How to start talking to sceptics in Catholic terms

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Bruno_Schulz

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No culinary would start teaching young to-be cooks with the finest last details of a professional first class meal, nor, which cooking-associations he belongs too and what’ the details of that incorporation.

He’d start with “how to make scrambled eggs or pancake without messing about and delicious to eat”. His pupils would otherwise very quickly leave his classes calling him an unable bighead.

No Christian would start evangelizing sceptics explaining the real presence of Jesus Christ in the consecrated wafer. Those interested would walk away or take ridicule of our speech.

Really very often in my clubs (several times a week) I do speak about God to people I never saw before, starting with religion generally, such as; “religion is the most important thing in my life, that wouldn’t be worth living without religion, I had not survived otherwise.
Yes, I do believe in God.”
Something like that.

At first it’s mostly short dialogues, but it makes people interested in more, and they will ask later to the subject. At least they know you believe in God, and they will observe your behaviour and way of reacting, talking and doing. If this is friendly even when offended – it’s a good start.

To get it such far, you can always start with: “The son of a friend of mine died. He told me, he wouldn’t have survived this, if he was not very religious.” (You didn’t lie then, for my son was murdered in 1997 and you and I are friends in Jesus anyway).
Now you can easily add something like: I must say, I too hold on to Christianity, it helped me a great lot in my life.

This must be said in normal smalltalk manner, so, as if this was the most normal thing in life – just like when you talk about your car or work.
Mostly people after a while would ask to which church you belong. Then I answer correctly – the Roman Catholic Church. Still keep the subject easy and common – remember, your friend is a newcomer, and often not even this.

No culinary would start teaching young to-be cooks with the finest last details of a professional first class meal, nor, which cooking associations he belongs too and what’ the details of that. He’d start with “how to make scrambled eggs or pancake without messing about and lovely to eat”. Pupils would otherwise very quickly leave his classes calling him an unable bighead.

No Christian would start evangelizing sceptics explaning the real presence of Jesus Christ in the consecrated wafer, for those interested would walk away or take ridicule of his speech.

Really very often in my clubs I do speak about God to people I never saw before, starting with religion generally, such as; “religion is the most important thing in my life, which wouldn’t be worth living without religion, I had not survived otherwise. Yes, I do believe in God.” Something like that. At first it’s mostly short dialogues, but it makes people interested in more, and they will ask later to the subject.

To get it such far, you can always start with: “The son of a friend of mine died. He told me, he wouldn’t have survived this, if he was not very religious.” (You didn’t lie then, for my son was murdered in 1997 and you and I are friends in Jesus anyway).
Now you can easily add something like: I must say, I too hold on to Christianity, it helped me a great lot in my life.

This must be said in normal smalltalk manner, so, as if this was the most normal thing in life – just like when you talk about your car or work.
Mostly people after a while would ask to which church you belong. Then I answer correctly – the Roman Catholic Church. Still keep the subject easy and common – remember, your friend is a newcomer and much relays on us if he really comes, or retrievals his believe.

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Yours is a good approach.

The worst thing in evangelizing is an “in your face,” approach.

Jim
 
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Yours is a good approach. The worst thing in evangelizing is an “in your face,” approach. Jim
Thanks a lot Jim, but due to my horrid English, I don’t know what it means: “The worst thing in evangelizing is an “in your face,” approach”

Does it mean it’s hard to speak face to face directly to people about it?
Well - I speak in my clubs to people I don’t know and never saw before - often elsewhere like at the doctors, in the tram or by walking the dog. So, it’s got to be face to face (if I understood what you meant).
By writing mails or whatever, it’s a lot easier, as one can think before writing and edit. Direct dialogue must be working directly. If we do it in love – it works (mostly).
Let’s not give up when some real stupid people laugh at what you say or say we are stupid. Their dirty grin is the ginning of a skull, for the truth of God will not be overcome – forever.
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Bruno, this is an “in your face” approach.

http://bestsmileys.com/religous/3.gif

We cannot pound it into people simply quoting scripture and expecting that once we have showed them the correct verse, it is an automatic jump into faith. It doesn’t work that way. Coming to faith about a serious doctrinal issue like the Eucharist is a major stumbling block for many who were brought up with a different belief system.

