London, England, Jan 19, 2009 / 23:34 pm
Bishop of Nottingham Malcolm McMahon, the prelate responsible for missions in England and Wales, recently urged parishes to make evangelization training a priority for 2009 and announced a new initiative toward that end.
“At this time of year many people make New Year’s resolutions. I encourage you to include ‘making time for evangelization training’ one of yours,” said Bishop McMahon, who chairs the Bishops’ Conference Department for Evangelization and Catechesis.
“To proclaim and share the faith is the reason that the Church exists - all of us, from the youngest to the oldest, lay, consecrated and ordained can play our part in home mission. Consider putting aside some time to learn how to evangelize more effectively; this is sure to bear fruit on many levels,” the bishop said.
The training initiative called “Fanning the Flames” is focused upon helping parishes establish Parish Evangelization Teams, a press release from Bishop McMahon’s office states. It is led jointly by the Catholic Agency to Support Evangelization (CASE) and Catholic Evangelization Services.