Since the first year of this conference, men throughout the Archdiocese have been challenged to live out their Catholic faith more fully. Here is a year-by-year summary of the conferences from 1997 to the present.
1997 Living the Call
The first Catholic Men's Conference was held Friday night April 11th and all day Saturday April 12th at the FiveSullivanBrothersCenter in Waterloo. Despite a early spring snow storm, men came from all over Eastern Iowa to hear several speakers including Matthew Cramer of the Cramer Foundation and Msgr. Frank Chido, Pastor of the Basilica of St. John in Des Moines. Episcopal Vicar, Msgr. Dean Walz presided at Mass to conclude the conference.
1998
St. Edward Catholic Church in Waterloo hosted the second annual conference. Archbishop Jerome Hanus celebrated Mass with the men before lunch. Speakers included author, speaker and television host, Jeff Cavins and Catholic evangelist Tom Edwards with Renweal Ministries. Phillip Kapela, Executive Director of Catholic Men's Ministry in Chicago also spoke about the importance of meeting regularly with other Catholic men for accountability, study and prayer.
1999 Responding to God’s Call
In 1999 the conference moved to St. Jude Catholic Church in Cedar Rapids for a Saturday, April 1st event. This was no April Fools joke as three other Catholic Men's Conferences were held this same day in other parts of the country! Archbishop Hanus gave a brief reflection before inviting the men to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Our conference emcee was television weatherman Joe Winters. Jeff Cavins returned to our conference once again and we welcomed speaker and author Steve Wood of St. Joseph Covenant Keepers. This year men from around Iowa and surrounding states attended the conference!
2000
Veteran author and Catholic evangelist Ralph Martin was one of three speakers who challenged and encouraged the men to strengthen their walk with the Lord. Author and seminar leader John Ream also gave some life changing advice on how to be "Effective Fathers". Gary Dolphin, "the voice of the Hawkeyes", shared some personal insights from his life as a cradle Catholic growing up in Eastern Iowa. Conference emcee Joe Winters even wore his Wisconsin Badgers tie in Gary's honor! The conference was held at St. Jude's and concluded with Mass celebrated by Archbishop Hanus.
2001 A Call to Holiness
The fifth annual conference returned to St. Jude's in Cedar Rapids. The men in attendance heard many powerful talks throughout the day from speaker and author Matthew Kelly, Catholic evangelist Peter Herbeck of Renewal Ministries, Fr. Jim Dubert, Pastor St. Mark's Catholic Church in Iowa Falls, Fr. Phil Gibbs, Director of Vocation Awareness for the Achdiocese of Dubuque and retreat leader Bob Lillibridge who spoke about discerning your gifts of the Holy Spirit. Joe Winters was the conference host and Archbishop Hanus concluded the day with Mass.
2002 Your Spiritual Journey with Christ
Deacon Henry Libersat was the keynote speaker as the sixth annual conference changed to a breakout session format. ColumbusHigh School hosted the March 9th conference. Former New Orleans linebacker and current Green Bay Packer pro scout, Marc Lillibridge was the conference host. Despite freezing rain and snow, men from around the diocese drove to Waterloo to hear breakout sessions from Henry Libersat on "Incorporating Scripture into Your Life", "Modern Culture & Preserving your Integrity" by Chuck Ryan, "Becoming a Disciple and Sharing the Good News" by Jim Mudd, "The Eucharist: Source and Summit of Our Faith" by Fr. John Haugen, "The Domestic Church: Passing it On, Handing it Down" by Patrick Rinker, Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry for the Archdiocese of Sioux City. Fr. Denny Juhl gave a talk before Reconciliation. Archbishop Hanus celebrated Mass.
2003 Effective Father’s Seminar
In place of the regular conference, we welcomed back John Ream from Effective Father’s Seminar to give his two day seminar Friday, February 28th & Saturday, March 1st at St. Columbkille parish in Dubuque and Friday, March 7th & Saturday, March 8th at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish in Hiawatha. The wives of the men were invited to join us Saturday night to learn what John had been sharing with us.
2004 The Journey Home: Coming to Faith
BeckmanHigh School in Dyersville hosted the eighth annual conference on Saturday, March 27. Deacon Henry Libersat returned as the keynote speaker. Bob Lillibridge gave a talk before Reconciliation. Conference host/MC was Gary Dolphin, "Voice of the Hawkeyes". Breakout sessions included "This is Your Life" by Fr. Phil Gibbs, "Empty Nesters" by Deacon Jim Pfafly, "A Man’s Man" by Jon Kopecky, "Pure of Heart" by Tony May, "Small Men’s Groups" by Joe Lutgens & Frank Easton. "You are Not Alone" by Pat Hurley. Celebrant & Homilist Msgr. James Barta.
