Living Gospel Inclusivity and Empowerment Now- https://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2025/10/rev-dr-bridget-mary-meehan-arcwp-chat.html
Will you Stay with Me
When the Saints Go Marching In.
Come be beside us/Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/www.arcwp.org/videos/1010106395710192/
Cohort begins April 6, 2022 at 1PM EDT
Enroll Now: https://www.globalministriesuniversity.org/application
Facilitator: Dr. Bridget Mary Meehan
Dr. Meehan is a co-founder of People’s Catholic Seminary (2017) and Global Ministries University (GMU) 1981. She teaches courses in contemporary theology and spirituality online.
http://pcseminary.teachable.com/ https://www.globalministriesuniversity.org/
Course Schedule:
(Each session will begin at 1PM Eastern Time and will be one hour in length. Course material is on PCS/Teachable Interactive Platform )
April 6: Prophetic Ministry of Jesus and Challenges today
April 13: Reproductive justice, Pro-Choice and Pro-Life as human rights
April 20: Peace-building and non-violence,
April 27: Discrimination Based on Racism, Sexism and Homophobia
May 4: Environmental Justice
May 11: Economic Exploitation
https://www.yahoo.com/news/catholic-church-baptism-crisis-manufactured-230107863.html
"Father Andres Arango resigned from the St Gregory parish church in Phoenix earlier this month after diocese leaders discovered he had mistakenly used the phrase “we baptize you” instead of “I baptize you” for years.
His error means that countless baptisms – an irrevocable requirement for salvation in Catholic theology – will have to be performed again. And some churchgoers could find their marriages are not recognized.
“An invalid baptism … invalidates any subsequent sacraments, especially confirmation, marriage, and holy orders,” the diocese of Phoenix said in a webpage intended to answer parishioners’ questions. "
My Response: Hierarchical Rigidity +Medieval Theology = a Pastoral Disaster by Bridget Mary Meehan
According to traditional Catholic beliefs, the members of the Church are the mystical Body of Christ on earth, and therefore, the word "we" is more appropriate than the word" I " in the Rite of Baptism.
Bishop Olmsted's demand that using the correct words in the ritual makes the sacrament valid is not supported in the Bible.
Baptism in the name of Jesus and Baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit both appear in the New Testament.
Theologian Joseph Martos points out that the meaning of the ritual does not come from the words of the ritual but from the people who participate in it. (Deconstructing Sacramental Theology, Reconstructing Catholic Ritual, p. 254.)
The CDF officials and Bishop Olmsted should have reflected on the example of Jesus in the Gospels. On one occasion he violated the law to heal a person on the Sabbath, and criticized the religious authorities for following the letter of the law and ignoring the spirit of the law.
My heart goes out to the hundreds/thousands of people who have been affected by this pastoral disaster. Fr. Arango did nothing wrong. His use of "we" instead of "I" reflects the insights of contemporary theology that the believing community is the celebrator of the sacraments.
It is time for Bishop Olmsted and the officials at the CDF to abandon medieval theology and, like Jesus, put the spiritual needs of the people first.
PCS 709 – Walking On God
https://pcseminary.teachable.
First cohort begins on Thursday, March 24, 2022, 7PM EDT
Walking On God is a program for parents and grandparents to use as they accompany children on the spiritual journey. It consists of four stories, each followed by prayer, conversation starters and suggested activities related to the theme of the story. It is an open-ended program and the age, developmental stage, and interest level of the children will determine how deeply they want to explore the story and which activities they (and their adults) want to choose. Come join the adventure as parents, grandparents, and other adults walk with the children in their lives through words and action!
Program Facilitator: Rev. Dr. Denise Hackert-Stoner
Denise is a Roman Catholic priest, ordained by the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests. She is an avid naturalist and nature photographer whose spirituality is rooted in the natural world. Denise offers book study and meditative walking to her beloved Upper Room community in Albany, NY. Denise earned her Doctor of Ministry degree from Global Ministries University, where her doctoral project culminated in a program of accompaniment for children as they embark on their spiritual journey.
Program Schedule: (Each session will begin at 7PM Eastern Time and will be one hour in length)
Session 1: Thursday, March 24, 2022, Introduction to the program, and introduction to the first story and concept, "A Winter Tale: The Divine Presence in Creation"
Session 2: Thursday, April 21, 2022, Discussion of "A Winter Tale" and the experiences people had with it, and introduction to the next story and concept, "A Spring Becoming: Called to Become Our True Selves."
Session 3: Thursday, May 19, 2022 Discussion of "A Spring Becoming" and Introduction of "A Summer Story: Abundance"
Session 4: Thursday, June 23, 2022 Discussion of "A Summer Story" and introduction of "An Autumn Story: Forgiveness."
Session 5: Thursday, July 21, 2022 Discussion of "An Autumn Story" and sending forth with "Continuing the Story."
This program aims to provide tools for adults who wish to accompany the children they love on the spiritual journey. It is based on story-telling, prayer, conversation, and activity. The four stories in the Walking on God series are each representative of a spiritual concept. Each is followed up by prayer, conversation starters and suggested activities meant to lead to lived experiences related to the theme of the story. There is approximately one month between sessions, and children and their adults may take as much time as they want to with each story, and with the activities. They can pick and choose the activities that are most meaningful, easy to access, and fun for them. They can choose to make up their own activities as well. If the story is loved, it can be told over and over again, without doing any of the activities at all. This is a very open-ended program, and the age, developmental stage, and interest level of the child will determine how deeply they want to explore the story and which activities they and their adults want to choose. You will notice that after the Follow-up Activities and Prayer sections of each chapter there is a Response page. Here you may share directly to the Teachable format any activities that your child particularly enjoyed, any conversations that may have come out of the story or activities, or how your child reacted to the story. You may also want to upload any pictures of drawings or projects you and your child worked on. This is meant to be a fun sharing page. No need to feel obligated to participate.
During our group sessions (see schedule above) participants will have a chance to share some of the activities they enjoyed doing with their child, what ideas and conversations were inspired by the story, and we will introduce the story for the next session.
You may access the stories and activities in a variety of ways. There is a pdf of the collection available for download. This pdf is complete with illustrations provided by children who have enjoyed the stories. Each session also includes a recording of the story covered in that session, recorded by the author. There is also a print version of each story in its particular session right in the Teachable format that can be read on the screen. This version does not include illustrations.
Walking on God is not a religious education program. It is not really about religion at all, but rather the spirituality at the core of religion. Ideally the program will play out at home, with children and adults engaging together in the stories and activities. However, there is nothing preventing an adult with a small group of children outside of the family group to take up the program as well.
I invite parents, grandparents, and other adults to sit with the children in their lives and enjoy the stories. See where the stories lead, and follow their paths, trying out some of the conversation starters provided or those that you and your children think of on your own. See if some of the activities are appealing to you and immerse yourselves in those activities. You and your child may never refer to the Holy One while building a bird house. But perhaps later, when you hear baby birds chirping happily from inside the house you built together you may wonder at the Divinity that called the baby bird out of its egg. You may wonder how that same Beloved One calls flowers out of the ground after a long winter. How the child is called eac-h day to joy and gratitude. I hope that these experiences of story, conversation, and activity are fun and engaging, and that they introduce the language of spirituality for children and their adults. ::
