Protestant tactics used to draw kids away from the Church

[DeSanto]

I wish it was like that in my area. The evangelical and baptist churches I have been to do not view Catholics as Christians. They believe Catholicism is a false religion, a cult, I have been told so directly by both churches. I even remember when there was a great big roo-hah-hah when our local Family Christian Bookstore started selling crucifixes and rosaries. They faced backlash and some boycotts from some members of the non-denominational church I was attending at the time.

I really wish there were more people like heidi_storage who understood that Catholics ARE Christians and therefore we are not in need of evangelization.

Matthew 10:22
And you shall be hated by all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved.

John 15:18
"If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.

 

[DeSanto]

Yeah, that’s a difficulty. Do you have a suggestion as to how to handle it?
Without breaking the scriptural injunctions about not receiving Christ’s Body & Blood without “discerning His Body”. [1Co 11:29]
It would be less friendly, would it not, to ignore this teaching?
1Co 11:29 For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.

Remember, God had often required His prophets to deliver unpopular messages. I’m sure they were perceived as unfriendly, too.

As a matter of fact, there are many Catholics who should probably be prevented from receiving.

 

[DeSanto]

Our parish has donuts and coffee after Mass once a month, and it is very successful. Some parishes have it every week.

Catholics are not into (or are not supposed to be into) long conversations when in church before Mass begins.

We need to be anticipating the Mass by praying, or meditating on the readings for the day in the missal.

My kids love the K of C chicken dinners and the pot lucks after mass. And theres always a group of us hanging out after even if there is no food for us that day

I know that in the larger churches and the ones in the bigger cities are not as close knit. I think one reason may be because as a catholic, your not bound to you’re one church, there may be several different ones people go to at different times and on different days, but you know you’ll all be reading the same readings, saying the same prayers as all the churches around the globe (pretty much). I think that’s awesome. I actually like to go to a daily mass sometimes by myself or to eucharistic adoration at some of those old cathedrals downtown, where nobody knows me and I can just be there with The Lord and not be distracted, you know? I can sit by a total stranger and feel a sense of fellowship with them, communion with them, and just send a kind word and a smile while sharing the sign of peace.

 

[nhamm10]

If you are talking about teenagers, (and increasingly even young adults) they do it by selling fun.

They do all kinds of activities, have a lounge type vibe, rock music worship that creates a reaction, and of course the guilt free teaching of once saved always saved (I know not all claim this teaching, but it rears its head officially or in officially all the time).

That was always my husbands comment when we were dating and first married and he would come to mass with me. He would say “It isn’t fun” I want to feel the holy spirit like at my church. I told him all that singing and jumping around wasn’t necessarily the holy spirit. (although it could have been) it is just a pep rally that gets you all jazzed up. I am sure however you are brought up, for the most part, is what you associate with. He thinks our kids should try that kind of church because they are at that age where they are questioning the church and not that interested but the funny part is that type of worship turns them off. I always say the Catholic mass although not fun, is not meant to be fun. It is one hour of the week where you can be at peace and reflect on salvation through Jesus and ask for grace in your life and just be still! Something we don’t get anymore. With the kids constantly doing things with friends, computer time, school etc. etc. they get it there. I am just hoping in a few years when they mature that it will finally sound appealing to them!

Yes! they do have the attitude that if you are saved all is well regardless. I can do this and that but I am a Christian so therefore I am saved.

So my advice with the kids is always, always when going to mass tell them now this is your time to just be still, just be quiet, just be reflecting, just be reverent and this is your God time. Please make sure they don’t have the cellys on them. I see so many kids texting in church . We all need quiet, reflecting time. As humans we all crave that, so that should let them appreciate the Catholic church more and if they ever get to another church on occasion I don’t think it will impress them. As I say Oh if I want all that jumping around I’ll go to a football pep rally or a concert.

 

[Bob_Crowley]

I am not Catholic nor Protestant not even really “Christian” but I happen to have been to many churches and the one thing many Protestant groups have over Catholics in general here in the States is that they seek you out for fellowship.

When I was a young lad and had interest in finding religion, it was the Baptists and Pentecostals who would go out of the way to send someone out to pick me up for church and youth groups, not to say when I went to Catholic churches they were not polite and friendly but the protestants were much more willing to go the extra mile for a lost 9 year old kid.

