How many books on apologetics are there? How many do you own? How many say the same thing? Sola Scriptura this, Sola Fide that, Mary this, Eucharist that.
We can hammer our opponents with great arguments but that’s not all a Protestant is searching for. They have questions, but their answers aren’t all found in dogma and apologetics. There is one way to stop a Protestant dead in their tracks, but it takes some skill and development.
If you really want to convert your friends and family, if you really want to being people “back to Rome,” you have to walk the life of a Christian, not just a scholar. You must be imbued with virtue, morality, and the piety of a Christian.
Without these, nobody will listen to you. Would you take advice from a poor man on how to become rich, or an addict on how freedom works, or a bus driver on how to fly a plane? Such reasoning would be ridiculous.
Our Christian witness is really the meat and bone of what we have to offer the world. We can soak up all the knowledge of the dogmas, present the teachings of the Magisterium perfectly, but if we have no Christian virtue, our witness is worthless. Here’s a basic formula for this virtue:
– Charity. Charity is giving freely to those in need. Charity takes form in our service to others when we help them up steps, help clean their spilled coffee, or pay a parking meter. Charity is most importantly given when we speak about the Church to others. There are a lot of amateur apologists in the Church and on the internet who project an arrogant, at times hostile, or polemic tone in their words. This only drives people away. Communicate the Gospel and the teachings of the Church to your Protestant friend as it was communicated to you – with clarity, patience and understanding.
– Love. When we love the world, we seek the goodwill of the world, what is best for others, and forget about our needs. “They will know you are my disciples,” Jesus said, “by your love.” If you don’t love, you’re not a Christian, plain and simple, because you’re not really following the teachings of Christ in the first place.
Paul makes this exceedingly clear to the Corinthians:
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 1 Cor. 13:2-4
The Moral life is also necessary for leading others to Christ. Here’s how:
– Stop sinning. Easier said than done? Impossible? No, not impossible. The fight against sin is a present reality, not a future one. Too much we think of sin as it will come, not as it is. To really defeat our sin, we must engage this enemy of our soul. Each day, each moment, make a concerted effort to keep the Lord near you in prayer, fill your days with activity, and become more aware of what triggers your sin. Then, pray and avoid those triggers. Study your sin, because I guarantee you that Satan is doing the same..
Here’s how to be more pious:
– Sacrifice. Nobody gave more than God, who became man in Christ, and let His own people crucify Him. The God who chose death gives us life in this ultimate sacrifice. Many of us will not have to give our lives for Christ, but while living, we can give up our daily lives as sacrifices. This can take shape in the
– Cut the fat. The fat is the extra weight we carry with us day-to-day. This could be office gossip, withheld anger at a spouse or in-law, or even the ability to let others speak and be heard rather than thinking up the next stalwart reply. These are the little things that build up over time, things that make us less trustworthy and deteriorate our witnesses.
Like I said, without these, nobody is going to listen to you. Who would? Who would want to take advice on being a good Catholic, enjoying the fullness of truth, if the fullness of Christ isn’t hardly present in your life. If you don’t develop these attributes, your message will be rejected before you ever deliver it.
EDIT: I am a little embarassed that some did not like the title. The last thing I was going for was a polemical piece, given the content in the post. I hope you understand I was just trying to say that a good Christian life full of virue, coming from a Catholic, can be the last thing a Protestant would expect to see. Forgive me if the piece came off wrong with a misleading title.
Shaun, your column made me think of G.K.’s comment: “Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.” What would our country be today if all Catholics really struggled to be saints.
Really great points, Shaun. Well-written.
To come from you, that means a lot. Many thanks to you, Shane.
What about the atheists that have won Nobel Peace Prizes? It doesn’t mean we should become atheists, but the realization that their good deeds alone wouldn’t convert us without intellectual/theological proof shows that we need more than works alone. We need faith+works, like you said. We shouldn’t have theology alone but we also shouldn’t have good works alone.
Shaun,
Charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God.
The charity you write of is man’s charity, little “c”.
One of the fundamental issues faced in the post-Vatican II era was the translation of 1 Cor/caritas from “Charity” to “love”. This one focus, which has infected the priesthood of the west lays at the root of all the post-Vatican II problems being faced.
The clearest evidence if this is in the orientation of the priest during Mass.
I like your thoughts on the content. Thank you.
I don’t like the title because it is syntactically incoherent: either 1.) your pronoun does not agree with its antecedent in number, or 2.) (and this is how the sentence must be read as it stands) your pronoun has no antecedent at all and one can only wonder helplessly who “they” are and what their tracks have to do with stopping the Protestant mentioned above.
There is a third option, of course, which many will attempt to justify by flinging aspersions like “pedant”, viz., that we must worship the idol of political correctness at the expense of precision in language. I’m not buying.
Thanks! MBA, MA in Theology, and BAA in Aeronautics. None of those made me a master of the english language.
I like the title and would not have bothered to read it otherwise. Your message is charatible and God Willing motivating. God Bless
That is very nice of you! Thank you very much
This article puts everything in perspective. Evangelization is sharing the love with have for Christ, not another tally mark. Apologetics is not to convince the “opponent” (I might have chosen another word) that you’re right, but that the Catholic Church has a reasonable reason for teaching what she does. The Holy Spirit converts and I needed this article. Thanks Shaun.
