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Honoring Kathryn Miles-Flynn!

On September 26-28th of this year, the Vatican held the Jubilee for Catechists, a celebration we at the VLCFF, strongly align our hearts with. To our great joy, we learned that during this celebration, our long-time collaborator and friend, Kathryn Miles-Flynn, received a Ministry of Catechist crucifix during a special Mass with Pope Leo XIV. Read an article about her from Catholic News Agency!

Kate is the Director of Christian Formation for one of our 77 Partners, the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia, and we are thrilled for her well-deserved recognition. Her dedication and passion for the faith has been felt all throughout the VLCFF, and you can witness it for yourself, by watching this interview we had with her last year! From all of us at the VLCFF…congrats, Kate!

Lunch of Legacies

As 2025 moves forward, we continue to highlight our significant anniversaries happening this year: 25 years for the VLCFF, and 30 years for the Institute for Pastoral Initiatives.

Recently, the festivities continued with a special luncheon we held at our home office in late September, where we invited friends and supporters from the VLCFF’s past and present. It was such an uplifting time, to be in a room surrounded by those who have all, at one point, had a hand in our mission.

As each person went around and shared their connection and contribution, we could really get a sense of how big our community is. Not only does it include our vast body of students, but also the many behind-the-scenes supporters and helpers, guided by God’s hand, who built us from the ground up. May God bless them!

An Evening with IMRI

The International Marian Research Institute (IMRI) is a center at the University of Dayton that, like us, deeply values the University’s Catholic Marianist faith, global connections, and educational faith formation, and this past month, we had the blessing of collaborating with them for a joint-anniversary celebration!

This year, IMRI celebrate 50 years, while the Institute for Pastoral Initiatives celebrates 30 years!

Amidst some last minute changes to the event, it still turned out to be such an enriching evening, with a talk from Dr. Neomi De Anda, Executive Director of IMRI, and a session of vespers prayers from members of both teams.

We’re so thankful for the work they do. If you’re interested in viewing Neomi’s talk, please look forward to an online link which we will post soon.

Learn Spanish: A Journey of Faith, Language, and Culture

If you feel called to deepen your ministry and connect more fully with your community, our course:
Currículo del Idioma Español para el Ministerio Litúrgico.
English: “Spanish Language Curriculum for Liturgical Ministry” is designed for you.

In just 5 weeks, you’ll gain the tools to integrate the beauty of the Spanish language and culture into your liturgical and pastoral service. Through three enriching modules Culture, Grammar, and Pastoral you’ll not only learn the foundations of Spanish, but also discover how language can become a bridge of faith, understanding, and love.

This course will prepare you to serve more effectively, opening doors to new relationships and heartfelt communication with Spanish-speaking members of your community.

Keep an eye out for when we offer it next!

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Our Mission

The Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation (VLCFF) is a growing initiative to offer adult religious education and faith formation anytime and anywhere via the internet. The goal is to support the church's professional ministry of religious education and faith formation in cyberspace.

The VLCFF is coordinated and sponsored by the Institute for Pastoral Initiatives (IPI) at the University of Dayton - a Catholic Marianist Institution.

From Eric F. Spina, University of Dayton President:
"The Institute for Pastoral Initiatives is a pioneer in the e-learning field, delivering 24-7 remote classes to dioceses worldwide long before the pandemic prompted schools to go online and offer hybrid learning. With a successful model already in place, the VLCFF is poised to reach [even] more people with faith formation classes."

A Brief History of the VLCFF

Explore Our Program

Overview

Getting Started

Certificate Programs

Institute for Pastoral Initiatives

From our Students

"I have completed many courses through University of Dayton VLCFF online. I keep thinking I am through but the classes you offer are so interesting and beneficial for my job and in my personal faith growth that I continue taking classes!"

"I am eternally grateful to University of Dayton for treating me not as just a student, but as family. This was my first experience with online classes and I found myself struggling during a particular course since I was juggling studies, work, family and other activities. I felt swamped. I quickly fell behind and just as I was contemplating if I should quit, my facilitator taught me how to balance my assignments."

"So, every session has been awesome! Your facilitators take the time to give feedback on a personal level as well as reach out when assistance is needed."

University of Dayton Religious Studies

Did you know The University of Dayton offers undergraduate, masters, and doctoral degrees in Religious Studies?

As a Catholic Marianist university, the mission of the Department of Religious Studies is to discover, explore, and analyze religious experience in its various manifestations emphasizing the Roman Catholic tradition, in dialogue with the other Christian traditions and with the world religions.

For more information visit the Religious Studies website.

Make a difference!
Support the VLCFF.

The Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation is a non-profit organization at the University of Dayton. Your tax deductible gift can help further our mission of religious education and faith formation.

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