SPEAKING
Invite Stephen Binz to address your next conference, education days, retreat, mission, or other event, choosing between an array of appealing topics. He is a regular speaker at several yearly conferences including the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, the Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference, the National Catholic Education Association, and the National Conference of Catechetical Leaders.
Consider a retreat with three talks or a three-evening mission for your parish or community:
Renewing Your Life through the Word of God
TALK 1: Learning to Read the Bible as the Word of God
TALK 2: Overcoming Obstacles to Understanding Scripture Today
TALK 3: Encountering the Word of God to Grow in Holiness, Discipleship, and Mission
Experiencing Eucharistic Revival
TALK 1: The Biblical Understanding of Eucharist
TALK 2: Liturgy of the Word and Liturgy of the Eucharist
TALK 3: Becoming a Eucharistic Disciple of Jesus
Sacred Texts and Sacred Places
TALK 1: Sacred Places in the Life of Israel, Jesus, and his Church
TALK 2: An Armchair Pilgrimage in the Way of Mary, Jesus, Peter, and Paul
TALK 3: Experiencing All Places as Sacred and All Life as Pilgrimage
Transformed by God’s Word
TALK 1: Encountering Divine Mercy
TALK 2: Learning How to Forgive and Be Forgiven
TALK 3: Experiencing God’s Spousal Love
Any of these talks may be adapted for a stand-alone keynote, workshop, or presentation of one to two hours. All talks are supplemented with imagery on PowerPoint.
Additional presentations for adult faith formation:
The Transforming Power of Icons for Visio Divina
Icons have been described as theology in line and color. They are the visual language of Eastern Christianity and are growing in appreciation by all Christians. Learn the practice of attentively and receptively gazing upon icons so that the experience leads to meditation, prayer, and spiritual transformation.
The Legacy of Saint Peter Inspires the Vision of Pope Francis for the Church
The presentation of Peter the Apostle in the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and the Letters of Peter inspires a vision for leadership in the church. Pope Francis has taken up the legacy of Peter and has called the church to be renewed. We will focus on five attributes of the church, learned by Peter and embraced by Francis today as he serves the church from Peter’s chair: 1) a church that is not afraid to be bold; 2) a church that takes up the cross; 3) a church that embraces mercy; 4) a church that welcomes all; 5) a church of missionary disciples.
The Grand Narrative of Scripture
While every character, story, and book of Scripture is significant in itself, stepping back for a broad, panoramic view of the entire Bible helps us to take in and understand God's unified plan for the world. Learn how all the Bible's many parts fit together in a grand and awesome narrative. With a clear vision of this sweeping unity, we can then understand far better our own place within the storyline and our own personal role within the mission of God.
Waging Peace through Nonviolence
Our society is fragmenting through its addiction to violence, weapons, and war, but the Scriptures show us how to renounce hostile retaliation, love our enemies, work for peace, and struggle for justice with creative nonviolence. Through study, reflection, prayer, action, and witness, learn how to become Christian peacemakers, overcoming polarity and bringing unity and hope to our culture.
Come and See – Go and Witness
As ministers in the work of the gospel, we are called to be both followers and witnesses of Jesus Christ. Learn how to grow in your call to both holiness and mission, the double task of discipleship in the 21st century. The Scriptures, the saints, and Catholic social teaching offer us inspiring examples of this challenging privilege of being both contemplatives and activists for Jesus Christ in the world today.
Sacred Texts and Sacred Places: A Biblical Theology of Pilgrimage
Explore the essential role of pilgrimage for the people of ancient Israel as well as for Jesus and his church. We will seek to understand pilgrimage as a sacramental experience, with both external and internal dimensions, and as a way to more deeply experience the Christian life. We will experience armchair pilgrimages in the footsteps of Mary, Jesus, Peter, and Paul, and finally realize how to experience every place as sacred and all of life as pilgrimage.
Invite Christ Across the Threshold
The risen Jesus said: “Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me” (Rev 3:20). Learn to open the door to Christ, experience his presence, and grow in discipleship through reading, understanding, reflecting, and praying the Scriptures.
What People Are Saying About Stephen J. Binz as a Speaker at their Event:
“St. Mary, Our Lady of the Snows, was very pleased to offer the three evening mission, entitled Experiencing Eucharistic Revival, led by Stephen Binz. Stephen is a highly qualified biblical scholar, who is able to talk to every level of biblical knowledge in the audience, from novice to expert. We appreciated his systematic presentation from the OT roots of Eucharist to us actually being the Body of Christ in our world today. Stephen is very relaxed/easy-going and it was a pleasure to work with him. We highly recommend him and his presentations.”
