Random Access - Our Readers

Lurkers, Coworkers, and Long Lost Friends
Readers share their experiences of random opportunities to share the Catholic Faith with others.

A Lion Surrounded by Daniels

I lead a prayer/study group which concentrates on learning our Catholic Faith to the fullest extent. Besides the spiritual benefits, learning about the Faith also teaches us how to defend it. We get into apologetics discussions quite often. In this context, I invited a former coworker, an "independent Fundamentalist," to one of our meetings in order to address some questions regarding Catholicism that he disagreed with or didn't understand. It was a very enlightening evening. He presented us with eight questions on various Catholic doctrines and provided us with Scripture references which he felt supported his opposing view. Some of the passages "opposed" doctrines he assumed Catholics believe. We spent over an hour on his first question: How are we saved? He found we were much closer in belief than he had thought and that the Catholic position could be shown in Scripture - something he did not expect. Although he did not agree with everything we presented to him, he left that evening with a more open attitude about the Catholic Faith and even asked if he could return at some later point. We've invited him and his wife, an ex-Catholic, to join us whenever they're able. Coincidentally, a couple of days later he was at a party and had the opportunity to continue his conversations with two Catholic friends of ours who were at that party. They answered his questions the same way we did, and this surprised him. Afterward he told me that "It requires a mature Christian to be a good Catholic." I'm not exactly sure what he meant, but I think it was a compliment of sorts. Envoy magazine and the other apologetics resources we use were instrumental in our being able to convey the message of the gospel to this man in a non-compromising and easy to understand way.

Lee Cena, Fairfax, VA

You never know who's watching

I engage in apologetics work on-line. The on-line service I use offers a religious bulletin board. For the beginner apologist, which I was at the time, the Catholic bulletin boards are a great place to start. You're able to answer questions about the Faith and clear up a lot of confusion about what the Catholic Church really teaches. Once I was having an on-line debate with a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons). We went back and forth over several things, such as the Trinity, the Eucharist, their "baptism of the dead", the Book of Mormon, and so on. After several weeks of discussion, I received e-mail from a third party, a "silent" Mormon onlooker who revealed that he was wavering in his Mormon beliefs. He made the charitable comment to me that I was well-versed in Mormonism as well as the Catholic Faith. And that seemed to surprise him. He told me he liked a lot of the doctrines the Catholic Church teaches and that he had begun to see reason and truth in them. God's grace was touching him. We started an e-mail correspondence which lasted nearly a year. Typically we communicated three evenings a week by phone or e-mail, going over every aspect of the Faith. He started to see the Catholic Church as the most reasonable and most connected with Christ. With a lot of prayer (his own and that of others), he saw many errors in Mormonism. Thanks be to God, he, his wife, and two children are going to enter the Catholic Church soon. He can't wait for the day! And he's zealous in sharing the truth of the Catholic Faith with his Mormon friends. This experience, along with other discussions on-line with Jehovah Witnesses, Fundamentalists, and others has given me greater confidence to discuss the Faith in person when missionaries came to the door. I know all their arguments, since I see them presented on-line. You never know who's lurking and reading the bulletin board apologetics discussions. I've also learned that charity is crucial - the patience with which you give an argument or answer a question.

Philip Bellini, New Orleans, LA

He didn't look, but they listened

A few years ago while visiting Toronto on business, I took the opportunity to visit with friends from my university days in the mid 1980s. It was a real ecumenical affair; there was a Baptist, an Anglican, someone from the United Church, and a Catholic, all nominal in their practice, but all good people. They invited me over for a BBQ, some conversation, and a movie. In the old days I really enjoyed these gatherings, and I would enjoy this one, but for different reasons. You see, during college my Catholic Faith was not alive. Although my parents are devout Catholics, Catholicism was for me only a cultural byproduct of my upbringing. What made this BBQ different was that I was taking Christ along with me, and my old friends had never seen the two of us together. After graduating and entering the work force something happened to me. I started to really think. I didn't know it but my parents and some Catholic friends had been praying hard for me, asking God to break down the man-made barriers to my soul. God's grace was starting to have an effect. Miraculously, I came to my senses, and Faith became the focus of my life. I shared this newfound relationship with Christ with anyone who would listen and even with those who weren't listening (that's a humbling experience). I took my new faith to the BBQ, hopeful that an opportunity would arise for me to speak about my relationship with Christ and the Church. As the evening went on, the atmosphere was happy and fun, just old friends reminiscing about the past, discussing the present, and laying down plans for the future. After the meal we sat down for the movie. As the opening credits rolled I could tell this movie and I wouldn't get along. I whispered to the person next to me that I couldn't watch this movie due to its content. Viola! The only other Catholic in the room overheard my remark and immediately asked, "Why?" I explained that I didn't agree with the moral content. I guess that was the opening the Holy Spirit was looking for. The next three hours were filled with lively discussion concerning God, morality, and the Catholic Church. Some misconceptions about the Church were cleared up and our dialogue about Christ has become easier since then. I learned from this experience that everyone is looking for Christ, though many people don't even realize it. It seems to be the "right" moment, especially when you're dealing with friends and family, who know your faults. But it's not instant conversions that God seeks. He wants our faithfulness in presenting His plan for humanity. This means preaching Christ "in season and out of season." As we enter the third millennium I hope more Catholics bring apologetics to their neighborhood BBQ's.

Tony MacDonal, New York, NY

The Graduate

A friend of mine recently graduated from Bob Jones University. I knew little about BJU, except that it was Fundamentalist. I wondered what this intelligent young man had heard about Catholicism - whether he'd picked up anti-Catholic biases from his training, whether he'd ever even known any Catholics. The son of missionaries, he'd spent most of his life among his fellow independent Baptists. One day, I casually mentioned to him that I was reading a book by a Fundamentalist convert to Catholicism who alluded to Bob Jones University in the story.
A few days later, during lunch hour, I left the book on his desk. It was David Currie's Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic. I feared my friend might resent this as a heavy-handed attempt to foist Catholicism upon him. Boy, was I wrong. He read the first two chapters as he gulped his sandwich, then raced through the rest of the book that night. Several days later, he told me he now had a totally different perspective on Catholics. He was amazed that we don't really believe one is "saved by works." In fact, he felt he could essentially agree with the Catholic teaching on grace, and he understood and appreciated the Catholic doctrine of temporal punishment. He even opened his heart to the possibility that Mary could bring us closer to Jesus. My colleague is still a long way from embracing the Catholic Faith, but he has come a long way from the anti-Catholic prejudices he used to have and which are common at his church. I believe the Lord will eventually bring him all the way home to the True Church. On one occasion, I told him he was already a "closet Catholic," since he cared so much about personal sanctity. Instead of being offended, he just smiled.

Dianne Kamer, via e-mail

Send in your Random Access encounters with friends, co-workers or family members to: "Random Access", Envoy Magazine, P.O. Box 85152, San Diego, CA 92186. Or e-mail us at editor@envoymagazine.com.