And many of my friends in Baptist and Pentecostal youth groups were cradle Catholics or other mainline Churches that did not find the RCC or their Mainline Church engaging enough to continue attending.

When I was interested in Catholicism the laypeople and Priests I met with were really nice and inviting I even went to RCIA classes.

I do not really know if it a tactic but the sense of fellowship and love I got from Protestants was a bit above and beyond what I got from the Catholics.

I’m afraid I’d have to agree. I do some voluntary work with the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and I’m convinced that many of the people we help are going nowhere, until they get a Christian purpose in life.

The trouble is that I honestly don’t feel confident about challenging them to attend a Catholic Church, as I don’t think they’d be made welcome. Whereas the Protestant churches would be far more likely to make the effort to welcome them. I’d rather see them attend a Protestant Church than no church at all.

The other area where Protestants are generally better than Catholics is their emphasis on Scripture, and they can often quote it quite well. I even heard a Catholic priest say that “They (Protestants) are a bit better at it than we (Catholics) are.” The answer to that is to research the Catholic interpretation of Scripture where there’s a difference of opinion.

Another problem occurs when positions which are not strongly supported by Scripture come under scrutiny eg. Marianism. So then we need to do some more research, and also be able to make a strong case for the teaching authority of the Church.

It’s an ongoing struggle, but the Church could do a lot more to help itself, instead of just complaining when Protestants start making inroads. The fact is that most Catholics have grown up through the Catholic system, and when somebody who hasn’t had that experience comes through the door, we’re not very good at getting them past first base.

Trust me - I didn’t come through the Catholic system at all, but had the good fortune to have a pretty strong grounding in Christian basics from a wise old pastor, who himself was not particularly hostile to the Catholic Church. In fact he told me he “generally got on pretty well with Catholics”. But I still found it a bit of a challenge. I went from atheist to Protestant to Catholic, so I’ve worn all the hats (except Orthodox, which I find a bit hard to relate to, as it’s outside my cultural experience). But then I tend to be a bit of a loner, so it doesn’t worry me too much if I don’t have the welcome mat pushed under my nose.

Other people however may not have had the same Christian underpinning from another person, and they have to start off cold. That’s a steep climb for someone with no understanding of the Church at all.

 

[FathersKnowBest]

I recall a debate I heard once, it was Robert Spencer and Karl Keating. I’ll find the link and post it, it was really good. They were debating Islam. Keating spoke of a Muslim student who attended mass with him, just out of curiosity. He asked if we really believed that piece of bread was the real presence of The Lord. Keating said “yes”. The student said, “no, I don’t buy it.” Keating asked why… “He said because if you really believed that you would never get off your knees.”

That really struck me. After much thought on it though, I realized, God does not call us to be on our knees, He calls us to go out and proclaim the good news!!!

I see your point, but I think that the Muslim was projecting an overly-pious attitude.
When Jesus walked the Earth, when His Apostles knew who He was, they didn’t spend all their time on their knees, either. Primarily because His Glory was hidden in His humanity, much as His Glory is hidden in the appearance of bread & wine.

You’ll note that in Revelation, John, who was Jesus’ “buddy” on Earth, is so affected by Jesus’ Glory that he falls on his face as though dead.

 

[DeSanto]

I see your point, but I think that the Muslim was projecting an overly-pious attitude.
When Jesus walked the Earth, when His Apostles knew who He was, they didn’t spend all their time on their knees, either. Primarily because His Glory was hidden in His humanity, much as His Glory is hidden in the appearance of bread & wine.

You’ll note that in Revelation, John, who was Jesus’ “buddy” on Earth, is so affected by Jesus’ Glory that he falls on his face as though dead.

Yes! Thank you, that makes perfect sense. It makes for a good reflection though, huh?

Here’s the link for anyone interested. It’s a really good debate.

youtu.be/UMtqCapeVRA

“The only good Muslim is a bad Muslim”

 

[DeSanto]

Another good point made by the Muslim student was in regards to the removal of crucifixes in their university. Some said it was for ecumenical purposes, some said it was to continue to retain grant money from the state. To which the student replied, “If our religion allowed for such images of our god, we would fight even against our own armies before taking them down.” (something to that effect)

He was also offended at the ecumenical response saying it assumed he was bigoted. He mentioned that he was well aware that he was attending a catholic school, by his own choice, and that he would expect to see catholic symbolism therein. In our effort to not offend others, it was actually more offensive to his own sensibilities.

Again, good for reflection inspite of the “overly pious” attitude. Do you agree?

 

[JTD_Eagle1]

I do think that the reason why Catholics that aren’t too strong in their faith start attending these Churches is that Evangelical Protestantism is an easier concept to grasp. Once I accept Jesus, thats it!!! We are supposed to endure to the end, and will be judged on more than did we just accept Jesus once in our lifetime. I have never been asked if I am “saved” or “born again”. I am glad that Catholic Answers has apologetics around to counter Catholics leaving the Church to these churches.

 

[MollyMac]

I do think that the reason why Catholics that aren’t too strong in their faith start attending these Churches is that Evangelical Protestantism is an easier concept to grasp. Once I accept Jesus, thats it!!! We are supposed to endure to the end, and will be judged on more than did we just accept Jesus once in our lifetime. I have never been asked if I am “saved” or “born again”. I am glad that Catholic Answers has apologetics around to counter Catholics leaving the Church to these churches.

Well, I do not know if you are completely correct in your above statement about Protestantism being “easier”. I have a co-worker who stated that she wishes she were Catholic again because it was easier. She knew what to do and what not to do and when to do it and when not to do it. She said at times she misses ease of the rituals.

 

[getysbg]

Noboby’s asking for a disruption or change of the Mass. But Catholic churches do fail in fellowship.

There could be any number of things to adopt. Pot-lucks, quilting bees, bingo, who knows? I am always left wondering why there is so little sense of liking your neighbor.

I wonder if the lack of fellowship is due to the number of masses, one right after another, being offered. When I was a Protestant, there was one service followed by a coffee hour. Now, as a Catholic, there are several masses in a row. You would have to run a coffee hour while the next mass was being said.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

I wonder if the lack of fellowship is due to the number of masses, one right after another, being offered. When I was a Protestant, there was one service followed by a coffee hour. Now, as a Catholic, there are several masses in a row. You would have to run a coffee hour while the next mass was being said.

True. But that fact still would not prevent anyone from forming a weeknight or Saturday afternoon pot-luck or coffee, as the simplest example.

I still believe Catholics fail the fellowship test, and people NEED that sense of community belonging.

 

[Country_Gal]

True. But that fact still would not prevent anyone from forming a weeknight or Saturday afternoon pot-luck or coffee, as the simplest example.

I still believe Catholics fail the fellowship test, and people NEED that sense of community belonging.

I agree. The early Church was practically a commune. The Catholic Church has really allowed that aspect of the faith to wither. Catholics should not become defensive when people point out this easily observable fact.

Many, many people leave the Church because of this neglect. Not because they want to be entertained and coddled, but because they know that faith should have visible fruits, and unfriendliness should not be one of them. They see other Christians raising money for widows, having support groups for single parents, providing strong youth group fellowship for the young, and they are drawn to these good things.

 

[Dorothy]

I’m saddened to hear that there are parishes like that, and feel blessed that my parish and parishes near me do not have that problem.

 

[DeSanto]

I agree. The early Church was practically a commune. The Catholic Church has really allowed that aspect of the faith to wither. Catholics should not become defensive when people point out this easily observable fact.

Many, many people leave the Church because of this neglect. Not because they want to be entertained and coddled, but because they know that faith should have visible fruits, and unfriendliness should not be one of them. They see other Christians raising money for widows, having support groups for single parents, providing strong youth group fellowship for the young, and they are drawn to these good things.

I don’t doubt you are correct and there are several other reasons as well, ranging from the abuse scandals, divorce or invalid marriages, the Church’s stance on contraception and homosexuality, to something someone said to them that hurt their feelings or just basically was made to “feel” just plain unwelcome. All these can be contentious issues for many BUT!!!.. If you know the Truth, that this is the Church established by our Lord and you have an even rudimentary understanding of the real presence of our Lord in the Holy Euchsrist, nothing, I mean nothing, should stand in your way from receiving Him. And if one, for whatever reason, may not be permitted to reciece the Eucharist, one should choose still choose remain with the Church in prayer and adoration of The Lord, who is with His Church to the end.

If it is entertainment or sense of community that is the deciding factor or sole motivator to get peoples butts in church, then they are already missing the point. And, honestly, I think it is manipulative to play on peoples emotions and feelings to get people to buy what some of these churcbes are selling. For example, some of the most common hooks of the day, “health and wealth”, or “name it and claim it”. The Truth doesn’t have to have a hook, the Truth sells itself.

And the Truth is Jesus - in the Eucharist. If people aren’t interested in that, if people don’t get excited about that, then IMO, they don’t know the Truth.

I don’t intend to seem inconsiderate of those who may feel hurt or even betrayed by the Church, or the people in it, for whatever reason. But, the fact remains and sometimes you have to be blunt about it. I don’t go to church for anything but to be with our Lord. The fact that my parish is wonderful and filled with great people, and has so many activities we can’t keep up with them all, is just a bonus. If it werent, even if it were cold and quite and hardly anyone there, I would still go. The Lord has brought me home and I entend to stay.

That’s just my opinion.

 

[Starrsmother]

Without going into great detail, I will just say, I’m a revert who wishes my conversion came a little earlier, for my kids sake. I took about 4 years after my intial conversion before I stepped back into the church and brought my husband and four kids along with me as well. Before that there was very little to no church going - going on in our family. First I had begun praying a lot and had begun to get deep into study of scripture and a good confession after 25 years of being out of the Church. Then came the strong conviction of an urgent mission to get my children baptized and into church. Since my confirmation (I had already received the other sacraments as a child) I have begun learning apologetics and using the internet, I believe is a great start, because of the anonomity all resources I need right at my finger tips. I have much more to learn, I feel, before I’m ready to go out on my own and challenge others. I also have continued to attend RCAI in hopes of one day becoming an instructor.

Lately, I have been engaging on some pretty strong anti-Catholic forums, and I’m learning so much and doing a pretty good job of holding my own. At least I think so. But, I’m becoming concerned for my children. The town I live in is a very Protestant area. Mainly Baptist. There is only one Catholic Church and it’s not very big. I know Protestants will target younger, teenage kids, who don’t know their faith very well, and how easy it could be to draw them from the Church. And, as I said, I don’t feel my apologetics skills are up to par. I do much better when I can sit down and think and research than being able to articulate myself when put on the spot.

My hope is that many Protestant converts will comment on this thread and let me in on the most common tactics used to draw people from the Church and how to combat them.

Thank you,
Kelly

I will offer only one thought–and I’m Catholic but have walked this walk with my own kids. If there is any way that you can convince your kids of this or somehow prevent it from happening, YOUR KIDS SHOULD NEVER GET INTO FAITH BASED ARGUMENTS WITH PROTESTANTS DEPENDING ON THE BIBLE AS A BASIS FOR PROVING THEIR POINTS. The Protestant will likely “win” every time—and this is because all they have is the bible–no sacraments, no sacred tradition–just the bible! I swear that I think some protestants begin memorizing the bible back to back, chapter, line and verse before they are weaned! AND, they get very expert at it! ALSO, remember that most protestants believe in self interpretation of the bible—so if they want, they can usually find something in the bible that will support anything they say is true. Remember, they about have to take this approach and excel at it–this is all they have to cling to or believe in! This kind of thing can be a devastating experience --especially for a young kid who is just learning their Catholic faith. It’s hard enough to deal with as an adult!!! LOL! Just a word of warning—

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

I agree. The early Church was practically a commune. The Catholic Church has really allowed that aspect of the faith to wither. Catholics should not become defensive when people point out this easily observable fact.

Many, many people leave the Church because of this neglect. Not because they want to be entertained and coddled, but because they know that faith should have visible fruits, and unfriendliness should not be one of them. They see other Christians raising money for widows, having support groups for single parents, providing strong youth group fellowship for the young, and they are drawn to these good things.

We went to drop off a few bags of food to the parish soup kitchen, and one of the ‘church ladies’ YELLED at us.

There is, naturally, a bit more to the story.