Colleen A. Gonzalez, Director of Faith Formation, St. Mary, Our Lady of the Snows, Milford, MI
“Stephen Binz has a great gift in presenting our Catholic faith to large groups, teaching with clarity, not focusing on division, and being an authentic unifier in a divided Church. Stephen uses all his many life experiences to hone his gifts and facilitates sincere dialogue among participants. I hope we can have him back at Holy Family sometime in the future.”
Fr. Joe McMahon, Pastor, Holy Family Catholic Church, Brentwood, TN
We recently had a wonderful retreat with speaker Stephen Binz at Our Lady of the Valley (Archdiocese of Las Vegas, NV). His presentation of Experiencing Eucharist Revival was excellent. As a Bible scholar he is very knowledgeable and as a speaker he is very engaging and easy to understand. The feedback from our community was very good. People were impressed and found his presentations very inspiring. I am very grateful for his visit to our parish and I highly recommend him for retreats, conferences and parish missions.
Rev. Bruno Mauricci, Pastor at Our Lady of The Valley in Pahrump, Nevada. Archdiocese of Las Vegas
“Our parish is still raving about Stephen Binz’ presentation on the Eucharistic Revival! It gave us a better understanding of the history of the Eucharist, and a sincere increased devotion to the Eucharist!! Thank you, Stephen, for sharing ‘the Joy of the Gospel’ with us.”
Deacon Brad Brown, St. Boniface Catholic Church, Fort Smith, AR
“Stephen is engaging and easy to listen to. His knowledge of scripture is readily communicated and inspiring. His presentation on the Eucharist was ideal for the Eucharistic Revival.”
Fr. Daniel O. Divis, Pastor of St. Mary Parish, Lorain, OH
“We contacted Stephen Binz to be the keynote speaker for our recent Men’s Conference. Speaking on the Eucharistic Revival, he did an excellent job of explaining how the covenant and sacrifices of the Old Testament were fulfilled by Jesus in his gift of the Eucharist. Because of his knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures, our guys were excited to learn that we would be using his Threshold Bible Study on the Eucharist as our next Bible study. We would all highly recommend Stephen as a speaker for your Men’s Conferences and events.”
Tim Lessard, Men of the Cross Coordinator, Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church, St. Amant, LA.
“Stephen Binz did a five-day presentation for our annual Summer Bible Institute entitled ‘Sacred Texts and Sacred Places: A Biblical Theology of Pilgrimage.’ The participants appreciated his teaching style as he brought a new approach to looking at Scripture, and the evaluations were all very positive. Through Bible references, pictures, and personal stories, we were enriched in our understanding of Scripture. By showing us that all of life can be seen as pilgrimage, we are now able to recognize the sacred places and events that make up our lives.”
Judy Gritzmacher, Director of the Center for Spirituality, The Oratory, Rock Hill, SC
“Stephen J. Binz is an outstanding scholar, author and presenter. His expertise as a biblical scholar is a gift to the Church. He recently spoke at our Archdiocesan Bible Conference held at Seton Hall University attended by more than 400 people. His presentation entitled “Becoming People of the Word” was very well received and the feedback was outstanding. We are grateful that he was able to be a part of our event. I am happy to recommend him as a presenter without reservation.”
Ronald L. Pihokker, OFS, Director of the Catechetical Office, Archdiocese of Newark
"An engaging and faith-filled speaker, Stephen Binz shares his knowledge and love of Scripture in ways that are accessible to novices and challenge the more experienced to experience God's Word more deeply. Stephen unites the intellectual, the spiritual and the pastoral to create an excellent adult faith weekend, and we'll be reaping the fruits of his time with us well into the future. His session on lectio divina attracted a broad cross-section of people, young and not-so-young, lay and clergy, women & men--it was a true experience of being 'people of God' together."
Margaret Anne Smith PhD, Director of Adult Faith Formation, Diocese of Saint John NB Canada
“The parishioners of our parish have not stopped speaking about how wonderful our Advent mission with Stephen Binz was! Each evening Mr. Binz engaged the audience, got them thinking on a personal level, and even brought a few to tears with his very personal stories of mercy and God’s love. We truly made a right choice in bringing Stephen Binz to our parish.”
Ann Shevlin, Faith Formation Coordinator, St. Benedict Catholic Church, Atlanta, GA
"Stephen Binz has a passion for Scripture and understands its essential role in the New Evangelization. Much more than dry histories of ancient cultures, Stephen enthusiastically emphasizes the Bible as an instrument of encounter with God. His presentations at our priestly convocation encouraged us to assist our people in meeting the Lord through His written Word and to be renewed in it ourselves. Praying with Scripture will unlock for us its true depth and beauty, and will help us become the missionary disciples we are called to be."
