holy Thursday and the new interactive website went live this Father’s Day, June 20, 2010.
The new website comes on the heels of the “Year for Priests” in an effort to extend the Holy Father’s call for the laity to show our love and support for the many holy Catholic priests around the world.
“This audacity of God who entrusts himself to human beings – who, conscious of our weaknesses, nonetheless considers men capable of acting and being present in his stead – this audacity of God is the true grandeur concealed in the word ‘priesthood,’” said Pope Benedict XVI.
The mission of EncouragePriests.org™ is to promote vocations and support ordinary men who do extraordinary work as Catholic priests, celebrating Mass and the sacraments, preaching, evangelizing and tirelessly serving the needs of their communities and the world.
On the new EncouragePriests.org™ website, visitors can learn more about the priesthood and vocations through audio, visual and written material on the site and on the blog. People will also find resources to show their gratitude for the priests in their lives through spiritual bouquets, written and video greetings, and short “Collar-Holler℠” e-cards. Encourage Priests™ can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.
EncouragePriests.org™ has already been welcomed by priests and lay Catholics around the country. “Great concept…Will be a tremendous help to the morale of priests,” said Bishop Sam Jacobs from the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. Several Catholics have submitted words of encouragement about their priests, like Rose who said, “He is truly a great priest who is always there for God’s people, no matter what. His presence alone is a blessing to his parish and ours. I pray that he stays strong throughout his priesthood to continue to be a great priest.”
CatholicsComeHome.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit media apostolate, dedicated to producing and airing Catholic evangelism television ads on local, national and international television networks. EncouragePriests.org™ is a special communications outreach project of Catholics Come Home, Inc.
Happy Father’s Day!
Check out this article that provides good advice for fathers…it also includes audio clips!
Don’t forget to pray for all of the fathers in your life, living and deceased, and for our priestly fathers, who help nuture our spiritual lives.
“St. Joseph, guardian of Jesus and chaste husband of Mary, you passed your life in loving fulfillment of duty. You supported the holy family of Nazareth with the work of your hands. Kindly protect those who trustingly come to you. You know their aspirations, their hardships, their hopes. They look to you because they know you will understand and protect them. You too knew trial, labor and weariness. But amid the worries of material life your soul was full of deep peace and sang out in true joy through intimacy with God’s Son entrusted to you and with Mary, his tender Mother. Assure those you protect that they do not labor alone. Teach them to find Jesus near them and to watch over him faithfully as you have done.” -Prayer for Fathers by Pope John XXIII
Need some guidance finding a parish near you? MassTimes.org has a parish-finding resource for that.
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