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by Michael Amodei (Author)
Send Out Your Spirit leads teens through the core truths of the Catholic faith--the Trinity, Jesus, Scripture, the Church, morality, the sacraments, and more--within the specific context of preparing for Confirmation. Rooted in Catholic tradition and adapted for today's learners, the Candidate's Handbook provides candidates in junior high and high school with the foundational content of the faith they need as they prepare to personally embrace the promises first made for them at Baptism and renewed in Confirmation.
Now in its third edition, the Candidate's Handbook has been developed in full alignment with the Catechism of the Catholic Church and has been found in conformity with it. This refreshed and accessible edition features a four-part structure across ten engaging chapters, designed to support both candidates and catechists in preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Each chapter includes the following:
- Introduction--Presents the chapter's theme and focus.
- Four Main Content Sections--Teach core Catholic truths, supported by comprehension and discussion questions.
- Pull-Out Feature--Highlights how the chapter's topic is lived out in the Church today, often through the example of a saint.
- Living the Faith--Encourages practical application of the chapter's lessons through four key actions: Study, Do, Memorize, and Reflect.
Designed not only to inform but to form, the program fosters faith-based friendships among adolescent candidates and strengthens relationships with supportive adults--both in their personal lives and within the parish community. Built-in opportunities for study, prayer, and reflection help candidates explore what the Church believes and how those beliefs shape their identity as members of the Body of Christ.
Faithful to the Church's vision that catechesis is an apprenticeship in the Christian life, Send Out Your Spirit emphasizes both what we believe and how we are called to live--in union with Christ and one another--as active witnesses to the faith.
This edition also features new "Living the Faith" assignments, engaging new chapter openers, updated integration of prayer and Christian service as foundational components of preparation for Confirmation, and an expanded appendix--all supported by an easy-to-follow design.
Author Biography
Michael Amodei is executive editor and curriculum development manager at Ave Maria Press, where he writes and edits Catholic high school religion textbooks. He is the author of Reaching for Heaven: 14 Spiritual Goals as You Grow Older, Send Out Your Spirit, Catholic Essentials, The Ave Guide to the Scriptural Rosary, and The Ave Guide to Eucharistic Adoration. Amodei has also acquired a number of spirituality books for Ave Maria Press, including A Teen's Game Plan for Life by Lou Holtz, Holy Goals for Body and Soul by Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, and Expect More! by Muffet McGraw.
Amodei earned his bachelor's degree in English from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, where he also earned a master's degree in religious education. He previously served as director of religious education and as a youth minister at St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica, California. He also taught math, religion, and gym and coached Catholic Youth Organization sports at St. Monica Elementary School.
He is leader of the Ave Maria Press Chapter of Catholic Relief Services, a member of the Association of Catholic Publishers, and a third degree in the Knights of Columbus. Amodei has been a youth sports coach for more than forty years and is the field supervisor for home football games at the University of Notre Dame. Amodei lives with his family in South Bend, Indiana.
