GoodNewsPeople
GoodNewsPeople is a dynamic, parish-wide faith formation program that explores and deepens the call to discipleship.
Registration is no longer required. The GoodNewsPeople program materials are self-contained. Each facilitator will need a facilitator binder and each participant will need a participant binder.
Engage in your Catholic faith
Each session incorporates Sacred Scripture, inspirational readings and reflections, Church teaching, stories of faith, and the cultivation of virtue.
Inspire Mercy
Participants explore the possibilities of a faithful commitment to be “good news to the poor.” It is an opportunity to explore the message of Christ and proclaim Christ anew.
Open your hearts to a greater Love
Through the witness of Jesus in the Gospels and everyday people who have chosen the path of love, the program kindles new passion and engagement in the Church’s mission to be Good News.
GoodNewsPeople inspires us to share our collective wisdom and share in leadership. It helps create vision and encourages us to let the Holy Spirit guide us as best we can. It challenges us as a parish community to take seriously Jesus’ mission of bringing Good News to the poor.
– Fr. Charles R., Claremont, CA
Program Overview
GoodNewsPeople is designed for multiple small groups in a parish. A coordinator organizes the effort for a parish, and each small group is facilitated by two co-facilitators.
Sessions
GoodNewsPeople includes fourteen 2-hour sessions, broken into two seasons of seven sessions. Each session includes prayer, lectio divina, dialogue, and sharing Good News Stories.
Resources
Participants purchase a binder containing the readings and questions with space for journal-writing. The DVD offers more heart-opening stories of “good news people”. The most important resource is the community formed through this process.
Immersions
Focusing on the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, an Immersion Experience makes the connection between love and justice by sending participants to places in their community where faith, hope, and love in action are alive.
Unique Components
The Kick-off and Good News Gala frame the process and bring all GoodNewsPeople participants together. These events offer the opportunity to celebrate community, both within the parish and expanding beyond its confines.
GOODNEWSPEOPLE TESTIMONIALS
What They’re Saying
Tim S.Harlan, IA
Helen O.Seattle, WA
Richard N. and Gayle N.Melbourne, FL
GoodNewsPeople was a booster shot for the personal faith journeys of parishioners. Parishioners have a deeper connection to the parish. They have the encouragement they need to go out and serve and are inspired to do something, both inside and outside the parish.
– Deacon Don W., East Aurora, NY
Affordable Pricing for Groups
Buy Materials for your Parish
Each Facilitator will need a facilitator binder ($25 each) and each participant will need a participant binder ($15 each).
All materials are self-contained – no materials are online.
Program Includes:
Comprehensive materials that outline program coordination
Kick-off and GoodNews Gala
Immersion Guidance
Direct access to program staff for support
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of commitment is recommended from the pastor and the church?
Full support of the pastor and parish staff can make this an exciting, enriching, momentum-building experience for your parish community. Such a commitment includes the following:
- the pastor’s buy-in (promotion from the pulpit and invitation to parishioners)
- promotion and implementation of the program in its entirety
- facilitators to lead small groups
Who would benefit most from this program?
This program is a holistic Catholic adult faith formation program focusing on discipleship, different from the more intensive justice-oriented JustFaith program. It is designed for people who have never completed JustFaith.
Those who want to explore their call to discipleship within the context of a small faith-sharing group would be ideally suited for this program. Those with a long involvement in social ministry find that the program refreshes their work and re-energizes them. Those who are newer to social ministry or unfamiliar with it find that they learn a great deal and also deepen their spirituality.
How can people who have completed the JustFaith program fit into GoodNewsPeople?
People who have completed the JustFaith program would make great facilitators for GoodNewsPeople. The program is newer than JustFaith and there is no redundancy between the two programs. People who have completed JustFaith could also be connecters to other JustFaith Ministries programs for those who are interested in continuing further in their journey.
What is required of facilitators?
Facilitators are not expected to be the expert or “teacher” with all the answers.
Guided by user-friendly materials and with support from JustFaith Ministries staff (as needed), GoodNewsPeople facilitators:
- gather materials, coordinate logistics, and prepare to facilitate a session
- express a genuine interest in the social mission of the Church
- are capable of overseeing a group conversation
- are attentive to the needs and energies of the group
JustFaith Ministries provides both an online facilitator training and a meeting template for an in-person training for all facilitators in a parish. This in-person training is highly recommended, particularly if many facilitators are new.