Matthew Newsome
Catholic365 Contributor

Matthew Newsome

Matthew Newsome is the Catholic campus minister at Western Carolina University and the regional faith formation coordinator for the Smoky Mountain Vicariate in the Diocese of Charlotte. He holds an MA in Theology from Holy Apostles College & Seminary and is currently in formation for the permanent diaconate. He has over a dozen years experience in adult faith formation, RCIA, and campus ministry. He has written articles for various Catholic publications and currently posts weekly scripture reflections on the WCU Catholic Campus Ministry blog. He is a husband and father of six children, with interests ranging from Gregorian chant to backyard homesteading. He and his family live in the mountains of western North Carolina on a few acres they share with various sheep, chickens, rabbits and an old donkey. You can learn more about campus ministry and read Matthew's weekly reflections at www.WCUCatholic.org.


Metthew's personal blog, "Test Everything," at https://medium.com/test-everything


Websites/Social Media:
WCU Catholic Campus Ministry: http://www.wcucatholic.org
WCU Catholic Campus Ministry Blog: http://wcuccm.blogspot.com/
My Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/macnewsome

Website

Latest Articles By Matthew Newsome

RCIA - We're Doing it Wrong

RCIA - We're Doing it Wrong

Recently I came across Fr. Dwight Longenecker’s article, “10 Reasons Catholics Don’t Evangelize”. He includes the RCIA—the very process by which new Catholics come into the Church—as an obstacle to evangelization.
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Do Jews Need Jesus?

Do Jews Need Jesus?

Do Jews Need Jesus? That question may read as offensive to some, but to any sincere Christian the answer has to be an unqualified "yes," and for one very simple reason -- we all need Jesus, no exceptions. The Catholic Church very clearly teaches that "all salvation comes from Christ" (CCC 846). For this reason the Church also teaches that all of the baptized have a mission to evangelize
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Are Free Markets compatible with Christianity?

Are Free Markets compatible with Christianity?

I recently had the privilege of attending a talk given by two economists, one Catholic, one Protestant, on the topic of whether free market economies are compatible with Christianity. Pope Francis has criticized the negative aspects of capitalism, and some of these criticisms were addressed during the presentation, including this oft-quoted passage from Evangelii Gaudium.
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The H-Word

The H-Word

The Catechism definition of heresy is straightforward: “The obstinate denial after Baptism of a truth which must be believed with divine and Catholic faith” (CCC 2089). Most Catholics today don’t go around calling their Protestant friends and neighbors heretics, and that’s a good thing. After all, most Protestants today don’t formally meet the requirement, never having received the Catholic fait
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Breathing with Both Lungs

Breathing with Both Lungs

The sight of people carrying tasselled prayer ropes may be common in Eastern monasteries, but it is decidedly less so in the southern Appalachian mountains. So when my pastor and I were comparing our chotkis after Mass one recent Sunday, it’s no surprise that we garnered a lot of questions from curious parishioners.
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The Church & Human Sexuality

The Church & Human Sexuality

Like most secular universities, the school where I serve as campus minister offers a wide range of classes, from forensic science to European history to psychology. A couple of years ago two of my campus ministry students were taking a psychology class on “human sexuality."
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Religion & Politics

Religion & Politics

It is common to hear the opinion expressed that religion has no place in politics. I hear these sentiments expressed by my religious and non-religious friends alike. My strong suspicion is that what people mean by “keep religion out of politics” is that we should not legislate morality.
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Explaining Closed Communion to Non-Catholics

Explaining Closed Communion to Non-Catholics

What can be more important to the Catholic faith than the Eucharist, which the Second Vatican Council calls "the source and summit of the Christian life" (Lumen Gentium 11). The popular hymn At That First Eucharist sings of it as the "great sacrament of unity,"
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Fermenting the Spirit

Fermenting the Spirit

I decided long ago that real things were better than fake things. My preference for authenticity began with oatmeal. I took the time one morning to slow-cook a pot of steel cut oats, and enjoyed it with a little brown sugar and fresh berries. There was simply no comparison to the one-minute stuff that comes from paper packets.
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Coffee, the Rosary & the Bible

Coffee, the Rosary & the Bible

CHARLES: Sorry I'm late. The line at Starbucks was moving really slow. But I did remember this time that you don't take sugar, so I'm learning! Here's your coffee. FRANK: Thanks! And I don't mind the wait at all. It's a beautiful day, and I was able to get in some extra prayer time while I waited. I got through three decades of the rosary.
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Joy and Concrete

Joy and Concrete

A few days ago I was shopping at Lowe's. I was picking up some bags of concrete to set some fence posts in our pasture. But I also needed a few things from the garden center, so I ended up checking out there, on the opposite side of the store from where I picked up the concrete.
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