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3John4
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| Joined: | Tue Feb 13th, 2007 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 76 |
| First Name: | Dede | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Catholic, Protestant, Catholic |
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Posted: Wed Sep 12th, 2007 10:34 pm |
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I've looked at this thread a long time, and thought much about the most influential item in my journey back to the Church of my childhood.
While almost everything people have listed thus far impacted me as well, honestly, I would have to say my former pastor--who strongly disagrees with the Catholic Church, ironically, had the greatest influence upon my reversion. As I have mentioned elsewhere in the past, he became interested in Eastern Orthodoxy through his study of the early church. This one time Calvinist started asking us to read books on the early church fathers, changing the worship service, and inviting our congregation to join him at conferences where most of the speakers were Catholic or Orthodox. It was at one of these conferences that I met Thomas Howard. My pastor told me I had to get a copy of Evangelical is Not Enough at the book table. I brought it home, invited three other women from my church to study it with me, and today two of us are Catholic and two are Orthodox. (By the way, my former pastor is now an Orthodox priest.)
As Thomas Howard talked about this week on The Journey Home, I was one of those Catholic teenagers who left home not knowing my faith. I fell for every untruth I was told during my 19 years in the Protestant church, until this pastor sparked my interest in the early church. Once I began to study I was heartbroken over what I'd given up, and ecstatic that I could have a second chance!
Dede
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Christine Ann
Member
| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | An Hours' Drive From Cincinnati, Ohio USA |
| Posts: | 113 |
| First Name: | Christine Ann | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | former Lutheran, Baptist, now Catholic. |
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Posted: Wed Sep 12th, 2007 11:00 pm |
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Hello Monte,
I just want to thank you for sharing the "Jesus Prayer" and how to go about praying it. It is giving me great consolation which is much needed now. So small a prayer...and yet so powerful!
God's blessings,
Christine Ann
P.S. It was also the mass, that drew me into the Catholic Church with serious intent. Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ!
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faithfl1
Member
| Joined: | Fri Sep 21st, 2007 |
| Location: | Illinois USA |
| Posts: | 64 |
| First Name: | Sharon | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | protestant, non-denominational (born-again), Roman Catholic |
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Posted: Fri Nov 9th, 2007 03:48 pm |
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I wanted to revive this thread after reading it. I love reading about other's, and remembering my own, major event/miracle's that led us home (to the RCC)! Here is a "small" (lol) part of my conversion story that led me straight to a Priest and to my Journey Home:
When I was 24 I lost my Brother. He died of a heart attack the day before his 33rd Birthday. He was one of my best friends. Needless to say, it made me wonder what happened to him after he died. Was there a God and Heaven?? Well I suffered with anxiety after this and my Doctor (Who is Catholic) recommended counseling for me to help me deal with my stress ( I never mentioned my struggle with believing in God etc.). He recommended a Priest and I made the appointment. I knew nothing about Priests but I wasn't even thinking about that. I just needed help.
Well I parked in the back of the rectory walked around and entered in the front(This sort of pertains to the story, you'll see why later). We went into his office and I admitted that I wasn't sure if there really is a God, heaven etc. As our conversation went on I noticed that it got very dark outside. Then very windy. I started to get nervous (only because I didn't know if we should hit the basement or something, being a little afraid of the storm that was starting.) We continued our session and all of a sudden the door opened slightly, we turned and looked-no one was there. We joked saying that God was letting us know he was with us. He shut the door, started talking again and sure enough the knob turned and opened slightly again. Now I did get kind of nervous (not really scared though), but still chuckled. After the hour was up, I was getting ready to leave. I noticed the storm had stopped. He led me to the back door that led right to the parking lot. I walked out, there was a statue of Mary. I thought "What a beautiful site to see right now". By the way I did know who Mary was. I started on to my car, the sun was shining as bright as ever, I looked up and there was a beautiful DOUBLE Rainbow!! I have never seen a double rainbow before. Tears came to my eyes, I felt Joy, comfort and peace. That was my very own little miracle from God, who I felt just sent me a message saying, "Yes Sharon, I DO exist and I have your Brother with me!" Needless to say, I felt that I needed to learn about the Catholic faith now.
That was about 20 yrs. ago and even though I had gone off the path a few times, here I am safe and sound and bursting with joy to be so close to the Lord and home in the one and only True Church of Jesus Christ! (that is The Catholic Church, of course! Have a Blessed day!! I'm looking forward to reading about the main event/miracle/encounter that was the deciding factor for other's. I praise God for all of you here and for the Mod's especially! Thank you for all your hard work at making this such an awesome forum!!
