Pastoral Staff Day energizes evangelization teams

TIMONIUM – The Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Pastoral Staff Day was a time of “energy,” adoration and evangelization.

More than 400 parish leaders from the archdiocese attended the event hosted by the archdiocese’s Institute for Evangelization at Church of the Nativity in Timonium Oct. 27.

The theme for this year’s event was “Walk in the Light,” bringing together directors of religious education, youth ministers, catechists, school administrators, music ministers and other parish leaders for prayer, reflection and brainstorming on evangelization.

It was the first time the event had been held in person since 2019 and Edward Herrera, executive director for the Institute for Evangelization, said the vitality from the in-person gathering was noticeable.

“It was exciting to come together and be so energized,” Herrera said. “It was encouraging to see such a strong showing of people who share their passion for this mission.”

The day started with music and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, led by Archbishop William E. Lori. The event included a keynote speech from author Deacon Keith Strohm, regional breakout sessions with the archdiocese Emmaus Team and grant awards.

“It takes a strong team to surround a pastor and move forward the mission of evangelization,” Herrera said. “A lot of our parishes don’t have big full-time staffs, and it was great to see so many people who don’t have an easy time getting off from their day jobs make the sacrifice to join us.”

Herrera said fellowship is vital to the archdiocese’s mission.

“There’s great value in getting together with people who do the same work,” he said. “We also talk a lot about worshiping together and the opportunity to pray and be a part of adoration with the archbishop was a blessing.”

The Institute for Evangelization, in partnership with Our Sunday Visitor, presented grant awards at the event to two local groups to further start-up missions. The Basilica of the National Shrine the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary received $20,000 to start a coffee shop that would further connect it with the poor in the neighborhood. St. John in Westminster received an initial $25,000 to create an interactive children’s Catholic museum.

Julie St. Croix, director of the Office of Parish Renewal for the Institute for Evangelization, said it was a tremendous opportunity for parish staffs to collaborate. She said after the positive reaction from breakout sessions and the willingness for parishes to continue to share ideas that her team would be scheduling more gatherings.

“A lot of work and planning went into it and we are grateful for Nativity’s hospitality and their many volunteers that made the day run so smoothly,” St. Croix said.

“From the responses we’ve received about the day, it seems people learned a lot from each other in the breakout sessions,” she said. “So we want to go deeper with regional follow-ups.”

Barbara Austin, director of evangelization for St. Mark in Fallston, attended Pastoral Staff Day with leaders of her parish. She was grateful for the opportunity to share ideas and meet others working in the same field from other parishes.

“It was a beautiful day,” Austin said. “I especially enjoyed getting a chance to meet Deacon Keith Strohm in person since I’ve read his book and followed him.”

Email Gerry Jackson at gjackson@CatholicReview.org

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