Catholics Returning Home

Do you know someone who has left the Church? Most of us do nothave to look very far to find nonpracticing Catholics in our circle of familyand friends. Many of us are concerned about these loved ones, but we don’t knowhow 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 nonpracticing 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 Church. Most nonpracticing Catholic 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 nonpracticing 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. Gabriel we have a special six-week program to help nonpracticing Catholics return to the Church entitled “Catholics Returning Home.” The series begins January 15, 2009 from 7:00-9:00 pm in the Faith Formation Room. Please pass this article on to anyone who might be interested. For more information, contact Cathy Rogers at via email at rcia@stgacc.org, or by calling the parish office at 480-595-0883.