____________________
Sharon S.
...I love you, Lord, my strength Psalm 18:2
I have the strength for everything through Him who empowers me. Phil 4:13
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Lee
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| Joined: | Fri May 18th, 2007 |
| Location: | Birmingham, Alabama USA |
| Posts: | 65 |
| First Name: | Lee | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Charismatic-nondenom.-Presbyterian-Catholic |
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Posted: Fri Nov 9th, 2007 05:12 pm |
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One (of many) neat things that happened to me was that in 2000, before I even had a thought about the Catholic church, after being an evangelical Christian for 35 years, I just started looking in the Bible for prayers and things that people in the Old Testament or the New Testament prayed for. Because it had finally occurred to me, after years of praying for whatever I thought (me, me, me) was needed or desired, it occurred to me, "I wonder what God thinks would be good to pray for." For Protestants, written out prayers are not worth much. They think that written out prayers cannot be from the heart. So they mostly pray spontaneous prayers. So, after I had all these prayers from the Bible written down and then started to investigate the Catholic Church, I discovered there are hundreds of prayers we have access to. But I thought it was so neat that God put it in my mind the thought--What does God think would be good to pray?--because He knew He was going to lead me to a Church of beautiful timeless sometimes ancient prayers.
I am so thankful for the Catholic Church!
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Intercessor
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| Joined: | Tue Sep 25th, 2007 |
| Location: | Southcentral, Kentucky USA |
| Posts: | 854 |
| First Name: | Becky | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Southern Baptist, Catholic |
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Posted: Fri Nov 9th, 2007 07:55 pm |
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I was drawn by the Eucharist. For decades, as a Baptist, I had sought further meaning and blessing from the Lord's Supper. I discussed with pastors my concern about the lack of reverence, the efforts to provide "entertainment" in the form of skits, slide shows (of the Passion), special music. My soul craved silence. I so wanted privacy and quiet to meditate and commune with my Savior. Eventually, I began ignoring preliminary pastoral comments about how the service was symbolic and began asking God to minister grace to me.
When I first met with a priest, I was starving for the Eucharist. He took me into a small chapel, pointed out the tabernacle, explained the Real Presence, and suggested that if I believed Jesus was truly there, a genuflection would be appropriate, as well as some silent words of love and adoration for the Lord.
I was drawn like a magnet and came for Adoration every day until I was finally allowed to receive the Lord.
____________________
"If our charity is arrested by the difficulties encountered in dealing with our neighbor, . . . our relations with our brethren are not regulated by our love of God, but by our love of self." Divine Intimacy p. 781, Fr. Gabriel, O.C.D.
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kimdyuma
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| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | Arizona USA |
| Posts: | 710 |
| First Name: | Kim | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | cradle Anglican, Episcopal /Catholic-04/07/07 |
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Posted: Fri Nov 9th, 2007 10:15 pm |
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| That is a hard question for me- When I lived overseas (part time from74 to 78, full time from 78 untill 84)I attended Catholic Churches since the Anglican church was either non existent or dangerous to get to ( I lived in Muslim countries) and protestant house churches were very foreign to me. The priests did give me the Eucharist since they felt that I truly understood what the Eucharist sacrifice was- no one ever told me that I could BECOME Catholic. When I moved here to the States I joined the Episcopalian church in town but came home to a very changed church- I kept hoping that somehow the Anglican church would seek union with the Catholic church ( stupid I know) but still no one ever told me that I could BECOME Catholic. I married a lapsed (very)Southern Baptist whose parents were not happy with my Anglicanism so started looking for literature to help me articulate my beliefs found Thomas Howard's book "On the Canterbury Trail" and then his other books. I then started to get an inkling that born Anglican didn't mean die Anglican BUT unfortunately I had brought my kids up as staunch little Episcopalians while at the same time telling them that divorce really isn't a good option so be careful who you marry, contraceptives and abortions are detrimental to your soul and that "The Gay life style" is NOT a normal way of life but that Gays etc must not be discriminated against but prayed for- not realizing because Anglican/Episcopalians don't talk about these things that I was out of step with MY church. Discovering CHN on the Internet prompted me to ask my good friend, a Catholic whom I have always admired who also has a child with autism about RCIA- did her parish have it? I thought that since change was so hard for our son that I would wait till they were grown and convert HOWEVER our church did a protestant split and since that threw my kids into turmoil I figured that A: I might as well get all the changes over with at once and B: I could no longer live with the either the Anglican or Episcopalian world. The communion of Saints is a major comfort to me and I had rosaries that I would hold while I read the Bible or prayed ( but no official rosary prayers) and we have always had Crucifixes and/or Crosses over our doors, the kid's beds and Saints statues around the house to my in-laws disgust.
