Theme: "Cultivating and Passing on a Catholic Worldview"

Choosing Your Words Wisely: The Rhetoric of Passing on the Faith

After outlinging a brief history of the art of rhetoric, Sister Maria Philomena, M.I.C.M., director of the Saint Augustine Institute of Wisdom, proposes that, of Aristotle’s classic “ Three Modes of Persuasion”—Ethos, Logos, and Pathos—traditional Catholics in general need to deepen their appreciation of the value of Pathos specifically as an apostolic tool. Knowing full well that “conversion is not our work, it is God’s work,” Sister nevertheless points out that we, as His instruments, can and should always strive to improve our effectiveness. To this end, she hones in on the first three ‘tools’ of persuasion given in Chris Vos’ Never Split the Difference: Tone, Mirroring, and Labeling, showing how even these natural communication skills are invaluable when it comes to breaking down the barriers that our loved ones often have to receiving the True Faith.

File Size: 74MB