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Strategies for Returning to the [Catholic] Church
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| 01-11-18
| James Day
Posted on 01/11/2018 6:54:52 PM PST by Salvation
Strategies for Returning to the Church
James Day
Our world is a fallen world. The effects of sin seem to be suffocating us. The diabolical is running rampant, unleashed, playing with immortal souls as if puppets on a string. Pride continues to dominate; repentance for anything is deemed archaic, of little use to todays enlightened thinking.
Certainly this is not the positive language one wants to hear at the outset of a new year, when expectations and resolutions are running high. But all is not really so dire: the diabolical and pervasive sin has not crushed the divine light. My Immaculate Heart will triumph, promises the Lady of Fatima. There is a reason the Church opens a new year honoring the Mother of God: obedience to accepting ones mission in life is the most daunting and exciting prospect we face on this earth. We have a guidebook in how to do it through Marys fiat.
Perhaps over holiday festivities and the euphoria and stress of families coming together, some readers might have encountered resistance from relatives regarding the graces offered in entering the mystery of faith during this holy season. Whether it was avoidance from some in either attending Christmas Mass or praying before a Christmas dinner, such discomforts surely existed. While certainly everyone is different, with their own freedom and right to privacy, perhaps there are some of you readers whose own childrenraised in the Catholic faith you so diligently sought to instill in them want nothing to do with it anymore. It is to this element I wish to address.
In my own experience, generally speaking, I have found degrees of toleration from lapsed or non-Catholics regarding matters of the faith they know the Catholic Church continues to play an enormous part in global affairs while recalling their own experiences either through schooling or parish life. I have found that while the pervading motif of the millennial generation is a general shunning towards organized religion and regular church attendance, there yet remains a desire for an experience of the transcendent. And that desire is the silver lining.
Unfortunately, committed Catholics are not always quite the fearless galvanized evangelizers that each one is called to be. Marveling that St. Francis de Sales converted 40,000 is usually met with a shrug: Well, thats why hes a saint. But thats the precisely the mentality that needs to change.
A Jesuit once posed in a homily, Listen to conversations. How long does it take before God is ever mentioned? Out of not wanting to create controversy, God is never mentioned. When he is, or when the Church is mentioned, Catholics are immediately put on the defensive. We can stay silent, letting the Uber driver, for example, have his say about the occultish practice of Catholics (as I experienced recently), or we can defend Holy Mother Church, as we would defend our own mother, and begin a conversation. The faith is not part of the pie of life. It is the pie.
I have come to believe that, in this era, accommodation will not work. Appeasing the culture may seem like a conciliatory gesture, but those on the opposite side most probably will not respect such compromiseeven if they do not agree with the position in question. In reading Paul Kengors new book, A Pope and a President, on President Reagan and Pope St. John Paul IIs battles against communism, the consistency in the Churchs long running condemnation of communism as far back as Pius IX is impressive. The Church may have apologized for grievous actions throughout its long history, but it has never apologized for being magnificent.
So, how to engage your lapsed love one on returning to the Church? After all, that is our sole dutyto grow into our authentic selves, made in the image of God, and safeguard our immortal souls and those of others towards eternal life. Remembering we can only extend an invitation, a proposal, respecting the freedom of others, here are some strategies:
I: Know Thyself
Be yourself a model of virtue.
Live the Gospel, avoiding hypocrisy, condemnation of others, descent into pettiness. If you consider yourself a Catholic first and desire others to feel that same zeal, your example is the best model. Just like Mary.
Avoid “preaching.”
Respectfully engage in conversation in whatever topic arises. Listen to the other person. Avoid shouting or screaming. Do not let a discussion become an argument or a fight. But know the teachings rather than relying on your own emotions in the heat of the moment.
Pray constantly (1 Thessalonians 5:16).
Read Scripture daily, particularly the Gospels, alone or with family. Have the Catechism handy. Always be reading a spiritual work. Your own edification will inevitably seep into your own worldview. Petition the Trinity for guidance. Ask saints for intercession. Call on the Blessed Mother multiple times a day.
Know your own spiritual story.
What were the integral moments for you in your faith formation? Where did God reveal Himself? Write your own spiritual autobiography in a way that you find creative and inspiring. Know thyself is not just an ancient Greek saying. Its vital to ones own development.
Pray the Mass, as St. Pius X instructs.
Throw your fears and pains onto the altar. Bow your head at the Consecration; respect the Real Presence of Jesus Christ.
II: Extend an Invitation
Know the story of your lapsed child or loved one.
Communication is simply mutual understanding, says Stephen R. Covey. You have to care about who they are, where theyve been, and where they want to go while you are called to evangelize, you cannot treat them as an agenda, a project. In this way, study Ignatian spirituality for insight on the discernment of spirits. You are always an unofficial spiritual director to someone!