____________________
Adopt from your local Humane Society- Please spay or neuter your pets
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Lee
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| Joined: | Fri May 18th, 2007 |
| Location: | Birmingham, Alabama USA |
| Posts: | 65 |
| First Name: | Lee | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Charismatic-nondenom.-Presbyterian-Catholic |
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Posted: Mon Nov 12th, 2007 10:52 am |
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Hi Kim, Welcome Home!!! It did feel that way to me when I finally entered the one, holy Catholic and apostolic Church! I looked back and realized that I had felt like an orphan before--wandering around in the Protestant confusion of different teachings, even though I was not a church hopper and went to the same church for 12 years.
If you don't want to share this, please don't worry about it, but I was wondering whatever happened with your husband and kids? Also, just a comment--your story reminds me that we need to be patient with Protestants because sometimes it takes years for them to make their journey into the church.
Lee
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kimdyuma
Member
| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | Arizona USA |
| Posts: | 710 |
| First Name: | Kim | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | cradle Anglican, Episcopal /Catholic-04/07/07 |
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Posted: Mon Nov 12th, 2007 11:40 am |
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| Ah actually my kids ( and husband) are an ongoing topic on a couple of other forums- in the fellowship forum under family updates or family progress. They are still attending the Anglican church for now.
____________________
Adopt from your local Humane Society- Please spay or neuter your pets
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RCCSoldat
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| Joined: | Tue Aug 14th, 2007 |
| Location: | Pekin, Illinois USA |
| Posts: | 17 |
| First Name: | Mark | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Methodist/Non-denom/Catholic |
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Posted: Thu Jan 3rd, 2008 08:48 pm |
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Lee wrote: JillD wrote: Partly because it is an excellent apologetic book, but also because it's the first Catholic book that my friend put in my hand, the most influential was Scott Hahn's "Rome, Sweet Home." It was an eye-opener to me. It showed me how greatly I had misunderstood the teachings of the Church. And it's just a plain old good story, besides.
Jill
Hi Jill, "Rome, Sweet Home" is very high on my list, too.
I couldn't agree more. This was the second book I read as I began my journey home.
The very first book I read was 'Choosing to Be Catholic: For the First Time (Or Once Again)' by FR. William O'Malley - http://www.amazon.com/Choosing-Be-Catholic-First-Again/dp/1594710430
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Howard the Pilgrim
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| Joined: | Sun Dec 16th, 2007 |
| Location: | Lamar, Colorado USA |
| Posts: | 19 |
| First Name: | Howard | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | United Presbyterian, non-denom, American Baptist, non-denom, Conservative Baptist, United Methodist ... |
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 12:04 am |
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The music of John Michael Talbot was what first got me interested in the Catholic Church. I thought, "Wow, this guy is really loves the Lord and he is Catholic." I decided that I needed to check out the Catholic Church.
Books that have been influential in my journey so far are as follows.
With Open Hands by Henri Nouwen, Letters from the Desert by Carlo Carretto, The Catechism of the Catholic Church (especially the section on prayer), The Imitation of Christ by Thomas A Kempis and Practising the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.
EWTN with The Journey Home, Father Thomas Dubay and Father Corapi among other programs and series.
Catholic prayer books and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.
Just a short list by no means complete.
God bless you all.
Howard
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Lee
Member
| Joined: | Fri May 18th, 2007 |
| Location: | Birmingham, Alabama USA |
| Posts: | 65 |
| First Name: | Lee | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Charismatic-nondenom.-Presbyterian-Catholic |
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 07:48 pm |
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thank you so much, Howard. (Welcome "home!")
Update on the list of the most powerful, influential items that led you to the Catholic Church: (don't you wish all Catholic churches had these books for loan or sale? Don't you wish all Catholic Churches had a huge sign in front of their church saying, "All are welcome. Would you like to know more about the Catholic faith? Come and see."
