To conclude our 2025 Pride Month Series, FutureChurch welcomed a panel of guests to reflect and share on their experiences of faith, love, and joy as queer Catholics.

The panel featured: Nick Fagnant, MEd, MATM (he/him), Ariell Watson Simon, Rachelle Simon, M. Hakes (they/them or ze/zir), Andy Buechel-Rieger, PhD, and Ed Buechel. Read more about our panelists here. 

With the fire of Pentecost and emboldened by the Holy Spirit, we at FutureChurch are engaging in a new project to recognize and celebrate communities that are embodying the mission of Pentecost. Over the next several months, we will continue highlighting communities that have been emboldened to live the Gospel in new and creative ways. Today we introduce you to the Far-Flung Flock.

"During the darkest days of the global pandemic many church-goers took to the Internet to meet their liturgical needs. As stay-at-home bans lifted and folks started returning to the pews, staff at St. Cecilia Parish in Boston noticed their number of online viewers wasn’t decreasing. In fact, even after church pews were filled to capacity, the parish was still receiving a few thousand live streamers every week. As the online participation remained strong, a remote attendee suggested starting an 'online coffee hour' for other remote Mass attendees to share fellowship and conversation. The staff responded by placing a notice in the weekly bulletin. Would anyone be interested in a monthly online coffee hour? If so, would anyone be willing to facilitate such a group? The response was overwhelmingly positive." ...

Read More about the Far-Flung Flock......

She was the first to proclaim: “I have seen the Lord!” Mary Magdalene —apostle of the apostles— was the very first preacher of the Resurrection.

This July 22, as we celebrate her Feast Day, Catholic Women Preach invites you to honor the “Marys Magdalene” in your own life—the women who have lifted you up, inspired your faith, and boldly shared the Good News through their words and witness.

Make a gift in their honor today. Whether it’s a mother, teacher, friend, sister, mentor, or someone whose courage transformed your journey, your donation is a powerful tribute to their legacy.

Throughout July, we’ll joyfully share the names of these honorees on our website and in our weekly emails—a living witness to the countless women who continue Mary Magdalene’s mission today. (Or, if you prefer, your tribute can remain private.)

Let’s celebrate the women who have preached Resurrection in our lives. Honor them. Remember them. Share their light.

Join FutureChurch for this annual tradition of highlighting scholarship about Mary Magdalene!

Based on her expert analysis on the Gospel of John in the Wisdom Commentary series, Dr. Mary Coloe, PBVM will present on what we would gain if we were to proclaim all of John 20:1-18 on Easter Sunday morning.

Dr. Mary L. Coloe, a member of the Presentations Sisters of Victoria, is professor of New Testament at Yarra Theological Union, a college of the University of Divinity in Melbourne. Mary taught for over twenty years at Australian Catholic University and also at Boston College, the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, and in Jerusalem. Mary has written many academic publications on the Gospel of John, as well as books to help parents and teachers, such as A Friendly Guide to John, The Two Hands of God, and A Friendly Guide to the Birth of Jesus. Mary has also written an introduction to the Johannine literature for the new revised edition of the Jerome Biblical Commentary.

In 1997, FutureChurch launched an international campaign to restore St. Mary of Magdala to her rightful place as the apostle to the apostles, asking supporters to sponsor special celebrations on or around July 22 at which a biblical expert would trace Mary’s unparalleled fidelity in accompanying Jesus through crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection. This would be followed by a prayer service at which a woman would preside, preach and encourage attendees to reflect on their own encounters with, and witness to, the risen Christ.

Annual celebrations of St. Mary of Magdala exploded after that, going from 23 that first year, to 150 the following year to between 250 to 400 celebrations worldwide in each year since. Every summer, thousands of women and men help correct an egregious injustice done to a great woman leader in our church.

Join FutureChurch our annual celebration of the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene.

This year, we will prayerfully uplift the voices and celebrate the witness of women who, following in the footsteps of Mary Magdalene, are speaking truth to power. We'll hear the prophetic words of women who are speaking out to both society and the Church about a variety of justice and human rights issues. This year, we are honored to welcome Sr. Eilis McCulloh, HM, of NETWORK – the Catholic social justice lobby – who will be our guest preacher.

Sr. Eilis McCulloh is a member of the Sisters of the Humility of Mary (Villa Maria, PA) and currently serves on the Grassroots Mobilization Team at NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice. She is a frequent contributor to Global Sisters Report and is also a co-host of the Just Politics podcast. She currently serves on her religious community’s JPIC and Racial Justice Committees.

Prior to joining the staff at NETWORK, she spent more than 10 years ministering in refugee resettlement and immigration services in St. Cloud, MN, Akron, OH, and Cleveland, OH.

Sr. Eilis holds a BA from Westminster College (New Wilmington, PA), an MA in Theology from John Carroll University (University Heights, OH), and a JD from the University of Akron-School of Law.