Find common ground.
There are many launching points one can meet due to the richness of the Catholic faith. Unfortunately, many lapsed Catholics have a distorted or misinformed view of the faith, just as many in the Protestant and evangelical world have a Reformation-era concept of the papacy. Much time may be spent on clearing the cobwebs on the reality of the Catholic Church today. Yes, corruption and scandal and atrocities have weakened the moral authority of the Church. But there is a difference between human failings and the Church as founded by Christ handed to Saint Peter (Matthew 16:18). That needs to be made clear. (See Joseph Ratzinger, Why I Am Still in the Church.)
Nurture their interests.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Luke 12:34). Getting to know your loved one authentically and establishing common ground will offer new avenues of appreciation. Are they artists, musicians, poets, writers? Michelangelo, Gaudi, chant, or the great classics of literature offer beautiful immersive experiences in the Catholic worldview.
Pope Francis has been an inspiration for those of any background, through his environment work, Laudato Si, or his call for activism towards migrants, refugees, the disenfranchised.
Connect them with possibly like minded individuals who might continue the conversation, depending on their interests: educators, bioethicists, Father Spitzers Magis Institute on science, faith, and reason. Historical subjects on the veracity of Jesus: the Shroud of Turin, for example (see Ian Wilsons The Shroud, among others).
Give your lapsed child or loved one Matthew Kellys Rediscover Catholicism or a similar book that perhaps impacted you. Rediscover appeals to the mainstream, ringing distant bells they would have remembered growing up Catholic. In many ways, that book is an appetizer to what awaits.
Bottom line: communicate the resources provided by so many apostolatesthere is something for everyone. Many of those actively engaged in the mission of salvation, the mission of the Church, were once lapsed themselves. Just ask St. Augustine, Dorothy Day, or many great evangelizers in our day and age.
Invite your lapsed child or loved one to Confession.
Its a challenging invitation. But youve at least put it out there. At the same time, do not let the graces of Confession become distorted. While one receives absolution, authentic penance comes when ones life is turned around. So often the thought is that a few Hail Marys and Our Fathers is all the Church demands for conciliation. Actually, one must authentically set out determined to begin anew, a new person, transformed. Vinny Flynns 7 Secrets of Confession is a powerful little book for guidance.
Extend an invitation to Mass.
Bring an extra copy of Magnificat or a book with daily readings and give your loved one a copy. Sit up close. And then pray the Mass. Together.
Give your loved one Benedict XVIs Jesus of Nazareth.
Along with the timelessness of the Scriptures themselves, this trilogy is written for people of our time to rediscover Christ. It is some of the most staggering spiritual reading you will encounter.
III: Going Forward
Three very simple, practical steps:
- 1.) Offer help in introducing your loved one to parish resources in their diocese, again contingent on their own discernment of spirits, perhaps even establishing a regular meeting with a spiritual director.
- 2.) In a quiet moment, offer to pray with them, calling specifically on the Holy Family for guidance.
- 3.) Finally, ask them to pray for you.
Happy New Year!
TOPICS: Apologetics; Catholic; History; Theology
KEYWORDS: catholic; evangelization; prayer
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To: af_vet_1981; Mark17
Mark post 352:
I just want to know, how you are going to bluff your way into Heaven? AFVET post 353: Have an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
At which point you will fail miserably beyond your wildest imaginations.
NOBODY. EVER. had a good and honest heart.
Nor can anyone, having heard the word, keep it.
Fruit? What fruit? What do you consider fruit that will gain you entrance into heaven?
381
posted on
01/14/2018 7:03:25 PM PST
by
metmom
( ...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith..)
To: metmom
Worth repeating. The heart is desperately wicked, so anyone who goes around sayiing they can make their heart good by their fruits is only lying to themselves. That heart of stone is ONLY ONLY ONLY changed into a heart of flesh, by the born from above experience. Then, and only THEN do good works and fruits start coming out. Why is this such a difficult concept to grasp? I have no problem understanding it, and I believe you understand it as well. 👍
382
posted on
01/14/2018 7:24:02 PM PST
by
Mark17
(Genesis chapter 1 verse 1. In the beginning GOD....And the rest, as they say, is HIS-story)
To: Mark17
1 John 1:7-10 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.Forgiveness is the ONLY way to get into heaven.
Nobody, nor any part of anyone, can be good enough to be in God's presence.
God's standard is absolute perfection. Be ye holy as God is holy.
No mortal man can attain that ever.
It doesn't say let your good deeds outweigh your bad.
It doesn't say be sincere and have good intentions.
It say to be holy AS GOD IS HOLY.
Nothing else will qualify a person for heaven.
