In May, we spent three weeks during the weekend liturgies looking at Intentional Discipleship (ID) through our “Be Intentional” preaching series. I hope that after this series we all have a good idea of what ID is about and why it is important to us as a parish community. Given the recent conclusion to the preaching series, I thought it would be helpful to republish a previous More News and Links article about ID that you will find below. I firmly believe God is speaking to us now and calling us deeper and deeper into this process of conversion so that we can grow as His faithful followers and help to lead others into this life as well.
There are two words that I need you to be familiar with: Intentional Discipleship (ID). You may have heard these words in a homily or read about them. Most of us have a good sense of what the word “discipleship” means in terms of one who follows Christ. However, ID takes things to the next level.
The great hero of ID is Sherry Waddell from the Catherine of Siena Institute in Colorado Springs. Over the last couple of years, some members of our staff (myself included) and parishioners have travelled to the institute to learn more about how ID can really transform a parish community. It is not another parish program. Rather, it is way of going about all that a parish does. Deacon Bob Troy, who has attended the institute, summed up ID best in this way: It begins with the idea of inviting people to open their hearts and minds to the possibility of developing a personal, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. The goal over time is to allow that relationship to grow to the point where the person consciously chooses to give themselves over to Christ as a disciple, putting their lives in Christ’s hands in faith, and using their unique, God-given abilities to work for the Kingdom of Heaven.
We can find many similarities between ID and the process of dating someone.
Intentional Discipleship Threshold | Dating |
Initial Trust: A person is able to trust or has a positive association with Jesus Christ, the Church, a Christian believer, or something identifiably Christian. Trust is not the same as active personal faith. Without some kind of bridge of trust in place, people will not move closer to God. |
A first date leads to another one and then to another one because you begin to trust the person and want to be with them. |
Spiritual Curiosity: A person finds him or herself intrigued by or desiring to know more about Jesus, his life, and his teachings or some aspect of the Christian faith. This curiosity can range from mere awareness of a new possibility to something quite intense. Nevertheless, a person at the threshold of curiosity is not yet open to personal change. Curiosity is still essentially passive, but it is more than mere trust. |
You continue the dating relationship and want to learn more and more about the person. You trust level increases in this person. |
Spiritual openness: A person acknowledges to himself or herself and to God that he or she is open to the possibility of personal and spiritual change. This is one of the most difficult transitions for a postmodern nonbeliever. Openness is not a commitment to change. People who are open are simply admitting they are open to the possibility of change. |
You are open to this person being a serious part of your life. |
Spiritual Seeking: The person moves from being essentially passive to actively seeking to know the God who is calling him or her. Seekers are asking, "Are you the one to whom I will give myself?" At this stage, the seeker is engaged in an urgent spiritual quest, seeking to know whether he or she can commit to Christ in his Church. |
The relationship is getting more and more serious. You want to know all you can about the person. You begin to ask the question is this person “the one?” You begin to ask if you will be able to commit to this person for the rest of your life. |
Intentional Discipleship: This is the decision to "drop one's nets," to make a conscious commitment to follow Jesus in the midst of his Church as an obedient disciple and to reorder one's life accordingly. |
You make the very conscious decision to marry that person which involves a reorientation of your life and a pledge to be with the person for the rest of your life. |