This Convert's Path from New York to Norway and Back

     My mom and dad both left their home and family in Norway and came to America as teenagers. Some years later they met each other in New York City and married in 1927. My father’s heart’s desire was always to return permanently to Norway with his wife and daughter. It was not until 1937 (after I was born) that we moved to Norway.

     In 1939, the German army invaded Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Everyone suspected that Hitler would soon invade Norway because of its strategic location and deep water fjords. My mom loved America and convinced my father to come home to the USA. Five months later, Germany did indeed invade Norway. During the next five years, many Norwegians, especially those in the Resistance were killed by the Gestapo, including some of my relatives.

     We settled in the Connecticut Berkshires. It was so rural that my elementary school had all eight grades in one classroom. Our family attended a small Lutheran church of mostly Norwegian immigrants.

     Many Protestants are anti-Catholic and my own family was no exception. When I was twelve, I asked my older sister “why we don’t like Catholics.” She repeated the usual distortions and misapprehensions – that Catholics think the pope is always right, they worship Mary, pray to idols, confess their sins to a man and not God and their Bible is different. It was years later that I learned that the only difference was that Protestants removed seven Old Testament books after the Reformation.

     We got our first TV set about 1950 and watched whatever was on the one channel we received. On Tuesday night was Bishop Fulton J. Sheen. My dad was attentive to him and after one program, he paused a few moments and said, “Even though he is a Catholic priest, he makes a lot of sense.” Dad speaking positively about a Catholic priest impressed me.

     I attended a Jesuit College and learned a lot there. One of my courses was Marriage and one time, the instructor said, “Make sure when you find a girl you want to marry, be sure you like her – love, of course – but really, really like her, because that girl will be your best friend for the rest of your life.”

     Mom and dad’s problem with Myrna was that she was a Catholic and very devout, at that. I knew she was a “keeper” and we made plans to marry. We were scheduled to attend a pre-Cana conference… and I didn’t show up. The next time we met I acted like nothing happened, but of course Myrna begged to differ. She forgave me and we married on February 23, 1963 at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in New York. After some resistance, my parents attended the wedding.

     We lived about 130 miles from my parents and Myrna made sure we visited them at least one weekend a month for the rest of their lives. On Sundays we always attended the Lutheran service with them. This was all Myrna’s doing, not mine. She melted their hearts and they came to love this Catholic woman.

     After Mass one Sunday, I was grumbling about sitting – standing – kneeling over and over. A lady sitting behind us tapped Myrna on the shoulder and told her, “Keep bringing the body; the heart and head will soon follow.” That lady was right, I started my lessons in the Faith soon thereafter. Fr. Duffy at St. Patrick’s dispelled the distortions I grew up with explaining what we really believe as Catholics. The most difficult hurdle for me was confession, but Fr. Duffy had a great method to prepare for the sacrament of Confession. He suggested using 1 Corinthians 13:4-6 as an examination of conscience. These are the famous verses about love, but he suggested substituting the pronoun “I” or my name for the word “love.”

     After we relocated to Texas, coming to CRHP was initially intended as just another activity. But it proved to be much more, both spiritually and emotionally. We’ve been to so many retreats over the years and were enriched by them all, but CRHP is unique and has been a blessing for me and Myrna.  

— Parishioner Teddy

Easter Conversion ‘Boom’?

Some U.S. dioceses are reporting that 2014 will be an unusually fruitful year, in terms of the number of people welcomed into the Church.

By Charlotte Hays

National Catholic Register

WASHINGTON — Speaking of the prospect of becoming a Catholic at this year’s Easter vigil, Sheila Bidzinski, a 36-year-old mother of two little boys, excitedly admits, “I hope I won’t pass out, but I have told my husband he has to get behind me in case he has to catch me.”

When Bidzinski, who has been studying the Catholic faith with a group at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Derwood, Md., comes into the Church, she will be participating in what one commentator has dubbed “a boom.”

