Emily and Edmund welcome John Galvan, Vice President of Assessments at the National Catholic Education Association. John has served in Catholic ministry for many years and brings to the podcast a wealth of wisdom and fever for sharing the Catholic faith. Together with our host, he discusses the power of experiences, practical ways to share the faith in your home, and what’s giving him hope these days.
Shownotes:
(00:04) Edmund and Emily welcome you to this episode of Real+True’s podcast. They introduce the topic of this podcast, “Evangelizing Catechesis in Catholic Schools” and our guest. John Galvan. John is the NCEA Vice President of Assessments and has been in the ministry of Catholic Education for over 30 years. He is well-versed in Catechetics and what it means for our sense of belonging in life, in and out of the Church. He holds a B.A. in art, M.A. in practical theology, and an M.Ed. in educational leadership & administration. John shares the mission of Catholic education, “it's not a concept, it's an encounter with a person. It's an encounter with the living God through Jesus Christ.”
(05:55) “How do you encourage teachers to help form students within Catholic education while also knowing that some of it is just up to God's grace?” Our hosts and guests take time to wonder at the power of God’s grace and his specific plan of conversion for each soul. They talk about the many seeds that were planted in their hearts through Catholic education.
(11:27 ) Emily shares, “If you're involving students in those experiences, then it's gonna be seen as not just information, but more relevant to their lives.” The discussion covers the power of experiences in helping students encounter Christ. Emily and John share about their testimonies and how they came to encounter God, encounters that we built on their previous Catholic education. The discussion goes on to cover the issue of ‘relevance’ and how to bring students to an understanding of God in their lives.
(22:54) Practical ways to bring faith into your home and “creating that culture of encounter for students.” John discusses how he as a father shares his faith with his daughter, including praying with her before bed. He discusses how many children evangelize their parents and often families grow together in the faith if the children are engaging their faith in school.
(27:07) ‘What excites you about the future of Catholic education?” John shares the hope he has to be seeing ministries like Real+True share the Gospel and bring the light of the Catholic faith to our world. He shares that the Church has changed in his lifetime and is growing and that brings him hope.
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