BOOKS
Catechism of the Catholic Church 6
Hahn, Scott - Rome, Sweet Home 8
Hahn, Scott - Books by Scott Hahn in general 5
Hahn, Scott - The Lamb's Supper
Madrid, Patrick - Surprised by Truth () 5
The Journey Song Book
Currie, David - Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic 2
Carretto, Carlo - Letters from the Desert 2
Carretto, Carlo - The Desert in the City
Sri, Dr. Edward
Howard, Thomas - On Being Catholic
Howard, Thomas - Evangelical is Not Enough
Howard, Thomas – On the Canterbury Trail
Howard, Thomas – Lead Kindly Light
When Only One Converts
Cavins, Jeff - My Life on the Rock
the Catholic Book of Prayer
Catholic prayer books
Aquinas, St. Thomas 2
the Bible 2
Matthewes-Green - "At the Corner of East and Now"
Jurgens - "The Faith of the Early Fathers" 2
Humane Vitae
The Scriptural Rosary
Fundamentals of the Catholic Faith
Catholic spiritual tradition, especially St. John of the Cross
Greene - Where We Got the Bible
Lewis, C. S. - "That Hideous Strength" and Writings of
Catholics and Fundamentalists
Crossing the Threshold of Hope
What Catholics Really Believe
French, R. M. - The Way of the Pilgrim
French, R. M. - The Pilgrim Continues His Way -
reading a chapter of the gospels when tempted to sin
O'Malley, Fr. William - Choosing to Be Catholic: For the First Time (Or Once Again)
Nouwen, Henri - With Open Hands
A Kempis, Thomas - The Imitation of Christ
Lawrence, Br. – Practicing the Presence of God
TECHNOLOGY
the ministry of the Coming Home Network 2
E-mail member list
EWTN 3 (Talks by Mother Angelica, Mitch Pacwa, Marcus Grodi's Journey Home program 2, Fr. Corapi 3, Thomas Dubay)
Fr Corapi's Sweet Sixteen cassette set
Fr. Corapi - conversion story and DVD's and CDs
Bloggers at http://www.chnetwork.org forums
John Martignoni of Bible Christian Society CDs and tapes
Local Catholic Radio 2
Fr. Larry's tape--The Mass Explained (from the Mary Foundation)
Catholic Home Study 2
PEOPLE
Catholic book store clerk, lovely, devout with sincerity and love
the Saints
The life and witness of Pope John Paul II (elected the year I graduated High School)
the testimony of Church Fathers, such as Polycarp, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr,
St. Augustine and St. Patrick
the witness of faithful Catholic people I met along the way 2
Protestant Calvinist pastor who sparked interest in Thomas Howard’s book and orthodox liturgy and the early Church Fathers
John Michael Talbot
OTHER
Prayer 2
the beauty and depth of worship of the Mass 2
the Liturgical Calendar
RCIA 2
Mass 2
EAster Vigil
the Authority of the Catholic Church
the Jesus Prayer
the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
God’s miraculous leading and also through a priest
The leading of the Holy Spirit
Sacramentals which the Oxford movement Anglicans use
church history 2
Eucharist
Discontent with Anglican/Episcopal Church’s beliefs that are not orthodox
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CajunRick
Network Helper
| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Houma, Louisiana USA |
| Posts: | 4971 |
| First Name: | Rick (& Kermie) | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Lifetime Catholic, Latin Rite |
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 11:16 pm |
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Howard the Pilgrim wrote: The music of John Michael Talbot was what first got me interested in the Catholic Church. I thought, "Wow, this guy is really loves the Lord and he is Catholic." I decided that I needed to check out the Catholic Church.
I love your reference. I happen to love JMT's music as well. I've got his "Monk Rock" loaded onto both my MP3 player and my cell phone and listen to it constantly. I got to meet him and his wife last year, and spent entirely too much on his music. He truly is an asset to the Church, the faith, and a wonderful prophet for the Lord.
____________________
Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe that you may understand. - Augustine
Rick Luquette
Luquette Lane
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Liz65
Member
| Joined: | Fri Sep 14th, 2007 |
| Location: | Maryland USA |
| Posts: | 29 |
| First Name: | Liz | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Multiple Protestant denominations, Episcopalian, Anabaptist |
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Posted: Sun Jan 6th, 2008 12:07 pm |
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As you may have gathered, my journey continues.