The Archdiocese of Washington, where Bidzinski’s parish is located, will welcome the largest number of candidates and catechumens ever recorded for the archdiocese this Easter. The archdiocese will baptize or confirm 1,311 adults, children and teenagers this Easter.

“What we have seen for the past three years is a steady, incremental increase [in the number of people coming into the Church at Easter],” said Sara Blauvelt, director for catechesis of the Archdiocese of Washington. Blauvelt said that she finds it “particularly exciting” that there has been “a significant increase in the number of catechumens.”

In the Diocese of Cleveland, the number of catechumens and candidates is 511. That's 100 more than a year ago, with many of those coming into the Church crediting Pope Francis with influencing their decision, diocesan officials report.

“Pope Francis’ history of simple living, combined with his rejection of some of the more worldly trappings of the papacy, has, for many, made conforming oneself to Christ and living as a Catholic relevant to the unchurched; indeed, to cradle-Catholics as well,” said Jeanne Marie Miles, the director of the Cleveland Diocese’s Office of Worship. “Like his namesake, Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis is leading by example, and many are following.”

Father Rob Walsh, chaplain of the Catholic Student Center at the University of Maryland in the Washington Archdiocese, is excited that 20 students are coming into the Church at the Easter vigil.

What’s the secret? Father Walsh thinks it’s quite simple: evangelization. It is essential to invite people to come into the Church.

“I know there is a lot of talk about Pope Francis, and I am a big fan of the Holy Father,” said Father Walsh, “but I’m not sure kids are latching onto that. But we do push evangelization here. I tell the kids, ‘Eat all the chocolate you want during Lent. What I want you to do is go to Mass. Go to confession. If it’s been six months, it’s time to go to confession.” It is important, said Father Walsh, for young people on campus to encounter people who are practicing their faith.

“If I thought it something to joke about,” said Robert Royal of the Faith and Reason Institute, “I might argue that [all these converts] are fleeing the wrath to come. But there does seem to be some sense abroad that the Church is a real haven from much that is cresting just now. I hear it from American evangelicals. There’s the case of that pastor and his wife — in Sweden, of all places — who gave up his position at a megachurch with 3,000 souls to become a Catholic. And, of course, Francis is a kind of global magnet, though in ways difficult to pin down. In any event, it encourages us all to stay at the work.”

Extracted from NCRegister.com of March 31, 2014

Evangelizing Challenge This Week

Read Charlotte Hays’ complete story of the "Easter Conversion ‘Boom"

Becoming Catholic

Diane is from Boston, MA, raised in the Unitarian Church. She met her husband, Ron, a devout Catholic. After knowing each other for sixteen years and falling in love, they married. “I thank God for bringing a man of such strong faith into my life,” says Diane. Then in a family with two adopted boys, Diane went through RCIA  in Annandale, VA when she and Ron were living and working there, but she “kind of didn’t get it.” She and her biological daughter were baptized into the Church about one month apart. She was active enough in her faith, managing even to teach CCD  for two years despite being a busy and distracted Mom of three kids. Then the circumstances of life, as it always does, brought changes.

“The move here to Texas awakened my faith,” says Diane. Upon moving here she was invited to Bible study where her network of woman friends burgeoned and grew and it was the Book of Acts, still one of her very favorites, that she says, “Captured my heart and changed me.” She goes on to say, “The more I study scripture, the deeper my faith. Beyond that, the group studies I attended of the writings of Thomas Merton have been so important.” She cites both the new insights from learning itself and the flourishing of deep, lasting friendships.

Connecting with others in a caring and welcoming Catholic community has been the continuous theme of Diane’s walk of faith since becoming an increasingly more active and participating member here at Good Shepherd.

“I had cancer in 2010 and more people in this Church and my small church community prayed for me and lifted me up and I’m convinced I am here today because of all those prayers,” according to Diane.

How does that flourishing continue today? “Tuesday evening Bible study – Matthew and Acts (my favorite) – Father Jonathan’s ‘Journey Through the Mass’ sessions – the opportunities are endless.”