Thank *you*, John!
I’ve actively discussed faith matters with my Protestant friends and neighbors. I’ve done this while reigniting my faith and making a very strong effort to live the life and turn away from sin.
What’s been the result? My friends have listened. They may not have converted, but they’ve listened and have even listened to CDs I’ve given them from people who have discussed their faith.
I’m still praying that these discussion will bear fruit, but I agree with your article and how a Catholic needs to walk the walk.
The other aspect that should be added to your article is that besides living the life, we need to understand and explain the faith, using scripture. We need to know the common objections to the faith and be able to talk about them and explain them. We need to listen to the masterful arguments of apologetics and keep them in our back pocket. This only comes from listening to them, reading their books, and studying scripture.
These two things become powerful combinations in being able to discuss the faith and make others look at Catholics in a different light.
I totally agree. Great comment.
Our first Pope converted 3,000 using words and proclaiming the Truth. This is not an either/or issue as many things are in protestantism. In Catholicism it is both/and. Sometimes by only living your Faith can give the impression that it doesn’t matter what your faith is. Dialogue is key. I can only speak of where I am located in the Bible belt and here you need to know your Faith and defend it.
I understand and that makes perfect sense.
You know what I find so amusing about this piece, Shaun? I’ve met some amazing, wonderful, beautiful catholic men and women over the last 25 years or so, people I love dearly,people who embody everything you outlined in your piece, and yet for all that there is absolutely NOTHING about the institution known as the roman catholic church that appeals to me in the slightest; I wouldn’t become a catholic for a trillion dollars, cash.What would be the point? I’ve been a born-again, blood-bought, sanctified and Holy Spirit-filled child of God for 38 years, and to me the idea of engaging in a bogus, contrived, man-constructed institution built on pseudo – theological eisegesis, quasi – political maneuvering, and blatantly unbiblical power plays would be the height of absurdity. I have been a student of catholicism for 25 years, and to this day I’m astonished at the death, ruin, and destruction this institution has wreaked over the centuries! Enforced celibacy,the Cadaver Synod, the Unam Sanctum debacle, the crass political maneuverings (and murders) of the Renaissance popes, Pius IX’s kidnapping of the child Edgardo Mortara, the Inquisition…I could go on, but I think you get my drift. There is simply nothing appealing about the institution of catholicism. To think of…”submitting my will and intellect”…to a bunch of men who presume to be my ecclesiastical masters…the very idea is nauseating. Now, I would never hurt my dearly loved catholic friends by telling them all this; some have hinted that perhaps I might look into their religion. But they know where I stand, and they don’t press; they’re a pretty wise crew! I cannot fathom leaving the One who gave His all for me for ANY man-centered, manufactored, bogus, contrived religion; the very idea is beyond ludicrous. So you see, Shaun…this is one Protestant your church will NEVER have enough arguments or persuasion to…”stop dead in his tracks”…PEACE IN CHRIST.
Laurence, if that’s even your real name, I saw your comments on other blog posts here. Please take your rants to another website, or start your own. Whatever you do, please leave comments like these to yourself. Thank you.
Yes, that is my name, Shaun.Only liars think everyone else is lying too, and only cowards run from the truth. It’s obvious my”rant”struck a nerve; maybe next time you’ll be more circumspect in your language. If you can’t stand the heat, pass me on to someone you think can . Everything I said can and has been historically verified; I could have really let you have it, but since I’ve obviously stopped you in YOUR tracks, my task is done. A religion that can’t be defended is not worth the effort it takes to do so, but I thought you would have at least tried.God Bless You, and have a good day.
You would be wise to heed his comment. The multiple unBiblical practices of the Roman Catholic church are causing you to lead many astray. You are substituting a simple message from our powerfull Jesus for one that lifts up men and the falshood they’ve had since the fall!
Let him write and comment. He is making an ass of himself all over the web thus showing clearly he is just a Westboro Baptist Church mentally incapacitated troll. One does not have to be a Catholic to see that Lawrence Charles Ringo (likely a false name) is not a Christian but a man suffering from severe depression possibly due to practicing some kind of unclean habit.
It is just unfortunate that some cannot bear to face the truths you have outlined. I cannot fathom how such blatant lies can be embraced in exchange for the simple truth of the Gospel we see in the Bible
Catholics size up other Christians relative to attachment to the body of Christ, the church. Protestants evaluate other Christians in terms of devotion to the Bible. Catholic piety takes the form of attending mass, saying the rosary, walking the Stations of the Cross. Protestant piety consists in reading God’s word, “doing daily devotions.” See, we value different things. Any Catholic caught “doing good” is dismissed as “earning their salvation” and any Catholic “doing wrong” exposes their religion as a fraud, lacking any power to change (2 Tim 3:5).
Nitpicking at someone’s grammar is so obnoxious and douchey! I knew exactly what the title meant because it is how people talk. Stopping someone dead in their tracks is a common expression, and i think it’s sad that’s all some people took from this article. Also laurence proved the authors point in his comments. Laurenced offered harsh words with very little love and finished with a God Bless you, which is very contradictory and off putting. Nobody is going to follow a guy who speaks to others like that.
Thanks, shaun, for a great article! Title included! (I’m leaving that incomplete sentence as a gift to your more critical readers).