SFMYA | Theology on Tap Santa Barbara

Theology on Tap Santa Barbara //

Theology on Tap is coming back for its fourth year! Doors open at 7 p.m. and sessions begin at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. Donations accepted.

TOT for the Santa Barbara Pastoral Region will be held July 24 and 31, and Aug. 7 and 14 at St. Mary Magdalen's Church's parish hall, located at 25 Las Posas Road in Camarillo.

2004 topics, speakers

{July 24}

Bill Shaules | "Love lust & God: How do they fit together?"

Bill Shaules is the first non-ordained pastoral associate at Incarnation Parish in Glendale. Married with two children, Shaules has a master's degree in religious studies and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in New Testament. He taught for seven years at St. Francis High School and has experience in parish youth ministry and in liturgy preparation.

{July 31}

Bishop Thomas Curry | "Q&A with the bishop: everything you wanted to know but forgot to ask in religious education"

Bishop Thomas Curry was born in Ireland and attended All Hallows Seminary in Dublin, where he was ordained in 1967 for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. During his first 27 years of ministry in the archdiocese, he served as an associate pastor, then as a high school teacher, subsequently as the archdiocese's first vicar for clergy and later as secretariat director for church ministerial services. In 1994, Cardinal Roger Mahony ordained Curry bishop and episcopal vicar for the Santa Barbara Pastoral Region.

{Aug. 7}

Rev. David Loftus | "The Mass: why we do the things we do"

Rev. David Loftus is in residence at St. Thomas Moore Church in Alhambra.

{Aug. 14}

Sister Kathy Bryant, RSC | "God ... can you hear me now?"

Sister Kathy Bryant is vocation director for the Archdiocesan Office of Vocations.

About Theology on Tap

During the first 20 years, 1981 to 2000, Theology on Tap was hosted by 120 different parishes. More than 175 speakers have been privileged to address over 30,000 young adults during these summer sessions. Theology on Tap began in June 1981 at St. James Parish in Arlington Heights, as a response to a conversation between a parish priest and a young man from the parish who was graduating from college. That man was looking beyond his last few months of college to the "real world." He was facing a career and wondering about the future. He was concerned about his personal identity and finding meaning in life. "Will I be more than my job? What will it mean to fall in love? Where does God fit in all this? What does it mean to be Catholic?" Theology on Tap will continue to address these and similar questions.

Theology-On-Tap is a four-week speaker conversation program that takes God out of the confines of a church building and into the daily lives of young adults by offering a series of topics that young adults care about in a relaxed and fun environment.

Who will attend TOT?

We are targeting the Catholic young adult community -- singles and couples in their 20s and 30s: young adults trying to make sense of their lives. These young adults are seeking to meet other Catholic young adults asking some of the same questions.

Why target this audience?

This group of people are often overlooked by the Catholic Church. There are programs designed to meet the needs of elementary to junior high, high school and older adults. After receiving the sacrament of confirmation or graduation from high school, there is no direct follow-up by the Catholic Church to young adults. We want to remedy this situation by providing more guidance and support for young adults as they make critical decisions about work, school, family, relationships, even decisions regarding their faith. Theology-On-Tap is one step in that direction.