Training Program for Facilitators of
Faith and Values at Work

In response to growing interest in the Faith and Values at Work seminar, Woodstock Theological Center offered an intensive training program for seminar facilitators from February 28 to March 3, 1999. The eighteen participants – who came from Canada, Chile, New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, Washington, Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia – met at Loyola Retreat House, which commands a spectacular view of a wide bend of the Potomac River near Faulkner, Maryland.

The program was led by J. Michael Stebbins, the author of Faith and Values at Work, and by Bridgette Theurer, a management consultant who has played a key role in the seminar’s development. Over the course of three days, they guided the participants through a series of mini-lectures, exercises, and discussions designed to equip them to be effective seminar facilitators. The program was divided into thirteen 90-minute sessions, each of which revolved around a central question:

Session 1: What we’re about
 What are we doing here?

Session 2: The Christian horizon
 What are we for?

Session 3: The purpose of business
 What is business for?

Session 4: Business and the common good
 How does business serve the common good?

Session 5: Facilitating the seminar
 How do I make this thing work?

Session 6: The examen
 How do I find God in my day?

Session 7: Personal authenticity
 How do I work when I’m at my best?

Session 8: Striving for personal authenticity
 How do I stay on track?

Session 9: Organizational authenticity
 How do organizations work when they’re at their best?

Session 10: More on organizational authenticity
 What helps or hinders organizational authenticity?

Session 11: Open discussion
 What’s on your mind?

Session 12: Vocation: Cooperating with the Son and Spirit
 How do we hear and respond to God’s call?

Session 13: Where do we go from here?
 How did we do, and what’s next?

Two other elements of the program were particularly important: an atmosphere of prayer and friendship. Each day began and ended with prayer, and the program concluded with a prayer service at which the participants had a chance to express the hopes that their time together had prompted in them. And despite the fairly rigorous schedule, there were numerous opportunities for the participants to get to know each other. There was no shortage of humor either inside or outside the sessions.

The new facilitators will offer Faith and Values at Work to groups of people in their own locations. Woodstock Theological Center will continue to offer facilitator training programs as the need arises. For further information, please contact J. Michael Stebbins at 202/687-3556 or via e-mail at jmstebbins@compuserve.com.

Participants in the Intensive Facilitators Training Program
February 28 – March 3, 1999

Karen Bancroft is co-chair of the Spiritual Journey Planning Committee at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. Currently enrolled in the Washington Theological Union’s graduate program for spiritual direction, she is a certified mentor for Education for Ministry, a worldwide program for education of the laity. A professional educator for 25 years, Karen has served as president of regional education associations and has written and produced community-outreach television programs. She has recently returned to the middle school classroom as a mathematics teacher.

Francis Blighton is director of the Borromeo Prayer Center in Rochester, New York. An ordained Catholic priest for the past 25 years, Francis has a bachelor of divinity degree and a masters in applied spirituality from the University of San Francisco. He has a certificate in spiritual direction from the Center for Religious Development in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

James Connor, S.J., is director of the Woodstock Theological Center, where he concentrates in the area of business ethics. He holds a doctorate in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome. Prior to coming to Woodstock, Jim taught theology at Loyola College in Baltimore and served as head of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus, president of the National Jesuit Conference, and pastor at Holy Trinity Parish in Washington. In 1995 he was a delegate to the 34th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus.

Patricio Crichigno is professor of international business and ethics and social responsibility, and associate academic director of the business department at Alberto Hurtado University in Santiago, Chile. Patricio has a Ph.D. in political science (international political economy and development policy) from the University of California at Santa Barbara. Prior to joining the faculty and participating in the creation of the Alberto Hurtado University, he served as an expert on international development policy for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Latin America.

Mary Ann Fackelman is a member of the staff of the Borromeo Prayer Center, Rochester, New York, where she conducts faith-sharing sessions in work environments and in workshop sessions. Mary Ann has B.A. and M.A. degrees in French and secondary education. She has served as a trainer, training coordinator, and quality consultant for the Eastman Kodak Company, where she has extensive experience in group process and facilitation skills. She is currently enrolled in the certificate program for spiritual guides at the Shalem Institute in Washington, DC.

Dianna Kielian is Vice President of Mission and Community Health for the Franciscan Health System in Tacoma, Washington. Prior to this position she was Vice President of Mission Services and Human Resources at Marian Health Center in Sioux City, Iowa, and Director of Mission Effectiveness at Samaritan Health System in Clinton, Iowa. Dianna holds an M.B.A. from St. Ambrose University and a B.A. in Communications and Marketing from Central Michigan University.

