Confirmation names

With Lent and then the Easter season quickly approaching there are probably many in RCIA who are thinking about which saint's name they will take a confirmation.

I thought it would be interesting if everyone would write a short post on their blog or leave a comment here about the saint who's name they chose to take at confirmation. If you write a post on your blog please leave put a link in the comments section here.

I chose St. Augustine of Hippo. You can read at little about my reasoning here.

More Catholic Converts blogs

Welcome to Davin at Mary Mail. Davin shares some thoughts on his conversion here.

Matthew at A Catholic Life is also joining the blogroll. Matthew's blog is full of great articles. He is currently in the seminary and is only able to post between semesters. There is plenty there to keep you reading for a while though. Please remember Matthew and all those who have chosen to answer God's call to a vocation in the priesthood in your prayers.

New to Catholic Converts

Welcome to Julie of Connecticut Catholic Corner.

Welcome to Oso Famoso at You are Cephas.

Also welcome our newest "Friend of Catholic Converts", Anthony at Will You Marry Me? -God.

Bryan's Conversion Story

Bryan of Journeying with St. Ignatius joins the blog roll and shares his conversion story below.

Becoming a child of God



"But to those who did accept him, he gave power to become children of God…"

John 1:12



In 1973, at the age of 4, I accepted the Lord Jesus Christ into my heart, having the power within me to become a child of God. However, I was not a child of God yet and am still striving toward that goal in my daily life even now as I am undertaking The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

My parents were Protestant and bounced from church, most all fundamentalist and many charismatic. The list with names of towns taken out: Christian Church, Assembly of God, Community Church, New Life Temple and Christian & Missionary Alliance. I attended all of them from my first day as a "born again" Christian up until the time I "came into" the Roman Catholic Church.



Impressions



* At the age of 4, I saw the power of God firsthand when my aunt, a "believer" herself, prayed for me after I burnt my right hand after I plugged in an iron. My blackened hand became flesh again right before my eyes as she prayed with me. I grew up with a tangible view of the Trinity: God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit all working together.
* I attended Vacation Bible School during the summers. I knew all the books of the Bible and memorized scripture verses, for which I was rewarded with candy bars and a crown (I kid you not). I was crowned King of VBS one summer, along with a queen. My parents probably still have the photo somewhere.
* At the Assembly of God church and the community church, I had seen the charismatic gifts of speaking in tongues, laying on of hands (not necessarily healing), rolling in the aisles (literally). At New Life Temple, I saw people dancing and leaping in place for God. It wasn't quite as dramatic as in "The Blues Brothers," but nevertheless it was dramatic. The only difference among the three churches' brand of "charisma" was that the first two seemed to focus more on being judgmental and the legal side of things, whereas New Life Temple seemed to have a greater focus on love and mercy. At least, this is my interpretation of it here later.
* One of my strongest memories of going to church in those days of my youth is cowering in a nursery because I was scared of a movie called "A Thief in the Night." It portrayed what might happen after The Rapture had occurred, but there was still those here on earth who chose to believe in Jesus. They were decapitated for their faith.
* A pastor at one of the churches was accused and later convicted of child molestation. He had "approached" me, but I truly believe my parent's faith was too strong for him. Most of the boys on which he preyed were those without a strong family life, usually of single parent homes and those who were having problems at home, with maybe one exception. All of this, needless to say, didn't help my belief in Christ.



So with all of this as backdrop, by the time I got to college, a Christian college, of course, I began to explore different churches, to try to find my own faith. I even questioned my own Christianity at times, and the Bible, thanks to classes in historical criticism, but finally decided that I was to be a Christian…although I didn't know at the time of which "stripe" I would be.

Somehow I began leaning toward the "liturgical" churches after finding the megachurches focus on me, me, me more than somewhat troublesome, the Baptist and Methodist churches too boring, etc.

I remember visiting an Episcopalian church and something about the liturgy there drew me, but something else was missing. At the time, I didn't know what it was, but now I know it is the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. It is an emptiness I experienced a few weeks ago when I visited an Episcopalian church that almost makes you want to shout or at least speak up in the middle of the service:"Ahem, I don't mean to be rude, but you don't know what you're missing, folks." But, of course, that would be rude and not help with ecumenism at all.

So here I was in an Episcopalian church, liking the flow of the liturgy, but still missing something.

Around the same time, I began to have a couple of friends who were Catholic, including my future wife. After college, I began a correspondence by mail with these Catholic friends and I'd ask questions about Catholicism and they'd answer me. I even went to see my future wife's confirmation and acceptance into the Church. (Her story was featured on "Catholic Converts" recently: Kim Robinson is her name.)

