Trying my best on Evangelizing

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ChristMySavior

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Hey everyone,

So I don’t know a good title for this but I am in a bit of a problem *. My girlfriend is not Catholic, she is “Pentecostal Christian,” and we have been getting serious and we’ve also been talking about taking our relationship further and the possibility of marriage. The only thing is, it sort of bothers me that she isn’t Catholic. It bothers me because I have been to her “service” and they are great people and her pastor is a good teacher and all but they lack so much, most obviously, the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord. She does come to mass with me every Sunday and I have been trying to evangelize her to come into the fullness of the truth. I haven’t been overly pushy like some of our fellow Protestant brothers and sisters are when it comes to evangelizing and “saving” people, but here and there I plant seeds just like our Lord taught us. My issue is that it seems that sometimes it’s really working and other times it’s not. I know it takes time and prayer.

For example, we were at the Easter Vigil mass and at the end she said to me, I think I want to do RCIA in September. She still says she is considering it so she can learn the differences between the faiths. I try to teach her the differences and point them out, but I think she needs to hear it from someone that is not close to her, you know? Also, the other day, we had a discussion of the Protestant view of faith alone and the Catholic teaching of faith and good works. She is totally in 100% agreement with Catholic teaching! I told her that too! Yet she seems to think that it’s taught in her church but it’s not!!!

Anyways, can anyone give me some pointers? I listen to Catholic Answers Live everyday and I love it. That’s where I get all my information from, as well as reading books on our faith. I’m not trying to be rude toward Protestants, I respect them. In fact, I’ve met some exceptionally lovable people in her church, yet, her church has done one thing for me, and that is ASSURE my Catholic faith. Praise God for that!!! 👍*
 
Sounds like your in a good spot. Get her in RCIA and pray pray pray.

She seems to be displaying a good interest in the church and likes attending mass, which is really good.

If, however, she does not decide to join the church that doesnt mean you cant be toghether but it does mean that a understanding must be reached. She must know that you are not plannig to change your church and she must not expect you to convert later on (in addition before marraige you must inform her about raising the kids Catholic)

But you need not bring this up untill you know abuot whether or not she may join the church, if you are serious about this relationship you need to pray like youve never been praying before 🙂

In addition it should be noted her family may not be to keen, depending on the Pentecostal sect. Some are not at all fans of Catholics. Im sure you know if yove been with her for any time. If her family does fight it your gonna have to really put in some leg work in learning to address concerns that may be brought up.

Good luck and God Bless.
 
Encourage her to take the RCIA classes. Help her with any questions she has and help her to move forward. It will take a while for her to fully understand Catholic teachings (some Catholics don’t even know a lot of them) but it will be worth it for both of you to be on the same page as far as your faith goes. Good luck. I’m a cradle Catholic and my husband went through RCIA and learned a lot.
 
I would keep in mind a couple of things.
  1. We always go to God about man (or woman) before going to man (or woman) about God.
    In other words, pray, offer sacrifice, fast, extra Mass, holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament, etc., and get others to join in, BEFORE talking to her about it.
  2. God has His own schedule, and He doesn’t publish it ahead of time. 🙂 St. Monica prayed for St. Augustine for 30 years before he converted. As the late Archbishop Fulton Sheen used to say, some souls are cheap and some are expensive. We just have to hang in there and keep praying, etc. Let God do the work in His own time, though. Be patient.
 
Thank you all for the helpful pointers. I will definitely and most of all, pray pray pray. I know that is key. Her family will probably be the biggest problem. Her parents will not / would not be supportive of her conversion. She has said to me that if she becomes a Catholic, she would probably still continue going to her church because she likes the sermons. What do I say to that??
 
ChristMySavior said:
She has said to me that if she becomes a Catholic, she would probably still continue going to her church because she likes the sermons. What do I say to that??
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That’s abit of a problem.

Many protestants that don’t dislike Catholicism, just consider us another denomination. They don’t consider us any better or worse than any of the other Christian denominations out there. They don’t believe we are the one true Church, nor do they believe any other church is the one true church. We’re all just believers in Jesus. Protestants are well known to be church shoppers to. In other words - if you don’t like the church your in, find another one, no matter the denomination. I have the feeling I might be describing your girlfriend…

You must teach her Church history. She must understand that the Catholic Church is the one true Church of Jesus Christ and was the only Church founded by Him alone. Show her how the early Christians worshipped. Certainly it is not the way that Pentacostals do. You must show her when the Bible was created and by who and why it was never meant to be the complete “rule book” of Christianity.

To know Church history, is to no longer be protestant.

