From C-PATS to O-CATs.

The development and growth of a local C-PATS group:

"Online Catholic Apologetic Teams” (O-CATs)  on the Web.

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The concept of "Online Catholic Apologetic Teams” (O-CATs) is an optional development of the C-PATS Mission and philosophy described on this website's About Us page. As I said on that page:

We meet in and around Natick, Massachusetts (about 20 miles west of Boston), where our Web Administrator lives. Our very informal membership resides in the Boston-Worcester, Massachusetts area, although we have been blessed to have other well-educated Catholics join the team from out-of-state, as well as from various English-speaking countries outside of the United States.

Those in other dioceses/countries who want to develop their own C-PATS social must determine the best size and distance, land-mass-wise, from which to build a C-PATS social.

C-PATS is focused on the social dimension of lay Catholics in the pew each Sunday. It is about meeting “new” people who have the same questions you do, but don’t yet have a human connection to touch base with. It is an addition to, not a replacement for, the fine work happening in many Catholic dioceses, with our focus being on apologetics.

In our current culture, this is important because many who call themselves “Catholic” have left the Church or just don’t go to Church anymore. Many times, they will have very good questions about the faith (and its practice) that you will be able to answer. Other church-going Catholics practice the faith but don’t really know it; that’s where you can help.

The keys are:

• a good knowledge of the Catholic faith, and
• people connections.

All Christians have a unique calling, especially Catholic Christians, but:

• What is Catholic Apologetics?

Catholic Apologetics is the ability to defend the Catholic Faith and Her Teachings publicly, clearing up misperceptions and misunderstandings about the faith and what She teaches, with charity.

Faithful, practicing, and well-catechized Catholic Christians who feel called to Catholic Apologetics (1 Peter 3:15) may also be called to continue what our group has done since the beginning of the internet era:

Replicating our unmistakably Catholic team
(Matthew 28:19, Mark 16:15-16, and Acts 1:8).

This will require faithful Catholics well-grounded in the Sacred Scriptures, doctrines, and practices of the faith. Though not necessary, having a Catholic apologist with a degree in theology, philosophy, faith-based studies, or pastoral education is a great asset.

The credibility of any Catholic faith team depends on the clerical personnel they work with. One where all representatives are loyal to the Magisterium of the Church.

In order to give you an idea of how our team started, allow me to share with you (paraphrasing the first four years) how our team started.

As a young cradle Catholic, I was raised the way most Catholics were: Going to Sunday Mass, receiving the sacraments, going to CCD, and developing a small prayer life.

I started solidifying my religious foundation when my brother, Mark, introduced me to a married Benedictine couple who were Oblates. This led me to frequent Sunday visits to St. Benedict Abbey in Still River, where I started making annual Holy Week retreats during the Lenten Season. During this time, I developed a faithfulness to popular Catholic devotionals like the Rosary, Brown Scapular, the Divine Mercy chaplet, First Fridays, and First Saturdays, and met like-minded Catholic and non-Catholic Christian friends at the Abby, especially after Sunday Mass and Compline (a nightly prayer time).

A few years later, I came across CD and audio tape sets on various topics that defended the Catholic faith from Dr. Scott Hahn and Gerry Matatics. They mentioned a word I had “never” heard during my CCD catechesis:

They mentioned a word I had “never” heard during my CCD catechesis:

“Catholic Apologetics”.

Day after day, month after month, year after year, my knowledge of the faith, and how to defend it, grew. A key part of my learning came from fellow lay Catholics who shared my interest in this branch or sub-discipline of theology. As I said earlier,

The credibility of any Catholic faith team depends on the clerical personnel they work with. One where all representatives are loyal to the Magisterium of the Church.

With that in mind, a group of us (Mike D., Bob K., Rick O., and me) asked the Director of Evangelization at the time, David Thorpe RIP, if we could get permission from (at that time) Cardinal Law to meet in Waltham on a regular basis to bring Catholic Apologetics down to the parish level.

With the Cardinal’s approval, David met with us for several months, and we exchanged thoughts, ideas, and suggestions on the topic. 

