I had dated and been in love with a certain girl for several years and began to wonder if she was “the one.” How does one make such a momentous decision? How is one certain? I drove home in the middle of the week for guidance from my father. He was surprised to see me and after some opening chit-chat, I asked him “How do you know if the girl you are in love with is ‘the one’?” “Well”, he said, “One day, you will be with her and the time will come for you to leave and go home. When the thought hits you that wherever she is, is where you’re truly home, you’ll know she’s the one.” I have now been “home” with Cathy now for almost 30 years.
Those who have left the Catholic Church have done so for a multitude of reasons. While the Holy Spirit is at the center of each person’s decision to return, one can see ten common reasons they come back. We have looked at #’s 10 – 4 in previous bulletins. Here are the remaining top 3.
3. Because they want to be part of a faith community. Many people seek a sense of belonging, but community is more than just friendly people, good sermons, and interesting activities. A Catholic Christian community is a group of people who gather around the person of Jesus Christ to worship God and live in the light of the Holy Spirit. Catholics come together at Mass, in the sacraments, and in parish activities to pray, to celebrate joys, to mourn losses, to serve others, to provide support, and to receive strength for daily life. A Catholic parish offers all of this – and much more – to people who recognize the importance of walking with others toward union with God.
2. Because they want to help other people. There are lots of opportunities within the secular world to volunteer. What is missing is the spiritual dimension that service within the Catholic Church provides. It is more than just a “feel-good” activity, it is part of the great commandment (see Mark 12:28 ff) to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself. In reaching out to others, Catholic volunteers become instruments of God’s love. The Catholic Church offers opportunities to touch the lives of people at home or around the world.
1. Because they hunger for the Eucharist. Many people come back to the Catholic Church because they feel an intense longing for the Eucharist. Sometimes it happens at a wedding, a funeral, a baptism, a First Communion, or a confirmation. Sometimes it happens when people are alone or facing difficulties in life. They describe it as a deep hunger for the spiritual nourishment that comes when they receive the Body and Blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ. This hunger for the Eucharist triggers a recognition of the presence of Christ in other sacraments, which draws them even more deeply into the practice of their faith. It is, without exception, the number one reason people come back to the Catholic Church. Most people discover that coming back to the Church is not an event so much as a process that involves a little pain, a little laughter, some thinking, some prayer, some discernment, and a lot of letting go. “My actual return to full participation in a parish took about three years after I felt the first longing”, one person admitted.
The Eucharist is the number one reason people come back to the Church. And what do they get in return? The Catholic Church offers union with Jesus Christ in Scripture, in prayer, in the community of others, in the Eucharist, and in all of the sacraments. It offers spiritual support in good times and bad. It offers divine wisdom that is thousands of years old. It offers meaning and purpose in this life and the promise of life everlasting.
When speaking to a non-active Catholic, consider recommending they do what I did: have them make a trip home to a Catholic Church, and ask their (heavenly) Father how to know for sure where home is. God the Father will let them know the answer: “When you feel a deep sense of peace, you will know you are truly home”.
(The Ten Reasons are from Our Sunday Visitor)
What Does the Bible Say?
“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” — Luke 19:10
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses … to the ends of the earth.”
— Acts 1:8
“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you know how you should respond to each one.”
— Col 4:6
What Do the Saints Say?
“To teach in order to lead others to faith is the task of every preacher and of each believer.” — St Thomas Aquinas
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