2005 The Journey Home: Living and Leaving a Legacy of Faith
XavierHigh School in Cedar Rapids hosted the ninth annual conference. Raymond Arroyo was the morning keynote speaker and Msgr. Russell Bleich gave the afternoon keynote, "The Eucharist: Becoming What We Eat". Sam Black gave a talk before Reconciliation. Joe Winters was conference host/MC. Breakout sessions included: a Q&A session with Raymond Arroyo, "What do we do with Vatican II?" by Msgr. Russel Bleich, "We Believe…Our Creed" by Fr. David O’Connor, "Catholic Beliefs on Scripture" by Fr. Jim Brockman, "The Mass Explained" by Fr. Henry Huber, "The Bible in Iraq" by Fr. Bill Kneemiller-U.S. Army Chaplain, "Leaving a Spiritual Legacy" by Deacon Laverne Flagel, "The Domestic Church: Praying as a Family" by Jon Kopecky, "Men’s Faith Sharing Groups" by Joe Lutgens, "Marriage & Sexuality" by Gary Ward. Celebrant & Homilist Archbishop Jerome Hanus.
2006 The Journey Home: Living the Catholic Life
Saturday, April 8th at LaSalleMiddle School in Cedar Rapids. Keynote speaker - Maurice Blumberg, Executive Director, National Fellowship of Catholic Men. Breakout sessions – "Promoting Catholic Traditions" by Fr. Brian Delleart, "Social Justice that makes Sense" by Deacon Sean Smith, "Men’s Faith Sharing Groups" by Joe Lutgens, "Everyday Stewardship" by Dennis Mullherin, "Faith in the Workplace" by Scott Zogg, "Living the Vocational Life" by Fr. Phil Gibbs and a panel discussion on the roles of men comprised of various laymen. Celebrant & Homilist Archbishop Jerome Hanus.
2007 The Journey Home: Walking with Christ
The conference returned to XavierHigh School on March 31st, 2007. Curtis Martin was the keynote speaker and gave two talks; “Christ’s Call to Greatness” and “The Transforming Power of Virtue”. He also led a breakout session called “Raising Faith Filled Kids”. Other breakout sessions included: “Deus Caritas Est-God is Love” by Fr. Bill Joensen, “Emmaus: Recognizing Christ in Daily Life” by Fr. Greg Bahl, “A Catholic Approach to Scripture” by Fr. Brian Dellaert , “Small Faith Sharing Groups by Joe Lutgens and Frank Easton, “On Bended Knee” by John Harris, “Spiritual Leadership” by Tom Keating and “Treasures in Heaven” by Tom Satern. Two panel discussions were also offered: “Simple Rules for Dating your Wife” led by Dan Rouse and “Faith in the Foxhole” led by Fr. Bill Kneemiller.
2008 Were Not Our Hearts on Fire?
This year marked two milestones… this was the first year that Catholic Men’s Fellowship of the Archdiocese of Dubuque planned and sponsored the conference, plus we had the most men in attendance in 10 years. Close to 200 men gathered from around the diocese at XavierHigh School on March 15th. Jesse Romero fired up the men with his morning keynote talk “Catholicism 101”. After lunch, Joe Lutgens and Frank Easton led a panel discussion in the theater on Catholic Men’s Fellowship groups called “As Iron Sharpens Iron…Being Encouraged in Faith!” Jesse Romero then took the stage again and challenged men with his second keynote talk “The Battle for the Heart”. Jesse also led an afternoon breakout session entitled “Spiritual Workout”. Other breakout sessions included: “What Does It Mean To Be a Christian Man?” by Fr. David Schatz, “End of Life Issues” by Fr. Bill Joensen, “The Last Four Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell” by Fr. Michael Podhajsky, “Nuts & Bolts(of Small Men’s Groups)…and the Right Tools to get the Job Done” by Frank Easton and Joe Lutgens. Portions of the Champions of Faith video from Catholic Exchange were also shown in one of the classrooms as a breakout session.
2009 As Iron Sharpens Iron
The thirteenth annual conference was at LaSalle Middle School in Cedar Rapids on Saturday, April 4th. Keynote speakers were Fr. Phillip Chavez and Kenneth Henderson. Fr. Chavez challenged the men with a powerful keynote entitled “The Lion and the Lamb: The Identity of Every Man and Father”. Kenneth spoke in the afternoon on “The Greatest Battle of Every Man’s Life”. In addition to video taping both keynote talks, Blue Sky Productions in Marion, also made audio recordings of each break out session. These included “Potatoes Are for Chips, Not Pews” by Dave Airy, “Hope in Challenging Times” by Msgr. Russell Bleich, "Not under my roof!-The Centurion's Dilemma” by Fr. Nick March, “Lasting Treasure- Some Thoughts and Principles on Money” by Ed Meissner & Tom Satern, “Sex, Fatherhood, and Priestly Authority” by Fr. Chris Podhajsky, “Living a Sacramental Life” by Fr. Michael Podhajsky, “Why Me?-An Overview of the Permanent Diaconate” by Deacon Richard L. (Rich) Wallace. And back by popular demand, a presentation of the DVD “Champions of Faith-Baseball Edition” followed by a short discussion. After lunch Joe Lutgens led a panel discussion of men talking about the impact Catholic Men’s Fellowship groups have had on their lives entitled “As Iron Sharpens Iron-Being Encouraged in Faith”. The conference concluded with a Palm Sunday liturgy with Celebrant & Homilist Archbishop Jerome Hanus.
Talks in bold are available on DVD, CD or MP3 download. Click on the Multimedia page to order.