We asked Diane what is the thing she would most like a visitor to Good Shepherd to know. Her reply is, “I’m grateful. By doing a little service, you never know how deeply you effect another. You recognize the blessings of every single day and that the Holy Spirit is with you every step of the way; He gives you infinite peace to go through whatever you need to.”

[1] The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is the process through which interested adults and older children are gradually introduced to the Roman Catholic faith and way of life.

2 Stands for Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, the religious education program of the Church.

Evangelizing Challenges This Week

Strike up a conversation with someone you know is a convert to the Church about what led them to the Faith and what it is like now.

Pick up a Lighthouse CD in the narthex about or by a convert to Catholicism.

Watch “The Journey Home” or another program on EWTN focusing on conversions or returns to the Church.

Pope Francis’ Radical Call to Evangelization

Cardinal Burke is prefect of the Sacred Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura and the Vatican's most senior serving American official. He wrote the article (extracted here) for the English edition of L'Osservatore Romano in his capacity as President of the Advisory Board of the Dignitatis Humanae Institute. 

          During a recent visit to the United States, I was repeatedly impressed by how deeply Pope Francis has penetrated the national conversation on a whole range of issues. His special gift of expressing direct care for each and all has resonated strongly with many in my homeland.

          At the same time, I noted a certain questioning about whether Pope Francis has altered or is about to alter the Church’s teaching … Clearly, the words and actions of the Holy Father require, on our part, a fitting tool of interpretation, if we are to understand correctly what he intends to teach... Pope Francis is exercising strongly his gift for drawing near to all people of good will. It is said that when he manifests his care for a single person, as he does so generously whenever the occasion presents itself, all understand that he has the same care for each of them.

          With regard to his manner of addressing the critical issues, the Holy Father himself has described his approach, when he stated: “We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods…. I have not spoken much about these things, and I was reprimanded for that. But when we speak about these issues, we have to talk about them in a context. The teaching of the Church, for that matter, is clear and I am a son of the Church, but it is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time” The Holy Father wants, first, to convey his love of all people so that his teaching on the critical moral questions may be received in that context. But his approach cannot change the duty of the Church and her shepherds to teach clearly and insistently about the most fundamental moral questions of our time…

          [Pope Francis] addressed the Dignitatis Humanae Institute at our Fifth Anniversary Papal Audience. Exhorting the assembled politicians, the Holy Father warned of a modern-day “throwaway culture” which threatens “to become the dominant mentality”. He went on to identify those who suffer most from such a culture, declaring: “The victims of such a culture are precisely the weakest and most fragile human beings — the unborn, the poorest people, sick elderly people, gravely disabled people… who are in danger of being ‘thrown out’, expelled from a machine that must be efficient at all costs. This false model of man and society embodies a practical atheism, de facto negating the Word of God that says: ‘Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness’”…

          Surely, persons whose hearts are hardened against the truth will read something very different into the approach of Pope Francis, claiming that, in fact, he intends to abandon certain teachings of the Church which our totally secularized culture rejects. Their false praise of the Holy Father’s approach mocks the fact that he is the Successor of Saint Peter, totally grounded in the Beatitudes, and that, therefore, with humble trust in God alone, he rejects the acceptance and praise of the world.

          It is not that the Holy Father is not clear in his opposition to abortion and euthanasia, or in his support of marriage as the indissoluble, faithful and procreative union of one man and one woman. Rather he concentrates his attention on inviting all to nurture an intimate relationship, indeed communion, with Christ, within which the non-negotiable truths, inscribed by God upon every human heart, become ever more evident and are generously embraced…

