School of Missionary Discipleship
The next cohort of the School of Missionary Discipleship Year 1 begins January 2024.
Vision
The School of Missionary Discipleship exists as a way for Catholics from around the diocese to deepen their faith in every aspect, so they can more fully and fruitfully respond to the diocesan vision of Lifelong Catholic Missionary Discipleship Through God’s Love.
Participants are deeply formed in their ability to engage in the work of the New Evangelization: to live and share their faith in Jesus Christ with those they encounter in their daily lives, according to the gifts God has given them.
Formation
The formation program is attentive to all four areas of discipleship formation: a thorough knowledge of Church teaching (intellectual formation), a deep personal prayer life (spiritual formation), an ability to interact with and accompany others (human formation), and a recognition of the personal call and empowerment to build up God’s kingdom (apostolic formation).
All areas of formation will be engaged throughout the multi-year program. Each year will have a specific focus of formation.
- Learning How to Pray and How to Teach Others to Pray – An exploration of how to grow deeply in prayer.
- Sacred Scripture and Church History – An overview of the story of salvation from creation to today.
- The Catechism of the Catholic Church – An exploration of Church teaching.
- Sharing your Faith – A practical introduction to talking with others about our faith.
Year 1 - Fall in Love, Stay in Love, Let Love Make All the Difference
The Office of Discipleship & Evangelization is excited to announce the launch of the School of Missionary Discipleship. The School of Missionary Discipleship exists as a way for Catholics from around the diocese to deepen their faith in every aspect, so they can more fully and fruitfully respond to the diocesan vision of Lifelong Catholic Missionary Discipleship Through God’s Love.
Foundations in Christian Prayer and Virtue
Overview:
Prayer is a personal relationship of growing intimacy with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Many Christians want to pray, know they should pray, have tried at different times to start a habit of prayer, but for a variety of reasons have difficulty entering into a more consistent habit of prayer or a deeper encounter with God when they do pray.
This 12 week series of formation will provide a great foundation to help those new to personal prayer, as well as those well experienced in personal prayer, to enter more deeply into their daily relationship with God. We will cover essential principles of relational prayer, specific methods of Christian prayer, the interplay of prayer and virtue, and an introduction to discernment of spirits. Together these elements will help participants of any background to “fall in Love, stay in Love and let Love make all the difference.”
Participants will additionally have excellent tools to help others begin and deepen a habit of personal prayer.
Requirements:
- We use a “flipped classroom” approach. Main teaching is available on demand a week before class meets. This will entail three to four short video presentations each week.
- Class will meet via Zoom on Thursday evenings.
- Class meetings are mandatory for participants. They will consist of discussion, Q&A, application, practical exercises, and deepening of the main teaching points each week.
Content:
The course has four main areas of focus
- Foundations of Christian, relational prayer
- Establishing the vision of prayer as a personal encounter of growing intimacy with God. Practical application of these principles in daily prayer. making relational choice in prayer. The role of Christian imagination in prayer. Dealing with distractions. The role of Ignatian repetition.
- Introduction to specific methods of Christian prayer
- Ignatian Meditation
- Ignatian Contemplation
- Lectio Divina
- Intercessory Prayer
- Liturgy of the Hour
- WRAP
- The Explosive Gospel
- The Examen Prayer
- Christian Virtue
- The call to supernatural virtue. Faith, hope and love as capacities for real, personal relationship with God. Prudence, temperance, justice and fortitude as concrete habits for living out our relationship with God in the situations of daily life. Emphasis how our growth in virtue necessarily depends on our growth in intimacy with God.
- Introduction to Discernment of Spirits
- What is discernment of spirits? Overview of the Rules for Discernment of Spirits Week 1. Application to personal prayer and daily intimacy with God. Ignatian repetition. Examen prayer and discernment of spirits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is this course for?
This course is for any baptized person who desires to grow in relationship with God through personal prayer, or who desires to be equipped to help others do the same. It is appropriate for ages 16 and up.
Cost:
$50 for registration. There will be optional suggested readings over the course, also the responsibility of the participant.
Reading Materials:
None are required. Certain articles will be provided. Additional optional reading materials will be introduced as the course progresses.
Prerequisites:
None
Is a prerequisite for:
- School of Missionary Discipleship years 2 & 3
- Prayer Mentor/Spiritual Director Training track of Missionary Discipleship
Additional Information
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at discipleship@sfcatholic.org or 605-988-3714.