Bishop Brendan Cahill, Bishop of Victoria in Texas
"Stephen Binz came to our diocese to present two workshops to our priests: an introduction to Lectio Divina, and an invitation to foster Bible groups in our parishes. Later that evening, he gave a talk on Lectio Divina to about one hundred lay members of our diocesan Church. Both events were greatly appreciated, particularly since Steve unpacks the tradition around Lectio Divina in such a simple, clear and prayerful way."
Archbishop Paul-André Durocher, Archbishop of Gatineau, Québec, Canada
"Stephen Binz’s “The Door of Mercy” Mission offered good spiritual refreshment for our parish and served as excellent preparation for Lent in this Jubilee Year of Mercy. Stephen’s knowledge of scripture and tradition, along with a deep faith and pastoral sensibility, make him an outstanding retreat leader. His stories and prayer services support a wealth of information in a gentle, yet compelling manner. His prayer service for Divine Mercy literally brought us all to our knees and likely offered our parishioners a richer and more personal sense of the Sacred Heart. I would recommend a parish mission with Stephen Binz to any parish community that seeks spiritual renewal."
Rev. Joseph McMahon, Pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church, Brentwood, TN
"Our parish hosted a three-day mission with Stephen Binz. Stephen was able to weave through the three themes with scripture references, stories and personal experiences. This approach made the presentation flow and the response from the community was overwhelmingly positive. We were invited to lay our troubles at the Sacred Heart of Jesus and left the mission refreshed, challenged and wanting more. Stephen was great to work with and very accommodating to our community. I would whole heartedly recommend Stephen to come to your parish and challenge your community in this Year of Mercy."
Dan McGowan, Director of Faith Formation, Resurrection Catholic Church, Lakeland, FL
Stephen Binz is someone I gladly recommend for retreats, pilgrimages and parish missions. Just recently he gave a mission to my parish on the Jubilee Year of Mercy, tracing for us the biblical foundations of jubilee and applying the parable of the Prodigal Son/Merciful Father to Jesus’ teaching about the infinite depth of the Father’s mercy toward all of us. Steve then explained to us a simple way to pray with Scripture that brings to life such powerful stories from the mouth of the Lord Jesus. This award-winning scholar is a man of faith who loves to share his faith and his knowledge with parishioners and pilgrims alike. He ministers as he teaches.
Msgr. David LeSieur, Pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Rogers, AR
During our recent season of Lent, Stephen Binz directed our parish mission called, "Becoming People of the Word." He has a vast knowledge of scripture and is able to lay the groundwork for a more robust approach to the bible when it comes to praying with the text, known as lectio divina from the monastic tradition. My parishioners greatly appreciated what Steve had to offer and I thank him for his prayerful and accessible approach to God's Word 'breathed' into our lives.
Fr. Tim Clark, Pastor, Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church, Seattle, WA
"Stephen Binz gave an insightful presentation to our priests and pastoral leaders. He is able to reflect on his many years of experience in order to make scriptural prayer a central component of the new evangelization."
Bishop David L. Ricken, Bishop of Green Bay
"I cannot thank Stephen Binz enough for the day-long workshop he offered to the people of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church. Stephen combined biblical scholarship, historical awareness, pastoral sensitivity and wonderful teaching skills in a day that was a blessing for all who were present. Stephen's passionate belief that the Scripture have the power to transform individual and congregational life was both an inspiration and a challenge to me. His workshop changed the way I make use of Scripture in my preaching and teaching. Many have asked me when we will have him with us again. My answer: As soon as we can!!!"
Rev. Michael Fedewa, Rector, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Grand Rapids, MI
"Stephen J. Binz's greatest gift to the Catholic faith community is a talent for bringing to his presentations and writings a combination of first-rate biblical scholarship and a keen ability to make that scholarship accessible to ordinary adults. In two presentations at the Archdiocese of Hartford, Binz was able to connect meaningfully with a variety of students. On the one hand, Binz succeeded in encouraging Scripture reading among Bible neophytes. On the other hand, Binz effectively invited more experienced Bible readers to reach more deeply into the Word of God for insights and practices that continue to nurture their faith. And those who attended Binz's presentation on St. Paul expressed increased confidence in their ability to read the Letters of Paul as a source of renewal in faith."