          The Pontificate of Pope Francis should therefore be seen as a radical call to redouble our efforts for the new evangelization. Radical in the sense that, in our dialogue with others and with the world, we must start with the beginning, Christ’s call to life in Him. This call of Christ is the good news of God’s love and mercy which our world so badly longs for. At the same time, as Simeon foretold to Our Blessed Mother when Our Lord was presented in the temple, it is also “a sign that will be contradicted” (Lk 2:34), in every age and particularly in our “post-Christian” society. This is because the proclamation of Jesus Christ can never be authentic without the proclamation of his Cross. Pope Francis reminded us of this most eloquently in his homily to the cardinal electors on the afternoon following his election: When we journey without the Cross, when we build without the Cross, when we profess Christ without the Cross, we are not disciples of the Lord, we are worldly: we may be bishops, priests, cardinals, popes, but not disciples of the Lord. My wish is that all of us, after these days of grace, will have the courage, yes, the courage, to walk in the presence of the Lord, with the Lord’s Cross; to build the Church on the Lord’s blood which was poured out on the Cross; and to profess the one glory: Christ crucified. And in this way, the Church will go forward (Homily of Pope Francis, 14 March 2013).

          In the face of a galloping de-Christianisation in the West, the new evangelization, as Pope Francis underlines, must be clearly grounded in Christ crucified who alone can overcome the world for the sake of its salvation.

- Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke

Evangelization Challenge This Week

Invite a friend, neighbor or family member long away from the Church or whose participation has been put “on hold” to attend five Catholics Come Home sessions at Good Shepherd starting Tuesday, April 29 at 7:00 p.m.

Stewardship

“I will put my spirit in you that you may live.” With those words, God speaks to us through the prophet Ezekiel in the first reading for this Fifth Sunday in Lent. In fact, all of the readings for this Sunday reflect the importance of the Spirit living within us.

St. Paul in his letter to the Romans, the second reading, asks us to understand that the spirit dwells within us, and that is what is important; not our flesh or our bodies, but what God has placed in us — the Holy Spirit. What is important is that Spirit, for that is truly the key to truth and life.

Of course, in the Gospel story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, this idea of body and spirit is reinforced. As our Lenten journeys continue, we need to continue to acknowledge the presence of Christ and the Spirit within us, and strive to fulfill that manifestation. Furthermore, we need to connect a key part of the Lazarus story with our own lives. Just as Jesus tells them in that story to “Take away the stone,” the Lord is commanding us to remove the stones in our lives; the obstacles that prevent our spirits to live in Him and with Him. It is time to roll our personal stones back and to pursue stewardship and discipleship as a way of life.

We Have Much in Common

We Catholics, both the Latin Church and 22 Eastern Catholic Churches, profess we are one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church that Christ founded. As such, we are not a denomination; we are pre-denominational, the original Church of Christ. But since the Reformation or even before, we Christians have disagreed on so many things – liturgy, how to worship, articles of faith, interpretation of Scripture, moral teachings – the list, unfortunately, goes on. Once the wheels of disunity were set in motion, the impulse to split seemed to take on a life of its own until today, by many accounts, there are more than 40,000 Christian denominations. Sometimes we Christians appear more fractious than brotherly. In January, addressing a gathering of Pentecostals via YouTube, Pope Francis said that all Christians are to blame for their divisions and that he prays to the Lord “that he will unite us all.” But in today’s Gospel, John 9: 1-41 holds a great opportunity to honor how we are all brethren in devotion to our Lord and spreading the Good News.

 

Once in a great while, we are caught up in a cause or a movement that unifies all Christians – human rights, defeating Nazism or the Soviet Union, stopping apartheid, civil rights or abolishing slavery and (increasingly so) ending abortion. We can rally round the great social justice issues and even, sometimes, be galvanized by a song when tragedy like 9/11 befalls us; a hymn because the times simply call for it as they did in the fractured society of 1970.

Arguably, the most familiar and beloved hymn of modern times is “Amazing Grace” by the 18^th century hymnist and Anglican priest, John Newton. Its themes are so universal, profoundly resonant and familiar to readers of the Bible perhaps because of the story of John Newton himself: a slave trader converted to Christianity who eventually became a minister, a vocal abolitionist and who penned the hymn to be sung by his own congregation. He was experimenting with what at the time was a relatively new form of religious song, the Protestant hymn.

