Spiritual Formation Resources
Would you like to have access to on-line resources that offer opportunities to grow in Christian formation? Among other things, these sites offer various connections for defending the faith, researching in a virtual Catholic library, reading good books, and taking “time-outs” from our busy, crazy world.
Ignation Retreat In Everyday Life Want to know more about an Ignatian Retreat in Everyday Life? Ignatian Spirituality.com, a service of Loyola Press, offers some great articles and videos.
Classic Christian Books Mission is to build up the church by making classic Christian writings available and promoting their use. This free site invites us to use their library for research, study, or to simply read a good book.
Center for Catholic Thought Offers an audio program dedicated to the discussion of the contemporary Catholic Church from an Ignatian perspective. This series of podcasts are hosted by Dr. John J. O’Keefe and Dr. Wendy M. Wright, members of the theology faculty at Creighton University, a Jesuit, Catholic University in Omaha, Nebraska. All podcasts can be downloaded for free through iTunes.
Three Minute Retreats Need a break from a hectic or stressful day? You might want to take a three minute breather to refocus or center by going to this site offered by Loyola Press.
Jesuits Would you like to learn more about the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola? This site offers the largest collection of resources about Jesuits and Ignatian Spirituality on the web.
Daily Reflections and Online Retreat Experience Provided by Creighton University, this site offers reflections on daily Scripture readings.
Sacred Space This website, run by the Irish Jesuits, is another source for reflections on daily Scripture readings.
Word On Fire Bishop Robert Barron, author, speaker, and theologian, hosts this site which supports Catholic evangelical preaching, the bold proclamation of Jesus Christ as the source of conversion and new life. This ministry utilizes the tremendous resources of the Roman Catholic tradition—art, architecture, poetry, philosophy, theology, and the lives of the saints in order to explain and interpret the event of Jesus Christ.
Great Ministries
As we grow deeper in relationship with God and/or experience the desire to more closely emulate Jesus’ life and mission by serving others, especially the poor and marginalized, these sites may assist in discovering areas in which we might serve.
Catholic Relief Services This is a link to the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States.
Catholic Charities of Des Moines Catholic Charities offers many opportunities to serve the people of God. Check out their website for an opportunity that might fit into your desire to volunteer, peruse the services they offer, follow their blog, and note the ongoing events section.
Be Extraordinary™ (Be X for short) helps people with severe disabilities achieve goals through a partnership with InvoTek and caring partners and friends. In return, our clients use their talents and abilities to contribute to their community (we call this “giving forward”). Check out this site for giving opportunities and to share in some amazing stories of some very extraordinary people.
Church Resources
The Diocese of Des Moines, IA, where Emmaus House is located, offers several resources through which we might stay abreast of diocesan news and events. These sites offer the best opportunities to “stay in the diocesan loop.”
Catholic Diocese of Des Moines, Iowa Welcome to the main diocesan website, which offers links to diocesan news, departments, ministries, the weekly radio broadcast, In the Heartland with Bishop Pates, and the online diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Mirror.
St. Joseph Education Center St. Joseph Education Center serves as a Catholic adult education center for the parishes of the Des Moines, IA area.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) This USCCB website offers daily Mass readings with audio reflections, the beliefs and teachings of the Catholic Church, devotions and liturgy resources, social justice issues and actions, as well as guest blogs and columnists.