Ana Kelly, President of ActiveParishioner.com and former Associate Director at the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), invited individuals to visit the site and to suggest how it can be even more valuable for Catholics as they seek to figure out how God makes a difference in their lives.
“The site was designed to meet the needs of individual Catholics,” said Kelly. “After six months of operating and providing resource information, we want to look towards the next phase of expansion. What would most help Catholics? That is what we are encouraging people to tell us.”
The website offers books for sale as well as many other resources for free. Books are grouped into relevant topics, such as decision making, careers, caregiving, parenting, children’s books, illness and disability, prayer, forgiveness, grief and mourning, God, miscarriage, science, interfaith/interchurch, and travel. There is even a special category for books written by bishops.
A wealth of Catholic resources is available on the site. Visitors can pray online, accessing daily Mass readings as well as daily meditations. They can read the latest Catholic news from the US and from overseas.
The site also contains key Catholic information. Items include:
• Comprehensive list of bishops’ conferences around the world, each with its own resources
• Up-to-
• Detailed listing of all accredited Catholic academic institutions offering ministry or theology degrees through distance learning
• Listing of all US bishops and dioceses
• Current church statistics
In addition, the website features a blog with articles on little-known Catholic resources. “What makes this site unique,” said Kelly, “is that it meets people where they are, while at the same time tapping into the vast wealth of great Catholic resources that exist. The website focuses on key questions and challenges that people experience, whether losing a job, becoming a parent, struggling with illness, yearning to somehow connect with God, or wondering how science and God can coexist. The website then provides the resources to shed light on these issues from a faith perspective.”
Take a few minutes now to complete the survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/