Guide to the Great Novena: A Nine-Year Journey of Renewal for the Archdiocese of Louisville

Information about the movement and how to get involved

This article is the summarized and condensed message of the Great Novena’s Virtual Info-Session. Every quotation may not be exact, but they do contain the full meaning of what was said.

The purpose of this info-session is to express what the Great Novena is about and send out a call for grassroots leaders and supporters. Whether you would like to watch the hour long video or read this shorter article, we hope that you will prayerfully consider how you can become a part of this movement.

Vision and Welcome

"Welcome everybody to this virtual info session for grassroots leaders for the great novena," says Brian Cain. "Do you long for continued renewal vibrant faith and deeper unity in the Archdiocese of Louisville? Well so do we. That is why, in the spirit of the Eucharistic Revival's Year of Mission and the Jubilee Year of Hope, Archbishop Shelton Fabre invited us to launch a Great Novena beginning in 2024. The goal is to help continue to foster a Catholic Church in Louisville that is on fire for God, full of families young and old, and working together in unity to serve our communities with the mind and heart of Jesus Christ."

Historical Foundation: The Polish Model

The initiative draws profound inspiration from Poland's experience under communism. Bryan Cain explained: "It really flows out of a man named blessed Bl. Stefan Wyszyński who was a great spiritual adviser to St John Paul II. He was head of the Polish cardinals when they were under communism in the '50s and they put him under house arrest for three years because he wouldn't ordain priests at the direction of the communist party. While he was in there he devised this idea of a program, a nine-year program of catechetical and pastoral renewal that he launched in 1957 after he was released from internment."

Soul adds depth to this connection: "Cardinal Wyszyński’s efforts during those nine years laid the foundation for moral and religious renewal upon which the solidarity movement was sparked." When John Paul II was elected pope, "he attributed to Cardinal Wyszyński and his dedication to the church for getting a Polish priest and cardinal actually elected to the papacy."

The impact was profound: "When [John Paul II biographer] George Weigel went to talk to the leaders of the solidarity movement much later and asked them how they had the courage and the wisdom to lay the foundation for the eventual overthrow of the dictatorship, they said that it was really related to the Great Novena and how they had learned truths of their own dignity in unheated church basements during Stefan Wyszynski's Great Novena."

The connection deepened when John Paul II was shot in May 1981. "Cardinal Wyszyński actually offered his life to save John Paul II. Wyszyński had just contracted cancer and he died within two weeks of that request in May of 1981 and so John Paul II went on to survive the assassination attempt."

The Polish Great Novena "led up to the 10,000th anniversary of the baptism of Poland" in 1966, while Louisville's version "leads up to the year 2033 which is the 2,000th anniversary of the Catholic Church, the death and resurrection of Jesus and of Pentecost."

Core Theme and Addressing Current Challenges

"The entire theme of the Great Novena is “I am the vine, you are the branches (John 15:5)”," Soul states. The movement seeks to foster revival in the Archdiocese of Louisville, which "has seen a lot of turbulence and challenges especially in the last 15 to 20 years with a lot of dwindling and division."

Soul describes the fundamental question: "how do we bring back the spirit of Christ into our hearts?" The answer involves understanding "the dignity of the human person both in our minds, our hearts, our bodies, and also our capacity to serve—to make a gift of ourselves to bear fruit in the world."

Origins

John Soul, Director of Discipleship for Family Renewal Project, explains that "this was an idea that God put on my heart when my wife gave me a book called Witness to Hope by George Weigel, the biography of John Paul II." The 800-page biography "really connected me to the Great Novena and helped me understand that this is something that could really help the local church."

The timing proved significant as "this was right at the time of the the national Eucharistic Revival so when Archbishop Fabre first heard this idea he was very open to it. He said it's perfect timing as the Eucharistic Revival is ending people will be naturally asking what's next."

Nine-Year Timeline and Structure

The Great Novena follows a structured progression:

2024-2025: Year of Invitation - "This is when we are letting people know what we're planning to do and hoping to see happen. It's a year of prayer—surrendering to prayer—for all of our planning and promotion"

2025-2026: Year of Wonder - "You are here life is amazing. This year is all about Genesis" or new beginning.

2026-2027: Year of Freedom - "You are here for a purpose. America needs to remember its purpose" (coinciding with the United State’s 250th birthday)

The years continue with themes of Growth, Healing, Love, Desire, Wisdom, Beatitude, and culminate in:

2033: Year of Pentecost - "to celebrate the 2,000th birthday of Catholicism and hopefully the great fruits that will come from this time" after sustained efforts for so long.

Practical Implementation

Soul defines the Great Novena's essence: "we want to help establish reestablish the sacramental worldview in the hearts and minds of everyone we meet and we do this through grassroots efforts and mountaintop experiences."

The movement operates through four entry points:

1. Prayer and fasting

2. Discipleship and formation

3. Family and community

4. Cultural renewal.

   
   

   The simplest participation involves praying the official Great Novena prayer.

   
   

   

   
   

The Path Forward: From Polarization to Solidarity

The Great Novena represents a nine-year journey from "polarization to solidarity.” “We start in the church and then we go out in charity," Cain concluded.

