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STEP Newsletter, November 2016
Bishops' Symposium Talks

Last week, several prominent US Bishops came to Notre Dame to reflect upon and share ideas about, "Reclaiming the Church for the Catholic Imagination."  His Eminence Donald Cardinal Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington, DC, spoke on Pope Francis, Fresh Perspectives on Renewal and the New Evangelization (youtube video).
Additional recordings and texts of these inspiring talks are available at on the McGrath Institute for Church Life website.  

McGrath Institute for Church Life

Robert P. and Joan McGrath made a $15 million gift to endow the Institute for Church Life. The institute is home to STEP, Camino, and many other programs.  John Cavadini, the Director of the newly christened McGrath Institute for Church Life added, “Thanks to the exceptional generosity of Bob and Joan McGrath, the institute is poised to become the pre-eminent source of creative Catholic content and programming for the new evangelization. Building on our legacy of connecting the Catholic intellectual life at Notre Dame to the life of the Church, the McGrath Institute for Church Life will continue to be a collaborative partner with Church leaders at all levels by providing the theological tools they need to address pressing pastoral problems.”  Read the University's announcement.
Saint John’s Bible Exhibition
“A Year with the Saint John’s Bible,” will be a series of lectures and interactive events coinciding with an exhibition of the Saint John’s Bible Heritage Edition in the Hesburgh Library beginning in January 2017. I n anticipation of the upcoming year with the Bible, Carolyn Pirtle considers the power of Scripture and art in the work of the New Evangelization in a Church Life article  The Word Made Beautiful: The Saint John’s Bible.

What are Participants Saying about Courses?

STEP and Camino continue to grow and serve more and more Catholics across the country and around the world. Participation in our October course session more than doubled from 2015 to 2016.  Course evaluations show over  96% of our participants would recommend a STEP or Camino  course to a friend. 

Here are a few comments from recent course participants:

"This is my first course and I was impressed with the organization and implementation of the material. The STEP program administration was excellent."

"Dr. Cavadini sharing his lectures added a dimension that I had never seen in 29 STEP classes. The value gained was immeasurable. Thank you."

"This was my first course with the ND STEP program and I was really impressed and would recommend it to anyone. I honestly can't think of anything else to say but well done ND!"

"At the beginning, I undervalued the chat sessions--this was my first STEP course--and I quickly grew to appreciate them as an opportunity to learn from my classmates, who had different (and sometimes much deeper) understanding of the material. They proved to be one of the richest experiences. I have neither complaints nor suggestions for improvement; this course exceeded my expectations and profoundly changed my faith."