The hymn was published many times in the U.S. during the 19^th century. Its popularity grew during the last century coinciding with the invention and popularity of recorded music, then exploded into pop music becoming a Top 10 Hit with Judy Collins’s 1970 a capella recording. The majority of the 450 recordings held by the Library of Congress were made after 1970 and include versions by artists as varied as Elvis Presley, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Tiny Tim, Al Green, Johnny Cash, Rod Stewart, Chet Baker and Destiny’s Child.

Eventually, of course, the hymn found its way into Catholic hymnals, our own included, and the Catholic worship song repertoire.

We are mindful of it today because of our Gospel reading in which the beggar, blind from birth, gains sight for the first time and says, “One thing I do know is that I was blind and now I see.”

Evangelizing Challenge This Week

Talk with family about how much we believe in common and practice in common with our friends and neighbors of other faith traditions. Start with the words on the change in your pocket or the currency in your wallet.

Catholic Apps

 Catholic’s Companion. Precious few apps are available for this format, but this one will hold you over until more come on the scene for the Windows Phone. It is most comprehensive as an all-in-one Catholic app holding many different resources like the most common prayers, rosary, bible, audio bible, daily mass readings, mass online, prayer reminders, journals, news and a breviary! WindowsPhone8 – Free.

 Pewsitter is an app version of the popular Catholic news website that relies upon user generated content and traditional media sources. The site features audio, video and print news items. If you are interested in keeping up to date on what is happening in “Catholic World,” this app is essential. Based on the ground-breaking Drudge Report format, it offers up-to-date news, sometimes within minutes of it occurring anywhere in the world. iOS and Android - Free

Why Should You Even Bother?

Why should we make the effort to evangelize our fellow inactive Catholics or non-Catholics?

1. Jesus asked us to. We do so out of love and obedience to our Lord who laid down his life for us. On the day of his ascension, in what became known as “The Great Commission”, he told his assembled disciples “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” This final command before he returned to his Father in heaven urges us to go to our fellow man and share the good news that Jesus is the Christ, God become man, who took the sins of the world up with him on the cross, died for us, was raised to life and ascended into heaven. He now shares His divine life with us through His church and her sacraments till the day of His return in Glory. We will not be alone when we approach our neighbors / family / friends / strangers with this Good News, for He told us – “And behold, I am with you      always…”

2. Joy – from our great gifts. We want to share this Good News with our fellow man. Our life is bathed in the infinite glow of Christ’s love for us which sustains us and gives meaning to our existence. We know that God “…wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth.” (1Tim 2:4) We desire to bring others into that same light that illuminates our own lives. We are moved by compassion for those in the shadows or darkness who do not know Him.

3. Everyone deserves a chance. In today’s society, we cannot assume that an individual has heard the Good News in a positive manner from someone who has experienced Jesus and has a relationship with Him. Because we know Him, we have a duty to share Him with others so that they can decide whether they choose to follow Him or not. This sacred duty should not be left up to Hollywood, the Internet, or the nightly news.

4. Because the need is so great. We are surrounded by people who are hungering, thirsting, and dying for the Good News in their lives. They ask the timeless questions that have been with man from the beginning: Is there any sense, any meaning to life? Why am I here? Why is there suffering? Does anyone care? Is there hope? Is this all there is?  If we have the answer to their questions – Jesus Christ – then to withhold the way, the truth and the life is unjust and calls our own inaction into question.

Our readings on this Third Sunday of Lent begin with the tale from Exodus about how the people of Israel were in the desert, and they were thirsty. They were unhappy with Moses, their leader, and they were disappointed with God to the extent they questioned whether the Lord was still present, asking “Is the Lord in our midst or not?”