Building a Spirituality of Communion

The goal involves fostering what John Paul II called "a spirituality of communion." Cain explained: "A spirituality of communion indicates above all the heart's contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity dwelling in us and whose light we must also be able to see shining on the face of the brothers and sisters around us. If the church in Louisville is living a spirit of communion we'll be able to see the Holy Trinity dwelling in us and also be able to see the light of the Trinity shining on the face of our brothers and sisters in Christ."

He acknowledged the challenge: "To make the church the home and the school of communion, that is the great challenge facing us in the millennium which is now beginning. Before making practical plans we need to promote a spirituality of communion, making it the guiding principle of education wherever individuals and Christians are formed."

Understanding Solidarity

"Solidarity is a virtue that responds to the recognition of interdependence as a moral category. In this global world we recognize that we are interdependent, that we depend on people all over the world for different things. When we recognize that interdependence is a moral category, the response as a moral and social attitude is solidarity. It becomes a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good because we realize that we are all really responsible for all. This is John Paul 2's teaching in Sollicitudo Rei Socialis."

He contrasted this with current conditions: "That is sort of the opposite of where we find ourselves right now. Right now we find ourselves in polarization, in a time of division, sometimes indifference and sort of this feeling of scarcity. Solidarity would be almost the opposite of polarization."

The Gospel Program Foundation

Drawing from Pope John Paul II's document Novo Millennio Ineunte, Cain emphasized: "It's not a matter of inventing a new program. The program already exists. It is the plan found in the gospel and in the living tradition. The program doesn't change with shifts of time and culture. He defines the gospel as having seven pastoral priorities: a priority to holiness, priority of prayer, priority of the Sunday Eucharist, the sacrament of reconciliation, the primacy of grace, listening to the word and proclaiming the word."

However, "in local churches it will be translated into pastoral initiatives adapted to the circumstances of each community. We would like to propose that the Great Novena is a pastoral prayer initiative. Archbishop Fabre wants to emphasize that the Great Novena here in the Archdiocese of Louisville is first and foremost a prayer."

Formation Through the Holy Spirit's Gifts

The Great Novena integrates a formation model based on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which Soul calls "the perfect entry point for many Catholics in the Archdiocese of Louisville for many of us did not receive a lot of structured formation or catechesis after our eighth grade confirmation, where we received the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We just never learned really how to open those gifts and use them effectively."

The progression begins with "fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" - not "fear of a dictator or an indifferent landlord—it's fear of disappointing a loving Father who made us." This leads to understanding: "God made me and all that is and that's an incredible mystery that no matter what or how old we get we can always be in awe of that reality."

The journey continues through counsel ("where we learn to make right choices and discern"), fortitude ("strength and courage to walk the right path"), knowledge ("God loves me even when I fail even in the midst of my failures and suffering and sin: I am still loved deeply"), reverence or piety ("I choose to love Him back and I love God back in how I love my neighbors"), and wisdom ("seeing as God sees—it's the divine perspective—loving as God loves").

Leadership Team

Brian Cain

Brian Cain shared his journey: "I grew up Catholic in Ohio, fell away from the faith and moved out to Los Angeles California to pursue a career in improv comedy. I came back to my Catholic faith, proposed to my now wife, and with a four-month old daughter moved to Louisville to pursue a career in youth and young adult ministry at St. Margaret Mary. I did that for four years and then worked at Holy Angels Academy for three years as Director of Mission Advancement. Now I serve as director of Advancement and Renewal at St. John Paul II Parish and Academy."

John Soul

John Soul introduced himself as someone who "grew up born and raised in the Archdiocese of Louisville”—Catholic “my whole life. He spent "about six or seven years as a coordinator of youth ministry between St. Luke, St. Rita and St. Athanasius" and was "a chastity speaker to 20,000 plus students throughout Kentucky for the Bright healthy relationships program." Soul now serves as Director of Discipleship for Family Renewal Project “where we teach courses and classes.”

Grassroots Leaders Throughout the Archdiocese

Michael Snellen from New Haven described himself as a school teacher who does "a lot of media work. Hearing about this Great Novena, and knowing John and Bryan, I was inspired to join on as a leader.” There are a lot of leaders throughout the Archdiocese, he says, and “If all of us come together…I think it's really going to spread like a fire throughout the Archdiocese."

Andrew Salsman, Faith Formation Coordinator at St. Gregory Parish in Bardstown, noted the geographic challenges: "Out here in Bardstown and the Kentucky Holy Land it's pretty sparse and I think there is a kind of divide from what happens in the Archdiocese at large and then down here. This is a chance for us to reconnect with the greater diocese and help revitalize outward faith formation. A lot of Catholics feel like they don't know where to partner with the church. What we are doing is inviting them. You don't need a large group, it only takes one or two disciples."

See the full list and biographies of team leaders here, at the moment, including Fr. Pier Giorgio Dengler, O.P., Emily Reid, Patrick Parris, John Osterhaudt, and Jennifer Shelton.

Vision for Transformation

The ultimate goal, as John Soul, is about “hearts and conversion and healing and encounter with one another and with Christ." Through this nine-year journey, the Archdiocese of Louisville seeks to reclaim its spiritual heritage and prepare for a profound encounter with Christ in 2033.

https://www.greatnovena.com/