“YOU WERE NOT MADE FOR COMFORT; YOU WERE MADE FOR GREATNESS” – POPE BENEDICT

A call to battle

Into the Breach

BE NOT AFRAID!

Along with reading and studying the document, engaging personally and as groups of men in the spiritual battle and struggle for virtue and excellence, and developing the interior life of prayer needed to live fully as a Christian man, Bishop Olmsted is urging a MOVEMENT in Christian engagement on several fronts—dealing with cultural breaches that are in great need of courageous engagement. 

This list is not exhaustive, for much needs to be done, but these would be an excellent beginning:


A Movement of PARISH EVANGELIZATION OF MEN (ideas include)

1. This should include quarterly or monthly larger gatherings of men with Pastor or other priest or deacon, also led by well-formed laymen for evangelization and formation (key areas needed for formation include: the Mass, the Catechism, Apologetics, Virtue, etc.)

2. Encouraging of small fellowship groups of Catholic men to build friendships

3. An annual retreat for men of the parish

A Renewal of Masculine EDUCATION: Education literally means “to lead out”—an educator leads a person out of self-absorption and mediocrity into a fuller understanding of Truth, Goodness and Beauty as well as technical competence and skill. There is now a particular failure in postmodern Western culture to lead boys to truly virtuous, to be “Men for Others”. Well-developed father and son formation in the Faith and in other areas of knowledge as well as outreach to young men and boys whose fathers are absent are crucial needs at this time.

A Renewal of the ARTS: There is a great need to develop schools of formation and community for Christian artists who truly seek to bring beauty to the forefront, whose gifts are honed and strengthened and humbly placed at the service of the Lord and who can make the beauty of the male/female distinction apparent to all, without the shortcuts often taken in poor art.

A Movement in PHILOSOPHY/THEOLOGY toward an adequate explanation of Sexual Complementarity: Now that the “gender ideology” has the world asking “Is male/female nature even an important category?” and this is impacting Western culture so devastatingly, the Church’s sons and daughters with the call to the intellectual battle must respond. A serious engagement with the meaning of sexual complementarity and development of our understanding of both the feminine and masculine genius must be engaged. Falling into “forms of machismo” as Pope Francis says, must be avoided in this important work of thought. A thorough review of the Scriptures, the Tradition and true scientific discovery will be necessary. Yet it is essential that this work is done, and where it is being done already, thank you. Have the courage to continue and engage!

• We’re here to offer encouragement and a challenge.
• A calling forth to every willing man: priests and deacons,husbands, fathers and sons, grandfathers and widowers, young men in preparation for your vocation.
• Each and every man.
• Step Into the Breach. Join us in the battle.

ARE YOU READY TO GO INTO THE BREACH?


Read more: intothebreach.org