Adult Faith Formation & Faith Studies
Wonderful ways for adults to grow in faith and walk closer to the Lord each day! Opportunities for all adults are below. Find opportunities specifically for women or men by clicking the buttons. Scroll down for upcoming events, groups and resources that are always available to you. May God bless your journey!
Spiritual Pathways: Discipleship Mission Map
Start your journey today by identifying where you are and what is the next step.
• Where do you place yourself on the Discipleship Mission Map currently?
• Where do you feel God is calling you to be on this journey?
• What is it going to take to get there?
• What needs to change so you can make the necessary changes or sacrifices to commit this to God?
Simply select any opportunity below for more information.
Beginning Disciple
Someone new to the faith or someone that has not encounter Jesus would begin.
Alpha is a series of sessions exploring the Christian faith, typically run over eleven weeks. Each talk looks at different questions around faith and is designed to create conversation. Alpha is run all around the globe, and everyone is welcome!
Invite someone who has been away from prayer/God/Church to join you in the ALPHA online program. ALPHA is about a fresh and renewed start in your walk with the Lord. An invitation may be all it takes.
2 hours. Once a week.
Questions? Email KKocuba@StAmbrose.us or GOboy@StAmbrose.us or DHeilman@StAmbrose.us or call (330) 460-7300.
Thursdays 6:30 – 8:00 pm for 11 Weeks | Starts on January 11, 2024
Baby Bible Time with Caregiver & Me
1st Monday and Saturday of the Month (October – May) | 10:00 am – 11:00 am
For Children ages 0-4 and their caregivers. Non-Parish members are welcome too.
Oct 5 or 7 Fr. McGivney Room
Nov 2 or 4 Fr. McGivney Room
Dec 2 or 7 Mon = Fr. McGivney, Sat = Mother Teresa
Jan 4 or 6 Fr. McGivney Room
Feb 1 or 3 Fr. McGivney Room
Mar 1 or 3 Mon = Fr. McGivney, Sat = HH1
April 5 or 7 Mon = Fr. McGivney, Sat = Family Room
May 3 or 5 Fr. McGivney Room
God’s Word tells us in Proverbs to train up our children in the way of the Lord. It is never to early to start teaching them God’s way. Science tells us that from birth to (approximately) age six, your child’s brain works like a sponge, soaking up huge amounts of information from the environment. Unlike other story times offered, we will focus on Christian stories from the Bible, Christian songs, crafts, and fellowship. Build the foundation of Jesus Christ early in their lives.
Contact Gayle Oboy at GOboy@StAmbrose.us or 330.460.7322 with questions.
Is GOD calling you…to a deeper faith?
Saint Ambrose Parish invites you to join the RCIA journey. RCIA, the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults is for people interested in learning about our Catholic faith and traditions as a means to discern if God is calling you to become Catholic.
Ladies First
Last Tuesday of the month 6:45 pm – 8:00 pm from September through April, except when holidays call for a different date.
We are ladies from the community who come together each month for prayer, songs of praise, food, growth in faith, and fellowship. It’s a welcoming, pressure-free atmosphere.
Ladies First offers a relaxing atmosphere where you can come and enjoy inspiring speakers, great company, and delicious food and refreshments. Each month there will be a short presentation and guided discussion related to the topic of the month.
For more information contact Denise Daugherty at mathdenmom@aol.com.
Marriage Enrichment – Building a Eucharistic Marriage
Fridays once per month (see dates below) | 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Marriage is hard. It takes a lot of work. Marriage Enrichment is introducing a 7-part video program to breathe new life into your marriage, featuring Greg Shutte, a marriage therapist with over 25 years of experience. Learn invaluable tools for better communication, connection, and growth, so you can become the couple God has called you to be, having a sacramental, life-giving, or Eucharistic marriage. Join us and find more peace, joy, and love in this gift of marriage.
Dates & Locations:
October 11: Oboy Home
November 8: Mother Teresa Room
December 13: Oboy Home
January 24: Mother Teresa Room
February 21: Mother Teresa Room
March 14: Mother Teresa or Oboy Home, depending on the weather
April 11: Oboy Home
Register to join us. No cost to register.
Contact Gayle Oboy at GOboy@StAmbrose.us or Kim Nemet at KNemet@StAmbrose.us with questions.
Father Bob presents the Pauline Letters
Mondays (dates below) | 6:45 – 7:45 pm | Mother Teresa
Join Father Bob’s annual presentation of our Catholic Faith and Scriptures. This year, Father Bob will take us through 5 of the amazing Pauline Letters. Though St. Paul was not one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus, his contribution to the New Testament was great. Besides the Four Gospels and the Book of Revelation, there are 21 Letters or Epistles in the New Testament. Of these 13 are attributed to St. Paul as the author.
