Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Mike and Dave give practical advice about how to get over that awkward feeling and share the Faith BOLDLY. Telling someone the good news about Jesus isn’t hard ... if you really, truly believe it. You’re not imposing your arbitrary morality and spirituality on someone, you are proposing to them the truth of God’s love for them and their elevated status as creatures made in the image and likeness of God. Like Mike says, “If you discovered the cure to cancer, and you kept it to yourself–you would be a monster ...We have even greater news, but so often we keep it quiet.” Mike also gives solid advice to a listener who asks about how to talk to her husband, who is a Muslim, about Christianity. Check out the shownotes at ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow to see practical tips on how to be BOLD when you share the Faith.Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Mike and Dave answer your questions about how to get programs going at your parish, how to share the gospel with fallen-away family members, and how to invest in Catholic evangelism as well as catechesis when funds are short. Snippet from the Show “You have a mission as a layperson ... To not proclaim Jesus Christ and just wait for a priest to do it is a fundamental corruption to your baptismal dignity. Christ is inviting you on this mission. You don’t need anyone else’s permission.” Listener Questions: “My priest isn’t into evangelization, what do I do?” “I have three children, none are truly evangelized, except my oldest daughter who is now evangelical, but ‘at least she has Jesus.’” “I am a DRE who got caught up in the catechesis game. I now want to invest in evangelism, but am at a poor parish.” Resources mentioned: Christifideles Laici, Chapter 3 The Great Adventure Bible Studies No Greater Love by Edward Sri The Life of Christ by Rev. Fulton Sheen To Know Christ Jesus by Frank Sheed Radical Communities by Michael Gormley Redeemer of Man by Pope St. John Paul II Catechesi Tradendae, 19-20 5 Practical Tips: Kerygma: Refresh yourself on what the kerygma is and isn’t. Community: Meet up for Eucharistic Adoration and drinks. Reading: Jesus Shock by Peter Kreeft. Intercession: Pray a decade of the Rosary every day for clergy who need conversion. Lent: Don’t let Lent pass you by, be intentional! Prayerfully consider what God wants from you this Lent. Take an hour and figure it out. Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Discover the nuanced dance of being in the world but not of it. Explore the tension between Christ against culture and Christ of culture, and learn how to navigate this in daily life. Get practical tips on spiritual reflection, community engagement, and the importance of public acts of faith. Delve into how personal virtue and a robust engagement with culture can revitalize evangelization. Embrace the call to show a distinctly Christ-like difference in your daily interactions.

Spiritual warfare is more than just an analogy. It is a reality. Quite literally, it is a struggle between two kingdoms—a battle between man and that which draws man away from God. This fighting and resisting evil is a common experience, yet many don’t believe they are at war. Therefore they come unprepared to fight the battle. Today Mike and Dave approach this topic from the viewpoint of evangelists. They discuss the Church Fathers’ understanding of spiritual warfare, the context behind the Church’s teachings on the subject, and practical ways you can resist evil and equip yourself with the best possible resources. Snippet from the Show “This is a battle. This isn’t an analogy, it’s not an allegory … We are actually at war.” Two mistakes we assume about spiritual warfare: 1) Looking at it as a personal faith issue, that the victory comes from you. 2) That this is just a small part of the Faith. Resources mentioned in the show Gaudium et Spes 1 Peter 8 Anima Christi 5 Practical Tips: 1) Pray the St. Michael the Archangel prayer 2) Rekindle your relationship with your guardian angel 3) Read about St. Joseph terror of demons 4) Read Colossians 1-2 5) Do a Marian consecration. There are many different forms.Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Do you want to evangelize in a post-Christian society? There are a few things you need to know. We all proclaim the same gospel, but we all need to use different methods. The methods that St. Paul used in Athens or Rome and the approach of a missionary in India, Southeast Asia, or parts of Africa will be different than someone who lives in a post-Christian society. There are, however, universal principles that stand the test of time. Today, Mike and David go through three ages of evangelization, explain how to overcome four hurdles in evangelizing, and also three different types of evangelizing. Snippet from the Show: “No matter how opposed someone is to Christianity, you have to understand that deep down, it is what they want. It is what they most desire. It is the answer to all their questions.” SHOWNOTES: *5 Practical Takeaways: * 1) Read Evangelii Nuntiandi 2) Fast for someone at your parish 3) Pray and reflect on St. Augustine’s Prayer to the Holy Spirit 4) Read 2 Timothy 4 5) Write down and reflect on this quote “She exists in order to evangelize.” What parts of your life exemplify this? What parts do not? Resources Mentioned in this Podcast: Gaudium et spes Evangelii nuntiandi (Paragraph 9 and 80) Redemptoris Missio Podcast, This Cultural Moment Introduction to Philosophy by Daniel SullivanSupport Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Church teaching is an important part of our Catholic Faith. Today, Mike and Dave are going to show you how to incorporate the church into the kerygma. They explain how fellowship is not socializing and why the Church comes before the individual in the plan of God. “Our love for Jesus and for our neighbor impels us to speak to others about our faith. Each believer is thus a link in the great chain of believers. I cannot believe without being carried by the faith of others, and by my faith I help support others in the faith.” (CCC 166) Snippet from the Show: You have not given yourself faith as you have not given yourself life. The believer has received faith from others and should hand it on to others. (CCC 166) 5 Practical Tips 1) Meet someone at your parish that you have never met before. It can be as simple as introducing yourself. 2) Read 2Timothy 2. 3) Read CCC 176-184. 4) Pray for the staff of your parish all week long. 5) Look at the four steps of the kerygma below and compare them to your personal testimony. (You can also go to the shownotes on at ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow.) Pencil in what parts of your testimony line up with the kerygma. This will help you make the kerygma center stage of your testimony and not your personal story. 4 Steps of the Kerygma: 1) God has a plan for your life. 2) Sin interrupts that plan and separates you from God. 3) Jesus Christ died and rose so that you could be forgiven of these sins and be united to God in heaven. 4) Through faith and his Church, you can be united to God forever. Recommendations 1) Fr. Spitzer’s book New Proofs for the Existence of God: Contributions of Contemporary Physics and Philosophy 2) Rev. Timothy Keller’s book The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism 3) C.S. Lewis’ book Mere Christianity 4) Dr. Peter Kreeft’s book Fundamentals of the Faith: Essays in Christian Apologetics CCC #166Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