My prayers are with you!🙂
 
ChristMySavior said:
Hey everyone,

So I don’t know a good title for this but I am in a bit of a problem *. My girlfriend is not Catholic, she is “Pentecostal Christian,” and we have been getting serious and we’ve also been talking about taking our relationship further and the possibility of marriage. The only thing is, it sort of bothers me that she isn’t Catholic. It bothers me because I have been to her “service” and they are great people and her pastor is a good teacher and all but they lack so much, most obviously, the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord. She does come to mass with me every Sunday and I have been trying to evangelize her to come into the fullness of the truth. I haven’t been overly pushy like some of our fellow Protestant brothers and sisters are when it comes to evangelizing and “saving” people, but here and there I plant seeds just like our Lord taught us. My issue is that it seems that sometimes it’s really working and other times it’s not. I know it takes time and prayer.

For example, we were at the Easter Vigil mass and at the end she said to me, I think I want to do RCIA in September. She still says she is considering it so she can learn the differences between the faiths. I try to teach her the differences and point them out, but I think she needs to hear it from someone that is not close to her, you know? Also, the other day, we had a discussion of the Protestant view of faith alone and the Catholic teaching of faith and good works. She is totally in 100% agreement with Catholic teaching! I told her that too! Yet she seems to think that it’s taught in her church but it’s not!!!

Anyways, can anyone give me some pointers? I listen to Catholic Answers Live everyday and I love it. That’s where I get all my information from, as well as reading books on our faith. I’m not trying to be rude toward Protestants, I respect them. In fact, I’ve met some exceptionally lovable people in her church, yet, her church has done one thing for me, and that is ASSURE my Catholic faith. Praise God for that!!! 👍*

Preach by practicing your faith - to include outside of the weekly Mass. Following the words of Christ, loving others, being kind and patient, esp. in the face of difficult temptations, are powerful witnesses to the non-Catholic Christian who is open to the faith. Be patient, “all you do, whether in word or deed, do it in the name of Christ” will work wonders.

Being too pushy is the worse thing you could do (besides being a terrible example of a Christian, of course). You want HER to willingly WANT to be Catholic, not that she is doing you a favor or shutting you up…

Regards,

Fdesales
Click to expand...
 
jimcav said:
That’s abit of a problem.

Many protestants that don’t dislike Catholicism, just consider us another denomination. They don’t consider us any better or worse than any of the other Christian denominations out there. They don’t believe we are the one true Church, nor do they believe any other church is the one true church. We’re all just believers in Jesus. Protestants are well known to be church shoppers to. In other words - if you don’t like the church your in, find another one, no matter the denomination. I have the feeling I might be describing your girlfriend…

You must teach her Church history. She must understand that the Catholic Church is the one true Church of Jesus Christ and was the only Church founded by Him alone. Show her how the early Christians worshipped. Certainly it is not the way that Pentacostals do. You must show her when the Bible was created and by who and why it was never meant to be the complete “rule book” of Christianity.

To know Church history, is to no longer be protestant.

My prayers are with you!🙂
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Thanks jimcav,
Yeah, I mean, she knows that we [The Catholic Church] teach that it is THE ONE true Church founded by Christ Himself. Whether she has come to believe that, I think she’s on her way. I think that the reason she is saying that she would continue to go to her “church” (I put it in quotations because its comical - it is rented space in a building) because she is fearful of her family. Her family would not be supportive and they would criticize her. I think she wants to avoid that and keep the peace considering she tends to be the scapegoat for different issues within her family. I want to relay to her that although the sermons might be all good and dandy from her preacher, the Catholic Church has so much more to offer. Like I’ve said, we have the Eucharist!

I do agree with you where you say that protestants are church shoppers. It is completely mind-boggling to me that someone can say, well hey, I dont like that guy and what he’s saying so either Im going to find someone that tells me what I want to hear or I’ll just start my own “church” in the basement.

Im trying to learn more about church history so that I can share it with her and I tell you, that is definitely the best way to go about it because she is open to things. She has been taught typical anti-Catholic garbage in the past but I think that having gone to a Catholic University her first two years of college helped. I completely agree with you and I thank you for the insight. 👍
 
fdesales said:
Preach by practicing your faith - to include outside of the weekly Mass. Following the words of Christ, loving others, being kind and patient, esp. in the face of difficult temptations, are powerful witnesses to the non-Catholic Christian who is open to the faith. Be patient, “all you do, whether in word or deed, do it in the name of Christ” will work wonders.

Being too pushy is the worse thing you could do (besides being a terrible example of a Christian, of course). You want HER to willingly WANT to be Catholic, not that she is doing you a favor or shutting you up…

Regards,

Fdesales
Click to expand...
Amen!

I try my best to follow in the footsteps of Christ in all walks of life. I will continue to strengthen my faith and lead by my Catholic example!