Join us each month to discover the wisdom of St. Paul’s letters.
9/30, 10/21, 11/11 we will discuss 1st and 2nd Thessalonians
1/20, 2/17, 3/17 Father will present on 1st and 2nd Corinthians and Ephesians
Register to reserve your seat!
Walking with Purpose: Opening Your Heart
Sessions begin September 17, 2024
Walking with Purpose is a ministry of Jesus Christ. We exist to help all women and girls to know Jesus Christ personally by making Scripture and the teachings of the Catholic Church relevant and applicable.
Opening Your Heart is the starting point. This 22-lesson Bible study will take you on an exciting journey closer to the heart of God! Opening Your Heart is an incredibly effective guide to deep, lasting transformation of the heart and we encourage all participants new to Walking with Purpose to begin here, regardless of previous experience with Bible study.
Join us as we explore the core questions that we need to wrestle with if we want to experience all that God has for us.
Women’s Welcome Weekend (Formerly Renewal)
May 3-4, 2025
Saturday, starting at 8:00 am until Sunday at 4:00 pm
Do you feel you need a break from everything?
Are you overwhelmed with the business of the day?
Have you felt like something is missing in your life?
Come to Saint Ambrose Women’s Welcome Weekend.
This is an opportunity to disconnect from your daily stressors and reconnect with your faith. Hear about the heartfelt spiritual life journeys of fellow parishioners, sharing what has helped others ignite their faith, and to create lasting friendships within our community. Be refreshed, recharged & renewed!
This event is at no cost, the Parish provides all materials, meals, and overnight accommodations.
Please accept the gift of the Holy Spirit with this invitation to attend!
SIGN UP OR ASK QUESTIONS! Nelly Quiñones 216-262-0883, Nellypto@yahoo.com
Men’s Renewal Welcome Weekend
February 22-23, 2025
Welcome, A Spiritual Renewal For Men is a one and half day opportunity to get away from the distraction of our busy world, to listen to the spiritual life stories of fellow parishioners, and to create lasting friendships with our community.
There is no lecturing, just heartfelt sharing of things that have helped fellow parishioners ignite their faith. You’ll be inspired by these talks and be given a chance to relate to them on your own journey. Real world conversation with ties to scripture and the Holy Spirit.
Before you know it, the weekend will be over and your new journey begins. The sharing, the friendships, the trust in faith, all come from the weekend through your own spiritual growth
This event is held on the Saint Ambrose campus and includes a one-night stay.
Growing Disciple
Someone who has encountered Jesus, has a developed prayer life and is still seeking and growing.
Bible in a Year
1st & 3rd Tuesday of Every Month | 12:00 – 1:30 pm | Father McGivney
1st Wednesday of Every Month | 7:00 – 8:30 pm | Saint Ambrose Church
Book Club
Beginning in September | 1:30 – 3:00 pm (Wednesday) or 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm (Mondays) | Fr. McGivney
Book Club is a wonderful way to grow deeper in your faith.
We will be reading 2 powerful books that could be game-changers for your life and understanding.
- Salvation, What Every Catholic Should Know by Michael Patrick Barber (September – December)
- Male, Female, Other? by Jason Evert (January – February)
For more information, please contact Gayle Oboy at GOboy@StAmbrose.us.
Download Salvation, What Every Catholic Should Know Schedules – Wednesday AM or Monday PM
Download Male, Female, Other? Schedule – Wednesday AM or Monday PM
Register for “Salvation” Book Club
Register for “Male, Female, Other?” Book Club
Catechism in a Year Club
Two Session Options:
– First & Third Tuesdays beginning January 7, 2025 | 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm | LC Fr. McGivney OR
– First Wednesday of the Month | 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Join us in a great New Year’s resolution that will change your life – let’s read the entire Catechism in a year!
Saint Ambrose is excited to invite our parishioners and friends to join us in reading the entire Catechism of the Catholic Church together using “The Catechism in a Year” podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz beginning January 1, 2025. Then join us to discuss what we have read.
Centering Prayer
Tuesdays, Beginning September 3rd (except for holidays) | 3:30 – 5:00pm | Pat’s Home*
*Address will be sent after registration*
This method of silent prayer prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer, prayer in which we experience God’s presence within us, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than consciousness itself. This method of prayer is both a relationship with God and a discipline to foster that relationship.
The CHOSEN 4: This 8-week TV series, The Chosen and interactive study guide, God’s Goodness for the Chosen, allows you to delve more deeply into each episode as you explore the life of Jesus.
