Rescue Hosting FAQs | Practical Answers for Every Host

Everything you need to lead with confidence.

From getting started to leading your small group and retreat, here are practical answers to help you lead Rescue.

Preparing Your Rescue Leading Your Small Group Rescue Retreats Rescue at Home Rescue in Parishes What Comes Next?About Rescue

Is The Rescue Project only for Catholics?

No! The Rescue Project is for everyone.

Do I need to be Catholic to host Rescue?

No! You just need to have a love for those in need of meeting Jesus. Provided The Rescue Project is presented in its entirety as is, you don’t need to be Catholic to host it.

Do I need special training or a theology background?

There’s no theology degree required. In Rescue, the episodes do the heavy lifting. Your role comes down to hosting the meal and guiding honest conversation, which means asking good questions and making room for every voice. It doesn’t mean always having the answers. The Equipping Series and the Running Rescue Guide walk you through everything, including the content that takes a little more sensitivity and how to lead the retreat. Basically, if you can host a meal and listen well, Rescue will come naturally.

How far in advance should I start planning?

It really depends. Typically, hosting at home requires less planning time than a larger, multi-group context. We recommend you experience Rescue, and go through the Equipping Series prior to announcing a start date.

How much time will hosting take?

The weekly commitment is the session itself (about two and a half hours, meal included) plus your preparation: we recommend facilitators re-watch each episode beforehand. All told, budget roughly four hours a week across the eight weeks, and a half-day for the retreat near the end.

How much does it cost to host Rescue?

All Rescue resources are free, including the episodes, Equipping Series, Running Rescue Guide (in ebook form), and promotional materials. Your main costs will be meals and any printed companion guides you provide. Rescue should always be free for guests, so we encourage hosts to cover these costs rather than pass them along. Once your group is underway, you might consider a free-will offering to help with meal expenses.

Do I need Internet access at my venue?

You can host Rescue entirely offline. The full series is available on DVD in places where streaming isn’t practical or the connection is unreliable. All materials can be downloaded and printed in advance.

Preparing Your Rescue

How should we prepare prior to hosting Rescue in our parish or home?

We highly recommend you start by watching the series.

If you’re hosting it in your home, prayerfully consider who the Lord is encouraging you to invite.
In a parish context, watch the series with a small group (e.g., pastor, pastor’s team, ministry leads).

If you decide to host, your team needs to watch the training videos, familiarize themselves with the content of the Running Rescue Guide, and be comfortable with small group facilitation and leading prayer ministry on the retreat.

Pastoral Considerations:

It’s imperative to pray daily for everyone involved in The Rescue Project, most especially the guests and the small group facilitators.
Chapters 3 and 4 are challenging. They address the Bad News, and the uncomfortable reality that we have an Enemy. This is an essential part of the gospel (and the very reason why the gospel IS Good News). These are the weeks where sensitivity to the subject matter is most important.

What is the ideal cadence for Rescue?

The Rescue Project is intended to be hosted weekly. Veering from this negatively impacts the continuity between sessions and increases the likelihood of people not completing the series.

Are meals necessary?

Yes, they are an essential ingredient. In many ways they are the key icebreaker. And, remember, The Rescue Project can be hosted over breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

What is the ideal size for a small group?

Rescue can be as small as one table or include many tables in a larger gathering. For conversation, we suggest up to eight guests and two co-hosts per table. This keeps each group small enough for meaningful discussion.

Do I need to offer childcare?

If you are planning to invite multiple couples with young families, you would bless them and make it clear that you are making space for them by offering childcare. We wouldn’t make this a mandatory requirement, but one to be discerned by those hosting Rescue.

How do I promote The Rescue Project?

At the heart of people choosing to join Rescue is a personal invitation. So we go out of our way to make the promotional part easy to pull off: all the resources you need are available for free download in our resources section (including banners, postcards, bulletin samples, digital assets).

Is The Rescue Project designed for kids?

Rescue is intended for anyone 12 years and older. Content can be adapted for younger guests; if that’s your goal, we have sample resources available on our website.

What if someone misses a session?

We recommend you send them a video link, then make plans to connect with them to discuss the content. Due to the sensitivity of the subject matter, we recommend not having participants watch Chapters 3 or 4 on their own.

Leading Your Small Group

Do you have tips for small group leaders?