 

[Jessie5000]

Seems to me that their is an almost innate desire to look beyond our church to explain why Catholics leave the church. I do not doubt that there are specific tactics employed to lure away Catholics for I know this to be true. Yes, there are even publications that are vehemently anti-Catholic and are out to “save” catholics. Thirdly, I see nothing wrong with apologetics so Catholics can defend their faith.

With these considerations mentioned, the fact that Catholics are leaving the church in droves, should cause introspection for Mother Church and every Catholic. There are many reasons people leave the church beyond the desire of denominations to convert Catholics. Many leave because they have been hurt. For example, a friend of mine was treated so badly by church members and the priest when her sister committed suicide, that church attendance became a challenge - the judgements hurled at the family were unbelievable. Many leave as they do not see love in action within their parishes. Other leaves becuase they do not have a place to use their gifts within their parish.

All I am saying is: sure some churches employ tactics to snare Catholic but usually we forget to ask what we have done to drive fellow Catholics out of the church.

 

[Starrsmother]

Seems to me that their is an almost innate desire to look beyond our church to explain why Catholics leave the church. I do not doubt that there are specific tactics employed to lure away Catholics for I know this to be true. Yes, there are even publications that are vehemently anti-Catholic and are out to “save” catholics. Thirdly, I see nothing wrong with apologetics so Catholics can defend their faith.

With these considerations mentioned, the fact that Catholics are leaving the church in droves, should cause introspection for Mother Church and every Catholic. There are many reasons people leave the church beyond the desire of denominations to convert Catholics. Many leave because they have been hurt. For example, a friend of mine was treated so badly by church members and the priest when her sister committed suicide, that church attendance became a challenge - the judgements hurled at the family were unbelievable. Many leave as they do not see love in action within their parishes. Other leaves becuase they do not have a place to use their gifts within their parish.

All I am saying is: sure some churches employ tactics to snare Catholic but usually we forget to ask what we have done to drive fellow Catholics out of the church.

Very well put. When I left the Catholic church for 30 years, it was basically over something stupid that happened and offended me. I was a cradle Catholic and even attended Catholic parochial school for 9 years so you would think that I’d have been the last person on earth to throw up my hands in disgust and say “To hell with it!” But that’s exactly what I did! I can remember my mom arguing with me over my many years of absencing myself, that the Catholic church was far more than the individual people who made it up. Sometimes, though, when you are dealing with a particular group of Catholics it can be pretty hard to make that differentiation in actual real life. I began to judge the Catholic faith by the Catholics in the one and only Catholic church in the town where I lived and I concluded that if they were Catholics, that I’d rather be almost anything else—even Baptist or a Buddhist or about anything but one of them! The thing is, that if some good and caring Catholic back then–or even one of the parish priests–had come and visited with me, talked with me and even half acted like they cared one way or another about my belonging to the Catholic church, I seriously doubt I would’ve left the church. I’ve been back now for about 2 years, but one thing I preach loudly is that if you notice someone who has been a regular attendee isn’t showing up at Mass anymore, you better get with them if you actually do care that they remain Catholic. There’s probably a reason when someone suddenly quits coming to Mass–and whether the person is right or wrong, you better find out why—if you actually do care whether they fall away or not of course!

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Seems to me that their is an almost innate desire to look beyond our church to explain why Catholics leave the church. I do not doubt that there are specific tactics employed to lure away Catholics for I know this to be true. Yes, there are even publications that are vehemently anti-Catholic and are out to “save” catholics. Thirdly, I see nothing wrong with apologetics so Catholics can defend their faith.

With these considerations mentioned, the fact that Catholics are leaving the church in droves, should cause introspection for Mother Church and every Catholic. There are many reasons people leave the church beyond the desire of denominations to convert Catholics. Many leave because they have been hurt. For example, a friend of mine was treated so badly by church members and the priest when her sister committed suicide, that church attendance became a challenge - the judgements hurled at the family were unbelievable. Many leave as they do not see love in action within their parishes. Other leaves becuase they do not have a place to use their gifts within their parish.

All I am saying is: sure some churches employ tactics to snare Catholic but usually we forget to ask what we have done to drive fellow Catholics out of the church.

Yell at us when we’re delivering food!