And since everything we say, think, do, and feel is stained with sin, it's all as filthy rags in the sight of God. The best we have to offer Him is polluted by sin and cannot ever be acceptable in His sight.
That's why our good deeds outweighing our bad doesn't cut it. Our good deeds are even truly good.
It's when we recognize our truly helpless state, that we can come to God and throw ourselves on the mercy of the court like this guy
Luke 18:9-14 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.
But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner! I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.
and find mercy and grace from God.
383
posted on
01/14/2018 7:58:10 PM PST
by
metmom
( ...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith..)
To: imardmd1
I don’t know what you are saying.
384
posted on
01/14/2018 8:30:04 PM PST
by
ravenwolf
(Left lane tdrivers and tailgaters are the smallest peabrains in the world.)
To: Iscool
John 1;42 is where Jesus said that Simon
would be called cephas meaning rock and Paul also
calls Simon Cephas.
385
posted on
01/14/2018 8:56:01 PM PST
by
ravenwolf
(Left lane tdrivers and tailgaters are the smallest peabrains in the world.)
To: Elsie; All
I am not sure just what this is about, I have admired
and have no doubt that every one knows that Jesus is
the chief corner stone.
So what can I do to make you happy? should I start
cussing Peter and tell you what kind of an idiot he
Was and that he was not even an apostle?
shall I say Mary was nothing but a whore? what is the
problem is it that you guys don’t have the guts to say
what’s on your mind so you want me to say it for you?
Well if I thought that I would probably say it ha ha.
386
posted on
01/14/2018 9:13:23 PM PST
by
ravenwolf
(Left lane tdrivers and tailgaters are the smallest peabrains in the world.)
To: ravenwolf
387
posted on
01/14/2018 9:17:47 PM PST
by
ravenwolf
(Left lane tdrivers and tailgaters are the smallest peabrains in the world.)
To: ravenwolf
ravenwolf Post #324:
The fact that you see no difference between religion and belief which comes by faith shows that you are talking about yourself. . .
No it is you that does not have the gift of discernment. imardmd1 Post #346: You need to take another tack, if you want to be heard. And answered.
ravenwolf Post #384: I dont know what you are saying.
Well, perhaps if you approached the "Kefas" angle at least pretending to be a learner rather than a teacher, and asking what something means, and why, you might fare better. Especially if you hold back on judging the ones who might give you more light than you seem to have.
What do you think about that?
388
posted on
01/14/2018 10:16:25 PM PST
by
imardmd1
(Fiat Lux)
To: metmom
The biblical view of Mary is that she has been specially set apart by God in the order of grace. Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, was one of the first to affirm this when she proclaimed Marys blessedness upon her visitation:
And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! (Luke 1: 41-42).
One reason that the Virgin Mary is set apart from all other women is because of the weight of her yes to Gods planand because of Gods yes to her. Following her consent to bear the Christ child in her womb, her flesh was united with the body of Christ in the most literal sense. No other woman will ever experience this kind of union with Christ, this mother-with-child communion. Clearly, by this fact alone, Mary is blessed among women.
Steeped in the writings of the early Church Fathers and drawing from their reflections on Mary, the convert Bl. John Henry Newman fittingly called the mother of Jesus the daughter of Eve unfallen. Indeed the earliest Church Fathers hinted at Marys sinlessness in their writings when they alluded to Mary, implicitly and explicitly, as the second or new Eve. St. Irenaeus, for example, writes in the second century that the knot of Eves disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. What the virgin Eve had bound in unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed through faith” (Against Heresies 3:22:24).
The later Church Fathers conveyed the blessedness of Mary even more explicitly. Consider the words of St. Ephrem in the fourth century:
You alone and your Mother are more beautiful than any others, for there is no blemish in you nor any stains upon your Mother. Who of my children can compare in beauty to these? (Nisibene Hymns 27:8).
Even Martin Luther believed that Mary had received special graces from God, professing in a 1527 sermon:
It is a sweet and pious belief that the infusion of Marys soul was effected without original sin; so that in the very infusion of her soul she was also purified from original sin and adorned with Gods gifts, receiving a pure soul (On the Day of the Conception of the Mother of God).
Of course, this recognition began with the biblically unique greeting of the angel Gabriel: Hail, full of grace (Luke 1:28). He greeted Mary with a titleand an angel never speaks anything but exactly what God wants him to speak. This explains why Mary in all her humility was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be (Luke 1:29).
