Leading a teen to the Catholic Faith

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Faithful_Mom

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My children attend a public school and have many friends who are non-Catholic. One such friend has been hanging more and more with them, going to youth group, mass, adoration… she is 17 and has decided that she would like to come home. She spoke with her parents last night about the possibility of joining RCIA in order to learn more about the CC. They hit the roof ( which I forewarned her they may do) They have forbidden her to read anymore books on the subject and she cannot attend any more events with my daughters.
They told her that the CC was an occult and that she must stay away from it. she asked them to just talk to someone about the faith, but they refused. She is heartbroken as she feels “empty” in her present religion, but can feel the presence of Christ when in HIs presence.

My children and I don’t want to encourage her to disobey her parents, so we are not sure how to handle this one. How do we help her to grow without encouraging disobedience.

Faithful Mom
 
Her parents have the belief in nonbelief. As human beings with free wills and minds of their own, you should let them.

After all, she’s 17. Within a year you’ll legally and morally have open reign over her to form her as you wish.
 
Faithful Mom:
My children attend a public school and have many friends who are non-Catholic. One such friend has been hanging more and more with them, going to youth group, mass, adoration… she is 17 and has decided that she would like to come home. She spoke with her parents last night about the possibility of joining RCIA in order to learn more about the CC. They hit the roof ( which I forewarned her they may do) They have forbidden her to read anymore books on the subject and she cannot attend any more events with my daughters.
They told her that the CC was an occult and that she must stay away from it. she asked them to just talk to someone about the faith, but they refused. She is heartbroken as she feels “empty” in her present religion, but can feel the presence of Christ when in HIs presence.

My children and I don’t want to encourage her to disobey her parents, so we are not sure how to handle this one. How do we help her to grow without encouraging disobedience.

Faithful Mom
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**I don’t know how her parents are in their spirituality as far as another Christian faith is concerned, but it seems a little hypocritical to me to state the catholic church is a cult, when it sounds like that girls parents are extremely uneducated on the history of Christianity. I’m not going to get into the catholic vs. protestant issues. My only suggestion would be not to push the issue, because in her heart she knows how to practice her faith., but I think it is best for your daughters to keep a relationship (friendship) with her. Friendship goes a long way in life. **

**Just keep showing her love and respect, and also have your daughters show much respect to her parents. Sounds like that 17 year old girl needs to educate her parents on what the catholic faith is not, before she speaks the truth, and the first way of doing that is leading by example, and it is very prudent that your daughters walk by their faith daily. **

**I would not force the issue with her parents, respect the parents authority even though they are taking a away a special bond with her. **

**Let her know that her parents still love her. Meanwhile knowing her parents probably need to be educated about Christian roots. **
 
Pray above all and offer Masses for the conversion of the parents and the daughter. Respect the parents as guardians of the child for another year, and encourage the daughter to respect her parents and pray for them. When she is on her own, then bring the books back out. Once she is free of the negative influence of her parents in that sphere (i.e. is on her own), I would welcome her into your family because she may feeled abandoned by her own. Hope this helps. Thanks and God Bless.
 
Faithful Mom,

This is one of the many consequences of following Christ. We call it “disobedience” for a child once they decide to follow Christ, but the parents wouldn’t. But truly, it is disobedience against God Almighty if we disobey His calling for us to the truth.

Prayer is one of the things we can do for her and her parents. If you are somehow close to her parents, maybe it’s time to set up a dialogue with them of our faiths.

Have you listened to the Pope’s homily at his inauguration? He echoes the words of the late Pope John Paul II, following the words of Christ; “Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors to Christ!” "Christ will not take away nothing from us. He will retain what is good, but will take away all that are bad.

God bless!

Pio
 
She should suggest that her parents “chaperone” her during RCIA. That way they know what she is learning. And they will learn something too,.
 
What a dilemna! I would make myself and the CCC available to her but tell her that until she is an adult she must be obedient to her parents. Christ knows her heart. She should continue to pray and ask Him to keep her faithful until she is able to make these kind of decisions on her own.
 
Has she spoken to your priest? I realise that her parents do not want her to pursue this further, but it might be useful for her to discuss how to proceed in light of her parents’ objections with a priest. I could imagine a teenager feeling despondent, torn between her parents’ wishes and her faith, perhaps a priest could help her to establish a plan for honouring her parents, and pursuing her faith. Even if her path to the Church is longer than she originally anticipated, such a discussion may help to resolve her moral dilemma, and thus give her the confidence to pursue her faith in the future, and preserve her hope of eventually being able to do so.
 
Keep invinting the teen to your house and make sure she knows that you support her regardless of what her parents say. Also this was her parent’s first reaction, as days go on and they see their daughter devistated by this they may eventually change their tune.
 
To all who hve responded. This is happening so fast that so me action had to occur before I was able to read your responses. I am happy to report that after much prayer and soul searching, I feel good about the actions taken thus far.

I warned her that they may “ground her” from seeing my girls, and that they may be very upset, as I would be, if it were my child wanting to convert to a different religion. so she was semi prepared for the reaction she got.

I was able to communicate eith her today and I told her that her parents are acting out of love for her and that she should obey the commandment to obey her parents. I advised her to lay low until her 18th birthday and to pray for her parents and for herself as we would be doing.

In the meantime, they are arranging for their preacher to come and talk to her tonight regarding the Catholic faith ( at which point I told her to respectfully ask for sources to back up the claims they make)

The parents are also telling her that they will convert together to another church --a non denominational church --if conversion is what she wants. This particular church is filled to the brim with fallen away Catholics.

Please join us as we pray for this girl and her family.

Faithful Mom
 
If you think it would help her, you could remind her that “blessed are the persecuted”. Your example inspires me.

my Mother my Confidence,
Corinne
 
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