The Clear Path
The Clear Path to Discipleship at St. Stephen the Martyr
St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic Church is a community for all to encounter Christ, know Christ, and proclaim Christ.
We are called to both deepen our own relationship with Jesus and tell others the good news of salvation. To become this community for all, we focus on four main phases in the process of becoming a disciple of Christ, keeping in mind that Disciples of Christ are always in need of all four of these directives:
- Welcome
- Love
- Faith
- Mission
Read below to understand further how our parish continues to invite others into deeper relationship with Christ.
In October of 2020, Archbishop Lucas unveiled what he was calling “The Big Goal”. The hope and directive would be that all parishes in the Archdiocese would become missional communities by 2026. These communities would be characterized and identified as having a focus on collaborative leadership, a culture of generosity and a clear path of discipleship.
Last fall we had an expose on what collaborative leadership and a culture of generosity looked like here at St. Stephen’s through the actions of a few parishioners.
Our last area of work is building a clear path of discipleship. In essence, how are we as a parish equipping people to become disciples of Jesus Christ and thereby living out the Great Commission of Our Lord, “Go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19) This is the most definitive statement that He made.
In a parish of our size, it becomes doubly important that we are equipping people and helping to accompany them into a faithful AND fruitful relationship with Jesus. It can be very easy for people to fall through the cracks and feel to like they’re doing this alone.
Through a great deal of discernment, advice, and work with a handful of parishioners, we have arrived at what our clear path of discipleship looks like here at St. Stephen’s.
The clear path of discipleship looks like this: Welcome (Emmaus Neighborhood Outreach), Love (Parish Retreat), Faith (Small Groups), and Mission (Reach One More).
Practically speaking, a person is welcomed into a larger community and the life of that community. In that life, they are offered an opportunity to meet Jesus and have a first time (or new) conversion moment. From there, one begins to walk with fellow disciples in small group meetings or similar Bible studies where there is a deeper experience of their faith and to prepare for a life of mission where they are further equipped to share their faith with others.
Over the next couple of months, there will be a series of articles in the parish bulletin and newsletter giving more understanding to how these are lived out. Remember, our goal is to help EVERYONE we meet know who Jesus Christ is and to know that He has a plan for their lives.
Our clear path is based on our mission statement AND the Eucharist – “the source and summit of all Christian life…” (CCC1324) as our foundation. There is the beautiful story in Luke’s Gospel where we read about the Risen Christ appearing to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and how He encountered them. “…and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.” (Luke 24:35)
This really is a special time in the life and history of St. Stephen the Martyr. We are growing, almost daily, and people across the city are hearing about the dynamic life that they are experiencing here within our community.
As a parish, we have continued to see the life of the community expand and grow at a level that would suggest that the Holy Spirit is at work here. Masses are full (to the point where we use the welcome space for additional seating), our school has a waiting list for enrollment, we have had several people being received into the sacramental life of the Church through Baptisms, Confirmations, and weddings. People across the city are hearing about the great things happening here at St. Stephen the Martyr and they’re ending up on our front door!
All that said, imagine being a newcomer to the community. You just moved into the area… Still trying to remember your address… Find the easiest route to the grocery store… It can be overwhelming and quite frankly, intimidating.
Our challenge is to make the barrier of entry to the life of the parish low. We are a parish for all!
In chapter 12 of Mark’s Gospel, we hear the scribes asking the Lord what the greatest commandment is. I love the second part of His answer, “…love your neighbor as yourself.” What if He really meant this? Love your actual neighbor; the one that lives next door to you! Over the past decade we have seen a great challenge in the way that we live “connected” to others and with what the world experienced during the COVID years this is even more of a challenge. People express loneliness and isolation more now than ever.
The first part of our Clear Path is focusing on just that; becoming a good neighbor again. This is our effort with Emmaus Neighborhood Ambassadors. We currently have a couple of families that have volunteered to champion this effort in a few neighborhoods close to the parish. They have been asked to become more intentionally involved with the families around them whether they are parishioners or even Catholic. We are currently looking for other parishioners to take up the call to help us with this effort. You don’t have to be versed in Catholic doctrine or apologetics. It could be as simple as taking over a plate of baked goods, or hosting cocktails in your driveway. You just need to have a heart for God and for His people. I’d like to challenge the ENTIRE St. Stephen’s parish community to remember what it was like to be here for the first time and how it may have felt being on the outside looking in. If you allow your hearts to be moved, we should talk!
“Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Hebrews 13:1-2
The next step of our Clear Path surrounds a moment of encountering love.
For many people, there have been moments where they have encountered
Jesus Christ and His love and mercy. This could be while attending a small
group Bible study, an impactful conversation with a family member, or even a
simple parish function.
Jesus continues to exhaust all efforts to win our hearts! In the fourth chapter of John’s Gospel, we see Jesus meeting the woman at the well. Without going too far into Bible world, the facts are the woman is no longer part of her community, she’s carrying heavy burdens, and Jesus offers her Himself, Living Water. A moment of impact… A moment where her world collides with mercy. Her life is changed forever. In fact, she goes on to say.
“Come and meet the one who told me all that I had done…”
Our parish retreat is designed to arrange for an encounter just like this!
I’m not saying that people are going to be coming in droves or that lives are
going to be lived radically different from attending the retreat. But what
if…? What the parish is offering is this – a day and a half experience where you
can come together with your friends at St. Stephen’s and encounter the Lord in
a new way and allow yourself to be encountered by Him. Allow your life to be impacted in such a way that you leave your burdens
behind forever.
The next Parish Retreat, Unfolding Your Journey, is scheduled for November. Please plan to attend!
Living life in West Omaha AND in a large parish can present its challenges. There is always a demand for many resources, and the demand seems to be, at times, unrelenting. We juggle family, work, and outside activities. At times, it seems like this might be a losing battle. We endure the fight with the hope that we can make it to the day of rest on Sunday. Then we meet Sunday with more challenges and demands for time – time that doesn’t seem to be there. We begin to miss the order of life. The question arises, “Am I the ONLY one going through this?”
We need people in our lives that can help to bring a sense of order. People that are willing to help shoulder the burden and to give aid and assistance when life gets hard; or even when we need to celebrate.
If you look at the stories in Scripture, there are number of examples of small groups of believers who lived a shared life. The prophet Daniel formed a small group community with his friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. This group would spend time in prayer and study and would provide mutual support and encouragement during their time of captivity. In the second chapter of Acts, you can see how, following the Ascencion, believers would meet in small groups to study Scripture, break bread, pray, and spend time in fellowship. The greatest example of this is that of Jesus and His 12 disciples. He shaped and changed the world by taking these men a going camping with them for three years!
So too with our small group efforts here in the parish, we hope for the same.
This could look like an early Friday morning book study with your friends. A gathering of people to pray the Rosary followed by a shared meal. It could also look like a small group pilgrimage to some place local or abroad.
There is power, transformation, and intimacy in small groups!
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Acts 2:42
The last step of our Clear Path is essentially two-fold, and it focuses on a preparation for missionary discipleship.
Over the course of our Clear Path of discipleship, there has been an intentional focus on individual experience with regards to faith life. There have been specific efforts dedicated to developing and deepening one’s own relationship with Christ to give the opportunity to respond to the Lord’s command, “…go and make disciples…”
The first part of this two-fold step is developing an understanding and ability to notice what gifts have been bestowed on us that will help to further the mission of the Church; what are your charisms?
What is a charism? In the Catholic Church, charisms (from the Greek ‘charis’, meaning favor or free gift) are specific, supernatural graces or gifts that are given by the Holy Spirit to an individual or group. Their main purpose is to be used to build up the Church and serve the world. While the list is long, some of these could be leadership, teaching, healing, teaching, or wisdom. Using a tool that was created by the Catherine of Siena Institute out of Colorado Springs, one is able identify and understand the natural ways that the Lord has gifted you to serve His Church.
The second part of this step is designed to help you and equip you to have simple conversations that could lead to deeper conversations about your faith. We must remember that God is on a mission to reach one more person and His plan might include you to do that!
Through the efforts and design of the six-week program, Reach One More, participants are taken through sessions that help identify simple barriers to engaging others and give new perspectives or ways of looking at connecting with others. “When you boil it down to a personal level, sharing your faith can be weird, awkward, and uncomfortable. If you think it is uncomfortable for you, think about the person with whom you are talking!”
Ultimately, the clear path is a way for us to deepen our relationship with Christ and introduce Him to others. Some days we might feel like spiritual giants and others we may feel like our lives are spinning out of our control. In the end, the Lord will use our lives to bring others to Him, but we need to give Him permission to act.
“Let the Lord use you without asking for your permission.” St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta