Help! Convert Southern Baptist Friend who is confused/scared

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First and foremost I would like to thank you guys in this here forum, for bringing me back to the one and only Church of Christ. Your work is appreciated and it is not in vain. For I am one of the many who you have convinced.

Below is an email (the red words in italic) from a female friend of mine who I have been trying to convert to the Catholic Church. At no time did I ever use HELL, HELL FIRE AND BRIMSTONE, WRATH OF GOD to instill fear in her heart. I have just shown her through scripture that the Catholic Church is the true church.This has been going on since November. As for the fear of hell stuff, I believe it is the work of her Baptist Minister, since she has gone back to question him on the subjects I have covered. It seems I have so far been able to get her to leave that church, but now I need help getting her to set foot into the CC. Any insight, any material or encouraging words?​

I love God. YOu have filled my head with stuff about my church and i don’t feel very comfortable going there anymore.I don’t feel comfortable going to the catholic church just yet either. I really enjoyed my church I had thought that I had found the church where I would belong…but thats not the case anymore, but I don’t want to burn in hell. I am at a point in my life where I know I love God but I don’t know what to do I don’t know man, you want me just to skip into the catholic church and confess and then everything will be okay its harder than that. I liked being a baptist but what you said about knowing that the Catholic church is the right one and neglecting that scares the (expletive) out of me so I don’t want to go back to my church. I don’t want to go to hell…do you see the bind I am in? I have no choice I am being forced to go into the catholic church or I go to hell? And that doesn’t sound like the God I love and worship. That doesn’t sound just. so I am at a point where I seriously don’t know what to do. and I would like to figure out things by myself. I have been praying to him asking him what to do. asking him if it is true he will tell me one day. why would God send me to hell for not being Catholic? I mean seriously, how could I ever find out the truth Listen to word of mouth? why would he do that… that upsets me… it brings tears to my eyes to think that I would be sent to hell for not being Catholic. For hell is the thing I fear the most. or is that just the Catholic scheme to get people to become Catholic… see I don’t know.​

Help me out and help her out as well. Help me bring one back to the one and true church of Jesus Christ. Thanks in advanced.

Your fellow friend, brother, and soldier in Christ.
 
By the way, if I posted in the wrong forum, I apologize, I tried and look for the correct forum, but I couldn’t find other examples of my issues.
 
Sounds like she is mocking you to me… Thats just what I got from her tone of the email.

I would leave her alone at this point in time. She says she is uncomfortable about it and you already have her thinking on it. Give her her space. Send her an email telling her that you will be there when she is ready to discuss it. I don’t know, I have never had to convince someone to join the Church, my fiance already wanted to so I am not experienced in this matter.

Just my 2 cents.
 
As a Baptist she already believed that one would be damned for not accepting Christ (because doing so is a rejection of Christ). She should understand that not all outside the visible Church will be damned. She should understand why there is no salvation outside Christ’s Church.
This article might be helpful: catholic.com/thisrock/2003/0302fea3.asp

Here’s a very extensive study of the topic: ic.net/~erasmus/RAZ419.HTM.

And here’s something from catholic.com here:
catholic.com/library/Salvation_Outside_the_Church.asp

Finally you might get some tips from this: davidmacd.com/catholic/liberalcatholics/lumengentium.htm

Remember Christ’s words in Luke 10:16
*He that heareth you heareth me; and he that rejecteth you rejecteth me; and he that rejecteth me rejecteth him that sent me. *
The Bishops and Priests of the Church, the like the Apostles and the Seventy, are sent out by Christ. Those who knowingly reject the Church (and thus the bishops, and their chief the Pope of Rome) reject Christ. Those who accept the Church accept Christ.

May the Holy Immaculate Queen of Heaven guide your friend to the loving arms of her Divine Son in the Holy Catholic Church.
 
Sometimes reading too much material for someone who is overwhelmed might be too much for that person.

Have you ever thought of just handing her a video tape or audio CD of something? I agree as far as leaving this person alone but if you just mail it or hand it to the person without saying one word would be good.

Here is a good tape for a Southern Baptist. A lot of times it helps for that person to hear from someone of his/her own faith.

Try that 👍 I’ll be praying. :gopray2:
 
First you need to tell her that she is in no danger. God knows her heart better than even she does. She is in good hands. We are not about Hell. We are about Heaven.

Then she needs to know that the Church already accepts her. We are all waiting for the day our sister is ready to join us in person as well as in spirit. There is no rush, she is already one of us. Her baptism is good her thoughts are on Jesus. The rest is easy. A little prayer and a little study and then she is all set for reconciliation and to receive the body of Christ.

I don’t know, but I think you made the sale. Jesus is going to push her through the parish door.
 
I don’t know how much this may help… I was (several months ago) contacted (directly) by a participant in these forums for advice (mainly in the form of a resource referral) concerning the evangelization of someone who was Baptist. Perhaps this person was aware that I am a protestant convert, as was my wife (formerly Southern Baptist) who is now O.C.D.S!

Anyway, I was happy to provide this person a great resource for approaching a Southern Baptist. Here is an excerpt of my response:
You absolutely MUST get the book, “Crossing the Tiber” by Stephan Ray. It’s his conversion story with all the aplolgetical framework to support it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, but it is especially appropriate in your circmstances, since Mr. Ray was a devout Baptist! He has written several other books as well (his “Upon This Rock” is fantastic).

