ChristLife History

ChristLife's story began with Dave Nodar, a Catholic layman, who had been involved in renewal movements since the 1970’s and regularly presented teaching at schools of evangelization in Poland and Slovakia for young adult Catholics from the former Soviet Bloc during the 1990s.

1995

Inspired by the call of St. Pope John Paul II for all the baptized to respond to a new evangelization, Dave approached Cardinal William Keeler, Archbishop of Baltimore, about beginning a ministry to equip Catholics for evangelization.

The Cardinal was enthused and recognized ChristLife as an apostolate of the Archdiocese in 1995.

1997

ChristLife became the United States Catholic office for training parishes to use the Alpha course.

During this time ChristLife, in partnership with Catholic Evangelization Services of England, recognized the need for Catholic teaching to supplement and follow the Alpha course and developed Catholic faith formation courses with the papal preacher Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, Dr. Marcellino D’Ambrosio, Archbishop Mark Coleridge, and others.

2007

ChristLife shifted its focus to developing and refining a 3-part Catholic evangelization series: Discovering Christ, Following Christ, and Sharing Christ. In 2009 ChristLife released Discovering Christ, Following Christ in 2011, and Sharing Christ in 2013. After running a Discovering Christ course for young adults in Ellicott City, MD, ChristLife launched an outreach to young adults in the Archdiocese of Baltimore called ChristLife Young Adults.

In the years during and following the release of the ChristLife courses, the ministry trained thousands of parish leaders in the United States and abroad to use the ChristLife Evangelization Process.

2016

Discovering Christ was re-released in English and Spanish (for the first time).

2019

Following Christ was re-released in English.