Now that we’ve launched our Sunday Scripture study guide, you may be wondering how (or why) to go about starting your own weekly fellowship group. You may be thinking you can still prayerfully reflect on the upcoming readings on your own…and you’d be right.

But at Our Spiritual Family, our tag line is “walking with God in a life together.”

We created the weekly study guide with one goal in mind: to help people follow the early Christians’ example, who “devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers” (Acts 2:42).

So consider this our gentle nudge to consider the time, inconvenience, tradition, and deep fruitfulness of a group setting.

Reading and discussing the Sunday Mass readings with my peers has been a practice in my life since high school. Twenty years later, I’m able to look back and see its transformative effects on my relationship with Jesus and with those who dove into the Scriptures with me.

The readings almost always speak to my circumstances, and so they bring enlightenment and encouragement to my journey. That encouragement, however, has only been deepened by studying them with others.

The fruits of a group setting

• Listening to other’s insights about the readings has increased my curiosity, wonder, and understanding of the Scriptures.

• Talking about (and genuinely believing in) God’s eternal love for us has become more natural and easy.

• I have found a place to share about common life issues, assuring myself and others that we are never alone –and that the hope of Christ is often given through other people.

• I have a community to walk alongside and pray with, allowing me to feel seen, known, loved, and received by others.

• My prayers and needs are often answered through others by emotional support, wise words, or practical deeds.

• The accountability of showing up at a certain time and place with other people keeps my prayerful study consistent.

And when I prepare this way each week, I engage more deeply in the Mass, which has given me a sense of transformation through communion with the Word and the Eucharist.

If you’ve decided to take the plunge to start a fellowship group, we have some practical tips for inviting others to join you. We know it works, because we’ve done it!

8 steps to start a group + what to do at a meeting

1. (Most importantly) Offer your intentions to build a Sunday Scripture fellowship group to the Lord, and pray for the courage and discernment to follow His next promptings. Then surrender your plans, ideas, and expectations of what it could look like.

2. Talk about the idea with a few friends and see who may be interested in facilitating a group with you. If you have 1 to 3 others who are committed, brainstorm ideas together and share your strengths, skills, and desires with each other.

3. Delegate responsibilities that will help the group run smoothly, with roles like: communications (collecting contact info and sending out reminder emails), hospitality (welcoming members and organizing snacks or drinks), or a meeting facilitator (keeping track of time and leading the group through questions). Make it as simple or elaborate as you want, and make it work according to the particular talents of your group.

4. Pick a day of the week, time, and location that you can consistently commit to and decide how long you want to meet. We’ve found that at least an hour works well to discuss each reading and the psalm. Leave some room at the beginning and end of your discussion for general fellowship.

5. Invite others to join you. Call or text friends, post an announcement online or in your parish bulletin, or ask those you see throughout your week. Personal invitations work the best. Share details about what you are doing and when you expect to begin.

6. Have all members subscribe to receive the Sunday Scripture study guide emails. Encourage each of them to bring their Bible or Magnificat and a copy of the study questions. Have the leader bring a copy of the Catechism as well, since the study guide usually includes CCC references for further reading.

7. Collect everyone’s emails. Each week the study leader can send out an email reminder to download that week’s study guide and share the location and time of the meeting.

8. You’ve created and consecrated the space, now let the Lord take care of the rest.

Once you’ve arrived at your first Sunday Scripture study group, what do you do? We’ve designed this resource to make the process as simple as possible. Once everyone has arrived:

1. Pray the opening prayer included on the study guide to begin.

2. Have someone volunteer to read the reading out loud.

3. Read and discuss the questions on the guide for that reading.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each reading and psalm.

5. At the end, share personal prayer intentions and pray the closing prayer together.

In other words, follow exactly what you see on the guide and focus instead on a fruitful discussion. Keep in mind:

• Don’t be afraid of silence. Allow each member to think and reflect on the questions before answering.

• Remind everyone that what is shared is confidential and should be kept within the privacy of the group.

• Keep showing up even if the group is small or if people miss several meetings. It takes time to get established, and there is a natural ebb and flow over the course of your journey together.

• Encourage your members to discern what “commitment” means to them. Does someone feel inspired to step into a specific role for the group? What talents and gifts does your group have?

• Have an open door to whoever the Lord brings. Trust that the news of your group will reach those who need it.

This should be everything you need to launch a weekly fellowship group with a strong foundation. How your group blooms and develops over time will be totally unique to your members, and that’s the most beautiful (and mysterious) part of the whole process.

If you’ve experienced the joy of being part of a Sunday Scripture study group and have used our study guide, please let us know how it’s going! If you have any questions about the study guide, feel free to contact us, or if you’d like to speak one-on-one with Annie about developing and deepening your group even more, schedule a coaching session with her.