The Department of Evangelization and Missionary Discipleship welcomes a new Director: Fr. Mario Amore. Get to know our new coworker in mission and how he plans to support Families of Parishes as they unleash the Gospel in the Archdiocese of Detroit.
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and your journey as a joyful missionary disciple?
While I’ve been ordained a priest for eight years, my life as a disciple began when I was a boy. The combination of the faith witnessed to me by my parents and the blessing of a Catholic education taught me to love Jesus. The basics make all the difference! Not every day is easy, but knowing Jesus and doing what I know he is asking of me makes life a truly awesome adventure.
Do you have a favorite quote or Marker of the UTG Pastoral Letter?
Favorite quote: “Our acknowledgment of our own spiritual poverty is precisely what can lead us to rely wholly on God. Then it becomes clear that success belongs to him alone and not to any human ingenuity. If we have become spiritually dry, we need not fear. Dry wood is perfect for being set on fire!”
Favorite Marker: Marker 6:3 on Healing
I have had the opportunity to begin a journey of healing with the Lord over the past year and a half and am convinced that encountering Jesus in our places of brokenness and woundedness is key to a deeper, more joyful life of discipleship.
Who are some of your evangelization and missionary discipleship role models and why?
St. Andrew: He was my Patron saint chosen at confirmation. He did what every missionary disciple is called to do—bring others to Jesus! He had encountered the Lord, and not wanting to keep this joy to himself, he went and found his brother Peter so that he could introduce him to Christ.
St. Francis Xavier: I have an icon of him and his relic above my desk to remind me of the lengths that he went to to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. He was known for his joy and his enthusiasm in his missionary efforts that brought him all over the world. Historians estimate that he baptized around 30,000 people.
What are some of your goals for your first year as Director of Evangelization and Missionary Discipleship?
One goal is to get to know the men and women that I have the privilege to work alongside in the department and understand how I can best support them in their ministries. Our efforts will only be successful to the extent that we are a solid team built upon the pillars of prayer, trust, collaboration and excellence. From there, my goal is to understand how we as a department best serve the needs of our priests, lay ministers and parishioners especially through Families of Parishes by engaging those working in the field.
What is a word of encouragement you can offer to the band of joyful missionary disciples unleashing the Gospel throughout Southeast Michigan?
First, know that you are appreciated for all of the ways, seen and unseen, that you help the people of God encounter Jesus. You are essential in the mission of Unleashing the Gospel! Second, whenever the moments of despair begin to weigh you down, or when you begin to question your work or ministry, remember the words of Archbishop Vigneron who helps us keep the mission in perspective, “The long-range hope is that we’re going to have an incomparable number of beatifications and canonizations of men and women, and young people, and priests, and monks, and sisters, and everybody from the Archdiocese of Detroit. So many people, we won’t have enough days for their feast day.” What a gift to share in this mission!
How can parish leaders get in touch with you?
My team and I are always ready and willing to assist our parish leaders. You can reach me directly by email: [email protected] or if you’d like to schedule an appointment, please contact Mary Tomlinson: [email protected].