At the very least we should remember, as St. Ambrose did in his commentary on holy virginity, that Marys life is like a mirror reflecting the face of chastity and the form of virtue. We have ample reason to believe that Mary was a perfect model of obedience and humility, and so we can do no better than to reflect on her life, though but for the grace of God she would have been conceived in sin and unfit to be Christs mother and ours. Nobody has understood our dependence on Gods grace greater than she whose sweet voice proclaimed in the home of Elizabeth:
My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me
blessed (Luke 1:47-48).
https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/our-mothers-singular-grace
389
posted on
01/14/2018 10:49:10 PM PST
by
ADSUM
To: Ken Regis
Your comment: “She sinned. I dont need to prove that! I dont need to prove youve sinned. God says so.”
So your saying that God allowed His only begotten “sinless” son to be born and raised by a “sinful” Mother?
Even Martin Luther believed that Mary had received special graces from God, professing in a 1527 sermon:
It is a sweet and pious belief that the infusion of Marys soul was effected without original sin; so that in the very infusion of her soul she was also purified from original sin and adorned with Gods gifts, receiving a pure soul (On the Day of the Conception of the Mother of God).
I see that your lack of knowledge of God allows you to be fooled by your man-made religion.
Hail Mary Full of Grace. The Lord is with you.
The Blessed Mother who is also our spiritual Mother was obedient to the will of God!
390
posted on
01/14/2018 11:09:31 PM PST
by
ADSUM
To: metmom
16Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. James 5
In the narrative that constitutes the first part of the fourth book of the gospel (Mt 13:5417:27), Jesus is shown preparing for the establishment of his church with its teaching authority that will supplant the blind guidance of the Pharisees (Mt 15:1314), whose teaching, curiously said to be that of the Sadducees also, is repudiated by Jesus as the norm for his disciples (Mt 16:6, 1112). The church of Jesus will be built on Peter (Mt 16:18), who will be given authority to bind and loose on earth, an authority whose exercise will be confirmed in heaven (Mt 16:19). The metaphor of binding and loosing has a variety of meanings, among them that of giving authoritative teaching. This promise is made to Peter directly after he has confessed Jesus to be the Messiah, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16), a confession that he has made as the result of revelation given to him by the heavenly Father (Mt 16:17); Matthews ecclesiology is based on his high christology.
Directly after that confession Jesus begins to instruct his disciples about how he must go the way of suffering and death (Mt 16:21). Peter, who has been praised for his confession, protests against this and receives from Jesus the sharpest of rebukes for attempting to deflect Jesus from his God-appointed destiny. The future rock upon whom the church will be built is still a man of little faith (see Mt 14:31). Both he and the other disciples must know not only that Jesus will have to suffer and die but that they too will have to follow him on the way of the cross if they are truly to be his disciples (Mt 16:2425).
391
posted on
01/14/2018 11:35:17 PM PST
by
ADSUM
To: metmom; Ken Regis; Luircin
Hey MM, arent you glad you no longer belong to a false religion? Saturday, we go see Amir Tsarfati. I have no idea if we will have a chance to speak with him personally, but we will try. Dont forget, he was also a member of a false religion. 😄😀 I dont know if he was a Noahdite, but he came to his senses. 👍
392
posted on
01/15/2018 12:17:41 AM PST
by
Mark17
(Genesis chapter 1 verse 1. In the beginning GOD....And the rest, as they say, is HIS-story)
To: metmom
Some people unwisely build their theology on a translation instead of what the Greek really saysGenesis 3:
Did GOD really say...?
393
posted on
01/15/2018 3:48:01 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: af_vet_1981
...then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts...Call no man father.
394
posted on
01/15/2018 3:49:23 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: ealgeone; FourtySeven
... thus assures his Rome's Church, built on Peter, of victory over...
395
posted on
01/15/2018 3:51:49 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: ealgeone
Because of the faith he confessed Peter will remain the unshakable rock of the Church...." (emphasis added).Yeah; sure...
...I don't KNOW the man!!!
396
posted on
01/15/2018 3:53:31 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: ealgeone
The pope is saying Mary is the Savior of the human race???? HMMMmmm...
I've seen that idea bandied about; somewhere...
397
posted on
01/15/2018 3:54:45 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: af_vet_1981
Because the LORD Jesus Christ said it and Luke wrote it down. Hmmm...
You seem to be a bit; shall we say; selective in what you CHOOSE to obey from the mouth of Jesus:
Call no man father...
398
posted on
01/15/2018 3:59:16 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: metmom
NOBODY. EVER. had a good and honest heart.Oh!!
Just WHY do you hate the Mother of GOD so???
--Catholic_Wannabe_Dude(Hail Mary)
399
posted on
01/15/2018 4:01:06 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
To: ravenwolf
John 1;42 is where Jesus said that Simon would be called cephas
42Andrew brought him to Jesus, who looked at him and said, You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas (which means Peter).
43The next day Jesus decided to set out for Galilee. Finding Philip, He told him, Follow Me.
400
posted on
01/15/2018 4:04:08 AM PST
by
Elsie
(Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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