We came away with two possible approaches:

1. Putting together a “kit” of Catholic Apologetic books, manuals, CDs, and Writings from the Early Church Fathers (who lived from 33 A.D. to 800 A.D., with the death of St. John Damascene) that we could distribute to all Catholic parishes and CCD participants within the Archdiocese of Boston, and . . .
      
2. Publicly evangelizing Catholic apologetic issues related to the world via radio.

Though putting together a “Catholic Apologetics kit” was not financially feasible at the time, getting on the air via public radio, W-R-O-L, was. We aired our show successfully for about 2 years before we could no longer afford it.

By then, we had four to six volunteer lay Catholic apologists and some priest helpers; so, the will was there, the knowledge was there, and the ability was there, but we had no website.

Seeing I had a B.S. in Computer Science with a Minor in Mathematics, I self-taught myself on “How to build and develop a website.”

In July 1996, we founded/launched what I called C-PATS, the “Christifideles Pizza and Theology Society”: a local group of faithful Catholic apologists interested in answering people's questions about the Catholic faith.

Since we started, we have won 4 awards for our work and answered over 6,000 questions about the faith. I think one reason for our success is the attitude and character all 6-plus volunteers have brought to the table. The following personality traits have been key and should be part of building any new "Online Catholic Apologetic Team”.

• Humility.
• Focus on the Magisterium of the Church and what She publicly and officially teaches.
• An openness to being corrected for a personal view you have about a teaching of the Church, and
• A maturity toward understanding where other Catholic colleagues are coming from.

Look for these traits in Catholic Apologetic teams in team development.

A few years later, a good friend of mine, Richard, suggested creating an online database where visitors to our website could search for answers to questions we had already answered. The result, in August 2000, was the launch of our online database, which can be searched at:

AskACatholic.com/SiteSearch/

A question that may be on your mind:

• What does all this have to do with me, an interested Catholic who wants to get into Catholic Apologetics but doesn't know where to start?

Start here:

Catholic-Hierarchy.com

If you can navigate this website and know how to search and find contact information, you have the possibility of starting:

• your very own C-PATS, the “Christifideles Pizza and Theology Society”, and
• "Online Catholic Apologetic Team” (O-CATs) on the Web.

That is a reality!!!

It all starts at the diocesan level; at your local diocese.

• Why?

Because THAT local bishop, auxiliary bishop, or cardinal knows you and all the Catholic souls in your diocese the best.

To start, search Catholic-Hierarchy.com and

• find the local diocese you live in
  
• find the website, usually on the right side of the page, for your specific diocese, and
  
• After reviewing your diocesan website, find the contact information:
  
  
  • Name
  • Title (especially the faith formation director, or director of evangelization)
  • Postal address
  • Fax number
  • Phone number, (land line and mobile) and
  • E-mail

for those people on the “Contact Us” page.

Before meeting with a diocesan representative, draw up a plan and have several pre-qualified, practicing faithful Catholics with a strong interest in Catholic Apologetics, with, if possible, the educational or pastoral backgrounds I mentioned earlier.

To answer questions about canon law or pastoral-sensitive matters, try to find a priest knowledgeable in Canon Law who would be willing to volunteer on a part-time basis. My 30 years of experience working with clerical colleagues on the team have given me a gut feeling that many want to help but would rather do so anonymously or under an alias, so work with them on this.

One final, but key, component of this team is someone with a Web Admin. background who knows how to plan, design, build, and maintain a website with similar functionality to ours that one can administer. This will require the ability to search for and sign up for domain names and build a budget for the website so the domain and web hosting costs can be maintained on a regular, ongoing basis.

I am not necessarily recommending our web tools, but our website was built with the (following and previous) tools:

• WebAssist tools: https://www.webassist.com
• Adobe Dreamweaver CS 5.5 (currently used)
• Adobe Fireworks CS 5.5 (currently used)
• FileZilla Client (currently used)
• MS FrontPage (not recommended)
• Paint Shop Pro
• TextPad (currently used)
• Notepad or Notepad++
• JavaScript.

