Rekindle Speaker Urges Men to Boldly Live Their Faith For a guy who grew up surrounded by the deserts of Arizona, Mark Hart has plenty of fond memories from the time he spent in northern Indiana. The winter weather, however, is not one of them. But Hart’s willingness to return to the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend in the teeth of winter shows that his love for Christ and His Church – and his dedication to the mission of his work – clearly trumps his distaste for the Indiana winter. Hart was born in Detroit but moved with his family to Arizona when he was around 6 years old. He left the warmth of the southwest to study in South Bend at the University of Notre Dame, where his father and uncles attended. Nearly 30 years into his ministry serving in various roles at the youth ministry apostolate LifeTeen, now as its chief innovation officer, Hart, an internationally known Catholic speaker and author, is returning to the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend to speak at the Rekindle the Fire men’s conference in Fort Wayne on Saturday, February 22. Scott WardenMark Hart speaks at the 2019 National Catholic Youth Conference at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Hart will be a featured speaker at this year’s Rekindle the Fire men’s conference. In mid-January, Hart spoke to Today’s Catholic about his time at Notre Dame and the need for Catholic men to boldly live their faith. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Today’s Catholic: You spent time in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend while you were a student at Notre Dame. How did your time there help to form your faith and set the foundation for your life and career? Mark Hart: Those were really great years for me, and having access to rectors and priests and professors and other students, people who both supported and taught the faith and, actually, who sometimes denigrated it, who were on faculty, and being able to have those kinds of conversations just in an open, intellectual way, but still being able to go to Mass in my dorm, still being able to go to the Grotto, still being able to develop my relationship with Our Lady – I look back and I just go, you know, I would not trade it for anything. I really credit those years on campus, not just for a lot of my theological formation, because I didn’t study theology, but also just really for my moral and emotional formation. … And it really just teaches you a lot. I learned a lot about life. I learned a lot about people from different regions and different areas and really the universality of the Church. Today’s Catholic: Your work at LifeTeen gives you a unique perspective as you go around the country and speak, but specifically at men’s conferences, because you can see the results of what Pope Benedict meant when he wrote about the crisis of men and crisis of fatherhood. What does this crisis look like from your perspective as someone who has spent nearly 30 years working with Catholic teens? Hart: That’s a really insightful question. I’d say there’s probably three answers to that. One, because of what we’ll say is the emotional absenteeism of fathers. … That emotional absenteeism is creating such a pandemic of loneliness in our young people, and where instead of being validated and taught how to be a man – or to be loved like the young woman that they are by their father figure – they go and they seek that from influencers on social media and whatever else. … And then there’s this complete void in terms of the understanding of the Sacrament of Marriage, right? Because they’re not seeing their fathers and their mothers putting their sacrament first, loving on each other if they are still together. They’re not seeing it embodied. …  Third, [there is a lack of understanding of] what the God-made, specific, imbued role of a man is … which is made clear from Genesis on, like what a true man looks like, like Christ, who is called to sacrifice and to serve. And those things are just being lost; they’re not seen. So, then all of a sudden, we get into this artificial, false public perception of manhood, right? … That’s why it’s so important to have men – grandfathers, fathers, mentors, even for those without kids – who have a faith and who are virtue-driven and who know their due north in terms of the faith, to not only stand and serve but be present emotionally, to be vocal emotionally, and to mentor and walk with this next generation. Today’s Catholic: So many men today seem afraid to publicly live out their faith or to share it. What would you say to men in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend to encourage them to live out their faith more fully? Hart: The quote is attributed to St. Francis, but he didn’t say it, but the quote goes, “Preach the Gospel at all times; use words when necessary.” I think that quote became almost like this rallying cry for people to be like, “Well, see, I don’t have to say anything!” They’re almost empowered to be mute. … But no, we need words! The world needs men to speak! … And I think that men need to understand that if you don’t embody the faith and speak up and seek to become a saint, if you cannot become a living incarnation of virtue and humble boldness and strength – we have to understand that our young people … are going to be catechized, they’re going to be proselytized, they’re going to be taught to question, but by whom? If you are willing to relegate the next generation of young Catholics … and you’re going to allow influencers to shape and form them, rather than people who have lived it and breathed it, and because it makes you uncomfortable, then I think that, honestly, you’ve probably chosen the wrong religion. Because Catholicism, like the crucifix, is a great living embodiment of the fact that you better get comfortable being uncomfortable. … You’re going to rise and fall and be held accountable for and judged by what you do and don’t do, and how you do and don’t live and serve. And if our men are afraid to speak, then our culture is in peril, and our future is doomed. Today’s Catholic: You speak to a lot of diverse groups, but is it more personal for you when you speak specifically to men – to husbands and fathers and grandfathers – because you’re speaking on the life that you yourself are trying to live? Hart: Oh, far more. Yeah. … When speaking to men, it’s a different vibe, because you can stand on the stage and say, “I know your fears, I know your stresses, I know your realities, and I’m speaking to myself when I say this to you.” … I have to take a hard look in the mirror. Truthfully, the preparation for stuff like this, like Rekindle the Fire, the preparation and the prayer for the talk is so good for me personally because it requires that I’m at daily Mass, it requires I’m going to confession, because I would have no right to speak one word into that microphone on that stage if I was not going through the reps myself. And I would never look at myself in the mirror, much less get on a plane and leave my family to go do it. Scott Warden is editor-in-chief of Today’s Catholic. 2025 REKINDLE THE FIRE The Rekindle the Fire Men’s Conference is an opportunity to be inspired and rejuvenated in your faith by some of the leading figures in the Catholic Church. The conference is a one-day event with opportunities for prayer, reconciliation, adoration, and fellowship with other men who want to grow in their faith. The agenda includes hearing from nationally known speakers – Mark Hart, Justin Fatica, and Michael Gormley –breakout sessions, and a Q&A with Bishop Rhoades. The conference concludes with a holy Mass celebrated by Bishop Rhoades. When: Saturday, February 22 Where: Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, 4000 Parnell Ave., Fort Wayne Registration: rekindlethefire.net The post ‘You Better Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable’ appeared first on Today's Catholic.