Thanks for all of your recommendations. I am a big reader and need all of the support I can get....Liz
____________________
6. Q. Why did God make you?
A. God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him for ever in heaven.
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HelenRose
Member
| Joined: | Mon Dec 17th, 2007 |
| Location: | Cedaredge, Colorado USA |
| Posts: | 30 |
| First Name: | Helen | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Christian Church, Catholic Church |
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Posted: Mon Jan 7th, 2008 06:09 pm |
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beachmoss wrote: I would have to say the Bible.
I was raised Southern Baptist, and I knew all the Sunday School stories like David and Goliath, Noah and the flood, etc. But we never seemed to go beyond the simple stories. On the occassions I attended church as a teen the sermons always were centered on money and referenced a couple of out-of-context verses of scripture.
When I began my journey toward the Catholic Church I dusted off the Bible and began to read what God really intended for us to read. I still am constantly amazed at passages I discover.
Beth
I would have to say the Bible and the Rosary.
For me Mary was not a stumbling block at all. She was the light that brought me to the Church. I was raised in the Christian Church. The Bible was read and studied a great deal and I grew up loving it.
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beachmoss
Member
| Joined: | Mon Nov 13th, 2006 |
| Location: | Simpsonville, South Carolina USA |
| Posts: | 270 |
| First Name: | Beth | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Catholic (raised Baptist) |
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Posted: Mon Jan 7th, 2008 06:20 pm |
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Helen,
I'm just curious. You say you were raised in "the Christian Church." Is this a particular denomination or were simply raised as a Christian without regards to any denomination?
And welcome to the forum!
Beth
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Dave Armstrong
Network Apologist
| Joined: | Fri Nov 2nd, 2007 |
| Location: | Melvindale, Michigan USA |
| Posts: | 1216 |
| First Name: | Dave | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Nominal Methodist / evangelical non-denom / "Bapticostal" / Catholic |
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Posted: Mon Jan 7th, 2008 06:54 pm |
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Venerable John Henry Cardinal Newman's book An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine put me over the edge (if I were to choose one thing to mention). It is available to read online (extremely heavy reading; be forewarned!):
http://www.newmanreader.org/works/development/index.html
The other two things (in order of influence) were:
1) Working through the contraception issue and the reasoning behind the Catholic position.
2) Studying the 16th century and the beliefs and actions of the so-called "reformers" (who were in actuality revolutionaries).
Three strikes and you're out!
Last edited on Mon Jan 7th, 2008 06:55 pm by Dave Armstrong
____________________
I'm happy to offer whatever theological & personal assistance I can. My blog, Biblical Evidence for Catholicism, contains 1900+ papers & web pages (absolutely free) & 16 apologetic books (for sale):
http://www.biblicalcatholic.com/
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HelenRose
Member
| Joined: | Mon Dec 17th, 2007 |
| Location: | Cedaredge, Colorado USA |
| Posts: | 30 |
| First Name: | Helen | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Christian Church, Catholic Church |
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Posted: Wed Jan 9th, 2008 10:03 pm |
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beachmoss wrote: Helen,
I'm just curious. You say you were raised in "the Christian Church." Is this a particular denomination or were simply raised as a Christian without regards to any denomination?
And welcome to the forum!
Beth
It is a denomination in it own right.
http://www.connerprairie.org/historyonline/christian.html
Gives an explanation of what the Church of Christ or Christian Church is about. I learned more about it listening to Journey Home.
I was very happy as a child growing up in this church but as Marcus Grodi so often states we find the fullness of God's grace in the Catholic Church.
I had considered becoming a missionary. I "deducated myself to Jesus" when I was about fourteen. A promise from which I have never strayed.
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lifetone
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| Joined: | Mon Feb 4th, 2008 |
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| Posts: | 35 |
| First Name: | Anne | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Methodist, Baptist, Wiccan/New Age, Pentecostal, Catholic |
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Posted: Mon Mar 17th, 2008 02:01 pm |
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Hi. Hope it's okay to "revive" this topic again but it was awesome..
I agree the Catechism of the Catholic Church was it for me. I hadn't been intending to convert AT ALL when I read it but only to find out what Catholics believe. Just to know. It was elegant and beautiful and I believed everything it said, especially in regard to apostolic succession and the need for centralized authority - so it became a matter of IF this is true it would now be a SIN not to convert.
