Catholics Come Home: Part 6

Over the past few days we have been looking at suggestions as to what can be done to draw people back to the Catholic Church.

Today is the final post in this series. These suggestions focus on the conversations which you will have with those who have drifted away from the faith:

18. Be careful how you speak
Encourage, don’t condemn or lecture. It is very easy for those who have left the Church to feel judged very quickly. I would suggest not referring to them as either “lapsed” or “not a good Catholic”.  This will likely put them on the defensive and make your task considerably harder.

19. Listen
Someone is unlikely to listen to you if you don’t listen to them, so make sure you do. Love them. Know them. Be part of their lives.

Use this time of listening as an opportunity to try and really understand the person. What makes him tick? Try to understand where he is coming from. For example, do his misgivings stem from their pastoral experience or from Catholic doctrine?

Also, what is important to him? For example, if someone has a deep concern for the poor, then this might be an area of connection for them with the Church. Introduce him to those in your parish or diocese who are involved in homelessness ministry. You might also give him a book by Blessed Mother Teresa for Christmas 🙂

20. Share yourself
It’s easier to be vulnerable with someone who has been vulnerable with you. Share your journey, your struggles as well as your joys. Don’t just present the shiny, happy Christianity. People are very good at detecting hypocrisy and when someone is being inauthentic.

In particular, I would suggest speaking about your personal experience of the Sacrament of Confession. This Sacrament is often an intimidating obstacle for many people considering a return to the Church.

21. Know when to back off
Sometimes people are just not in a position to hear you. Their wounds are too raw. In the meantime, love them like Jesus.

22. You are not superman!
You may not be the person to finally bring someone back to the Lord’s table. You may just be one piece in someone’s story:

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. – 1 Corinthians 3:5-9

Trying to do everything is exhausting. Enlist the support of others to help you out, both to support you and to pray.

23. Pray, pray, pray
Disabuse yourself of the false notion that you are the one who can change hearts. It is not you or I, it’s the Holy Spirit.

Pray for opportunities to share your faith. If you are praying for these opportunities you will most likely be in a better position to recognize them and make the most of them.

Persevere in prayer. Remember that St. Monica prayed intently for the better part of thirty years before her son Augustine was received into the Church. He would later become a Doctor of the Church and probably the greatest Early Church Father of the West.

These are some suggestions. I hope they might be helpful. If there are any I’ve omitted which you think may help other people, please feel free to leave your own suggestions in the Comment Box below.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

The article Catholics Come Home: Part 6 first appeared on RestlessPilgrim.net