If you can find a web-savvy Web Developer/Administrator and other qualified faithful Catholics who are good at working with other faithful Catholics, developing a C-PATS and O-CAT can become a reality whether you live in:

It all starts with your willingness to get the job done for the Church and as Jesus told us:

The concept of "Online Catholic Apologetic Teams” (O-CATs) is an optional development of the C-PATS Mission and philosophy described on this website's About Us page. As I said on that page:

We meet in and around Natick, Massachusetts (about 20 miles west of Boston), where our Web Administrator lives.   Our very informal membership resides in the Boston-Worcester, Massachusetts area, although we have been blessed to have other well-educated Catholics join the team from out-of-state, as well as from various English-speaking countries outside of the United States.

Those in other dioceses/countries who want to develop their own C-PATS social must determine the best size and distance, land-mass-wise, from which to build a C-PATS social.

C-PATS is focused on the social dimension of lay Catholics in the pew each Sunday. It is about meeting “new” people who have the same questions you do, but don’t yet have a human connection to touch base with. It is an addition to, not a replacement for, the fine work happening in many Catholic dioceses, with our focus being on apologetics.

In our current culture, this is important because many who call themselves “Catholic” have left the Church or just don’t go to Church anymore. Many times, they will have very good questions about the faith (and its practice) that you will be able to answer. Other church-going Catholics practice the faith but don’t really know it; that’s where you can help.
 
The keys are:

• a good knowledge of the Catholic faith and
• people connections.

All Christians have a unique calling, especially Catholic Christians, but:

• What is Catholic Apologetics?

Catholic Apologetics is the ability to defend the Catholic Faith and Her Teachings publicly, clearing up misperceptions and misunderstandings about the faith and what She teaches, with charity.

Faithful, practicing, and well-catechized Catholic Christians who feel called to Catholic Apologetics (1 Peter 3:15) may also be called to continue what our group has done since the beginning of the internet era:

Replicating our unmistakably Catholic team
(Matthew 28:19, Mark 16:15-16, and Acts 1:8).

This will require faithful Catholics well-grounded in the Sacred Scriptures, doctrines, and practices of the faith. Though not necessary, having a Catholic apologist with a degree in theology, philosophy, faith-based studies, or pastoral education is a great asset.

The credibility of any Catholic faith team depends on the clerical personnel they work with. One where all representatives are loyal to the Magisterium of the Church.

In order to give you an idea of how our team started, allow me to share with you (paraphrasing the first four years) how our team started.

As a young cradle Catholic, I was raised the way most Catholics were: Going to Sunday Mass, receiving the sacraments, going to CCD, and developing a small prayer life.

I started solidifying my religious foundation when my brother, Mark, introduced me to a married Benedictine couple who were Oblates. This led me to frequent Sunday visits to St. Benedict Abbey in Still River, where I started making annual Holy Week retreats during the Lenten Season. During this time, I developed a faithfulness to popular Catholic devotionals like the Rosary, Brown Scapular, the Divine Mercy chaplet, First Fridays, and First Saturdays, and met like-minded Catholic and non-Catholic Christian friends at the Abby, especially after Sunday Mass and Compline (a nightly prayer time).

A few years later, I came across CD and audio tape sets on various topics that defended the Catholic faith from Dr. Scott Hahn and Gerry Matatics.

“Catholic Apologetics”.

Day after day, month after month, year after year, my knowledge of the faith, and how to defend it, grew. A key part of my learning came from fellow lay Catholics who shared my interest in this branch or sub-discipline of theology.

As I said earlier,
The credibility of any Catholic faith team depends on the clerical personnel they work with. One where all representatives are loyal to the Magisterium of the Church.

With that in mind, a group of us (Mike D., Bob K., Rick O., and me) asked the Director of Evangelization at the time, David Thorpe RIP, if we could get permission from (at that time) Cardinal Law to meet in Waltham on a regular basis to bring Catholic Apologetics down to the parish level.

With the Cardinal’s approval, David met with us for several months, and we exchanged thoughts, ideas, and suggestions on the topic. 

We came away with two possible approaches:

1. Putting together a “kit” of Catholic Apologetic books, manuals, CDs, and Writings from the Early Church Fathers (who lived from 33 A.D. to 800 A.D., with the death of St. John Damascene) that we could distribute to all Catholic parishes and CCD participants within the Archdiocese of Boston, and . . .
   
