DEACON STEVE GRECO, director of Evangelization and Formation for the Diocese of Orange and founder of Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry (www.spiritfilledevents.com), participated in “Communication and Evangelization: Context, Attitudes and Experiences,” a biannual conference at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome Jan. 15-22. According to organizers, the conference addresses the “many aspects of institutional communication in the Church, such as generating trust, listening and relevance, digital culture, crisis and controversy management, and relations with the media and opinion leaders.”
During the conference, Deacon Steve screened “Jesus Thirsts: The Miracle of the Eucharist” (https://jesusthirstsfilm.com/), a film about the Eucharist produced by Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to share with more than 700 participants active in the field of evangelization around the globe one of the ways we’re sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Diocese of Orange and beyond,” said Deacon Steve.
STORIES OF THE EUCHARIST
The 2024 film features a presentation of Catholic beliefs about the Eucharist and stories of the Eucharist from around the world. It includes interviews with prominent Catholics, including Bishops Kevin Vann and Timothy Freyer, as well as Magis Center President Fr. Robert Spitzer, FOCUS founder Curtis Martin, Marian Fathers Fr. Donald Calloway and Fr. Chris Alar, Fr. Angelos Sebastian, Chris Stefanick, Scott Hahn, Eduardo Verastegui, Norbertine Father Charbel Grbavac, Augustine Institute President Tim Gray and many more.
Deacon Steve shared with conference participants about the development of the movie, and Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry’s partnership with the Diocese of Orange in making the film and its successful release in theaters last summer. The film was an outgrowth of a successful in-person “Jesus Thirsts” conference series led by Deacon Steve which began at Christ Cathedral in 2022 and has spread to surrounding dioceses.
Viewers were “mesmerized” by the film, he said, and agreed with its central message: the importance of promoting devotion to the Eucharist.
He explained, “They like the beauty of the film, its content and focus on the Eucharist, Mass and adoration. They also liked the historical sequences we reenacted, such as Jesus walking with the two disciples after the Resurrection on the road to Emmaus.”
He said Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry was looking at ways to screen the film in a variety of other countries; the film has a Spanish-language version and could be subtitled in other languages.
Deacon Steve’s Rome visit included participating in a papal audience and passing through the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica as part of the Jubilee Year.
Joining Deacon Steve for the conference were Katie Hughes of Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry and Alexis Walkenstein of AWE PR.
RENT, BUY OR STREAM
“Jesus Thirsts” is available to rent or buy via streaming services Amazon, Google, Vudu and iTunes in the U.S. and Canada and is also available on DVD via Ignatius Press. Parishes, Catholic schools and organizations are also encouraged to host a screening through Faith Content Network (see the website for details: https://jesusthirstsfilm.com/).
Additionally, the “Jesus Thirsts” film and in-person conferences include a 52-week follow-up series of presentations on a wide range of topics related to the Catholic faith by Norbertine Father Jacob Hsieh entitled “Jesus Thirsts Weekly.” It is being released in partnership with eCatholic and will reach thousands of parishes around the U.S. Listen to presentations on the Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry YouTube page (https://www.youtube.com/@SpiritFilledHearts/videos) or by registering free of charge at www.spiritfilledevents.com.