Finally, in 1994, I approached churches in my local diocese about the process of becoming Catholic. One priest actually told me that I should forget it, that Protestants weren't meant to be converted. Through God's grace, I didn't listen to him and persevered. I found a priest who was willing to help guide me and an RCIA team that listened to my questions patiently. I didn't understand everything and still don't, having to ask God to help me in my unbelief and accept some things on faith, but after the inquiry process, I knew that God had chosen me to be Catholic.

On Easter 1994, I was confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church. Two years later, I was married in the church. Thirteen years later, I am refocusing my faith through The Spiritual Exercises. My journey toward becoming a child of God is still continuing.

Catholic Converts Widget

I found this cool little widget. If you would like to place it on your blog just click the "Get Widget" button at the bottom. It includes installers for all the blog tools or you can just click on "Get Widget Code".

Welcome to the blogroll

Welcome to:

Christie at 'Tis but a Season".

Kelly at Answering the Call. Kelly has also asked to be added to the RCIA prayer list.

Les at Postcards from Home. Les also shares a conversion story.

Kim: My Conversion Story

Kim from Dispatches from the Northern Outpost has joined the blogroll and shared her conversion story which is included in this post.

I grew up going to church every Sunday. My grandfather, Superintendent
of Sunday School for a Methodist church for 30 years, took me with
him. I went early and put the offering baskets and metal globe-shaped
banks for the missions in each classroom every Sunday morning. It was
a somewhat dull but oddly comforting weekly ritual. Our pastor was by
no means exciting but he was a kind man with a big, cheerful family. I
remember once being in his office and he showed us a vial of water
that he'd filled in the Jordan River. He said he put a few drops of it
in the baptismal font every time someone was baptized. I remember
being absolutely fascinated by the idea. A foreshadowing of my
fascination with holy water? Who knows. I grew up your typical youth
group attending, church-camp-in-the-summer Methodist kid. I had an
official 'accept Jesus into my heart' experience on December 6th,
1985, at a Mylon LeFevre and Broken Heart Concert at Faith City High
School in Delaware. (Hollaback if you have ANY IDEA who that is!)
I graduated from high school in 1988 and went to Messiah College. I
went to school with the intention of being a pastor. I'm thinking it
was less of a genuine call and more because my then boyfriend was also
going to be (and is, actually) a pastor, but I enrolled with a Bible
major and quickly discovered two things; my lack of aptitude for
ancient Greek and my disinterest in reading hundreds of pages written
by long dead German theologians. I had a roommate who 'used to be
Catholic' but left the Church for a non-denominational church with an
awesome sound system. Failing Greek, I changed my major to the
slightly more nebulous 'Christian Ministries'...whatever the
difference was I was off the hook for serious exegesis and dodged the
language bullet. (I was looking at three more years of Greek and two
of Hebrew.)
Then a funny thing happened. My tambourine-shaking roommate went back
to the Church. She said she had an overwhelming desire to find her
Rosary and pray, some time after a friend gave her a rattly, much used
copy of the Conversion of Scott Hahn cassette. She invited me to a
study at St Joseph's Church in Mechanicsburg PA on Alan Schreck's
'Catholic and Christian: Commonly Misunderstood Beliefs of the
Catholic Church'. I agreed to go. I read the book, said 'that's
interesting', and stuck it in a box. She transferred to Steubenville
and asked me if I wanted to come too. I laughed at her and said, 'Why
would I do that when I'm not Catholic?'. Another year went by, and one
night I was sitting in the library at school and I was overwhelmed to
distraction with the desire to find that Schreck book and read it
again. All I knew was I needed to leave right then and go and find it.
I dug it out of storage in the basement of my dorm. I still smile when
I hear the story of St Augustine hearing a voice say 'take and
read'....because it was like that. I don't know how else to explain it
all except to say that when I read that book a second time I KNEW that
it was true. I called St Joseph's, and I said, I don't know what is
involved, what I have to do, or whether you'll let me, but I need to
be Catholic. I was lucky; the woman who answered the phone was a
convert too. She didn't think I was nuts. I had no car, so she brought
me to church, where I met Fr. John Trigilio. (This was before Fr. John
was on EWTN, or co-wrote 'Catholicism for Dummies'--our best
apologetics discussions were had over a large pie, half mushroom, half
pepperoni.) Since I was on a college schedule and lived 125 miles
away, conventional RCIA wasn't going to work. He agreed to COME TO
SCHOOL and instruct me, which was a lot of fun in a school of 2400
Protestants of various flavors and 5 (FIVE) Catholics. We'd meet in
the library. Fr. John is a cassock-wearing guy, he adds the wool cape
and 'Bells of St Mary's' hat in the winter. He used to joke that he
was worried the students in the library would give themselves whiplash
looking at him when he came in.
November 22, 1991, Christ the King Sunday, I was received into the
church at Saturday evening vigil Mass. No family, no other converts,
my witnesses were a pewful of Protestant friends and one Catholic
friend who drove all the way from Steubenville to be there. I have
never been so sure of anything in my life, than that God wanted me
there, and brought me to that place. For the first time faith was not
simply an activity I had chosen to engage in. It was a relationship
with the One Who sought me, and found me. In the sixteen years since,
I've had struggles, but no matter how dark the road has seemed at
times I know He is still holding on to me.

