Catholic Evangelization

This Rock magazine includes a feature in every issue called Damascus Road, in which the story of a soul's conversion to Catholicism is told. I enjoy reading conversion stories. It's interesting to see what brings people to embrace the Church.

The column in the December 2009 issue includes this interesting passage:

I felt left out when Jo took off for Mass. Not wanting to push me into the Church, she suggested that we go church-hopping for a while to see where I might feel comfortable worshiping and said she would follow. But after visiting many churches, I realized that there was no place where I felt more comfortable than in the Catholic Church. I loved the natural humility of the people there. They loved Jesus and their faith, but they were not out to beat me over the head with it.

The part that I find interesting is the appeal of the non-evangelization. So often, we hear that this is a problem. Some people, however, find a quiet, prayerful, atmosphere at church to be appealing. They don't want somebody trying to get to know them and pushing them to get involved. If the liturgy and the homily and the living example of other Catholics are doing their job, the seeker will be drawn into a closer relationship with the triune God and the rest will follow.

That was one of the things that I liked about the Catholic Correspondence Course that I took those many years ago. It was confidential and free, but at the same time it did not in any way water down the faith in an attempt to make it more appealing. The truth sells itself. We have to make sure that we don't get in the way.