Bible study assignment

[Warandpeace]

My bible study assignment for this week is to talk to someone new about Jesus Christ. The thought is that even people who go to Church may not have a relationship with Him. I honestly don’t know if I can described my relationship either. I encounter Christ in the sacraments and through scripture, but I see that as hardly compelling. The people I know are aware that I’m Catholic, and I’ve always been of the mindset that “they will know we are Christians by our love.” Would someone interested in becoming Catholic be uncertain about approaching me? It seems disrespectful to just put in front of non-Catholic friends the realty of the Catholic Church when I’m aware of their beliefs. It is seen in society as not polite to further discuss religion, does this need to change? Does anyone do this, and if so, how is this done? Can we approach people on side walks with flyers for Catholic Churches? I’m not comfortable with approaching strangers. I feel like places like Catholic Answers Forum is where I am comfortable with right now.

I probably should be meeting new people and asking them where they go to Church. I have no game plan though. My age group is particularly difficult. To convert someone it would be necessary to talk about contraceptive, etc. It seems as if I would have to teach an RCIA class to someone just to get them to attend RCIA.

 

[Bonnie]

You may have misunderstood. Perhaps the assignment was not to “witness” as some Protestants & non-Catholics do, but to be more open about your faith. Perhaps when you’re with a group of people who are talking about weekend plans, you could mention going to Mass, doing a Holy Hour, or your Bible study.

To understand more about a relationship with God, your young adult/youth minister might be interested in presenting Matthew Kelly’s Decision Point study. It’s intended to prepare teens for confirmation, but my husband & I are getting a lot out of it - & we’re a heck of a lot older than the intended audience!

You can find more information about it at DynamicCatholic.com.

 

[808Catholic]

My bible study assignment for this week is to talk to someone new about Jesus Christ. The thought is that even people who go to Church may not have a relationship with Him. I honestly don’t know if I can described my relationship either. I encounter Christ in the sacraments and through scripture, but I see that as hardly compelling. The people I know are aware that I’m Catholic, and I’ve always been of the mindset that “they will know we are Christians by our love.” Would someone interested in becoming Catholic be uncertain about approaching me? It seems disrespectful to just put in front of non-Catholic friends the realty of the Catholic Church when I’m aware of their beliefs. It is seen in society as not polite to further discuss religion, does this need to change? Does anyone do this, and if so, how is this done? Can we approach people on side walks with flyers for Catholic Churches? I’m not comfortable with approaching strangers. I feel like places like Catholic Answers Forum is where I am comfortable with right now.

I probably should be meeting new people and asking them where they go to Church. I have no game plan though. My age group is particularly difficult. To convert someone it would be necessary to talk about contraceptive, etc. It seems as if I would have to teach an RCIA class to someone just to get them to attend RCIA.

As a suggestion, you might want to “slide” into the topic of Jesus by referring to recent movies or TV series like Noah, Exodus, The Bible, Son of God, God’s Not Dead, Heaven is Real, The Messengers (on the CW), Killing Jesus, or A.D. The Bible Continues. We have a ton of material being presented on the big and small screen (some better than others) but I believe they can be used to open discussions/conversations that will lead to Jesus Christ. I’ve found most people aren’t really anti-theists so much as ignorant of God. The more comfortable you can make them feel about approaching the subject matter, the better the odds that you’ll have a longer relationship with them and will dive deeper into why you believe. That’s the core of the discussion until they come to the realization “why don’t I believe?”

Remember to pray first before approaching anyone that the Holy Spirit come to you and gives you the thoughts and words that will help that person come to Jesus.

 

[Warandpeace]

As a suggestion, you might want to “slide” into the topic of Jesus by referring to recent movies or TV series like Noah, Exodus, The Bible, Son of God, God’s Not Dead, Heaven is Real, The Messengers (on the CW), Killing Jesus, or A.D. The Bible Continues. We have a ton of material being presented on the big and small screen (some better than others) but I believe they can be used to open discussions/conversations that will lead to Jesus Christ. I’ve found most people aren’t really anti-theists so much as ignorant of God. The more comfortable you can make them feel about approaching the subject matter, the better the odds that you’ll have a longer relationship with them and will dive deeper into why you believe. That’s the core of the discussion until they come to the realization “why don’t I believe?”

Remember to pray first before approaching anyone that the Holy Spirit come to you and gives you the thoughts and words that will help that person come to Jesus.

Thanks!

 

[casslean]

You may have misunderstood. Perhaps the assignment was not to “witness” as some Protestants & non-Catholics do, but to be more open about your faith. Perhaps when you’re with a group of people who are talking about weekend plans, you could mention going to Mass, doing a Holy Hour, or your Bible study.

You’d be surprised how easy it is to “talk to” people about Jesus or about God if you just talk honestly with them in your everyday life. I’m going through some challenges at the moment on the employment front, and when I talk to family and friends about it (most of whom are not Catholic or even practicing Christians), rather than saying things like “I’m trying to stay positive” or “I’m not going to lose hope”, I give then the honest answer that is getting me through each day - “I have faith that God will lead me to where He wants me to be.” Most of the time there is nothing following up from that, but it is a chance to talk about God.

 

[kkollwitz]

“My bible study assignment for this week is to talk to someone new about Jesus Christ.”

I’d ask the person who gave that assignment to give personal examples of how he has done it that you might try.

 

[Warandpeace]

I asked a friend from school, whom I mostly talk about schoolwork with, where they encountered God. I gave some examples of where other people have “mountain top” experiences, such as in nature, etc. Their response was favorable as fair as material to bring back to the bible study. This person expressed no interest at joining the Catholic Church at this point. When I returned to the bible study the next week, the leader suggested that I just keep talking to this person. Currently, I brought up what their current thoughts about the Catholic Church were, and the response was curt. I switched the topic to movies.