Consider as an example the life of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, a convert to Catholicism. Her good friend had correspnded many months with her about the Eucharist, but she just could not make that leap and “believe.” Eventually, with prayer and God’s grace, which is always gratuitive in response to our seeking, she did embrace the faith … AND became a Saint! Glory!

We are seeing some threads that are ‘in your face’ at this time in another section of the forum. While the intent is no doubt honorable, thinking that one can hammer another person into the Kingdom by exposing the correct truth, it doesn’t happen that way as a rule. You are quite right about the proper approach, and always, we must rely on the Holy Spirit to anoint our words and make them fruitful. 🙂
 
Joysong has it right.

Its pushing religion aggressively. The religion message gets heard and rejected, while the good news of Jesus Christ, is missed.

Jim
 
**Yeah – thank’s for the moving icon. I knew right away ☺️
Let me stick to my cook-sample: If a cook would teach; “in the cooking-bible of the worlds #1 cook it says you must…” then his cooks-to be would ask if he doesn’t know himself.

To Catholocs however, might we very well argue with Bible-Verses.

My friends keep telling me, it’d be better to set exampel yourself. But this today isn’t possible. It’s not like in the old days cottages, where everyone knew ns saw what everyone did. Today, we hardly know our next neighbour and even my friends in the clubs I see here only (except if we invite each other home). So, it’s in modern times simply hardly ever practicable to “set example”. We do set good example in other ways than letting them see how we go to church and communion etc – that is in loving friendly talking with a honest smile to everyone.

As I kept telling here
forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=254462&page=2
and in my own catholic forum
Gott-Kirche-Glaube.isthier.de
it’s also unwise to insist on catholic way of thinking, before our Christian talk is welcome.
This can only be, when we speak about Christianity as a whole – never, never never „snidely“ (I looked that word up and hope it’s right) about protestant believes or other religions – which even the pope honours. Pope Benedict rather refers to Christianity than to Catholizism.

To me its very easy to talk in Christian (Catholic) terms, when I speak about my murdered son. You’ll find a picture of him in the mentioned forum – which now after 4 ears of running, seems to fade away. Look there into the “Gallerie”.
Surprising, that in the very many years, in fact ever since I was about 15 or earlier (I’m almost 70 now), I hardly ever got harsh rejection even from atheists, (I even have atheist friends) when I tell them, that my life is believe in God and that you are never alone if you believe in God.
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**All answers we hear or give as far as faith and believe is concerned, do bear one very determining basis. That is:
Is my answer given out of secular experience, or is it given out of spiritual experience in living, unshakable belief?

It’s the missing liberty about which St. Paul wrote in 2 Cor. 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Worldly thinking is bondage, for those thinking merely out of earthly experience, cut back their godgiven freedom of thought, to simple empiric relevants. Too many replace being a Christian, by holding a certificate of baptism.
Christianity though must be lived and expressed by itself in doing, thinking, talking – and in love. Certificate of baptism, attending mass, etc. doesn’t automatically make a Christian. It takes a lot more than that; but
IT IS JOY. The joy Jesus Christ gave the world in among many others Luke 24:52; they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.

Let others feel, that to be a Christian is a matter of God-given joy – not of grumpy living. A matter of love and joy. Mother Teresa spend a lot of this – amidst the misery of the poorest and deceasing.

For a very start I’d not really talk to sceptics in clear Catholic terms, but in generally Christian terms. And if we do that, as well as later the Cath. terms let’s do it in joy, happyness and humor AND in a loving way, so that this person feels we care about her. Then at last a seed would arrive on hopefully good ground. 👍

Humor? YES! Surely Jesus laughed and had humor too, ever though the Bible doesn’t tell about it. There’s as much as a world full of books the gospel doesn’t tell as John said.
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