McGrath Institute Blog

For a second year, the McGrath Institute for Church Life launched a free online series entitled “Journey with The Saint John’s Bible.” Across six units, participants are invited to learn about the beauty of Scripture, art, and practices of prayer both ancient and new. 

Communication is essential to human life. Throughout our lives, we have come up with many ways to get our ideas across. One particularly powerful way human beings communicate is through art. Beauty speaks to all people, across all times and places. This makes it rich source material for catechesis. Thanks to the Church’s rich artistic history, ministers in faith formation can present teachings people often overlook in powerful ways. Here are some principles to help you consider how to incorporate art into your ministry.

Hard as it is to imagine, the season of Advent and the new liturgical year is just days away. As we are reminded each year, Advent is a season when Christians throughout the world rededicate themselves to waiting in hope. We anticipate the coming of Christ, the light of the world, who scatters the darkness of sin and shatters the bonds of death. We prepare to celebrate Christ’s coming in history at Christmas; we ponder the ways that he comes to us in mystery even now, especially in the Eucharist; and we look forward to his coming in glory at the end of time.

Looking for new ideas or resources to engage your faith or your ministry? Here are our weekly curated links, including offerings in each of the following categories: Prayer for the Home, Educational Opportunities, Resources (for ministers, educators, parents, etc.), and Flourishing and Fun.

I was recently asked what it was like doing the research for a book I co-authored about the stained glass windows at Notre Dame’s Basilica of the Sacred Heart. The words of the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz immediately popped into my head. “A while back, we were walking down the yellow brick road…” Researching and writing the book had its share of unexpected tornados, witches, even flying monkeys, and sometimes the yellow brick road just fell off into nowhere!