O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

O light that foll'west all my way,
I yield my flick'ring torch to thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in thy sunshine's blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life's glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

Writing Opporunity for Canticle Magazine

I received a message from the editor of Canticle Magazine: The Voice of Women of Grace. The editor, Heidi, has a blog on the Catholic Converts blogroll and is looking for someone to write an article for the next issue. Here is her email in part:

I'm the editor at Canticle magazine, and I have a last-minute (paying)opportunity for someone -- preferably but not necessarily a woman -- who can reflect in 1000-1100 words about Lent from the perspective of a convert. The details are here: http://heidihesssaxton.blogspot.com/. I need this Monday, and will pick from all the submissions I get by the end of the day Monday. Winnergets $150

.

A new poll

With Advent nearly here, I thought this would be an interesting poll question.

Do you keep an Advent Wreath in your home?
Yes
No
See Results

New blogroll members and conversion stories.

Let's start off by welcoming Jordana at Curmedgeonry. Her conversion story may be found here.

Heather has moved her blog, Doodle Acres.

Next, give Miss Climpson a visit at Steward's Folly.

For another conversion story visit Tara at Loved Sinner.

Next we have Home is Where the Army Sends Us. Also, please keep this family, and all military families, in your prayers as their husband and father is deployed.

Then head over to Catholic Wife and Mother to give CMerie a visit.

Also, we have a new member on the "Friends of Catholic Converts" list: A Nawty Mouser Thots

Is Becoming Catholic Enough?

Fellow convert Randy Hain has been kind enough to share the following article with the Catholic Converts blog. Many thanks to Randy.

Is Becoming Catholic Enough?
By Randy Hain

If you are a convert to the Catholic Church, currently in the RCIA program or considering joining the Church, what is Christ leading you to do with your faith? As a recent convert to the Church, I have frequently asked myself that question over the last few years. I have humbly prayed for discernment, wisdom and revelation coupled with a passionate desire to follow Christ’s will and not my own. I have also spoken countless times with our priests, deacons and other members of the Church for guidance and help. The two key points that have emerged from prayer and discussion are very simple: 1) Your Catholic faith is a lifelong journey and 2) Get involved, make a difference and do something with your faith.

Anyone who makes the decision to join the Church realizes the enormity of the commitment they have made. The hours of study in RCIA, exposure to new ideas, risking alienation of friends and family and embracing the Church are all components of what is one of the most important decisions in your life-entering into full communion with the Catholic Church. I have met many converts (like myself) who come from backgrounds with little or no faith whose decision to join the Church clearly reveals God’s grace and plan for our lives. So, if we can agree that our decision to join the Church is Christ’s will and we are committed to follow Him and the teachings of the Church, I ask the question: Is becoming Catholic enough?

This article is meant to provoke some critical thinking and prayer around the question of what we do with our Catholic faith after we join the Church. This is an important question and one that needs to be answered. It would be a terrible waste to join the Church and then……do nothing. The Book of Revelations tells us, "I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth." -Revelation 3:15-6. A new world has been opened for us and Christ has expectations of us as Catholic Christians in terms of how we worship, live and spread His message. Our Lord says in the Book of Matthew, “You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” -Matthew 5:13-14 and 16. Our challenge is to answer Christ’s call, be good examples to others and glorify God.

I would respectfully ask you to consider the actions suggested below as ways to live out the points made in the first paragraph: Continue your lifelong journey in the Catholic faith and get involved:

Show humility and put Christ’s will before your own
Glorify Christ and give him thanks for every grace and blessing. Put Him first in your thoughts and prayers and His will is more likely to be revealed. "The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted." -Matthew 23:11-12

Develop a Prayer Life and have daily devotional time
Daily prayer is essential to every aspect of our lives. Humbly thanking God and praying for guidance, wisdom and help every day is critical to our spiritual well being. Carve out time daily to read scripture and other books to more fully experience the lessons God has for us.
Commit yourself to following the teachings of the Catholic Church
It is also critical to follow the teachings and rules of the Church and the Magisterium. Why invest the time in becoming Catholic only to reject the teaching and guidance of our Church? Christ promised to protect the teaching of the Church: "He who hears you, hears me; he who rejects you rejects me, he who rejects me, rejects Him who sent me” - Luke 10: 16

