Tuesday, May 27, 2008

This Week's Parish Media Liason Post

Make the Connection...using new media to strengthen your connection to faith!

This week my pick is Grace Before Meals (http://www.gracebeforemeals.com/).

This fantastic resource was started by Father Leo Patalinghug, a cool, young priest, in 2003 and has grown into a worldwide movement! According the website Grace Before Meals "is centered on one fundamental concept: the simple act of creating and sharing a meal can strengthen all kinds of relationships". Father Leo has been busy producing a book, video podcasts, a blog and even a pilot for a TV show endorsed by PBS.
GBM website goes on to say that "Research shows that having frequent family dinners can reduce the susceptibility of teens to risks like teen pregnancy, smoking, drug use and depression. And these benefits don't just apply to traditional families or people with kids. Stronger families foster stronger communities, and that’s the goal we're striving for–one meal at a time".
Check out the website to view videos, get recipe ideas and learn more about the Grace Before Meals ideas!

If you have questions or suggestions about "Make the Connection", feel free to contact me!
Peace of Christ to you!
Kerry
PS I highly recommend starting with the videos on creating liturgically colored sauces. The "green/ordinary time" sauce is anything but ordinary! YUM!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

This week's Parish Media Liason Post

Make the Connection...using new media to strengthen your connection to faith!

This week my pick is a movie!
Grab someone you love, some popcorn and watch this great film!

Last year a new film company called Metanoia Films, filled with the desire to create movies that make a positive difference, released it's first film: Bella. It quickly gained numerous, prestigious awards such as the People's Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival, Best Film and Best Actor from the 2008 MovieGuide Awards and a distinctive honor from The Smithsonian Institute. This week it was released on DVD.

Recently, Eduardo Verastegui, the actor who plays Jose an international soccer star in the movie, was interviewed on the Today show. You can still see this interview at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y04HMaC5kT0

Check out the trailers at http://www.bellathemovie.com/ or buy the movie and enjoy! It is PG 13. There is no profane language, gratuitous violence or inappropriate relationships just some serious subjects. My 14 year old and I HIGHLY recommend it!

If you have questions or suggestions for"Make the Connection", feel free to contact me!
Peace of Christ to you!
Kerry KMadden445@aol.com

PS Interested in new media? Want to learn how it can be used to share, learn and grow our Catholic Faith? Join the Catholic New Media Celebration on June 22 in Atlanta GA. check out http://celebration.sqpn.com/ for details.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Parish Media Liason Post

For Sunday May 11, 2008


"Make The Connection"...using new media to strengthen your connection to faith!

Happy Mothers Day!

In honor of this special day, my "Make the Connection" pick this week is http://www.catholicmom.com/.

Creator of this site, Lisa Hendey says: "Welcome to CatholicMom.com, a web site for sharing and learning about parenting and faith issues. Please stop by our new Catholic Mom Blog and share your comments and ideas. Check out our new Catholic Moments Podcast as we discuss faith and family and share interviews with authors, musicians, and others just like you who are looking to live out their faith".

I listen to Lisa's podcast regularly and love her wisdom, inspiration and special guests! Some of Lisa's recent podcast guests have been Maura Weiss, author, mom and wife of football's Charlie Weiss; musician and mom Jenny Klement; author and mom Regina Doman and more! On Lisa's recent podcast #47 I called in to share about our "Make the Connection" part of the bulletin. Listen for me as I call in with regular updates as Catholic Parish Media Liaison.

Peace of Christ to you!
Kerry Madden Parish Media Liaison
Kmadden445@aol.com

Friday, May 2, 2008

Pray extra on Sat for Special Funeral

This post from Father Frank Pavone is very sad and disturbing. It is about abortion.
It is worth a read but I wanted to provide the link and not the actual letter as it is hard to read...

If you just want to pray on Sat for the souls of the preborn babies whose funeral will be held tomorrow, please do, even if you can't read the article from Father Pavone.

http://www.priestsforlife.org/columns/columns2008/08-05-05-no-ordinary-funeral.htm

If you know someone who is need of healing because of an abortion. please visit http://www.rachelsvineyard.org/

Caring for God's gift of the earth

Last week I saw National Geographic's latest episode of Strange Days on Planet Earth. It shared how many of our daily choices negatively effect the environment. It had many great suggestions on how we can make a positive impact on the environment.
Step One: BRING YOUR OWN BAGS to the store....

Check out the program http://www.pbs.org/strangedays/ to learn more.

When we pray the Our Father. we ask that His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven...
Let's work together to treat His creation with as much reverence and awe and love as He inspires in us.