Paul Lewis is director of Lewis & Associates, a consulting firm that provides ethics training and advice to the Government of Canada Ministry of Health and other science departments, and training and advice to the National Research Council of Canada in connection with its entrepreneurship programs. Paul holds a doctorate in theology and ethics from St. Paul University in Ottawa. He is a Lonergan Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at Boston College and is currently writing a book, Defining Sustainable Development: An Application of Lonergan’s Genetic Method. From 1985 to 1995 he was owner and CEO of a general contracting firm specializing in residential construction.

Kenneth Melchin is professor of Christian ethics at St. Paul University, Ottawa. Ken has a doctorate in religion from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. His dissertation, History, Ethics, and Emergent Probability, was published in 1987 by University Press of America. A frequent participant and presenter at the Lonergan Workshop at Boston College, Ken is the author of numerous articles that explore the importance of Bernard Lonergan’s work in the field of ethics. His most recent book, Living with Other People: An Introduction to Christian Ethics Based on Bernard Lonergan, was published in 1998 by Liturgical Press in the United States and Novalis in Canada.

Barry Myers is a professor of economics at Algonquin College in Ottawa. He was formerly a visiting professor at Carleton University in Ottawa and represented the World Bank in Jamaica. Barry has a M.A. in social administration and industrial relations from Sir George Williams University and did doctoral studies at the University of Michigan. From 1976 to 1991 he was a member of the Panel of Third Party Interlocutors of the Ontario Labour Relations Board and was coordinator of labor market research for the Commission on the Status of Women for the Government of Canada. A member of the Board of the Archdiocese of Ottawa’s social service agency, Shepherds of Good Hope, he is president-elect of the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development and a member of the editorial committee for the Canadian Journal of Development Studies.

Laura Nash was not able to attend the entire program, but was gracious enough to join the group for a day to learn more about the Faith and Values at Work seminar. Dr. Nash is the director of the newly formed Institute for Values-Centered Leadership at Harvard Divinity School. In addition to running the Institute’s programs, she teaches and writes on business ethics, religious values, and corporate culture. Before joining HDS, Laura was a senior research associate at Boston University’s Institute for the Study of Economic Culture under the directorship of Peter Berger. With a Ph.D. in classical philology, Laura began working in business ethics on the faculty at Harvard Business School in 1980. Her books include Good Intentions Aside (Harvard Business School Press), A Fatal Embrace? (with Frank Heuberger), Believers in Business (Thomas Nelson Publishers), and A Sense of Mission (with Andrew Campbell).

Michael Naughton is an associate professor at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, where he holds a joint appointment in the theology department and the Graduate School of Business and directs the John A. Ryan Institute for Catholic Social Thought in the Center for Catholic Studies. Michael has organized international conferences in the United States, Belgium, and India on the theme of Catholic social thought and management. He is currently writing a book with the working title, The Integrity of Work: Overcoming the Privatization of Faith in the Corporation. The recipient of a Ph.D. in theology and society from Marquette University and an M.B.A. from the University of St. Thomas, he is the author of The Good Stewards: Practical Applications of the Papal Vision of Work and co-editor of The Dignity of Work: Pope John Paul II Speaks to Managers and Workers.

Mark Nielsen has a B.A. in philosophy from Gonzaga University and a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law, where he was editor-in-chief of the Washington Law Review. Mark’s law practice focuses exclusively on domestic and international trademark and copyright matters; his clients range from individuals to large, publicly held corporations. An active member of his Seattle parish, Mark has served as president of its school commission and as basketball coach. More recently, he has organized and led a discussion group based on the writings of Bernard Lonergan, the goal of which is a deeper understanding and practice of Pope John Paul II’s call to aggiornamento.

James Nolan is executive director of the Woodstock Business Conference. Jim has a B.A. from Yale, a law degree from UCLA School of Law, and a M.A. in theology from the Washington Theological Union. He has practiced law in the District of Columbia, California, the U.S. Supreme Court, and various U.S Courts of Appeal and District Courts. While practicing in California, Jim served as Los Angeles Municipal Court Judge Pro Tem and Los Angeles Superior Court Arbitrator.

Irene Richardson is president of Cygnus Associates, Inc., a management consulting firm. She has a degree in nursing from St. Thomas School of Nursing in Nashville, a B.S. in business from Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey, and an M.B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Irene recently retired from her position as director of education at St. Clare’s Medical Center in Denville, New Jersey. She has authored or coauthored books on nursing education for the American Society for Health, Education and Training and the American Hospital Association.

Joseph Richardson is a retired officer in the United States Army. He has a B.S. in civil engineering from The Citadel, a B.A. in biology from Rutgers University, a M.S. in anatomy from New York Medical College, and a Ph.D. in cell physiology from Rutgers. After retiring from the Army, Joe worked as a manager in several major companies, including Shell Oil. In 1995 he was ordained a deacon in the Diocese of Paterson, New Jersey. He is currently president of Whitehall Associates, an educational facilities consulting firm.