When evangelizing, there comes a moment in time when you will invite someone to completely give their life over to Christ and begin living a Christian life. How do you know what moment is right? What does the invitation look like? Why is an invitation to Christian life so important? Using Scripture, contemporary faith formation tools, and personal experience, Mike and Dave explain the sometimes subtle art of inviting someone to live a fully authentic Christian life. For more information visit ascensionpress.com/everykneeshallbow Snippet from the Show: “If you read the Gospels, you are going to see constantly that the one man who could have demanded, is constantly instead inviting.” Tips on Invitation: 1) Invitation should be gradual 2) Invitation should be compelling but not forceful 3) Invitation should be loving and gentle 5 Practical Tips: 1) Create one gathering of friends doing some activity. Invite someone who is on the “outside” of your group to take part. 2) Acts 10:34/43 Peter is preaching the Kerygma. Take it line by line and pray through it. 3) Meet one of your neighbors that you haven’t met yet. 4) Start your own group of intercessors. Ask one person to specifically pray for the people you will encounter and that you and others be open to the Lord’s words. 5) Go to Adoration for thirty minutes and pray for those specific people you will encounter and evangelize. Resources Mentioned: The Calling of Saint Matthew painting by Caravaggio Ananias Training from the Catherine of Siena InstituteSupport Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Mike and Dave, the hosts of Every Knee Shall Bow, take time to answer your questions and respond to your reviews. They also provide resource recommendations such as Alpha, Sherry Weddell, SEEK, and more! At the end of the podcast, they also provide five easy ways to observe effective evangelization in action! Snippet from the Show: The beautiful thing about our Catholic faith is that when you conform yourself to a celebrity...you lose yourself. But what Christ wants in conforming to him, instead of losing yourself, you actually gain yourself back, and become who you truly are called to be. Resources Mentioned on this Show: 1) Alpha the Catholic Program 2) Sherry Weddell and the Catherine of Siena Institute 3) Divine Renovation a book by Fr. Mallon and Ron Huntley 4) SEEK 2019 5) Culture Making: Recovering our Creative Calling a book by Andy Crouch 6) The Rubin Report: “A Bishop and a Rabbi Discuss Religion”, a YouTube video 5 Practical Tips 1) Open up your computer and see what churches or movements in your area are doing well with evangelization. 2) Read Culture Making: Recovering our Creative Calling by Andy Crouch 3) Pray for a specific priest that they might be able to communicate the gospel well 4) Watch “A Bishop and a Rabbi Discuss Religion” from the Rubin Report on YouTube. 5) Start an evangelization journal. Get a notebook dedicated for growing as an evangelist. Write about who you are praying for, mistakes you made, things you want to try, talks you have given, basically anything to do with evangelization. Write our practical tips and how well you did. This will help you grow as an evangelist. Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

The phrase “Physician heal thyself” (Luke 4:23) references the often forgotten truth that one must solve their own problems before attempting to fix the problems of others. Becoming a true Catholic evangelist requires more than just knowledge of the Faith, a certain style, or even success. Your life must reflect the fact that Jesus Christ is active, makes a difference, and has healed your heart. As an evangelist, you are held to a higher standard and your personal life needs to be a fitting witness to your evangelization. How can you do this? The answer is simple: prayer. Prayer creates a true Catholic evangelist because the Holy Spirit is the cause of conversion. Today Michael and David share ways you can incorporate prayer into your daily life and how that prayer will make you a true Catholic evangelist.Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)

Kerygma is a Greek word that means proclamation. We, as Catholic Christians, are called to share the gospel message as we evangelize: God loves you, has a plan for your life, but because of sin we have been separated from him, and the only one who can save us is Jesus Christ. Through our repentance and turning toward him we come back to life with him. This is the context in which all of our Catholic faith can be understood. In this episode, Michael and David provide a brief history behind the Kerygma, expound upon this basic gospel message, and give you five tips on how you can start proclaiming the gospel. Snippet from the Show For most of us Catholics, we think repentance is the thing you do in the confessional. We don’t realize that in the Catechism, it is repentance, the interior sorrow, that sends us to the confessional. 4 Steps of the Kerygma: God has a plan for your life. Sin interrupts that plan and separates you from God. Jesus Christ died and rose so that you could be forgiven of these sins and be united to God in heaven. Through faith and his Church, you can be united to God forever. Five Practical Tips to Help you Enter Into the Kerygma and Start Proclaiming it: If you do not have a vital relationship with Christ, start with Mark’s Gospel. Read it as straight through as you possibly can. Ask yourself as you are going through it: “What do the words and deeds of Jesus reveal to me about God the Father’s heart?” In the book of Acts there are eight different kerygmatic sermons that the apostles give. Prayerfully take one of them (we suggest Acts 2:14-36) and meditate on it. Write down in your own words the basic gospel message. Intentionally go and ask someone if they have some need in their life that you can pray for. Start to build a relationship with a non-believer by inviting them to do something that is mutually enjoyable. Support Every Knee Shall Bow (Your Catholic Evangelization Podcast)