Evangelizing A Non-Catholic Minister

A reader writes:

I have some advice to ask. I have a niece who my wife and I nearly raised after her sister went through some hard times.  During college she met a wonderful young man who was going to study for the ministry and after graduating from College went on to Baptist Seminary where he graduated. He took a church and for a year he struggled as a young pastor to keep the congregation from splitting over a number of old seated issues.

After about a year of attempting to heal a broken church they decided that it was time to return home where they could be closer to family. After moving home, they are having trouble finding a congregation; our nephew has taken a counseling job where he can use his theological and pasturing skills while also providing for the family.

My question is that I have been feeling an intense sense that I should share the stories of many of the protestant ministers who have returned home to Rome but I am concerned that this might not be received in the right spirit. My wife and I are both converts, I converted in High School along with my entire family, she converted prior to our marriage.

Do you have any advice as to how I could start the conversation with my nephew? My sprit feels that there might be an openness on his part. 

I don’t know the young man as well as you, or what your relationship with him is, so my ability to offer advice is limited, but I’ll give you what thoughts I can.

It seems to me that I’d be as simple and direct and non-threatening as possible. I’d say something like:

You know, John, my wife and I weren’t always Catholic. We became Catholic, and it has really meant a lot to us. I know that you have a great desire to follow God, and I think God would want you to investigate whether he wants you to follow him as a Catholic.

It may not be something that you have ever seriously considered before–in fact, you may have been taught a number of things about Catholicism that would have kept you from considering it before. But many people have looked into Catholicism and become Catholic in recent years, including many Protestant ministers.

Maybe the fact that you are now searching for a church shows you that this is a good time to look into it yourself.

If you’re open to it, I’d like to give you this book/tape to read/listen to. If you have questions or want to investigate further, I’d be happy to help point you to resources. You may find that many of the things you have been taught about Catholicism aren’t true or at least that Catholics have a better basis for them than you thought. That’s what many of these ministers found.

I wanted to share this with you because of how much I and my wife care for you and our neice. We’ve found that being Catholic has really meant a lot to us, and I know it would really mean a lot to you and our neice, too.

Then I’d give him Surprised By Truth volume 1 (the purple one) since it is a book of short, theologically-oriented conversion stories, many of them by Protestant ministers who became Catholic. Or, if he wouldn’t be up for a book, I’d give him the tape Protestant Minister Becomes Catholic by Scott Hahn.

If he’s receptive, you may also talk to him about what being Catholic has meant to you and how much you value it.

If he’s an admirer of John Paul II or Benedict XVI (as many Protestants are), you might cite them also as men of great wisdom who have found value in the Catholic faith. You might also consider giving him a copy of Pope Benedict’s new encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, as something that he might find valuable to read.

(Incidentally, if you google "God is love" then Deus Caritas Est is the first thing that pops up. If only B16 were Internet-savvy enough to fully appreciate how cool that is. CHT to SDG for pointing this out to me.)

A copy of the Catechism or the Compendium that will be out at the end of March also could be good.

Don’t load him up with too much stuff all at once, though.

Other readers may have other suggestions, but I hope these help!

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

22 thoughts on “Evangelizing A Non-Catholic Minister”

  3. Jimmy,
    I wonder if that approach might be a little too direct? Maybe a better approach would involve simply getting him to talk about the Catholic Church. Then, this person could work from there.

  4. You could ask him questions about his faith (he would probably be happy with the opportunity to evangelize you!) and then get into some good discussions on issues. Real Presence is a good one for biblical evidence. Or Baptism… or whatever issues his churches were splitting over, since that’s somewhat of a current-event in his life.
    You could find some issues where’s he’s RIGHT and show him some church fathers’ quotes to support those views, to get him interested in church fathers. Or show him some points in the catechism that support what he already agrees with. It’s really something amazing to realize the depth of the Catholic faith.

  5. Note: I haven’t actually TRIED any of these techniques on anybody, as I’m not the most outgoing evangelization type. I just thought I’d throw out some ideas for brainstorming. 🙂

  6. What book would people suggest for an agnostic?
    She hasn’t asked yet but I get the feeling that God is starting to prod her and I want to be ready if she asks!

  8. You could find some issues where’s he’s RIGHT and show him some church fathers’ quotes to support those views, to get him interested in church fathers. Or show him some points in the catechism that support what he already agrees with.
    Wow, that’s excellent advice, Louise. A great opening to studying the Church Fathers, but on a very pleasant note conducive to receptivity.

  9. Almost all of my extended family is Protestant. I’ve found that starting a conversation about Catholicism is almost always bad. Maybe its just the way I operate (I can be quite annoying..)
    For me, I’ve always found that the best tactic was to simply be Catholic and to await for questions to be fielded towards me. Protestants are invariable curious since they know so little about Catholicism, especially as you dispel myth after myth. It may be a while before the first question comes, but I’m sure it will come eventually as they get more comfortable with you.
    I also agree with having conversations on what you agree with over what you disagree with. We’re supposed to be brothers in Christ, and if we’re disagreeing, then we’re not being very brotherly.
    My advice, rosaries and patience.

  10. Any sensitive issue can be approched in the same fashion.
    1st broach the subject in some small way (Jimmy’s idea is good). See what reception you get. If they start screaming and run away then maybe you shold let the subject drop. If they are interested then continue in a friendly conversation.
    Remember that even if they are friendly to your faith one day the person may become scared by the idea and turn on you. Be patient and loving to any frontal attack and your relationship will survive and love will grow…
    Ditto to all above.

  12. Jennifer, w/all the irreverence in the Novus Ordo these days, I doubt that will be very impressive. If it’s a traditional Latin High Mass, then, yes, you should invite him to Mass. Other than that, I would have to poo poo that idea.

  13. All right, I’ve been to a Latin Mass–at the Vatican and celebrated by the pope. I did like it very much.
    But I also saw one aired from America on EWTN. There was a big difference. The American priest’s twang made it such that he might as well have been speaking English anyway. The sound I was hearing was not the sound of old, traditional Latin. In this way, there was no sense of the greater dignity of the Latin Mass at all. I doubt seeing a Latin Mass would have any different effect on a Protestant visitor than an English Mass would.
    Do people really feel as though Latin Masses are any more dignified because Latin sounds so much better than English? I can understand the hunger for that old traditional tie, Latin. I liked the Latin Mass too. So don’t get me wrong.
    But what I’m talking about is *hearing* the Latin being pronounced in such a way that it was distracting and didn’t even seem like Latin, let alone foreign. It sounded as though he were simply making up new American English words on the fly, the entire time. If I could hear it again, I could probably peg exactly which region in the U.S. the priest was from.

  20. They might get some grace just from being in the presence of Our Lord, even if the mass is liturgically distasteful.

  21. To one and all especially Mr. Akin.
    Thank you for the reply and for all the comments.
    Yes, daily rosary and other prayers are being offered. I am currently reviewing “journeys Home” by Marcus Grodi which may be a good resource.
    Please pray for us and him. At heart he is a good man who loves the Lord and is both a good husband and father. I hope I can find an opening to share our faith with him. His name is Paul (perhaps an omen?).

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