Interviewing Fr. Jon Bielawski and Michele Thompson was like being handed a gift that I couldn’t wait to pass on to our readers. During my time with the pair, who traveled from England to attend Ralph Martin’s class at Sacred Heart Major Seminary and visit the Renewal Ministries’ staff and other Catholic organizations, I discovered that we shared similar hearts for Christ.

Renewal Ministries’ supporters are hungry to tell others about Christ. They find creative ways to share the Gospel with those who cross their paths. So much of what Renewal Ministries does is speak the full truth of God’s Word and call people to repentance when necessary. To be effective, all of this must be infused with the Holy Spirit and fueled by prayer. I also see that intentionality in Fr. Jon and Michele. Below are some key aspects of their method of evangelization that anyone can put into practice.

Forming Evangelizers

Their outreach, called Genesis Mission, offers free small-group training on how to become evangelizers. They have taught it to clergy, bishops, both seminaries in England, the Diocese of Syracuse, and more. Note, it’s not “training in evangelization.” According to Michele, “Evangelization as such does not exist. There are only evangelizers. Until people start speaking, it’s just a concept.”

In other words, evangelization is not primarily something we do; it is something we are. It starts with prayer, with asking the Lord throughout each day to bring someone to share Him with. Then, we’ve got to slow down enough to be aware of the people around us and to listen for a prompting of the Holy Spirit in case there is a conversation He would like us to have.

“One Soul at a Time”

Genesis Mission doesn’t teach participants to share their own stories unless doing so specifically speaks to another person’s life experience. Instead, it focuses on the person you are speaking to. What is their story? What is their value system? What crosses do they carry? Who is Jesus to them?

How does someone begin having these conversations? According to Michele,

Just step into it. Start by saying, “God bless you,” instead of, “Thank you.” Then He’ll bring you more opportunities. Make the Sign of the Cross in a cafe, and then engage the waitress. Be childlike in your questioning. Childlike inquisitiveness, curiosity, is lovely, because you’re just reaching into a person’s life in the moment.

Beyond Small Talk

Another aspect of these conversations is not being afraid to go deep. Instead of asking about the weather, ask about the person’s favorite kind of weather and where they go to experience it. Who joins them there? That opens discussions about relationships and helps you get to know the person’s heart.

To build rapport, it’s also important to share something about yourself that builds the conversation. Michele explained,

I might say, “I live near Plymouth. Where do you live?” Or, “I’ve got three dogs, my dogs are like this . . . Do you like pets?” Share things that can take the conversation to a more personal level without being intrusive.

Through it all, be observant. Fr. Jon and Michele call it soul listening—paying attention not just to the words, but to body language, the look in their eyes, the expression on their face. Ask yourself, “What’s going on behind the words? What are they symbolic of?” These clues, with guidance from the Holy Spirit, can take a conversation in a direction that bears real fruit in a person’s life.

Having Hard Conversations

Then, the Genesis model moves into life-giving words. Michele explained,

You want to build people up. You want to make them feel their worth—that they have value. But it’s important that you don’t just fall into making them feel good. If there’s a need for the call to repentance, it’s still life-giving words. If you are talking about an area of wounding or an attitude of unforgiveness, that needs to come out.

If the conversation allows, the Genesis model then moves into sharing the kerygma—what Jesus has done for us—and praying with people for healing and transformation.

“Wait for that moment to be guided by the Holy Spirit,” said Michele. “People are far more likely to listen when you’ve listened to them. We find it more fruitful for someone to receive when they know: ‘This person’s interested in me. This person cares.’”

Michele shared an encounter from when she and Fr. Jon were sitting outside a church near the city center, offering bacon, rolls, coffee, and tea to passersby in the hope of starting conversations—although the method can be used in all kinds of conversations, not just ones specifically orchestrated with the goal of evangelization. This story exemplifies how the Genesis method encourages speaking the whole truth of the Gospel into people’s lives, with guidance from the Holy Spirit. Michele said that while they can’t change people’s lives or fix things for them, they can introduce them to Someone who can.

When this man accepted his tea, Michele asked how he was doing and could tell from his response that he was distressed. She asked him what was going on, and he said he had been struggling in his relationship and was homeless. When Michele inquired further, he said his partner wouldn’t let him see his son, which was very difficult.