That is a question we may ask at times. We may wonder if God is watching over us; we may lose our trust in God. It is worth noting that the Book of Exodus tells us in today’s reading that the Israelites were in a place called Massah and Meribah. In Hebrew “Massah” means “to test” and “Meribah” means “to quarrel or provoke.” The description of the chosen people “provoking” God and “testing” God may have applicability to us as well.  Stewardship calls for us to place our faith and trust in God — to believe and know that He is always with us and always watching over us.

That is not easy. Jesus never once tells us that it will be easy or that it is easy. However, He also assures us in today’s Gospel that He brings us the “living water.” Even in the Book of Isaiah we are reminded “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” (Is 12:3) As St. Paul says in the second reading, “…and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts.” (Like living water)

What Does the Bible Say?

“It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go out and bear fruit that will remain…” John 15:16

“So we are ambassadors for Christ” 2Cor 5:20

The Missionary Option - What it Means to "Be A Disciple"

Evangelization means we are sent as Disciples. Each one of us in virtue of our baptism is called to live our faith and to bear witness to the Gospel. First, there were the groundbreaking writings on the New Evangelization by Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and others. Then Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (now Pope Francis) was one of the primary authors, in 2007, of an important document from the Fifth General Conference of the

Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean, called the Aparecida document. Called by some the foundational document of Pope Francis’ pontificate,  Aparecida calls us to be missionary disciples who work to build a world of love and solidarity. Missionary disciples joyfully announce the Gospel and proclaim the love of God that transforms hearts and minds—as well as unjust structures that perpetuate poverty and suffering.

In a recent address, USCCB President, Archbishop Joseph E Kurtz said that the New Evangelization in the U.S. must be made of three components

1.   personal conversion – a continuous effort by every Catholic to evangelize themselves through prayer and reading the Gospel

2.   a confidence in the power of the Gospel to impart God’s Grace to all who hear it

3.   creative new ways to share the Gospel.

Many of those new ways are through new media and new technology. That is the reason we have featured Catholic Apps, for example, on this page.

To make the New Evangelization a reality is to become pilgrims on a journey or pilgrimage with Jesus Christ— much like the journey of Jesus meeting the disciples along the road to Emmaus.  The journey or pilgrimage includes moments for a deepening of our faith, increasing our participation in the sacramental life of the Church, and leads finally to our destination of being Christian witnesses.

"A new evangelization is synonymous with mission, requiring the capacity to set out anew, go beyond boundaries and broaden horizons. The new evangelization is the opposite of self-sufficiency, a withdrawal into oneself, a status quo mentality and an idea that pastoral programs are simply to proceed as they did in the past. Today a 'business as usual' attitude can no longer be the case. Some local Churches, already engaged in renewal, reconfirm the fact that now is the time for the Church to call upon every Christian community to evaluate their pastoral practice on the basis of the missionary character of their program and activities."

—Synod of Bishops XIII Ordinary General Assembly, The New Evangelization for the Transmission of Christian Faith, Lineamenta

Pope Francis’ recent apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium (the Joy of the Gospel) makes it clear when he writes, “I dream of a 'missionary option', that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church’s customs, ways of doing things, times and schedules, language and structures can be suitably channeled for the evangelization of today’s world rather than for her self-preservation.”

This is a huge statement. As a Church, we have been inward-focused and guilty of “triumphalism” to use Pope Francis’ term. His Holiness is calling for our Church to thrive by choosing the missionary option in everything that we do.

“Evangelization is the Church's deepest identity.  Evangelization brings the good news of the Gospel to all who seek the life-giving message of faith in Jesus Christ… Each one of us in virtue of our baptism is called to live our faith and to bear witness to the Gospel… Stewardship is an expression of discipleship rooted in a personal relationship with Christ. Good stewards generously share their gifts and blessings with others for the sake of the Kingdom.”

— Bishop David Ricken, USCCB Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis

Evangelization Challenge This Week

Read one of the following:

EvangeliiGaudium(the Joy of the Gospel)

Aparecida document, 2007