I definitely am not pushy because I know that turns people off. Plus, that is a typical protestant approach. Evangelize EVERYONE (especially Catholics) with the typical “Have you accepted Jesus in your life?”
 
jimcav said:
That’s abit of a problem.

Many protestants that don’t dislike Catholicism, just consider us another denomination. They don’t consider us any better or worse than any of the other Christian denominations out there. They don’t believe we are the one true Church, nor do they believe any other church is the one true church. We’re all just believers in Jesus. Protestants are well known to be church shoppers to. In other words - if you don’t like the church your in, find another one, no matter the denomination. I have the feeling I might be describing your girlfriend…

You must teach her Church history. She must understand that the Catholic Church is the one true Church of Jesus Christ and was the only Church founded by Him alone. Show her how the early Christians worshipped. Certainly it is not the way that Pentacostals do. You must show her when the Bible was created and by who and why it was never meant to be the complete “rule book” of Christianity.

To know Church history, is to no longer be protestant.

My prayers are with you!🙂
Click to expand...
Catholics here church shop too, within the RCC, but nevertheless church shop. Same mentality.
 
Middleman said:
Catholics here church shop too, within the RCC, but nevertheless church shop. Same mentality.
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Yeah but its different. Catholics may church shop but its the same teaching and same doctrine no matter what Catholic Church you go to. NO lay Catholic can decide they dont like their pastor so theyre going to start a church in their basement, ordain themselves a priest, and say mass. That just doesnt happen in our faith
 
ChristMySavior said:
Yeah but its different. Catholics may church shop but its the same teaching and same doctrine no matter what Catholic Church you go to. NO lay Catholic can decide they dont like their pastor so theyre going to start a church in their basement, ordain themselves a priest, and say mass. That just doesnt happen in our faith
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You haven’t read much here, have you? This site is full of division, anger, and discord. This site unmasks the bitterness and ugliness of the Catholic Church, sadly.
 
Middleman said:
You haven’t read much here, have you? This site is full of division, anger, and discord. This site unmasks the bitterness and ugliness of the Catholic Church, sadly.
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One can find division, anger and discord in any family and the Catholic Church is a family. It’s part of our human condition and we won’t see perfection in people until we reach the Gates of Heaven. But this is a whole different issue…

The issue I talk about, and the OP agree’s with, is that protestants can easily go from Presbyterian to Baptist to Methodist all because they are seeking the “perfect” church or the “perfect” preacher. A Catholic will not do that. They might change Church’s, although thats pretty rare, but they will stay in the faith.Their parish is their identity, it’s their foundation and their is a certain pride in what parish your from.

ChristMySavior -

I can respect and understand your girlfriends concerns about her family. She is in a tough spot and I’m sure she is trying to keep the peace with them while trying to do right by herself and for you. But there will come a time, that if you guys really get serious, she will have to choose whats best for herself and for both you as a couple even if that means her family will be angry with her. It won’t be easy, but I don’t think she’ll be able to walk the fence forever.

But if she doesn’t convert, I believe that inter-faith marriages can work between Christians, especially if one is open to the faith as your girlfriend is. These days it’s really not that easy to find a girl that is faithful to the Catholic Church. Good Catholics are hard to find! You might lose a good Christ loving Christian girl like your girlfriend and never find that perfect Catholic girl. Is having a wife who is Catholic in name only better than having a devout Christian wife? I’m not to sure…
 
Middleman said:
You haven’t read much here, have you? This site is full of division, anger, and discord. This site unmasks the bitterness and ugliness of the Catholic Church, sadly.
Click to expand...
Sorry but I completely disagree with you. For example: I have been following another thread on the forum and there is nothing but Catholic unity! I dont know if you have read much here but what I know is that there is no Church in the world that is as wonderful and Christian as the Catholic Church
 
jimcav said:
ChristMySavior -

I can respect and understand your girlfriends concerns about her family. She is in a tough spot and I’m sure she is trying to keep the peace with them while trying to do right by herself and for you. But there will come a time, that if you guys really get serious, she will have to choose whats best for herself and for both you as a couple even if that means her family will be angry with her. It won’t be easy, but I don’t think she’ll be able to walk the fence forever.

But if she doesn’t convert, I believe that inter-faith marriages can work between Christians, especially if one is open to the faith as your girlfriend is. These days it’s really not that easy to find a girl that is faithful to the Catholic Church. Good Catholics are hard to find! You might lose a good Christ loving Christian girl like your girlfriend and never find that perfect Catholic girl. Is having a wife who is Catholic in name only better than having a devout Christian wife? I’m not to sure…
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I agree with you. It is hard though sometimes. It’s hard that the fulness of truth is in her heart, and she has yet to accept it. I believe that it is written in a person’s heart to follow the Church Christ commissioned. The problem is, people’s egos like to think differently.
 
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