This Faith & Fellowship Group that meets the 2nd and 4th Mondays of each month, beginning October 14th at 10:30 am – 12:00 pm in Lehner Center, Fr. McGivney.
Dates: 10/14,
This study teaches readers how to reframe their hardships and see them as fertile soil for God’s goodness to grow in their lives.
We see it over and over again in the Bible: God brings good things out of bad things for the sake of His people and for His glory. But truth be told, when we personally experience suffering, we have a difficult time actually believing it. Yet, life is challenging even for the followers of Jesus, and hardship in the twenty-first century is no exception. God’s Goodness for the Chosen takes readers through eight lessons which reveal how God uses suffering to bring about good things in the lives of those He loves.
You’ll see:
• Death is eclipsed by life
• Grief is eclipsed by praise
• Questions are eclipsed by resolve
• Confusion is eclipsed by grace
• Temporary things are eclipsed by eternal things
• Heartbreak is eclipsed by love
• Sin is eclipsed by obedience
• Pain is eclipsed by the fullness of God’s plan
Indeed, readers will be challenged to embrace the hard things of life, to experience more of the goodness God offers on the other side.
Dennis Dives Into The Word
Wednesdays from 7:00 – 8:30 pm
Join Dennis Koeth as he dives into God’s Word. Dennis will lead his group as they discuss an array of topics and look to the Bible for answers. This is a topic-driven Bible study. Each meeting begins with prayer as we ask for the Holy Spirit to guide our discussions. Participants are asked to bring their Bible.
October 11 – Lehner Center, John
November 8 – Lehner Center, Luke
November 29 – Lehner Center, John
December – NO SESSION
January 10
January 31
February 21
March 13
April 3
For questions, contact Diane at DHeilman@stambrose.us or 330-460-7322.
Divine Mercy Cenacle
Monthly | Second Monday of the Month | 11:00 am or 7:00 pm
We are parishioners praying for the dying. When our priests go to offer the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, especially for the dying, you will receive an email with the first name of the person receiving the Sacrament, for whom at that time you will pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet. As you are able, pray the Chaplet during Eucharistic Adoration for those who will be dying that hour.
We have small groups called cenacles, which meet…
– to pray for and encourage the vocations of the priesthood and the religious life.
– to also pray and work for an end to the scourge of abortion in the world.
– to experience the splendor of our Catholic Faith through the study of Sacred Scripture and the Catechism and the Diary of Saint Faustine Kowalska.
– to encourage members in the exercise of the Faith through the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, and to help people to become sensitive to the gift and beauty of all life, especially through the care for the “lepers” of today.
Epic: A Journey through Church History
Beginning October 2024
Wednesdays: 10:00 am – Noon
Thursdays: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Discover the “Epic” Story of the Catholic Church!
Church History Taught from a Solidly Catholic Perspective. This is our story, our family. As Catholics, we are the inheritors of holy men and women who over two thousand years built a great civilization and spread the gospel throughout the world.
Register to learn more about OUR story as a Catholic Church.
Faith & Fellowship Groups
Meets Various Times throughout the Year
Faith & Fellowship groups are the core of the church. People stay with a church longer if they have roots and friends. Join a group to build your faith and connection with the Church. There are dates, times, and groups for everyone.
Email Gayle Oboy for more information about upcoming Faith & Fellowship groups at GOboy@StAmbrose.us
Hearts Afire
We are a group of individuals who have consecrated themselves to Mary in order to bring us closer to Jesus Christ. A Parish-based program from the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception (HAPP) is a bold and fresh approach to small groups, parish-based, faith renewal programs. It is designed to help us live the complete Catholic life of faith, charity, and the sacraments. It is designed to set our hearts on fire with the love of God and neighbor and to inspire us to works of mercy in our families, parishes, and our community. The goal of Hearts Afire is to help bring the parish community more deeply into the burning love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the fire of love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
It is a program with three stages:
Stage 1: The Two Hearts
Stage 2: Wisdom and Works of Mercy
Stage 3: Keeping the Hearts Afire
If My People Pray | Prayer for Our Nation
Monthly on Second Wednesday | Noon to 1:00 pm | Chapel
Dates: 8/14,
Are you discouraged by the news, division and chaos taking place in our great country? It is not hopeless. There is something we can do about it and God tells us exactly what that is. In 2 Chronicles 7, the Father says: “If my people humble themselves and pray I will revive their land”.
If you would like more information or to receive updates, register below!
