Abbey Office: History of From the Abbey
The history of From the Abbey is nothing spectacular, but we'd like to share where the apostolate came from so you can share in the vision of where it is going. The apostolate is basically the work of Jeff Arrowood with lots of support from many friends and family members.
Below you can read a brief history of the creation of From the Abbey and the concepts for Brother Thomas and Brother Martin. You can also read the "curriculum vitae" for Jeff Arrowood.
History of From the Abbey:
In July of 1996, Jeff Arrowood was hired to teach moral theology, Advanced Placement United States History, psychology, and literature at Columbus Catholic High School. While certified in the other subject areas, the only qualification Jeff had to teach theology was that he taught religious education and had retreat experience in college. So Jeff went back to school and received a Master's Degree in Theological Studies from the Institute of Pastoral Theology through the University of Dallas. Jeff taught at Columbus Catholic High School for ten years. In that time, thanks to the wonderful Catholic atmosphere of the school, Jeff matured as a teacher and earned the respect of his students and
colleagues as a talented teacher with great theological knowledge & authentic rapport with students, who could teach students how to think, not just what to memorize. Jeff earned the Marshfield Teacher of the Year Award and the Crystal Apple Teacher of Distinction Award, both student-nominated awards.
Meanwhile, Jeff's love for reading led him to begin selling books in 2003 so that he would stop buying them. He joined forces with a couple who had been selling books at Catholic conferences and out of their home under the name F.A.I.T.H. Matters. The "F.A.I.T.H." acronym stood for "Faith Abiding In The Home," and the focus of the apostolate was to equip Catholic families in their quest for orthodoxy and holiness. In less than a year, that family decided to focus more on their family and less on business, so they sold F.A.I.T.H. Matters to Jeff. Through F.A.I.T.H. Matters, Jeff sold books at Catholic conferences in the Diocese of La Crosse and at Living Catholic Seminars near Milwaukee. He also made a series of abortive efforts to expand the apostolic work of F.A.I.T.H. Matters, but demands of high school teaching captured most of his time.
As a moral theology teacher, Jeff had a difficult time finding a textbook in moral theology that was academically challenging & theologically solid but also accessible to students. One summer, he decided to take matters into his own hands and write his own textbook. Inspired by John Paul II's call for catechists to use a dialectic (question-answer) model of teaching, Jeff decided to write the textbook in the framework of a written correspondence between a teenager and a Dominican religious brother. Brother Thomas was born with the Dear Brother Thomas textbook. Jeff used his textbook with his students with great success. He used this time to revise, rewrite and edit the text.
In February of 2006 Jeff and his wife adopted a baby girl and Jeff made the difficult decision to stay home and be a stay-at-home father. To his great joy, not only does Jeff enjoy parenting, but his time at home gives him the time to do the reading, writing, and gardening that he didn't have the chance to do as a teacher. Desiring to continue serving Christ as a teacher, Jeff decided it was time to focus on his apostolate. He started expanding his book sales business and planning for a web site. Since "Faith Matters" is used by many Christian groups and projects, Jeff decided to find a name that better fit the work he wanted to do through his apostolate. After much thought, he decided to go with the "Brother Thomas" theme and create an abbey motif for his web site, and From the Abbey was born.
The Creation of Brother Thomas and Brother Martin
Lacking any artistic ability whatsoever, Jeff teamed up with Janene, another former Columbus teacher. He told her the general idea and gave her some images off the Internet that reflected what he had in mind. Her first round of sketches generated a picture of Brother Thomas, whom she envisioned as a young, "with-it" brother who reflected wisdom and energy.
The image of Brother Martin was a composite drawing created by Janene from a series of sketches by our her artistic mentor, Julie (also a former Columbus teacher). Jeff saw the picture of Brother Martin and immediately knew that he would be the web site guide. Originally, Janene and Jeff called this character "The Gatekeeper." Then Jeff did a search for a Dominican Saint who would represent hospitality and found the story of Saint Martin de Porres.
Janene's next project was to draw the Abbey, which Jeff wanted to be a mapped image so that people could navigate the web site by mousing around the Abbey, as if they were exploring the building itself. Janene sent Jeff the first draft of the Abbey and took Jeff's breath away.
Jeff hopes that From the Abbey will offer him an opportunity to continue serving Christ as a teacher while keeping his family as a priority.
Curriculum Vitae: Jeff Arrowood
Jeff Arrowood is the owner and operator of FROM THE ABBEY, a sole proprietor business and catechetical
apostolate established in 2003. Through this organization he reviews and sells Catholic books and
catechetical material and offers catechetical programs to parishes, Catholic organizations, home
education groups, and other Catholic groups. In addition to many parish programs, Arrowood has given
retreats for Catholic high schools in Marshfield, Stevens Point and Wisconsin Rapids. He was invited to
give the 2007 teacher in‐service for the Diocese of Superior. He has also taught for the Diocese of La
Crosse Lay Formation Institute. Jeff and his wife teach natural family planning and marriage preparation
for the diocese.
From 1996 to 2006 Arrowood was an instructor at Columbus Catholic High School in Marshfield,
Wisconsin. He taught moral theology, psychology, Advanced Placement United States History, and
English. He attempted in all of his classes to teach students how to think critically with reason, logic and
a love for the truth. He also developed an open rapport with his students so that they knew he was an
adult they could confide in, trust, and respect. He was awarded the Marshfield Teacher of the Year
Award and the Crystal Apple Teacher of Distinction Award.
Arrowood earned his Master of Theological Studies degree from the University of Dallas’ Institute of
Religious and Pastoral Studies before the program moved to Ave Maria University and became the
Institute of Pastoral Theology. He graduated summa cum laude as valedictorian of his class. Arrowood
earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, majoring in English
and Social Science, with a degree in psychology and additional certification in history. He graduated
cum laude.
Jeff is currently a stay‐at‐home father. He and his wife have adopted an African‐American girl from
Florida. They are in the process of adopting their second child. From home he is developing the FROM
THE ABBEY web site and writing the DEAR BROTHER THOMAS textbook and curriculum in moral theology.
Jeff has been married to his wife Jodi since 1999. They reside in Arpin, Wisconsin and are active
members of Saint John the Baptist Parish.
Last Updated Tuesday, October 02, 2007
