November Newsletter 2019

John Pridmore Tour

Above: John Pridmore & Charbel Raish with members from Our of the Rosary Parish in Taree who now have a Parousia Parish Stand!

Welcome to another month at Parousia! We are excited to welcome back the author of the best selling book ‘From Gangland to Promised Land‘, John Pridmore.

He has already been busy giving talks all over NSW including some talks in South East Queensland. Already over 3,000 students have heard his testimony on this trip alone as well as 1,000 adults and we are only half way through. There are a few more weeks to go so look out for the upcoming events still to go!

Above: John Pridmore sharing his testimony at the Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in Taree

I met up with John in Taree the day that the fires began. There was a lot of smoke around and we were on standby to evacuate if it worsened. He was able to share his testimony and get to Sydney before the weekend when they really got worse. All those who attended were very enthusiastic and we had a blessed evening. John spoke to both the high school students and to the parish.

He spent the weekend in Smithfield in Sydney speaking after each Mass before finishing up at Our Lady of Lourdes in Baulkham Hills with the Maronite Hills parish. John also spoke at the St Anthony’s Croatian Catholic Church in Summer Hill to a full room. He is getting ready to go to Canberra and Wollongong as I write this.

Above: John (L) with Ivica (R) from the Croatian Catholic Church in Summer Hill.

Please continue to pray for John Pridmore as he continues to share his testimony as God is always being glorified each time he speaks. We will keep you up to date with his movements over the next few weeks. Please see our Facebook page for the latest posts and also visit our website for details of the rest of his events.

If you are interested in hosting John for your school, parish or faith group, please get in touch with us. There are now only a few spots left but he is willing and able to come and share his testimony to your group. We are happy to help you with advertisement and assist you in getting the event organised. Contact us anytime and we are happy to help.

The Parousia Hour with Abby Johnson

I had the privilege to interview Abby Johnson this month and we discussed the impact the movie Unplanned is having. This movie is based on her life and in particular her time working for Planned Parenthood, the largest provider of abortion in the US. She was deeply affected by seeing the reality of abortion when she witnessed what happened to a baby being aborted via the ultra-sound and noticed how the baby felt the pain and reacted. She left Planned Parenthood and now is Pro-Life. This interview is now up on our Parousia YouTube channel.

Above: Abby Johnson speaking on the Parousia Hour with Charbel Raish

Our next Parousia Hour was with Ashley Bratcher, the actress who played the role of Abby Johnson. She did an amazing job in the film and you can also catch that interview on our channel.

We are also excited to announce the movie Unplanned is now available via our Parousia On Demand platform. For only $14.99 you can own a digital copy of the film which can be played on any device. Please help us spread the word as we want as many people as possible to watch this powerful film. It is said that before watching the film there were many pro-choice skeptics, however, after watching the film they are now pro-life!

Narrow Gate Blogs This Month

During the month of November the Catholic Church remembers the Holy Souls in Purgatory. Ian Smith has written a great article explaining the importance of this month and how we should dedicate our prayers with the Church for the Holy Souls. I invite you to read that article which is part of our Narrow Gate Blog Series each week. Please feel free to not only read these articles but share them among your friends as well. Enjoy!

Above: Ian Smith has been a regular contributor to the Narrow Gate Series

Cradio Interviews have been a hit!

Have you been listening to Cradio? Did you know that it streams 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? You can download the podcasts on all major podcast platforms including Spotify, iTunes, Podbean and more, simply search for Cradio.

One of the highlights this last month have been the interviews Mark Griffin has had with the Catholic Answers team. He had the chance to sit down with Cy Kellet, Karlo Broussard and Chris Check while they were here. These are now all available via the Cradio website.

Please explore all the great podcasts there and share them among your friends. There are thousands of free talks, interviews, reflections and more. Make sure you visit www.cradio.org.au and get familiar with the great content we have there. It not only includes the international speakers but also lots of local content as well. Please take advantage of this free platform!

