Living Faith marks four decades of inspirational devotions through the lens of the Scriptures

St. Louis-based devotional marks 40 years of bringing Scripture reflections to readers
Deb Meister was living in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains nearly 40 years ago when she first picked up a copy of Living Faith at her parish, a mission church in Pikeville, Kentucky.
The pocket-sized devotional, featuring personal reflections on the daily Mass readings from a variety of authors, soon became a daily part of her life.
“Every time I would read a daily reflection from Living Faith, I thought, that is exactly what I needed right there today,” Meister said. “They are these moments of grace, a hand of God reaching down and tapping me on the shoulder.”
Living Faith has nurtured a living faith among millions of readers since its founding in 1985. Published quarterly by Fenton-based Creative Communications for the Parish, the Catholic periodical has accompanied the faithful in the pews, inviting them to pray with the daily Scripture readings and featuring brief reflections from laypeople, clergy and religious.
Creative Communications for the Parish, founded by Rev. Dr. Larry Neeb in 1977 as an ecumenical Christian publishing company, expanded into publishing Catholic resources in 1980 and began printing Living Words: Daily Meditations for Catholics. The name was changed in 1991 to Living Faith: Daily Catholic Devotions.

Early growth was bolstered by word of mouth and bulk sales promotions to parishes, eventually climbing to a peak circulation of more than 700,000. The current print circulation is about 350,000. A children’s edition, Living Faith Kids, was launched in 2006, and a Spanish-language edition ran from 2002-22. Creative Communications for the Parish became part of the international media company Bayard Inc. in 2004.
Through the past four decades, Living Faith has featured the work of more than 100 authors (some of them writers from the Archdiocese of St. Louis), printed more than 80 million copies and reached readers through print and digitally across the globe. Each edition also receives an imprimatur from the Archdiocese of St. Louis. (An imprimatur, Latin for “let it be published,” is the authorization given by a local ordinary, typically a bishop, to publish a work.)
The Living Faith Foundation was started in 1993 as a nonprofit corporation to distribute the publication and other devotional and educational materials to inmates at correctional institutions, and it recently expanded to include families in need and the military.
Editorial director Pat Gohn described the publication’s two-fold purpose: “First, it’s always grounded in the word of God every day, taken from the Scriptures of the day,” she said. “And it’s a moment for people to listen to that word, receive that word and possibly use it as a springboard for their own prayer.
“I love that idea, because I’ve been a person of prayer my whole life,” said Gohn, who edits from the greater Boston area. “I love this idea of thinking about these readers every day who are coming before the word of God just as I am, coming before the throne of grace, if you will, in this moment of time. It’s a sacred trust in terms of the type of devotional we are. At 40 years old, this is a generational booklet — it’s affected a few generations here.”
Living Faith followed Meister as her husband’s job transferred them from city to city, eventually settling in St. Louis in 1996. She began contributing to Living Faith as a writer and for several years served as the publication’s editor in the early 2000s. A member of St. Gerard Majella Parish in Kirkwood, she continues as a contributing reflection writer, making connections between ancient Scriptures and modern-day lived experiences.
Meister is given her batch of assigned readings months in advance and uses notes she’s made in her Bible over the years as inspiration. “I will look at the liturgical season it’s set in, and then from there, I look (the readings) up and read through them, put it away for the afternoon, then next time I look at it, I ask: What has risen to the top? What phrases? What words? And sometimes that changes when I go back and read it again.”
The reflections are written in a brief, easy-to-read format meant to appeal to a wide readership, founding editor Jim Adams said. Contributors share personal stories and connect those personal, lived experiences with the Scriptures, which is what he believes makes them so relatable for the readers.
“These reflections are helpful to so many not despite their brevity and informality but rather because they are brief, pointed personal sharing by ordinary Catholics about everyday difficulties and achievements in their prayer lives,” Adams wrote in a reflection for the 40th anniversary.
Steve Givens, who joined Living Faith as a contributing writer in 1988, said the connections that he’s made with readers over the years have been priceless. He recalled a religious sister who would often write to him after reading his reflections and ask about his family.
“The best compliment I have received from people are the ones who say, ‘I never look at who writes Living Faith (reflections), but I get two or three sentences in and I know it’s you,’” said Givens, a widely published author on topics of spirituality and faith and a member of Incarnate Word Parish in Chesterfield.
Writing for Living Faith is a full circle of prayer, Givens said, in that it’s a chance to reflect on what God is saying to us in that moment of prayer with the Scripture. “That’s the genius of Living Faith — seeing how is this piece of Scripture alive for me right now, and what do I get to reflect on?”
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Living Faith is offering free copies of the January February March 2025 issue to parishes and other organizations. Requests may be made by emailing lf@bayardfaithresources.com and include name, mailing address, email and phone number. Or call 1 (800) 214-3386.
To learn more about Living Faith or to subscribe, visit www.livingfaith.com.
Living Faith by the numbers in the last 40 years
• Nine editors
• Read in 18 countries
• More than 100 writers
• 160 imprimaturs
• 14,600 devotions
• More than 2 million words
• 81,647,292 copies printed
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