Don’t Shortchange Dad!

(If you don’t have time to read this now, please take note of the buttons on the right. They are free for the taking, for you to use on your Web site. Click on a button to pick up the html code.)

Q U I C K S C A N

Parish Site of the Month
Worth a Click

Father’s Day is just around the corner on June 19. It’s a great time for people using Catholic Web sites to ponder the meaning of fatherhood, both in an earthly sense and beyond. The holiday, of course, marks the role of fathers in our own lives. Dear old Dad, following in the footsteps of St. Joseph, may well be the most underappreciated member of holy families everywhere! But our sense of what it means to be parents—fathers and mothers—is all tied up in our understanding of who God is. Father’s Day is a great time to ponder why we call God Father and how our understanding of fathers relates to our understanding of God.

Placing a link to our Father’s Day feature on your site will move your site well ahead in meeting the needs of your visitors to think about fatherhood, men’s spirituality and finding God.

The link within our Father’s Day feature will lead your visitor to a menu of various features, including our own Father's Day e-cards at CatholicGreetings.org. You might consider putting a Catholic Greetings button up front, on your home page, to help people get those last-minute e-cards written and sent.

Right before Father’s Day is a feast very important in the Franciscan family, and especially to us: the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua. Anthony, the great miracle worker, was perhaps best known for his ability to preach the Word of God in a way that stirred everyday people—scores and scores of them. Our feature has several articles that help explain the real St. Anthony, finder of lost things, but much more.

I hope your summer is filled with blessings! The upcoming “slow” season for parishes is a great time to think about and plan what will make your parish site an even stronger presence for your community. Think about pulling together some parishioners for fresh ideas—our Web ministries are really still in their infancy!

God Bless,

John Feister
Editor, AmericanCatholic.org

Parish Site of the Month

St. Vincent de Paul Parish (Archdiocese of Chicago)
With its first Mass celebrated in a roofless building in 1875, St. Vincent de Paul Parish honors its humble beginnings by sharing with the less fortunate through its “Actions for Justice.” Read about the Parish Sandwich Window, Food Pantry and upcoming 5K Hunger Walk, and find ideas for starting and promoting outreach programs on your own parish site. The site’s special feature page called “SE7EN DAYS” further emphasizes the parish’s contributions to others. Through photos and descriptions of specific outreach activities, learn about the dedicated volunteers who work behind the scenes every day to help those in need and strengthen the church community.

Worth a Click

Good News Web Designers Association
Are you building or maintaining your church’s Web site and don’t know where to start? Check out the Good News Web Designers Association where beginning site builders can find helpful FAQs on maintaining a parish Web site and tutorials on include files, javascript buttons, screen resolutions, Web do’s and don’ts and more. After joining the association, experienced Web designers can advertise their services to others by getting listed on the site’s “Members Directory.” Use the site’s search engine to help you find specific topics, and be sure to read how you can protect your e-mail and computer against spam and viruses.

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