Above: Cy Kellet and Mark Griffin sat down for a chat for the Cradio Podcast

Advent is Coming!

Are you ready for Advent? This year Advent begins on Sunday the 1st of December and we are excited to be launching a daily mediation series to assist you in preparing for Christmas. The meditations are from Chris Stefanick’s ‘Joy to the World‘ book which have 25 different topics to reflect on as we welcome the King of Kings as a baby. Look out for that daily email sign up and take advantage of this automated email service that will include a new meditation each day in Advent.

Also, in addition to the free daily meditations, we are also inviting people to consider gifting the paperback version. We set a target to distribute 1,000 Joy to the World books and we hope you can help make this happen. How powerful would it be if 1,000 Catholics were spiritually prepared for Christmas this year. What impact would that have on their family and friends?! There are more details on this here.

Parousia Youtube Channel is Growing!

Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel yet? There are just under 1,500 subscribers right now. Please make the most of these free videos. We are closing in on 500 videos that have been uploaded that include both short form and long form. We are uploading full versions of talks from some of the best speakers in the world.

We are also now live streaming talks for free so that has been an exciting part of our development. People from all over the world are watching these videos and making comments. It is great to have this international reach now and we are going to be adding at least 2 videos a week to the channel including some live events as well. This is a powerful tool to take advantage of so please subscribe to this channel and share the link.

There has been almost 400,000 views on our channel and we are going to continue to build up the free content. We now not only offer free videos but also free blogs, free podcasts and of course free events.

The mission of Parousia is to bring the message of Christ to as many people as possible and activate Catholics so they can reconnect and become leaders themselves. Thanks to all those who financially support us each month as it allows us to give back and spread the good news.

Bible studies are happening in parishes across the country. I encourage you to check if there is a bible study running nearby. Please see our website under the Parousia LIVE section where you will find Catholic Study Groups as well as an interactive map.

That wraps up another month.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as you are in ours.  

God Bless you!

Charbel Raish – Director

CD of the Month! Purgatory: Our Forgotten Family

What is Purgatory? Does it exist? Does it matter? As professor and speaker Dr. Mark Miravalle explains, not only is the doctrine of Purgatory true, and deeply rooted in Sacred Scripture and Tradition, but the practice of offering prayers and sacrifices for the souls of the dead is a critically important responsibility for every member of the Body of Christ—the family of the Church.

Unplanned’ the Movie – Digital Download (MP4)

Unplanned brings us an eye-opening look inside the abortion industry from a woman who was once its most passionate advocate. Unplanned is the most important movie you’ll ever see on the most controversial issue of our time. No matter which side of the fence you’re on, no one will leave this film unmoved by Abby’s journey.

Unplanned is available for digital download here. We hope to have it on DVD soon.

Joan of Arc (Abridged Edition) – Mark Twain (Paperback)

Very few people know that Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) wrote a major work on Joan of Arc. Still fewer know that he considered it not only his most important but also his best work. He spent twelve years in research and many months in France doing archival work and then made several attempts until he felt he finally had the story he wanted to tell. He reached his conclusion about Joan’s unique place in history only after studying in detail accounts written on both sides, the French and the English. A remarkably accurate biography of the life and mission of Joan of Arc told by one of the greatest storytellers.

Brother Francis: The Days of Advent – Celebrating the Coming of the Lord (DVD)

Join Brother Francis in this special episode that helps children observe the days of Advent in a way that will be meaningful and fun! This episode includes: A short introduction on what Advent is, how it differs from the Christmas season and why we celebrate it. A fun and catchy intro song to help us remember what Advent is all about. 25 meaningful meditations, beautifully illustrated and led by Brother Francis!

God’s Perfect Plan: Purgatory and Indulgences Explained – (5 CD Set)

What every Catholic should know about two of the Church’s most controversial and misunderstood teachings…In God’s Perfect Plan: Purgatory And Indulgences Explained, his dynamic five-part audio course, Tim Staples takes on two of the most controversial and misunderstood teachings of the Church.