Barbara Jean Daly Horell, Coordinator of the Catholic Biblical School, Archdiocese of Hartford
"Stephen Binz delivered the keynote at our annual Catechetical Congress for the Diocese of Phoenix. Stephen beautifully illustrates the deepest mysteries of our faith in a way that is articulate, pertinent and inspiring. His love for the faith, and firm grasp of the Biblical narrative engages the audience and challenges them to a deeper love and appreciation of our Catholic faith. Our catechetical leaders and catechists were deeply impacted by his presentation and have already requested that we bring him back for future congresses."
Ryan Hanning, Director of Parish Leadership Support, Diocese of Phoenix
"If you want an innovative, imaginative and dynamic workshop session, then I would highly recommend Stephen Binz as a presenter for your venue/event. Stephen spoke at the annual Religious Education Congress and inspired the delegates with wisdom and hope. Stephen was able to connect with his audience and was personally requested to return to Congress from many of our delegates who attend annually. We look forward to having Stephen with us at future Congresses and are thankful for the gift he brings."
Jan C. Pedroza, LA Congress Programming Coordinator, Los Angeles Archdiocese
"The Indiana Conference for Catechetical Leaders invited Stephen to do a one day presentation to all of the Directors of Religious Education in the state, titled “Scripture and Eucharist and the New Evangelization.” The response was overwhelming. Stephen gave a solid, well-organized presentation. It was informative, relevant to today’s ministry, and thought provoking at the same time. Everyone who attended definitely took a lot back to their parishes."
Marianne Hawkins, Indiana Conference for Catechetical Leaders, President
"The presentations of Stephen Binz to our catechetical leadership staff were just what they desired and needed. His gracious presence witnessed to them the life that comes from living with the Scriptures. His presentation and then the immediate application made the day much more than just a listening to, but also an experiencing day. The presentation on Lectio Divina spoke deeply to them. I heard a vast number say, “I’m going to start reading the Scriptures again and praying with them. What better response could a diocesan leader hope for?"
Sister Barbara Cline, FSE, Director of the Office of Catechesis, Diocese of Grand Rapids
"Stephen Binz' presentation on the Book of Revelation was the most professional and enlightening treatment of a topic I can recall in over 15 years of attending the Los Angeles Congress. His use of PowerPoint was most effective (not the lame "read along with me as I read this outline to you" approach we too often see!) And his enthusiasm for his thesis—that apocalyptic writing is a journey of imagination through which the reader is changed—has made a convert out of me. I used to speak on Revelation myself, but I'm tearing up my notes in favor of Binz' approach! I sincerely hope we see Steve again at Congress. We can never have too many speakers preaching the Scriptures with passion and creativity."
Alice Camille, religious educator and award-winning author
"Stephen Binz recently gave a series of workshops on the ancient practice of lectio divina in the archdiocese of Cincinnati to the delight of participants. Stephen’s presentation provided us with a deeper understanding and appreciation for the Word of God in our lives today. Through both the theory and the practical application of the approach, I found myself wanting to leave and immediately pray with the scriptures. He created a thirst from blending both the best of scholarship and a passion for hearing God speak through the Word."
David M. Riley, Office of Evangelization and Catechesis, Archdiocese of Cincinnati
"Stephen Binz brought the Threshold Bible Study to our diocese complete with an orientation. Our catechetical leadership found his presentations insightful, inspiring, and right-on-the-mark! Several of our parishes have begun incorporating TBS into their catechetical programming. Steve's message is simple: adult-based formation is a priority and Scripture-study is essential to the task!"
Dennis L. Johnson, Jr., Director of Religious Education, Diocese of Orlando
"Stephen Binz presented our Lenten Parish Mission, 'The Door of Mercy: Crossing the Threshold.' Our parishioners were very pleased by the presentations. Steve made the topic very interesting and gave a wonderful scriptural background to the theme. He has obviously done quite a bit of research on his topics. Additionally, he made the topics interesting and practical as well as deeply spiritual. His talks are very clear and easy to follow with the powerpoint presentations. I highly recommend this particular mission for any parish. You won't be disappointed."
Fr. Thomas J. Ryan, Pastor, Immaculate Conception Church, Fayetteville, NY
"Some mission speakers drop in and share some interesting thoughts or ideas that I find are often forgotten or not implemented into a majority of the spiritual lives of those in attendance. Stephen Binz helped our parishioners see how prayerfully reflecting on the scriptures can be transformative in our lives. He left us with practical tools and approaches to praying with scriptures that will aid our parishioners for many years to come. Our parishioners will be better disciples of Jesus Christ because of our experience with Stephen."
Peter Denio, Pastoral Associate for Adult Faith Formation, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Ridgewood, NJ