Do you know someone who has left the Church? Most of us do not have to look very far to find non-practicing Catholics in our circle of friends and family. Many of us are concerned about these loved ones, but we don’t know how to help them. Obviously, most of them are searching, but how can we help them find their way home?
As baptized, practicing Catholics, we have a precious gift of faith and love from the Lord that needs to be shared with our non-practicing brothers and sisters. First, we need to pray for them. Next, we need to extend a personal invitation to them to come home to the Catholic faith. Most non-practicing Catholics are waiting for an invitation to return. Many mistakenly think they are excommunicated and are not welcome to return for a variety of reasons.
Many non-practicing Catholics carry with them a tremendous amount of guilt and misinformation about the Church and are afraid of approaching the Church for fear of being rejected. You can make a tremendous difference in someone’s life simply by reaching out to them and telling them that we miss them and would like for them to come back home to our Church family.
Here at St. Theresa’s, we have started a special program (entitled “Catholics Returning Home” to help non-practicing Catholics return to the Church. This six-week series begins January, 3-5pm at the Fr. Arnzen Center. Please pass this information on to anyone who might be interested. For more information, call Bob Reineke, 208.827-0415 (cell).