Pastoral Staff Day • Ellicott City, MD • October 6, 2026
The Evangelizing Parish
What does it look like to become a parish where evangelization is not simply another program, but a way of life?
Kristin Bird (Burning Hearts Disciples) will join Ryan O'Hara (Better Preach) and Dr. Susan Windley-Daoust (The Mark 5:19 Project) for the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Pastoral Staff Day, a day of formation for pastors and key parish staff. Together, we’ll encounter the heart of the Gospel anew, recognize how God is already at work in our own stories, and explore how our unique charisms equip us to participate in his mission.
Through presentations, prayer, and reflection, parish teams will explore concrete ways to cultivate a culture of evangelization rooted in personal discipleship.
Share Your Story! Tell us about your experience of the Day.
Evangelization is not simply another parish program. It begins with people who have encountered Jesus Christ, can recognize and share what God has done in their lives, and are learning to respond to the particular ways the Holy Spirit has equipped them for mission.
The resources below are intended to help you continue what we began together at the Pastoral Staff Day.
The Kerygma: Receiving the Good News
Before the Gospel is something we proclaim to others, it is Good News we continually receive ourselves.
During the Kerygma Experience, we moved through five movements of the Gospel—not simply as ideas to understand, but as an invitation to encounter again what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.
The kerygma is not something we graduate from.
The Good News we are called to proclaim is the same Good News we need to receive again and again.
Continue Exploring the Kerygma
What Is the Kerygma?
Go deeper into the heart of the Gospel and why the Church places the first proclamation at the center of evangelization. Explore the Kerygma
The Five Movements of the Kerygma
Return to the five movements we prayed with today and use them for personal prayer, reflection, or formation with others. Revisit the Five Movements
Learn to Share the Kerygma
Explore practical tools for proclaiming the Gospel simply and personally—in conversation, formation, parish ministry, and everyday life. Kerygma Tools for Parish Leaders
Proclaiming the Good News
Ryan O’Hara | Better Preach
Ryan O’Hara helps Catholics center their lives on Jesus Christ and become disciples who generously live and share their faith. Through speaking, consulting, and Better Preach, Ryan particularly equips Catholic leaders to communicate the Gospel clearly and lead people toward a response to Jesus.
Continue exploring:
Better Preach
Practical formation for developing and delivering Catholic talks that communicate the Gospel effectively. Explore Ryan O’Hara & Better Preach
How to Lead Evangelistic Moments
This episode of Ryan's podcast addresses both proclaiming the Gospel and helping people respond to it. Listen to How to Lead Evangelistic Moments
Sharing the Story of What God Has Done
Dr. Susan Windley-Daoust | The Mark 5:19 Project
Susan Windley-Daoust and The Mark 5:19 Project help pastors, parish leaders, and the baptized discern how to live the Church's evangelizing mission in a secular culture. Their work includes parish renewal, evangelization formation, consulting, retreats, and practical resources for becoming thriving, apostolic parishes.
The name comes from Jesus' words in Mark 5:19:
“Go home to your family and announce to them all that the Lord in his pity has done for you.”
That invitation captures the movement we explored today: recognizing what God has done and learning to share it with others. Explore The Mark 5:19 Project
Discovering Your Charisms for Mission
Charisms are gifts given for others.
The Holy Spirit does not equip every disciple in exactly the same way. Charisms are graces given to the baptized for the good of others, the building up of the Church, and the needs of the world.
Discerning our charisms isn't simply about discovering what we're “good at.” It can help us recognize the particular part of God's mission we have been equipped to serve.
And that can bring freedom:
The mission belongs to all of us. But that doesn't mean every part of the mission belongs to each of us.
Begin Discerning Your Charisms
Many Parts Ministries
An accessible process for Catholics to begin identifying and discerning their charisms. Explore the Many Parts Charism Assessment
Called & Gifted | Catherine of Siena Institute
A robust and theologically grounded process for individuals and teams to identify and discern their charisms. Explore Called & Gifted
You Already Have Gifts. The Question Is Whether You've Recognized Them
An introduction to thinking about charisms not merely as talents or parish volunteer roles, but as gifts of grace for mission. Read the article
From the Church
For those who want to go deeper into the theology behind today's presentation:
Lumen Gentium, §12
On the Holy Spirit distributing special graces among the faithful and making them “fit and ready” for the work of building up the Church.
Apostolicam Actuositatem, §§2–3
On the one mission of the Church, the diversity of ministry, and the gifts received by the faithful for service.
The Pastoral Conversion of the Parish Community, especially §§16, 28, 38–41
A particularly useful companion to today's conversation about parish mission: the whole People of God share responsibility for evangelization, each according to their particular charisms and responsibilities.
Read The Pastoral Conversion of the Parish Community
Keep Going
The question isn't simply:
“How are we going to do all of this?”
Perhaps better questions are:
What is mine to do?
Who has God placed beside me to do the rest?