Infant of Prague
- Monthly on the second Thursdays of the month at 6:00 pm (except holidays and Holy Days)
- Lehner Center, Luke Room
The Infant of Prague Guild are Catholics who promote a deeper love of the Infant Jesus. This is accomplished through the recitation of the Chaplet of the Infant Jesus, teaching school children about the Child Jesus, and preparing small bags for those who are being Baptized. We are a newer ministry who are trying to reintroduce the beloved Infant to our parish.
Membership is open to all Catholics, active members meet monthly.
Auxiliary members, (those unable to attend) commit to daily prayer recitation of the chaplet and are not required to attend meetings but are included in our monthly emails.
For questions, contact Karen Taylor at karentaylor3131@gmail.com
Deacon Tom leads us in a scripture study that changes with every meeting. We open and close with praise and worship music, and we almost always end with Healing prayer. New members are always welcome.
Meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month at 7 pm in the Chapel.
Join us in praying the Rosary on Thursdays at 6:00 PM in the Chapel.
You can become an active Legion of Mary member through a balanced program of prayer and service, advancing the growth of faith, understand and true devotion to Christ and His Blessed Mother.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: If you consider yourself a learner or love to read, contact Mary! Mary Vadini | 330.273.1113
Walking with Purpose: Discovering Our Dignity
Sessions begin September 17, 2024
If you have completed Opening Your Heart, register for Discovering Our Dignity.
Women of the Old and New Testaments were as flawed and broken as we can be, yet the power of God worked in their lives. Discovering Our Dignity will allow you to learn from their experiences and uncover ways to deal with unwanted circumstances and deferred hopes.
Through their stories recorded in Scripture, women of the Bible reach out to touch our “present” in a tender, honest and loving way—woman to woman—with ancient wisdom, sage advice, and insights from sorrowful failures and emotional wounds.
Learn how God worked in the lives of biblical women:
- Sisters Leah and Rachel overcame jealousy when they learned that God offered all that they really needed
- Abigail’s faith was so strong she didn’t despair, no matter how unpleasant life was with her husband
- Deborah had been given grace by God to act as His prophet, for the good of her people
- Mary the Blessed Mother’s “yes” to God—her fiat—changed everything. How else did her words and deeds influence Jesus, and vice versa?
Discipleship Maker
Follow Jesus’ model of making disciples and sending disciple makers into mission.
Faith & Fellowship groups are the core of the church. People stay with a church longer if they have roots and friends. Help that become a reality by offering to host a FFG at your home or church. You can pick the day, time, regularity and material. The Adult Faith Formation Coordinator can help you find the right materials. Remember you are not teaching. It is ok to not have the answers. You are just facilitating the group. Training is available.
REACH MORE teaches you to follow Jesus’ model of making disciples and sending disciple makers into mission. During the three years of his active ministry, Jesus chose to devote the majority of his time and attention to a small group of followers. By investing in a few, Jesus used the power of personal relationships and apprenticeship to mobilize a group of people who could carry out his mission and build the Church. This is Jesus’ mission process, and yours. If you have reached this far in the path, it’s now time to follow God’s call to all of us and go make disciples. This course will teach you how.
If you have had the amazing experience of a Welcome/Renewal weekend, you know what wonderful care and love went into making that weekend amazing. Now it is your turn to give back. Sign up to be a considered for the next team. Email goboy@stambrose.us.
Epic: A Journey through Church History
A Day of Healing & Restoration
October 26
Sarah Kroger’s Belovedness
Women of All Ages Event
Eucharistic Revival Parish Mission with Sarah Kroger
November 17 & 18 | 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Catechism in a Year Club
Lent 2025 Mission with Friar JP
Shroud of Turin
Upcoming Adult Faith Formation Events
Catholic Works of Mercy Blanket Sunday
October 12 - October 13
The Chosen 4: Faith & Fellowship Group
October 14 @ 10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Divine Mercy Cenacle | Morning Session
October 14 @ 11:00 am
Book Club: Salvation, What Every Catholic Should Know – PM
October 14 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Divine Mercy Cenacle | Evening Session
October 14 @ 7:00 pm
Bible in a Year Club
October 15 @ 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Centering Prayer
October 15 @ 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Epic: A Journey through Church History
October 16 @ 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Book Club: Salvation, What Every Catholic Should Know – AM
October 16 @ 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Epic: A Journey through Church History
October 17 @ 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Book Club: Salvation, What Every Catholic Should Know – PM
October 21 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Father Bob presents the Pauline Letters
October 21 @ 6:45 pm - 7:45 pm
Centering Prayer
October 22 @ 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Epic: A Journey through Church History
October 23 @ 10:00 am - 12:00 pm