Yes. A few simple ground rules can help create the kind of open conversation Rescue is designed for. You’ll find more guidance in the Running Rescue Guide, but here are a few things to keep in mind:

Be kind, respectful and meet guests where they are
Avoid interruptions and sidebars
Encourage everyone to stay on topic
Avoid pressuring guests to speak
All questions are welcome
Begin and end on time

How do I facilitate difficult discussions during small group?

In any small group experience, we will encounter a variety of situations. Some may come from different faith backgrounds or have no faith at all. Some may be struggling with significant trauma and wounds. Others may not fully engage in the experience. It’s important to see everyone as God sees them and to always respond as He would. If necessary, encourage ongoing conversations outside the small group as needed, especially in Weeks 3 and 4.

Rescue Retreats

How important is the retreat?

The retreat is the summit of The Rescue Project, a time to bring everything we’ve heard before God and ask Him to make it real in our lives. It’s where understanding can become conviction, surrender, and a renewed desire to live on mission.

Watch this invitation from Fr. John Riccardo to join the retreat.

What if someone can’t make it to the retreat?

When people aren’t able to attend, we offer a couple suggestions:

In a church context, simply invite them to attend the next Rescue retreat
In a home context, hosts can offer to walk them through Chapters 7 and 8, and offer prayer.

Who leads prayer during the retreat?

The small group leaders take the lead. To help you prepare, training and equipping resources are available both in the Running Rescue Guide, and in these videos: Equipping Video and Q&A Video.

Please do not bring in outside prayer ministers, as they have not been part of the journey over the preceding weeks.

Please note: We are simply praying with and for our guests, rather than praying over them. As brothers and sisters, we stand alongside one another before God and bring their needs before Him. For further clarity, you may reference the Prayer Ministry guide that is available in the Running Rescue Guide.

Rescue at Home

Why host Rescue in homes?

The Rescue Project is designed to be hosted in both church and home contexts. For a variety of reasons, some may find it easier (especially those who aren’t church-goers) to first encounter the gospel in a home setting where they have been invited by friends.

We highly encourage churches to regularly host The Rescue Project both at church and people’s homes. The Rescue Project is meant to have an ongoing presence in the life of a community until everyone has heard the gospel and been mobilized for mission.

Please note: Rescued people rescue people. Increasingly, we must see our homes as the primary places for evangelization.

Where can I find support for hosting Rescue in my home?

Both the Running Rescue Guide and our Equipping Videos for homes offers training to help you host Rescue in your home.

Rescue in Parishes

What is the role of the pastor and church leadership in Rescue?

The Rescue Project is intended for use everywhere, including churches. When hosting Rescue in a church, we encourage you to seek direction from the pastor and leadership team.

We also encourage people to offer the experience in their homes, workplaces, universities, schools, prisons, nursing homes, and more.

What’s the first step in hosting Rescue in a church?

We suggest church leadership and small group leaders watch the series before launching The Rescue Project.
If a church decides to run The Rescue Project, we recommend the small group leaders review each video prior to each session in order to prayerfully prepare.

Are there Sunday Preaching Resources available?

Yes, you can find them here!

What Comes Next?

Our Rescue just ended. Now what?

First: celebrate what happened in your small group. Then consider the pattern we see everywhere Rescue is hosted: rescued people rescue people. Some of your guests may be ready to facilitate a table at your next Rescue; some may want to bring it to their own home, workplace, or circle of friends. Hosting it again with new guests, and inviting your last group to help, is how one Rescue becomes many. And if you’re discerning what your parish or community should do next more broadly, we’ve shared how we approach that decision in our discernment series.

How should Rescue be integrated with other programs and what do you do next?

This pastoral question has no programmatic answer. To best answer this question, leaders are encouraged to prayerfully discern God's plan. We filmed a series of videos to share with leaders how the Lord has taught us to do this.

Watch the discernment video.

About Rescue

Why is it called “Rescue”?

Rescue is at the heart of the gospel. The name naturally raises the question: rescued from what? Scripture identifies Sin and Death not simply as bad choices or unfortunate circumstances, but as powers we cannot overcome on our own. In Jesus, God came to our rescue in the most unexpected way: by winning victory in what looked like defeat - the Cross. That’s why Rescue isn’t about advice or self-improvement. It’s the announcement of what God has done for us, and an invitation to live as people who have been rescued.

Thinking about hosting Rescue?

Find answers to the most common questions about preparing, hosting, and leading Rescue.