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E-Exchange keeps Catholics up-to-date on evangelization

by Sister Susan Wolf, S.N.D.
PNCEA Executive Director

Sister Susan Wolf, S.N.D.

Throughout its 30 year history, the Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association (PNCEA) has published a variety of periodicals to keep Catholics up-to-date on the latest ideas and resources to carry out the Church’s evangelizing mission in North America.

From 1983-1986, PNCEA published Evangelization & Initiation, a free, bimonthly, six-page newsletter initiated by Father Alvin A. Illig, C.S.P., PNCEA’s founder and first director. From 1988-1989, PNCEA published Catholic Evangelization in the United States, a 48-page magazine with inspiring and practical articles by evangelization leaders from around the country. From 1989-1994, PNCEA sent free to every parish Evangelization Exchange, a single, yellow, legal-sized page with short, concise descriptions and contact information on current books, conferences, and programs for Catholic evangelization. In 1994, PNCEA returned to the newsletter format with the eight-page Evangelization Update which included short articles and features along with announcements. Evangelization Update continued until 1999.

In November, 2005, PNCEA went online to publish a new version of the free Evangelization Exchange newsletter that includes descriptions of resources, training programs, and conferences as well as short articles on current issues in Catholic evangelization. Evangelization Exchange also includes one or more downloadable handouts with activities that can be done at the local parish to increase evangelization awareness. Father Tom Ryan, C.S.P., director of the Paulist North American Office for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations in Washington, D.C., writes a monthly article which demonstrates how Catholic efforts in ecumenism and interfaith relations are an important part of the church’s overall evangelizing mission. Father Kenneth Boyack, C.S.P., president of PNCEA, provides a research-based “Fact of the Month” feature for each issue.

In October 2007, 151 readers completed a survey to give PNCEA feedback on Evangelization Exchange. Here are some of the findings.

About the respondents:

1. 30 percent serve in diocesan ministry; 70 percent serve in parish ministry;

2. More than 70 percent serve as professional ministry staff (60 percent full-time, 11 percent part-time); 22 percent serve as volunteers and about 5 percent are not currently involved in ministry.

About their experience and use of Evangelization Exchange:

1. The average reading time for respondents is 10-20 minutes;

2. 74 percent of these respondents download articles or handouts or both;

3. More than 70 percent use the information in the Fact of the Month feature (6.5 percent always, 64.5 percent sometimes);

4. More than 90 percent rated the length of the newsletter just right;

5. More than 90 percent rated E-Exchange as good to excellent with 75 percent rating it very good to excellent.

To the question “Why do you enjoy reading Evangelization Exchange?” PNCEA received these responses:

• It is the best and only real resource for evangelization. It is practical, user-friendly, and current.

• Articles are useful, practical, and have good information on the current state of things, especially inter-religious events.

• Your newsletter is one stop shopping for me. … I forward it or copy it and share an article or many times everything with whomever I feel will benefit. Thank you for all of your hard work. I look forward to each and every issue.

• It has valuable information and resources that I can use in ministry. I appreciate the attention to new resources and ideas of programs that are working. It stimulates my creativity.

Evangelization Exchange is published 10 times a year and is delivered via e-mail. Along with online meetings and courses, the PNCEA Web store, and the Online Forum Community for arch/diocesan leaders of evangelization, Evangelization Exchange is part of PNCEA’s new Web-based services.

To subscribe to Evangelization Exchange, PNCEA’s free online newsletter, visit this page on www.pncea.org. To view past issues of Evangelization Exchange, click on the Evangelization Exchange Archives button on the same navigation bar.

Read past Paulist Profiles here