Honorable mentions go to great Catholic friends, RCIA and the local parish in general for helping me along - to do what I knew God wanted me to do. And St Augustine's Confessions - because 10 years later I'm finally keeping my promise to him that I would join his church. St Augustine of Hippo, pray for us!
Oh yes and of course the Bible. But it's hard to quantify how big an effect that had, sort of like trying to determine to what extent me breathing oxygen had an effect on me going to the supermarket. So even though I don't count it, it's not because I ceased to believe in it. It's just well you know things like ... apostolic succession and the need for central authority ;-) and the unity of the church and God's will and ways of acting. "Little things" like that which made the Catechism not completely out of the blue for me - but more like ... coming home.  Like okay ... these things are all clearly in the Bible, which I need to believe in because God told me to. The Catechism is rationally addressing all those points in ways which history proves accurate. (I already knew this from other studies but had never connected the dots.) Therefore, the Roman Catholic Church is the One True Church and therefore their leaders are *the* leaders. Therefore, in order to God's will I should submit to its authority and do whatever they asked of me. Which has been wonderful and beautiful. God is good!
God bless! Anne
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Hidden One
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| Joined: | Thu Feb 28th, 2008 |
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| Posts: | 123 |
| First Name: | H1 | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | lax Presbyterian -> pseudo-Arminian non-denom -> heretical Presbyterian -> ... |
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Posted: Tue Mar 18th, 2008 02:20 am |
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The first seven chapters of Where We Got the Bible: Our Debt to the Catholic Church by Rev. H. G. Graham converted my mind.
Book 1 of Ascent of Mount Carmel by St. John of the Cross converted my heart.
Both I read online at the URLs given.
NOTE: Edited to fix links.
Last edited on Tue Mar 18th, 2008 02:31 am by
____________________
1 John 4:7-12
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Lee
Member
| Joined: | Fri May 18th, 2007 |
| Location: | Birmingham, Alabama USA |
| Posts: | 65 |
| First Name: | Lee | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Charismatic-nondenom.-Presbyterian-Catholic |
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Posted: Mon Apr 28th, 2008 03:29 pm |
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UPDATED: Accumulated on this website over about six months, the list of the most powerful, influential items that led us to the Catholic Church. (numbers following items indicate number of times mentioned):
BOOKS
* similar titles
A Kempis, Thomas - The Imitation of Christ
Aquinas, St. Thomas 2
Bible 5 Note: reading a chapter of the gospels when tempted to sin
Books on Catholic prayer
Books on Catholic spiritual tradition
Carretto, Carlo - Letters from the Desert 2
Carretto, Carlo - The Desert in the City
Catechism of the Catholic Church 7
Catholic Book of Prayer
Cavins, Jeff - My Life on the Rock
Currie, David - Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic 2
French, R. M. - The Way of the Pilgrim
French, R. M. - The Pilgrim Continues His Way -
Graham, Henry G. - Where We Got the Bible 2
Hahn, Scott - Books by Scott Hahn in general 5
Hahn, Scott - Rome, Sweet Home 8
Hahn, Scott - The Lamb's Supper
Howard, Thomas – Lead Kindly Light
Howard, Thomas – On the Canterbury Trail
Howard, Thomas - Evangelical is Not Enough
Howard, Thomas - On Being Catholic
Humane Vitae document of Vatican II
John of the Cross, St. – Ascent of Mt. Carmel Book One
Journey Song Book
Jurgens, William A. - "The Faith of the Early Fathers" 2
Keating, Karl - What Catholics Really Believe
Kreeft, Peter - Fundamentals of the Faith* (see Ott,Ludwig – Fundamentals)
Lawrence, Br. – Practicing the Presence of God
Lewis, C. S. - "That Hideous Strength" and Writings of
Madrid, Patrick - Surprised by Truth 5
Matthewes-Green, Frederica - "At the Corner of East and Now"
Newman, John Cardinal Henry - An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine 2
http://www.newmanreader.org/works/development/index.html
Nordhagen, Lynn - When Only One Converts
Nouwen, Henri - With Open Hands
O'Malley, Fr. William - Choosing to Be Catholic: For the First Time (Or Once Again)
Ott, Ludwig - Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma* (see Kreeft, Peter – “Fundamentals)
Pable, Martin - Catholics and Fundamentalists
Pope John Paul II - Crossing the Threshold of Hope
