Ecclesial Movements and Communities - Abridged Second Edition: Origins, Significance, and Issues

"This Abridged Second Edition has been prepared especially for the one-day national gathering planned for new ecclesial movements and communities on August 9, 2014 at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Maryland. This event is entitled:
They Were All Gathered Together - A Celebration of Movements & New Communities in the U.S. in Service of the New Evangelization.

In 2008, Bishop Sam Jacobs, a long-time member of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, invited national representatives of several movements to consider a possible collaboration on a national scale. Cursillo, Focolare, the Neocatechumenal Way, and Worldwide Marriage Encounter all immediately responded positively. Others joined them over the years, participating in conference calls and personal meetings. This group was ultimately called, 'Catholic Ecclesial Movements and New Communities in the U.S. in Conversation.' It has held receptions, a luncheon, and a workshop for U.S. bishops during their November meetings in Baltimore each year.

It is our hope that this book will enable many to learn more about this important phenomenon for the Church in the U.S. in the 21st Century. It will also give the grassroots membership of our communities the possibility to become more familiar with one another. We encourage readers to study the various websites indicated in the Appendix called Listing of Movements and New Communities at the end of this book. We also include short summaries provided by the following movements: Arise International (Caritas in Veritate International), The Catholic Charismatic Renewal, the Cursillo Movement, the Focolare Movement, the Neocatechumenal Way, and Worldwide Marriage Encounter. May this new edition lead to a greater commitment to our own path of holiness, the communion among us, and the evangelization of society."

Catholic Ecclesial Movements and New Communities in the U.S. in Conversation
From the Introduction to the Second Edition