   
2. Publicly evangelizing Catholic apologetic issues related to the world via radio.

Though putting together a “Catholic Apologetics kit” was not financially feasible at the time, getting on the air via public radio, W-R-O-L, was.  We aired our show successfully for about 2 years before we could no longer afford it.

By then, we had four to six volunteer lay Catholic apologists and some priest helpers; so, the will was there, the knowledge was there, and the ability was there, but we had no website.

Seeing I had a B.S. in Computer Science with a Minor in Mathematics, I self-taught myself on “How to build and develop a website.”

In July 1996, we founded/launched what I called C-PATS, the “Christifideles Pizza and Theology Society”: a local group of faithful Catholic apologists interested in answering people's questions about the Catholic faith.

Since we started, we have won 4 awards for our work and answered over 6,000 questions about the faith. I think one reason for our success is the attitude and character all 6-plus volunteers have brought to the table. The following personality traits have been key and should be part of building any new "Online Catholic Apologetic Team”.

• Humility.
• Focus on the Magisterium of the Church and what She publicly and officially teaches.
• An openness to being corrected for a personal view you have about a teaching of the Church, and
• A maturity toward understanding where other Catholic colleagues are coming from.

Look for these traits in Catholic Apologetic teams in team development.

A few years later, a good friend of mine, Richard, suggested creating an online database where visitors to our website could search for answers to questions we had already answered. The result, in August 2000, was the launch of our online database, which can be searched at:

AskACatholic.com/SiteSearch/.

A question that may be on your mind:

• What does all this have to do with me, an interested Catholic who wants to get into Catholic Apologetics but doesn't know where to start?

Start here:

• Catholic-Hierarchy.com

If you can navigate this website and know how to search and find contact information, you have the possibility of starting:

• your very own C-PATS, the “Christifideles Pizza and Theology Society”, and
• "Online Catholic Apologetic Team” (O-CATs) on the Web.

That is a reality!!!

It all starts at the diocesan level; at your local diocese.

• Why?

Because THAT local bishop, auxiliary bishop, or cardinal knows you and all the Catholic souls in your diocese the best.

• To start, search Catholic-Hierarchy.com and
• find the local diocese you live in
• find the website, usually on the right side of the page, for your specific diocese, and
• After reviewing your diocesan website, find the contact information:
   
• Name
• Title (especially the faith formation director, or director of evangelization)
• Postal address
• Fax number
• Phone number, and
• E-mail

for those people on the “Contact Us” page.

Before meeting with a diocesan representative, draw up a plan and have several pre-qualified, practicing faithful Catholics with a strong interest in Catholic Apologetics, with, if possible, the educational or pastoral backgrounds I mentioned earlier.

To answer questions about canon law or pastoral-sensitive matters, try to find a priest knowledgeable in Canon Law who would be willing to volunteer on a part-time basis. My 30 years of experience working with clerical colleagues on the team have given me a gut feeling that many want to help but would rather do so anonymously or under an alias, so work with them on this.
 
One final, but key, component of this team is someone with a Web Admin. background who knows how to plan, design, build, and maintain a website with similar functionality to ours that one can administer. This will require the ability to search for and sign up for domain names and build a budget for the website so the domain and web hosting costs can be maintained on a regular, ongoing basis.
 
I am not necessarily recommending our web tools, but our website was built with the (following and previous) tools:

• WebAssist tools: https://www.webassist.com
• Adobe Dreamweaver CS 5.5 (currently used)
• Adobe Fireworks CS 5.5 (currently used)
• FileZilla Client (currently used)
• MS FrontPage (not recommended)
• Paint Shop Pro
• TextPad (currently used)
• Notepad or Notepad++
• JavaScript.

If you can find a web-savvy Web Developer/Administrator and other qualified faithful Catholics who are good at working with other faithful Catholics, developing a C-PATS and O-CAT can become a reality whether you live in:

It all starts with your willingness to get the job done for the Church and as Jesus told us:

Start today! Here: Catholic-Hierarchy.com

Mike Humphrey
C-PATS Web Administrator
(1 Peter 3:15)
AskACatholic.com/Matthew281820

Attachments and supplements gathered from our fruitful meetings in Waltham on developing Catholic Apologetics in the Archdiocese of Boston.