Let the word of Christ in all its richness find a home in you. (Colossians 3:16)
CEF are pleased to be working with the newly created Home Mission Desk, an initiative of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales for the work of Evangelisation. The Desk is a place for sharing information, resources and ideas for spreading the Good News. A major focus for 2011 and 2012 is evangelisation opportunities associated with the legacy of the papal visit and the beatification of Cardinal Newman in September 2010. The Catholic Enquiry Office, which provides a bespoke service to people asking questions about the Catholic Faith, is being developed by the Desk as well. Non Catholics interested in finding out more about Catholic life and beliefs are invited to Life for Seekers; and everyone is welcome at the Home Mission Desk for documents for presentations, information leaflets and the monthly Home Mission Briefing. Many of these are also available in the News section of the CEF web pages.
Roots is one of the means in the diocese of helping resting Catholics to return to a fruitful faith journey within their parish. It is also a way for parishes to reach out to the many Catholics with whom they have no contact. It comes highly recommended by Bishop Thomas McMahon who writes that Roots “reaches out with sensitivity and care to those who are one with us in the household of the Faith, but for some reason are no longer committed.” CEF does not administer this initiative directly, but we are able to initiate contact with those who have experience with the programme. If interested, contact the CEF office CEF@dioceseofbrentwood.org in the first instance.
Here are several external links you might find useful and interesting. We have close associations with some of these groups and are merely aware of the work of others. If the Commission for Evangelisation and Formation is of interest to you, then perhaps some of these organizations will be as well:
The aims of the Catholic Biblical Association are to promote knowledge and use of the Scriptures. The web sites for the Catholic Church in England and Wales and for the Vatican are given. Fr Adrian’s Scripture Reflections are also available at Catholic East Anglia.
Alive Publishing publish not only the Take and Read series, and the Walk With Me booklets, but also Faith Today, a new Catholic magazine which is a joint venture between Alive Publishing and the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. The Catholic Truth Society is an independent publisher and charity who help people to understand and practice the Catholic faith. Both Alive Publishing and CTS are Official Publishers to the Holy See.
Most will know about the work of CAFOD, the very busy Catholic Agency for Overseas Development. Some of the events we promote as part of the pastoral deaf service come from CDA. Gavin Ashenden presents a 30-minute weekly look at the people and places which tell the story of Faith in England, featuring highlights from local BBC radio Sunday breakfast shows across the country. This new podcast from the BBC gives a snapshot of how the country is witnessing faith in action and what people are talking about from the thorny topics of the week to some of the more colourful characters who live in our communities.