The secret to Evangelism.......from a Quaker!

[josephback]

Ok, so I had a very interesting discussion with a Quaker gentleman two days ago. He was very knowledgable abou the Church ands such, but in the middle of everything he unknowningly shared the secret to effective evangelism. He told me about one of his friends. Apparently this mnan was a fallen away Catholic who had become a rationalist. Everything had to be rational to this man. Anyway instead of arguing with him about stuff the man wouldn’t believe he invited this friend to a Quaker meeting. He invited his friend to EXPERIENCE Quakerism. His friend later died, but two weeks before he did he told this man that he believed in the Ressurrection and asked how to become one of the “Friends”(Quakers). Experiencing Quakerism had turned things around for him.

I take this as an indication to drop most of my arguments about theology with my family. To some they might be good, but if a person isn’t open to Catholicism then arguments are useless. Instead from now on I’m going to be inviting my friends and family to Mass. It will be interesting to see the results

 

[Kouyate42]

Yep. experential evangelism is often better than any amount of words. You can explain the Mass, you can show a million diagrams, pictures and books, but you only get a real sense of something by actually being there and seeing and feeling it for yourself.

When I was in Christian Union (university Christian group) one of the best ways we found to convert people, or at least educate them, was for them to come to a Christian event. We held various lectures, socials and our usual weekly meetings to which anyone could come. We were also encouraged to, when we first came to Newcastle, to join a church and invite non-Christians along to experience the service for themselves.

People aren’t interested in theory, they want practice.

 

[Jonathan_V]

One of the best evangelism stories I have ever heard is the story of Brian “Head” Welch. He is a Christian rock artist, and while I am not a big fan of his music, he has a wonderful story. His realty agent just asked him one day to come to church with him and left it at that. The rest is history. Check it out.

youtube.com/watch?v=Kf5WYigZHME

 

[Kouyate42]

One of the best evangelism stories I have ever heard is the story of Brian “Head” Welch. He is a Christian rock artist, and while I am not a big fan of his music, he has a wonderful story. His realty agent just asked him one day to come to church with him and left it at that. The rest is history. Check it out.

youtube.com/watch?v=Kf5WYigZHME

Most of the converts I’ve met were converted simply because they were invited to church. I think that in many cases, people are simply too scared to go into a church themselves. Being invited gives a sense of being wanted, friendliness and openess.

 

[AlwaysCurious]

Ok, so I had a very interesting discussion with a Quaker gentleman two days ago. He was very knowledgable abou the Church ands such, but in the middle of everything he unknowningly shared the secret to effective evangelism. He told me about one of his friends. Apparently this mnan was a fallen away Catholic who had become a rationalist. Everything had to be rational to this man. Anyway instead of arguing with him about stuff the man wouldn’t believe he invited this friend to a Quaker meeting. He invited his friend to EXPERIENCE Quakerism. His friend later died, but two weeks before he did he told this man that he believed in the Ressurrection and asked how to become one of the “Friends”(Quakers). Experiencing Quakerism had turned things around for him.

I take this as an indication to drop most of my arguments about theology with my family. To some they might be good, but if a person isn’t open to Catholicism then arguments are useless. Instead from now on I’m going to be inviting my friends and family to Mass. It will be interesting to see the results

I agree, but experience should be coupled with explanations. I come from a Quaker background myself, and the first time I went to Mass, I was totally clueless about what had just happened. As I recall, the homily was mediocre and I didn’t think much of it. On top of that I was really self-conscious about not knowing when to kneel or stand, nor did I know the liturgy. I spent half the time trying to find my place in the missal. So it wouldn’t hurt to have a little prep time.

When I was in RCIA, I invited my mom and sister to come with me to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. I think that was very eye-opening for them. My family also came to see my baptism/confirmation/first communion at the Easter Vigil, and sat patiently through all 3 hours of it My dad later commented on the aspects of the Mass he liked. There’s something about those special feasts, those holidays Protestants and Catholics share, that can really bring us together.