Fr. Harry Winter
The Five Ways
Introduction to the Five Ways
There are five ways to live the Christian life. But all five have rarely flourished simultaneously. Usually, one or two dominate. During the last half of the twentieth century, in every denomination, all five competed in the average parish, congregation, and religious order. Only once or twice has this happened in the two-thousand-year history of Christianity. And then, instead of mutual support, the competition brought conflict and division. Yet all five can claim a basis in the New Testament.
Catholic Christians (and they exist in every denomination) are baptized as infants, love the sacraments, and are suspicious of emotion. Evangelical/Charismatic Christians search for a born-again experience, or baptism in the Spirit, as adults. They welcome emotion, long sermons, and witnessing and are uneasy with structures such as sacraments. Reformed (neo-orthodox) Vatican Il Christians recognize the necessity of change and renewal and frequently mediate between those Christians who practically worship change (Liberals) and those who view any change as betrayal (Fundamentalists).
You can learn more about the Five Ways here.
Five Ways Blog – Most Recent Post
- Five Ways – Mar 25
March 05, 2025
First, Children’s Joy, especially for Lent: A second grader came home from school and said to her mother, “Mom, guess what? We learned how to make babies today.” The mother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool. “That’s interesting,” she said. “How do you make babies?” “It’s simple,” replied her daughter. “You just change ‘y’ to ‘i’ and add ‘es’.”
It was Palm Sunday, and because of a sore throat, five-year-old Johnny stayed home from church with a sitter. When the family returned home, they were carrying several palm branches. The boy asked what they were for. “People held them over their heads as Jesus walked by.” “Wouldn’t you know it,” the boy fumed. “The one Sunday I don’t go, He showed up!”
After Mass, a little boy told the pastor, “When I grow up, I’m going to give you some money.” “Well, thank you,” the pastor said. “But why?” “Because my Daddy says you’re the poorest preacher we’ve ever had.” from Fr. Gilmond Boucher, O.M.I.
My thanks to Father Seamus Finn, O.M.I., for the attachment below about the May 2-5th Assisi Conference, especially that this is the 1700th anniversary of our Nicean-Constantinople Creed, which we profess on Sundays. Also this year is one of the years when both our Latin Church and the Eastern Churches observe Easter on the same Sunday. Pope Francis has offered to work for this to be the rule every year.
Many thanks to those who commented on the February 25, 2025 e-letter. May this year’s Holy Week bring us all closer in the love of our crucified and risen Savior.
Fr. Harry Winter, O.M.I.
Recent Five-Ways posts from Fr. Harry
- Five Ways – Mar 25March 05, 2025 First, Children’s Joy, especially for Lent: A second grader came home from school and said to her mother, “Mom, guess what? We learned how to make babies today.” The mother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool. “That’s…
- Five Ways – Feb 25February 21, 2025 Many thanks to those who commented on the January 28, 2025 Five Ways. For Christian Joy, consider these two insights by kids, from the Joyful Noiseletter of Jan.-Feb. 2024: 1) A little girl asked her grandpa: “Grandpa, did God make you?”…
- Council for Research in Values and Philosophy2025 Conferences
- Five Ways – Jan 25January 28, 2025 First, as we end the first month of the Jubilee Year, 2025, let us remember the need for joy. In our Old Testament reading from Nehemiah for Jan. 26, we saw that when people realize more deeply how much God loves…
- Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025To appreciate this year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 18-25, 2025, see the article below written by Rev. Philip Halikias published in the Nov/Dec 2024 issue of Ecumenical Trends. -Fr. Harry Do You Believe This? When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus…
- Five Ways – Dec 24December 30, 2024 First, as plans are made for the funeral of President Jimmy Carter, may we remember him as a devout Southern Baptist who taught Sunday School for many years. When the Southern Baptists turned fundamentalist, he fought with all his energy to…