Four Ways Forward: Becoming an Apostolic Parish in a Post-Christian World

by Susan Windley-Daoust

An increasingly post-Christian world is forcing parishes to re-envision how they "make disciples of all nations" (Mt 28:19). Pastors and lay leadership must pivot to building mission-first parishes, equipped to proclaim the Gospel to those who have not heard it -- while the number of practicing Catholics falls with increasing speed. Parish leaders are hungry for programs and resources to help address these challenges. Yet no single model or program can suit every parish, and leaders are bogged down with options, many of which offer no clear goals or methods. In The Four Ways Forward , Susan Windley-Daoust, theologian and diocesan director of missionary discipleship, provides a road map to pastors and parish staff to make sense of it all. To become an apostolic parish, there are four effective models to choose from, each built on a distinct, necessary insight and method in the art of Every fruitful, joyful, evangelizing parish should embrace the insights and methods of at least three of the four models. This book not only describes each model, giving examples of how it is being used in parishes today, but offers a practical blueprint toward crafting a response to the post-Christian world, including notes on spiritual roadblocks that can get in the way. " The Four Ways Forward provides a winsome, robust, and, most importantly, spot-on way of seeing and understanding emerging models and principles of parish renewal, evangelization, and mission. Windley-Daoust has a gift for classifying and systematizing contemporary approaches to the New Evangelization at a high enough level to make them distinct and digestible, while also describing them with enough detail to make them eminently useful to leaders and practitioners working at the level of diocesan or parish application. This is, perhaps, one of the most important books on evangelization and renewal at this present moment. As an author, I am, frankly, jealous. As someone who works full time in the area of missionary renewal, I am SO grateful that this book exists." -- Deacon Keith Strohm, Executive Director of M3 Ministries and author of 5 Paradigm Shifts for Parish Renewal "Dr. Susan Windley-Daoust convincingly outlines practical pathways forward for the missionary renewal of the parish in a post-Christian, apostolic age. Her writing is accessible, her tone warm and engaging, and her scholarship deep and rich. She combines her years of practical experience in diocesan, parish, and academic settings to provide models that any parish or ministry can use to move more deeply into mission. A must-read for Church leadership!" -- Julianne Stanz, Director of Parish Evangelization and Discipleship for the Diocese of Green Bay, author of Start with How Everyday Disciples Will Renew the Church

208 pages, Paperback

Published October 31, 2022

About the author

Dr Susan Windley-Daoust, assistant professor of Theology at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota.

Dr. Susan Windley-Daoust received her academic degrees from Mary Washington College and Vanderbilt University. After teaching in the Theology department at the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) for five years, she has been part of the full-time faculty at Saint Mary’s since 2003. Her specialization is systematic theology, particularly theological anthropology and contemporary culture. She has recently published in America, Sojourners, and Homiletic and Pastoral Review. She has worked with the local Catholic Worker community for many years, and has served the Church as a spiritual director since 2009.

She lives in Winona, Minnesota with her husband and five children.

Reviews

[Father Aaron Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great stuff! She speaks very well to the needs of parishes and the world at large. Sadly, things get a little unclear at the end (ironically in the chapter about concrete examples of how to implement her ideas). However, the path she charts is definitely worth the effort.