Twenty years ago, Bishop Carl Mengeling and Father Charlie Irvin opened an office in the Diocese of Lansing to start FAITH magazine. They took a chance on me, a former seminarian and ad guy, to launch a new magazine and website. FAITH was more than a new magazine. It was a new idea in diocesan media and a direct response to St. John Paul II’s call for a new evangelization.

The vision that sets FAITH apart is what we call “content evangelization” – the idea that the primary purpose of Catholic media is more than news and information. It’s evangelization. FAITH Catholic’s vision is that you, our readers, can become better evangelists by receiving FAITH magazine. We hope it helps you grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ. When you share your issue of FAITH magazine with a neighbor or family members, when you follow us on social media and “like” a post, when you forward our weekly enews to a coworker, you evangelize.

Over these two short decades, FAITH magazine has evolved into FAITH Catholic, America’s largest publisher of Catholic magazines, and one of America’s largest Catholic media and marketing services companies. From one magazine in 1999 to its present multimedia company, FAITH Catholic has grown to serve 40 dioceses and 19 Catholic organizations. FAITH Catholic publishes 60 print periodicals that reach a combined circulation of 2,203,710 – more than any other Catholic publisher in North America. FAITH Catholic’s 284 products and media outlets include 58 digital publications, 61 websites and 84 other products sold to parishes the world over. FAITH Catholic’s MassTimes.org and the MassTimes app continue to be the gold standard for parish and Mass times information, serving millions annually.

I thank God for blessing this ministry. I thank you, our readers, for your prayers and support. I thank our pastors for their commitment to make sure every Catholic home receives FAITH. I thank Bishop Boyea, Father Dwight Ezop and our board of directors. I thank our staff, columnists and freelancers. All of you made it possible for this ministry to reach the 20-year milestone. On a personal note, I thank Bishop Carl Mengeling and Father Charlie Irvin for taking a chance on me 20 years ago and providing me with my life’s work.