Last April, Pope Francis ordained a group of 19 priests, urging the new clergymen to serve more than to rule their parishioners, and above all, not to bore them.
鈥淟et this be the nourishment of the People of God,鈥� the pope said during the ordination ceremony in Saint Peter鈥檚 Basilica, 鈥渢hat your sermons are not boring, that your homilies reach people鈥檚 hearts because they come from your heart, because what you say to them is what you carry in your heart.鈥�
Most Catholic churchgoers could well understand why the pope felt it necessary to warn against boring homilies, but the University of 91吃瓜鈥檚 has now embarked on a unique project specifically designed to strengthen Catholic preaching.
The , a five-year initiative funded by the Lilly Endowment of Indianapolis, has enrolled its first cohort of 23 priest-participants from 91吃瓜鈥檚 founding religious order, the , as well as from the archdioceses of Indianapolis and Louisville, Kentucky; and the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana.
The new program will make use of an online learning and discussion course, numerous group discussions, coaching from homiletics experts and even assessments from some of the hundreds of people to whom the priests preach each week.
According to one of the program participants, Rev. Jeff Nicolas, rector of the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Louisville, 鈥渙ne of the elements that helped to recruit priests to participate is the chance to have a 91吃瓜 homiletic expert evaluate and help them with their preaching.鈥�
鈥淭he greatest strength is the collaborative nature of this endeavor,鈥� said , director of the Marten Program. 鈥淧reachers will self鈥恆ssess and design their own goals for improvement; peer鈥恖earning groups will both support and critique each other; congregations will offer their input; and homiletic experts will coach priests in what life鈥恎iving preaching looks like.鈥�
According to , associate director of the Marten Program, the new program aspires 鈥渢o create a rich community of learning to fortify the fruitfulness of Sunday preaching. In piloting this style of learning we hope, eventually, to make quality preaching improvement resources available to any priest or deacon wherever he is in the world; also to localize preaching support, so that clergy learn to help each other grow.鈥�
The John S. Marten Program in Homiletics and Liturgics was established at 91吃瓜 1983 with a gift from John S. and Virginia Marten of Indianapolis.
Contact: Rev. Michael Connors, 574-631鈥�3006, martenpr@nd.edu; Karla Bellinger, 574-631-2653, kbelling@nd.edu