Together on the Journey to God

The Paladin Approach to
Small Church Communities

Copyright © 2026 VW Malzahn
Published by VW Malzahn, AKA Vincent William Malzahn
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews. Written permission may be obtained from VW Malzahn via [email protected]
Paperback ISBN: 9798241714350
Cover design by VW Malzahn. Cover group image created in part by Freepik,
“Designed by Freepik” – www.Freepik.com. Interior design by VW Malzahn
ChatGPT and Grammarly were used to elicit editing suggestions.
Paladin Small Church Communities
www.paladins.us; [email protected]
FIRST EDITION
Excerpts from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America Copyright © 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc. — Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission. English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Modifications from the Editio Typica copyright © 1997, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops—Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
CCC = Catechism of the Catholic Church
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“Introduction” briefly discusses the need for small church communities, the primary priority of these communities, and what to expect from this book.

PART I: The Foundation of Everything

“Getting the Most Out of Life” explores the failures of the modern worldview and its promises. It then discusses alternative worldviews and concludes that Catholicism is the best choice.

“Getting the Most Out of Catholicism” reveals that many Catholics have forgotten the Church’s primary purpose: forming disciples, and urges us to focus on forming living, growing disciples of Jesus Christ.

“Getting the Most Out of Discipleship” discusses the importance of having the support of a living, growing disciple to help stoke the fire of faith. It also discusses options for ongoing formation and the importance of discipleship benchmarks.

PART II: The Paladin Vision

“Community” explores the enormous value small church communities provide through fellowship, support, ongoing formation, and outreach.

“Faithfulness” emphasizes the importance of fidelity to the Magisterium of the Catholic church and its foundation as trust in Jesus Christ.

“The New Evangelization” highlights the importance of evangelization for all small church communities and their unique role in it.

“The Journey” dives into the Christian view that life is a Journey to God and that this journey is our primary purpose.

PART III: The Paladin Handbook

“Basic Guidelines” tackles topics such as the core team, orientation night, discussion guidelines, a suggested meeting outline, and more.

“Advanced Guidelines” covers topics such as group priorities, leader selection, leader authority, evangelical outreach, and more.

“Paladin Leaders” outlines the qualifications for our leaders: living, growing disciples; faithful Roman Catholics; and followers of our guidelines.

“Prayer & Share” explores two more opportunities to pray and share as a community: the Prayer & Share meeting and the Prayer & Share mini-retreat.