our mission is to enkindle the fire of faith in catholic men & women and those who are curious about what Catholics believe and do.
The word “enkindle” means to set afire, to incite, rouse, to make luminous and glowing. In the Prayer to the Holy Spirit, we ask the Holy Spirit to enkindle in us the fire of his love.
Our goal is to help Christians become believers of authentic passion, people on fire, filled with a zeal to know God’s will, to know His truth and to live with a sincere desire to obey God in all aspects of life.
We will fulfill our mission with a variety of resources, a frequent blog, podcasts featuring lively interviews, articles and booklets that can be downloaded and links to other resources helpful to Christian men and women.
“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!”
“Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!”
LATEST UPDATES
Families of Light
“All of you are children of the light.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:5
How a Family Begins
Deacon Tim Sullivan
Marriage is an intimate, permanent communion of persons. As described in Genesis 2:24, “a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body.” The union of the husband and wife expresses their unconditional gift of self to each other, their commitment to sacrifice themselves for the other.
In their unity, the married couple reflect God as a permanent communion of persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Through the union of the husband and wife, both made in the image and likeness of God, they share in God’s role as the Creator in giving life. If God blesses their union with children, the children also are made in the image and likeness of God and in the image and likeness of their parents. What the husband and wife see and love in each other is reproduced in their children.
Children bring into the world a specific, particular image and likeness of God. As stated in Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you.” God has created each of our children for a specific mission and purpose. From Psalm 139 we learn: “Your eyes foresaw my actions; in your book all are written down; my days were shaped, before one came to be.”
Children are entrusted by God to their parents with the great responsibility for helping their children discover and live out God’s unique will for their lives. Each child exists for its own sake and not to satisfy any parental need other than to love and sacrifice for the child.
“Like a fruitful vine your wife within your home; like olive plants your children around your table. Just so will they be blessed who fear the Lord.” Psalm 128:3
BLOGS
Our newest blog posting raises the issue of what essential characteristics of the Catholic faith are missing in the lives of many, many Catholics, not necessarily through any fault of their own. Deacon Tim identifies 3 such elements. Some parishes are working to rectify this situation, but there’s a lot of work to be done.
podcasts
Deacon Tim gave a talk on The Most Chaste Heart of Saint Joseph on June 8, 2021. He describes chastity as more than an aspect of sexuality. Chastity is presented as a function of personal integrity. The talk is especially challenging for husbands and fathers. It can be found on Youtube at https://youtu.be/Lcq7Gr097pY.
Is the Acts of the Apostles in the Bible purely historical? Is the Holy Spirit still with us? Do our Catholic parishes resemble the dynamic vitality evident in the earliest Christian community? What’s missing and what can we do about it? Deacon Tim and Cyndi discuss these issues.
RESOURCES/HOMILIES
Two recent and popular homilies:
Who Are We Missing? May 12, 2024 (The Ascension). The disciples weren’t ready for Jesus to leave them.
Tree Problems. June 9, 2024. Adam and Eve and a house divided. The source of the problem.
CATHOLIC BOOT CAMP
Deacon Tim has developed a series of from 4 to 6 presentations under the title, “Catholic Boot Camp.” They cover the foundations for living the full Catholic life, and include issues which most Catholics would not list on their job descriptions for being Catholic. The themes of the Boot Camp include the following: 1. Why Jesus? His Mission and Purpose, 2. The Church: Its Mission and Power, 3. The Person: Our Individual Identity, Mission and Purpose, 4. The Bible: Essentials Every Catholic Should Know, 5. The Call To Be Disciples and 6. Evangelization Catholic Style. So far Deacon Tim has presented the Catholic Boot Camp at St. Bernard Church in Tulsa, Saint Mark Church in Pryor, Oklahoma and Saint Joseph Church in Muskogee, Oklahoma.
“Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.”