Scriptural Rosary or Rosary 3
Sri, Dr. Edward
TECHNOLOGY
the ministry of the Coming Home Network 2
E-mail member list
EWTN 3 (Talks by Mother Angelica, Mitch Pacwa, Marcus Grodi's Journey Home program 2, Fr. Corapi 3, Thomas Dubay)
Fr Corapi's Sweet Sixteen cassette set
Fr. Corapi - conversion story and DVD's and CDs
Bloggers at http://www.chnetwork.org forums
John Martignoni of Bible Christian Society CDs and tapes
Local Catholic Radio 2
Fr. Larry's tape--The Mass Explained (from the Mary Foundation)
Catholic Home Study 2
John Michael Talbot – Monk Rock CD
PEOPLE
Catholic book store clerk, lovely, devout with sincerity and love
Saints, stories and books
Mary 2
Pope John Paul II. his life and witness (“elected the year I graduated High School”)
Church Fathers, their life and testimony, such as Polycarp, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr,
St. Augustine 2
St. Patrick
Catholic people, the witness of faithful Catholic people I met along the way 3
Protestant Calvinist pastor who sparked interest in Thomas Howard’s book and orthodox liturgy and the early Church Fathers
John Michael Talbot 2
OTHER
local Catholic parish
Prayer 2
the beauty and depth of worship of the Mass 2
the Liturgical Calendar
RCIA 3
Mass 2
Easter Vigil
the Authority of the Catholic Church
the Jesus Prayer
the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
God’s miraculous leading and also through a priest
The leading of the Holy Spirit
Sacramentals which the Oxford movement Anglicans use
church history 4 (including 16th century Protestant and Catholic beliefs and actions)
Eucharist
Discontent with Anglican/Episcopal Church’s beliefs that are not orthodox
Catholic doctrine on contraception 2
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Didi
Member
| Joined: | Mon Mar 3rd, 2008 |
| Location: | Oregon USA |
| Posts: | 153 |
| First Name: | Didi | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Catholic; almost left; Now an On-Fire Catholic! |
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Posted: Mon Apr 28th, 2008 07:46 pm |
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As a cradle Catholic I never really left the Church, but seriously considered it for about three years. I was really struggling with the Holy Eucharist. There were several things that made me see the Truth of the Catholic Church.
EWTN -- especially Mother Angelica, The Journey Home, and programs by Rosalind Moss, Fr. Groeschel, and Scott Hahn.
Our local Catholic radio station which airs wonderful programming, especially Catholic Answers.
It was actually during a broadcast of Kimberley Hahn's conversion story on the radio that made me really delve into the Church's teachings on the Eucharist. She was saying how she noticed in the Bible that the demons always recognized Jesus as God. This made her think about how when someone from the occult wishes to desecrate Our Lord, they don't go to any protestant church to get their wafers or their bread. They go to the Catholic Church because the demonic recognizes the True Presence of God!
So, I began to read, and read, and read:
The Catechism
Scripture (of course!)
Rome Sweet Home, Scott & Kimberley Hahn
Why Do Catholics Do That?, Kevin Orlin Johnson
Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Truth, Catholic Answers
Mass Appeal, Jimmy Akin
The Lamb's Supper, Scott Hahn
The Fourth Cup, Scott Hahn (cassette)
Pope John Paul II's Encyclical on the Holy Eucharist, Ecclesia de Eucharistia
Why Be Catholic?, Scott Hahn
Surprised by Truth, 1, 2, & 3, Patrick Madrid & Others
Swear to God, Scott Hahn
The Diary of St. Faustina
Come to Me in the Blessed Sacrament (prayer book for adoration)
Letters to a Brother Priest, Monsignor Josifino S. Ramirez
The Practice of the Presence of the Lord, Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection
Jimmy Swaggert Made Me Catholic, Tim Staples (CD)
The Truth & The Mass Explained, Fr. Larry Richards (cassettes)
Catholicism for Dummies, Trigilio & Brighenti
Mary, The Second Eve, John Henry Newman
These are among the most influential!
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Candlemass
Member
| Joined: | Tue May 1st, 2007 |
| Location: | Hudson, Ohio USA |
| Posts: | 453 |
| First Name: | Mark | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Catholic, AOG, Baptist, non - denominational, Anglican, CC for life! |
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Posted: Mon Apr 28th, 2008 08:12 pm |
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| Roots of the Reformation - Karl Adam
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"For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries."--1st Peter 4:3 NKJV
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Candlemass
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