You can find a few of Ray’s writings on mainstream booksellers like Amazon, but I’ve found St. Joseph Communications (wwww.stjoe.com) to have a far better selection of Ray’s stuff.

As good as the book is, though, I really MUST recommend even MORE highly Ray’s video conversion story, “Finding the Fullness of Faith” (saintjoe.com/p/prod_desc.pl?id=408) (it is also available on audio cassette - but get the video!). Unfortunately, it’s only VHS - I don’t see that it’s been released on DVD. This video absolutely blew me away (and I’ve dabbled in Catholic apologetics for ten years, and my wife is a Baptist convert - so I’ve seen a lot and I’m not easily impressed). It is one of the most powerful and effective conversion stories I’ve ever seen. In my opinion, the guy’s conversion testimony outshines even Scott Hann (and that’s saying something!!!) Watch this video again and again - he packs SO MUCH into it that you’ll discover something new each time!
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DavidFilmer:
I don’t know how much this may help… I was (several months ago) contacted (directly) by a participant in these forums for advice (mainly in the form of a resource referral) concerning the evangelization of someone who was Baptist. Perhaps this person was aware that I am a protestant convert, as was my wife (formerly Southern Baptist) who is now O.C.D.S!

Anyway, I was happy to provide this person a great resource for approaching a Southern Baptist. Here is an excerpt of my response:
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Wow, I love Steve Ray… I have his video and I also have his 3 CD set called Searching the Scriptures. I also subscribed to his “Footprints of God” series! I love them all!

My brother and sister are Protestant; explains my extra interest in my faith. We are all Cradle Catholics but they both fell away and only one brother and myself remained in the Church.
 
Do not push this girl any harder! It sounds like you’ve been hounding her, and while it seems to have worked, her world is about to be turned upside down. YOUR job is to step back and pray with her. I don’t think you realize just how badly it shakes up a convert to realize the Catholic Church is true.

Your job is done. Step away.
 
“The Fourth Cup” by Scott Hahn is also going to give her something to think about. Great Video (30 minutes or so, but PACKED with great information).

No one will get drawn to God because they are afraid to “go to hell”. I think your friend has heard all the rhetoric from other Baptists (“you know catholics, with all their ‘holier than thou’ attitude”). The reason to be Catholic is to be drawn closer to God. If you can instill that in her, you’ve overcome another hurdle.

Notworthy
 
I just want to emphasize to make sure you show this poor girl some love and compassion. Her faith is strong, but her beliefs are being rocked, and you’ll need to be able to provide some love and support, the same kind of love that Christ showed us. Continue to assure her that God loves her and His mercy will continue to shine down on her. As a Catholic, it’s important not to berate people to submission - just give them light to the Truth, and let the Holy Spirit take over.

Peace be with you!
 
Dimmers:

Comfort her that the grace of God is opening up her field of vision…now she sees more. Also, panic and confusion is an ally of the enemy. Her faith in God is her resting place while she seeks more understanding. Lastly, your prayers and mortification is so important at this point, so go spend yourself for her conversion. Tell her that this process will take its own time and that both of you will trust God that He will pave the way.

God bless her and you.

in XT.
 
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montanaman:
Do not push this girl any harder! It sounds like you’ve been hounding her, and while it seems to have worked, her world is about to be turned upside down. YOUR job is to step back and pray with her. I don’t think you realize just how badly it shakes up a convert to realize the Catholic Church is true.

Your job is done. Step away.
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I in no way pushed her to anything. I simply read to her scripture and other works that proved her Baptist faith wrong. It isn’t I that is scaring her, it is the baptist ministers and her family who are using the same anti-Catholic we are all used to hearing and seeing.

I was born, baptized into the CC, did my 1st communion and then I stopped being a Catholic. It was not until late Summer 05 that I came back to the CC. I am recently doing my Confirmation which I am only a few weeks away from completing. What am I getting at?

Her baptist minister supposedly has a masters in theology. So… why should she listen to me, when I am still wet behind the ears and this guy studied it all his life?

Funny stuff is, I used basic apologetics (most of the stuff I found in this here board).

What I am basically asking for is anything, books, sites, or documents that would take that fear of CC church from her mind and heart.

I have never pushed or forced anything on her. I have always told her to keep an open mind and an open heart. The decision has and will always be hers.
 
that was pretty much me a week and a half ago.

i too was fearing hell because i had come to know and love God, and being a christian, and just being alive had put it more and more on my heart that God is so amazingly good that yes, it is worth giving up any other thing to draw closer, even veganism, even my boyfriend–anything. and then bam, this Catholic threat that i didn’t see coming, that i had fought against since i was 12, that was completely tearing apart everything i knew. “anything but that!”
i was struggling because i had finally come dead up against what i realised was my greatest source of pride. and i cried and prayed that it was just a test and finally after a few agonizing days, i couldn’t stand the distance i felt from God, so i said, alrighty, You want me to be a Catholic, then that is what i want to.

and then i got a really big smile and i am in love haha

so it’s very possible that your friend is struggling in the same way. she may be asking yourself. “okay, but if God asked you directly to be a Catholic, would you do it? -but He wouldn’t ask. but if he did. yes but HE WOULDN’T. … (and then a small voice) but, if He did.” ahh!
just trust that the Holy Spirit will pursue her to the ends of the earth. which He will. (man i love Job 13:15…)
so maybe you just need to ask her: “Suzie, if you KNEW God wanted you to be a Catholic… would you?”

p.s. (the catholic.com apologetics helped me a lot also if you want to point her this way?)
 
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