Introductory Story
Carlos Bersabe was raised Catholic, and received all his Sacraments on time, but spent most of his life without a clear sense that he was a disciple of Jesus Christ. It is as if he was continually walking the road to Emmaus: Jesus was there, walking with him, but Carlos was too blind to recognize Him. In some respects, he appeared to be following Christ. He went through the motions; he chose to follow those parts of the faith that seemed good to him. But instead of following the Spirit of Christ, he was following the flesh and the world. He lived in sin, and was content with it; he thought that he knew best.
Then he got married, and his wife wanted to become a Catholic. So he went through the RCIA program with her to show his support. It was in those classes that his eyes were opened: the catechists taught not only what Catholics believe, but also why they believe it, and it all “clicked” for him. He asked a lot more questions than his non-Catholic wife. He was encountering the truth, and it fascinated him, as if he had yearned for it all along, without knowing it.
As Carlos learned more, God began putting people in his path that would test his ability and commitment to living and loving as a true Christian. One by one, he failed the tests. He began to see that not only did he not understand the Catholic faith, but he also did not live it. He was encountering the truth more deeply, and the truth was painful.
On Pentecost Sunday, Carlos surrendered. In the Confession box, he wept uncontrollably as he accused himself of his sins. And at the end of his mournful cries there was joy — and love for the patient Father who forgave him and awaited him. He wanted to shout from the depths of his being: “Father, I’m home!”
“Through this entire ordeal,” Carlos wrote, “my view on Christ changed from seeing Him as a distant deity that enjoyed barking orders of “Don’t do this and that” while listing out my sins so He could punish me later, to a much more clearer and truer image of God: with arms outstretched, calling me by name, telling me that He loved me, forgives me, and wants me to come home to Him in heaven.”
In some important respects, Carlos’s conversion is similar to the conversion needed by many non-Christian believers in God. Although Carlos was a Christian — a baptized Catholic — all along, his conversion was one in which he moved from being a believer in God who lived life the way he wanted, to being a committed disciple of Jesus Christ. Carlos believed in God and in God’s Son, nominally at least; but now he had truly accepted God’s Son not only as Lord of the universe, but also as the Lord of his life.
This experience prepared Carlos to faithfully bear witness to the truth He had encountered, to Christ. Later, as an officer in the military, he encountered in the “chow hall” a young airman who was more clearly a non-Christian believer in God. As Carlos made the Sign of the Cross and said the blessing before his meal, the young airman tapped him on the shoulder and whispered, “Sir, are you allowed to do that?” They got into a lengthy conversation. In a nutshell, the man believed in God but wasn’t sure what else to believe. This left him feeling lonely despite being surrounded by a sea of people. Unlike Carlos, who yearned for the truth unknowingly, he yearned to encounter the truth openly.
Yearning to Encounter the Truth
The stories of Carlos, and of the young airman, are not unique. There are many, many people who, knowingly or unknowingly, yearn to encounter the truth.[1] They yearn to find answers to questions such as “What’s the meaning of life? Who am I? Where have I come from and where am I going? Why is there evil? What comes after death?” Peoples of all times, in fact, have attempted to answer them. In his Encyclical Fides et Ratio, Pope Saint John Paul II wrote that “they are questions which have their common source in the quest for meaning which has always compelled the human heart.”[2]
These questions, and their answers, form the heart of each and every “one good reason” for non-Christian believers in God. Catholics know that the human heart searches for truth. Catholics also know that Truth isn’t something but Someone, namely God Himself. They also know that “the truth will set you free” (John 8:32) in an intimate relationship with God and through Him, with other people.
Because we know these things, God sends us, His followers, on “rescue missions.” Sometimes, the mission entails talking with folks who have very different beliefs than us, like Jews, Muslims, and Buddhists. This list also includes people who believe in religions that appear Christian like Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnesses. There are also a growing number of folks who identify as Pagan, and there are others like the young airman who describe themselves as being “spiritual, not religious.” These folks are not yearning for quick, cerebral question-and-answer sessions but for something deeper. They are yearning to really encounter the truth.
All this can seem intimidating, but one doesn’t have to be an expert in world religions to succeed. Rather, one should be a good listener, asking people what they believe and why, and taking a genuine interest in getting to know where they are in their journey of faith. This can take time, and, oftentimes, several conversations. Sometimes, the conversation goes unfinished but this is not a reason to be discouraged. We must be patient and pray.
Our patience and openness will typically provide opportunities to witness without coming across as aggressive to people. These virtues can also open doors to correcting any misinformation regarding what Catholics believe. One should never be afraid to ask what someone thinks that the Catholic Church teaches, because the root of many conflicts comes from misunderstandings. Once they have expressed how they understand Church teaching, you can correct their misunderstanding, and gradually, through your patient witness, they may come to discover how the Catholic faith isn’t just one of many options to pursue the Truth, but the one home for the fullness of Truth in Christ.
Because they were listened to attentively, those being evangelized will often ask to hear the evangelist’s story. Evangelists should, therefore, be prepared to share their reasons for hope and how the Truth has set them free. What makes faith so important that we feel compelled to evangelize? How has it helped us in everyday life? It is important to try to connect the dots between our stories, and the stories of others, or to the questions they ask while they tell their stories. Doing this will emphasize our genuineness — that our evangelization is not a robotic, rehearsed act like some tired pick-up line.
Throughout the rest of this lesson, the emphasis is on those aspects of human existence which unite people: specifically family and community. Only full communion with Jesus Christ in the Catholic Church can perfectly express the truth and freedom to which humanity is called. We’ll also provide basic conversational tools to equip the evangelist to help plant the seed of faith, specifically for people who haven’t yet fully known the Catholic experience of the One and Triune God and His Church, but nonetheless have a deep yearning for God and the Truth. The truth is that there is a purpose in this life and in the next, greater than some simple bliss — it is a true, eternal, glorious communion of love, in Jesus Christ.
“And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd” (John 10:16).
[1] Some people, on the other hand, willfully and stubbornly suppress their own natural desire to encounter the truth.
[2] John Paul II, Fides et Ratio 1 (1998).