Deborah Savage is owner and principal consultant for The Triad Group, which specializes in the development of leadership and organizational capacities, strategic planning and facilitation, and quality and process management practices. She is an adjunct faculty member and associate director of the John A. Ryan Institute for Catholic Social Thought at the University of St. Thomas and was formerly a line manager for Honeywell. Deborah has a master’s degree in theology and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in theology at Marquette University.

Arthur Schmidt is coordinator of mission services and work life quality at St. Francis Hospital, Federal Way, Washington, and the Franciscan Health System, Tacoma, Washington. Art has a master’s degree and a doctorate in ministry and is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In his work with the Franciscan Health System he educates employees to the mission and values of Catholic health initiatives and helps them integrate the values of the organization into their work. He has also served as a church pastor and as a hospital and prison chaplain.

Patricia Scouten has been administrator of the Borromeo Prayer Center, Rochester, New York, for the past five years. Her prior experience includes professional fund-raising in behalf of cultural and educational organizations and institutions for individual, corporate, and capital campaigns. Patricia has been actively involved in religious formation programs, including the Right of Christian Initiation for Adults, Confirmation, and prayer and meditation for children.

Michael Stebbins is a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center, where he has directed the Arrupe Program in Social Ethics for Business since 1994. Mike holds a B.A. in philosophy from Gonzaga University and a B.S. in nursing from the University of Washington. He received a Ph.D. in theology from Boston College, concentrating in the areas of systematic theology and Christian ethics. He has published a book entitled The Divine Initiative: Grace, World-Order and Human Freedom in the Early Writings of Bernard Lonergan and is the principal author of the Faith and Values at Work seminar.

Bridgette Theurer is a consultant with fourteen years of experience in management and organizational development. She has a B.A. in education from the University of Maryland. Bridgette has coached and trained managers at all levels of the public and private sector in the areas of team-building, leadership, and managing change. Her client list includes the Marriott Corporation, the Department of Energy, Motorola, Hughes Technical Services, Georgetown University, and the National Academy of Sciences. Bridgette has been instrumental in designing the Faith and Values at Work seminar.

Comments of participants in the facilitator training program

"I just had to send you both [J. Michael Stebbins and Bridgette Theurer] a note thanking you for the excellent work you have done in putting the Faith and Values at Work seminar together and for the professional job you both did in presenting the workshop to us all. I enjoyed it so much and really think you have created something of great value."

"Overall, I have to say that this seminar is terrific. You’ve developed quite a compact teaching-learning facilitation tool that crams a great deal into eight sessions, yet is sparse enough in its principal objectives to allow lots of room for discussion to take off and develop in the directions of interest of the participants without threatening the loss of central material. This is an extremely difficult balancing act and I’d say you’ve pulled it off quite well. In addition, the printed material contains loads of detailed direction on how to deliver this thing in the concrete without allowing individual facilitators to go too far off track. Here again you’ve kept a good balance between the essentials that need to stay as is and examples, anecdotes, etc. that individual facilitators can pull from their own tool kit. One further point, you’ve shown a lot of creativity and concrete insight in adapting Lonergan’s insights to the task of facilitation in an environment such as this. I know how difficult this is to do and so far I haven’t seen a complete package as well done as this. Congratulations!"

"I thought the sequencing of the sessions were helpful and flowed logically. Participating in the exercises was also helpful along with the interaction with the other participants. I appreciated the team approach."

"[T]here were many helpful sessions throughout the whole program, including the comprehensive vision through Lonergan’s understanding of reality. This is not a piecemeal program connecting one fad to another. . . . What was most helpful during our time together was the people. How often do you get a small group of people from different backgrounds to talk about faith and work and feel that you are building something together rather than just arguing points?"

"The train-the-trainer sections worked well, as did the content sessions themselves. Good facilitators; good facilitation."

"I think it’s excellent. It’s rooted in a real understanding of how people live – so it’s not another cookbook approach (‘Just follow the recipe . . . ’)."

"The process was very well facilitated, and the agenda was well designed and communicated."

"I like the way you bring in salvation, not as otherworldly, but as ‘God is saving the world through us.’ This is dynamite, particularly when it comes to the discussion of business as a ‘vocation.’ And you nuance this nicely when you remind us that this saving activity is a cooperative activity involving each of us making our contribution to ‘patterns of cooperation.’ Moreover, your presentation of hope as resistance to the determinism of decline and love as the self-giving that de-escalates violence is spectacular. In my life, this is actually how things work and it is a painful but splendid thing to witness. These ideas give folks concrete ways of thinking about redemptive action in business and this, again, is the really important thing."

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