There are times when we have the opportunity to change someone’s life. Perhaps this is the time for some people reading this article.
Statistics indicate that less than 50 percent of Americans now consider themselves a member of a church or synagogue. Our secular society has increasingly convinced people that they can be content without any recognition of God or acknowledgment that God, who created us, knows us better than we know ourselves. It is God who can feed us at our deepest hungers. As the great teacher, St. Augustine wrote, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.”
Nothing in this world can fill the deepest recesses of our hearts. The world tells us otherwise. Depending upon how an “advertisement” is defined, studies show that the average American sees hundreds, if not up to 2,000 advertisements a day. We see ads on TV, hear them on the radio, drive past them on billboards or on the sides of buses, watch them pop up on our computer screens, etc. Each one tells us that we will be happy if only we will buy their product. But none of these products will truly satisfy. They all ultimately fail to fulfill the happiness they promise for they are all temporary creations and not the Creator who made us.
The human heart, no matter the background of the person, their race or ethnicity, what they believe or don’t believe, has the same deep questions and hungers. Each person eventually asks questions such as:
Why am I alive? What will give me peace of mind and peace of heart? How can I find forgiveness for the wrongs I have committed? What is the purpose of my life? What happens to me when I die?
They answer to each of these question is Jesus Christ.
I urge you to invite someone to come to know Jesus. Share with someone what a blessing it is for you to have Jesus in your life. Then go further. Jesus wants us to have a personal relationship with Him and much more. Jesus wants us to be a part of His family, the Church. Invite others to come to the Church He established and to share in the sacraments He instituted to guide and strengthen us on our journey to the life He offers us, both here and now and for all eternity.
Your parish can be a great help to you. At this time of year most parishes are beginning the RCIA process. RCIA stands for the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. Usually on a weekly basis those who are interested in knowing more about the Catholic Church gather in the evening at the parish to discuss various aspects of Catholic faith and practice. No one is asked to commit to joining the Catholic Church. At the end of the RCIA process, those who wish to join the Church do so at the Easter Vigil Mass next April.
If you know someone who is not practicing a faith or someone who has expressed an interest in the Catholic Church, suggest that they join the RCIA at your parish church. Further information can be obtained by calling your parish office. Please assist the person in doing so. Making the phone call can be a little intimidating and it can mean a lot to have someone assist in making the call. It can change a person’s life.
My thanks to those who serve in providing RCIA. You are truly instruments of God’s grace and faith. At the same time, I ask you to keep in mind that RCIA cannot merely be a “class” where information is given. It must be a time to share one’s faith and one’s love for the Lord. As St. Alphonsus Liguori stated: “To put into practice the teachings of our holy faith, it is not enough to convince ourselves that they are true; we must love them. Love united to faith makes us practice our religion.” Please share your love for the Lord with those participating in RCIA. Please grow in your love for the Lord; we cannot give what we don’t first have. Invite the participants to love the Lord and so be motivated to know the truths He wishes us to embrace.