“A new Catholic ministry aims to bring families together and bring a ‘taste of heaven’ into their homes,” Francesca Pollio Fenton reported for Catholic News Agency in a story this past weekend. “Trinity House Community Groups offer families formation, fellowship, and the tools needed to live out their faith and pass it on to their children. Parishes are able to create groups — also called ‘Heaven in Your Home Gatherings’ — which invite not only parents but also kids to get together.
Soren and Ever Johnson, the founders and directors of Trinity House Community, spoke with CNA about how they created these fellowship groups and what they hope families will take away from them. Soren explained that there are typically several obstacles preventing all-family gatherings at parishes: busy family schedules, overstretched parish budgets and staff, and the question of what a family can actually do as a ‘family event.’
‘We launched the groups to enable families and parishes to not only surmount these obstacles but also to pass on the faith successfully to their children,’ he said. “In today’s cultural climate, families need formation and support to be able to live out and pass on the faith. We started the groups to give busy families the help they need in a simple, attractive way that connects directly with their real-life situations.”
Read the entire Catholic News Agency story here.
As we journey through this summer and lead our children to deeper faith, we’re happy to share a few helpful articles here:
> In “Open Letter to Catholic Parents: You Are Vital to Kids’ Faith Formation,” Leonard DeLorenzo (OSV News) asks, “What do the most important spaces in our home say about what we consider most important?”
> “Scott and Kimberly Hahn: As in the Days of the Early Church, God Can Still Accomplish the Impossible” (NC Register) offers an insightful interview on evangelizing today. As Scott Hahn says in the interview, “I think the model of the family serves as a paradigm for how the Church can flourish nowadays.”
> “A Summer Bucket List for Catholic Families” (Catholic Mom) by Megan Swaim includes 20+ great ideas!
> In “Family Leader” in the current issue of the Arlington Catholic Herald, Soren invites brothers in Christ to consider how/if their “reactivity” is affecting their spiritual leadership in the home. Instead of a “vicious cycle of intense reactions,” Soren invites men to a “discipleship of ever-deepening freedom, intimacy, and integration,” following Christ our Peace.
> Are you discerning your possible role in bringing a Trinity House Community Group to your parish this fall? With the launch of our parish-based model, now you can! For $499, any parish can use this plug-and-play method (videos, discussion questions, downloads, etc.) to easily host 5 Gatherings for families in 2023-2024. Watch the one-minute trailer video and schedule a 15-min. call to learn more! Here’s our Calendly calendar.
As one couple said, “I think the biggest blessing from our Trinity House Community Gatherings has been the relationships we’ve developed…and having people to more intentionally live our faith with.”
Just a few weeks ago, we received an extraordinary invitation!
The Ortner Family Foundation stepped forward with a $25,000 match challenge to propel our Trinity House Community Groups launch. Will you prayerfully consider making a mid-year gift of $20, $50, 100, $250, $500 or more? Thanks to this challenge, your gift will be doubled. Thank you!
– Soren & Ever, together with the Trinity House Community Team