Michele sympathized with him but could tell there was more going on. He shared that his first son, whose mother had liver problems, had been born sick and died after a couple of years. When Michele asked, the man admitted that the woman’s problems were related to an addiction.

Michele expressed sympathy. Later, she asked why the man couldn’t see his other son now. He sidestepped giving a reason but finally answered, “I got drunk. I got into a fight, and I got locked up.”

Michele, who had built up trust with the man, responded,

I’m sincerely concerned about what you’ve told me. You say you haven’t got a drinking problem, but you were locked up when you were due to see your son. You got into a fight. That’s a problem. Drinking is a problem.

From the mother’s point of view, her little boy was so excited to see Daddy. And then Daddy didn’t show up. That little boy would have been so disappointed, and any mother would want to protect her son from that. You must take accountability for your part in that if you want a relationship with your son. You’ve lost one son. You want to be in this other son’s life. To do that, you need to surrender that anger against your partner, because, from her point of view, she’s protecting her son.

Then, Michele asked if he had any faith. He responded that he was unsure if God exists.

She proclaimed that God is real:

He wants to come into your life and help you out of your mess. He came to us in Jesus Christ, who went to the cross for everything you’re experiencing. All the anger and resentment that you’re carrying, He took it onto Himself, and He died. Then, He rose again and opened the gates of heaven so that your little son and you, through Him, can be in heaven together one day. But that’s only going to happen when you invite Him into your life, and you have to really want that.

Fr. Jon and Michele prayed with the man for that to happen. They explained, “You’ve invited Jesus in. There must be a firm resolve now, and you need to try to heal that relationship and do the right thing instead of what you want to do.” They told him about the Church and how to take his first steps into the Church.

A Deeper Dimension

According to Fr. Jon and Michele, all ministry work should take on the deeper dimension of proclaiming Christ.

Michele said, “You’re only doing half a job if you’re not sharing Jesus alongside your ministry work, because you’re not sharing opportunities for lives to be redeemed and healed. Even in church, the person next to us may not have a relationship with Jesus—so engage with them.”

Fr. Jon added,

Many people’s lives are in chaos. Someone who is hungry may need to be given food every day. Often, they’ve got chaotic factors in their lives that won’t change with food. If we discerningly give them food and share Jesus with them, we put them in contact with a solution to the bigger problems. Do good deeds and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal opportunities for conversations about deeper needs.

There are many missed opportunities in the Church. We do good deeds out of love for Jesus but don’t say the reason because we think it’s obvious. It isn’t obvious. People don’t make the connection. The word and deed need to go together.

Even though telling people about Jesus and speaking life-giving words won’t always yield fruit we can see, that shouldn’t prevent us from stepping out in faith and love. Michele explained,

By proclaiming the Gospel, we’ve released the divine power that can help them along the way. Even if they don’t do something immediately, when they reach rock bottom, hopefully they will remember that (person) who said they could turn to Jesus and say sorry, repent their sins, and be resurrected. At the crucifixion, the thief on the cross turned to Jesus, and Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”

Visit https://genesismission.co.uk for more information or to contact Fr. Jon and Michele.

This article originally appeared in Renewal Ministries January 2025 newsletter.

. . . . . . . . .

Bring Genesis Mission to Your Own Parish or Diocese!

Want to bring the Genesis model of evangelization to your parish? Michele Thompson and Fr. Jon Bielawski typically work with parish groups or diocesan teams, with the approval of the priest or bishop. Over the past four years, the Syracuse Diocese has taken about three-hundred people, including the entire diocesan staff, through the step-by-step program.

Fr. Jon and Michele personally host a course on Zoom that’s ninety minutes a week for seven weeks. They describe it as “a journey into discipleship integrated with stepping out to share.”

They only work with teams of five people at a time, to provide personal attention. From the group, they identify two people who then lead sessions in their own parish or diocese. Fr. Jon and Michele share all their resources and are available to provide ongoing training and support.

The first week of the course is an introduction and getting familiar with the resources. Then, they ask participants to look for a conversation or encounter to share in the second session.

“It’s accountability: Learn something. Put it into action,” said Fr. Jon. “They share about their encounters each week and learn from others’ attempts. It’s an apprenticeship. They learn what an encounter is and hopefully have a few good ones themselves.”

Image credit