IRVING, Texas (Oct. 5, 2023) — The University of Dallas is pleased to announce that the Institute for Homiletics has received a supplemental grant of $250,000 from Lilly Endowment Inc. to further its work with the “Into Deeper Waters: Renewing Liturgical Preaching To Reach Young Catholics” initiative. Through this project, the institute seeks to raise the profile of Catholic liturgical preaching, especially in its relation to the faith lives of youth and young adults. Thus far, Lilly Endowment Inc. has granted the Institute for Homiletics $1.3 million over a five-year period to renew liturgical preaching with young people. 

The Institute for Homiletics was launched in 2021 to improve preaching in the Catholic church.

“This supplemental grant will help to further our understanding of how to connect the liturgical homily with the lives of young people. We will be studying youth and young adults of all ages: from how to strengthen school Mass preaching for first graders, to preaching the confirmation homily, to campus ministry Masses, to preaching that connects with parents of young families,” said Dr. Karla J. Bellinger, founding executive director.

“It is essential that we learn how to speak to the young church, especially in the moments when we interact with them. Those moments may be at weekly liturgies or at the more rare occasions of funerals, weddings, quinceañeras and Ash Wednesday. From what we uncover, we will develop resources for bishops, priests and deacons to help them to better connect with this essential population.”

About Lilly Endowment Inc. 

Lilly Endowment Inc. launched the Compelling Preaching Initiative in 2022 by inviting 39 organizations to take part. The Institute for Homiletics was one of those first organizations to be invited. In the 2023 competitive phase of the same grant, 61 organizations will be supported in their efforts to foster more compelling preaching in the Christian church. The Lilly Endowment created this grant because of its interest in supporting projects that help nurture the religious lives of individuals and families and foster the growth and vitality of Christian congregations in the United States. 

About the University of Dallas

The University of Dallas is the premier Catholic liberal arts university in the country, known for its rigorous undergraduate Core Curriculum and robust graduate and professional programs in business, ministry, education and the humanities. With campuses in Texas and Italy, UD stands apart as a thriving community of learners committed to an education that forms students intellectually, socially and spiritually for a life well-lived. For more information, visit udallas.edu.