Go to Reconciliation……frequently
Frequent confession is one of the best ways to continue receiving God’s graces and avoid sinning. A thorough examination of conscience cleanses you and lifts your spirit. It keeps God’s commandments firmly planted in your mind and becomes a road map for living a life that helps us to get closer to Christ. “He said therefore to them again: Peace be with you. As the Father hath sent me, I also send you. When he had said this, he breathed on them; and he said to them: Receive ye the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.” -John 20:21-23

Strive to Integrate Faith, Family and Work
Do we think about Christ throughout the work day or only during the mass? Are we living out our Catholic faith at home? Striving to integrate the 3 areas of our lives where we spend most of our time should be easy, but it poses a significant challenge for many. Put Christ first….and everything else will follow.

Become a lifelong student of our Faith
We have countless opportunities to continue our education as Catholics beyond RCIA. Our parish has a wonderful website (www.stpeterchanel.org) that is rich in learning resources-go to the Catholic Links page for a number of excellent website links. The amount of information may feel overwhelming, especially if you are new to the faith. View it as a marathon and not a sprint-we are dedicating our lives to knowing Him better and you will never learn everything (and that is ok!). Take a catechism class. Participate in adult education classes like apologetics or bible studies. Read from the extensive number of books available on our Catholic Faith from authors like Scott Hahn, G.K. Chesterton, Jeff Cavins, Thomas Howard, Peter Kreeft and others. C.S. Lewis is also a wonderful author on Christianity in general. "For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God." -Colossians 1:9

Get Involved!
Be a good steward of your time and talent. There are countless ministries that desperately need our help. One of the best ways to live out our faith and honor Christ’s words in Matthew (3rd paragraph above) is to selflessly help others in need. Pray that Christ will lead you to where you are most needed. "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." -1 Corinthians 12:4-7

Go to Eucharistic Adoration
Please find time every week to pray, reflect and meditate in the true presence of Christ in the Adoration chapel. Even better, become an Adoration Guardian-this fulfilling ministry requires guardians 24/7 for the Eucharist except during mass. It is a service to Christ, the parish and you that is incredibly rewarding.

Charitable giving must be more than just a tax break
Being a good steward of your treasure is also important. Too often we look at charitable giving as a way to save money on taxes and not as a gift to those in need. If we can all act more out of charity, make necessary sacrifices and give meaningfully to the charities in need of help, we can begin the journey towards detachment and away from materialism that can be a daily struggle for all of us. Consider Christ’s observation of the Woman and the Two Coins in Mark, “He sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood." -Mark 12:41-44

There is a wealth of information and teaching on guiding Catholic adults on their faith journey. One especially helpful source of guidance is the 1999 Conference of Catholic Bishops which issued a pastoral plan for adult formation in Catholics titled, “Our Hearts Are Burning Within Us”. The Bishops highlighted 6 dimensions that are critical to being an adult Catholic:

1. Know your faith
2. Participate actively in the liturgy

3. Make good decisions in your life
4. Pray
5. Participate actively in community life
5. Reach out to others

With striking clarity, the Bishops help us understand our basic and yet critical responsibilities as Catholic adults.

No matter where you are on your journey, I prayerfully hope these thoughts are helpful and inspire you to do something with your Catholic faith. We have the opportunity to encourage each other when ever possible on this journey and give Christ and the Church the best we have to offer. Thank you and God Bless you.

Welcome to the Catholic Converts blogroll

Karen at Growing Up joins the blogroll and shares her conversion story.

Stop by and give Carl a visit at One Pilgrim's Progress.

We are also joined by Little Scribe at Our Lady's Little Scribe who shares this conversion story. Little Scribe has also added our badge to Concordia Ministries: Why Catholic.

Finally, William at Fish in a Barrel has shared his conversion story.

Out for a few days

I will be out of town until Tuesday, Oct. 23rd. I'll only have access to the internet via dial-up so I won't be posting anything or adding anybody to the blog roll until I get back home.

Opps

I missed adding one new member to the blogroll last night.

Please give Debra a visit at Debra's Random Thoughts

I have . . .

. . . got to do a better job of keeping up.

Welcome to the Catholic Converts blogroll:

Cortney at A Funny Thing Happened.

Chad at Chad Is Not Enought.

James at Ad Silvem Ibimus.

TQ at From Burke to Kirk and Beyond . . . " TQ also shares his conversion story.

Krissy at Sometimes I Think.

John at John C. Walker.

Mark at Suicide of the West.

Peter shares his conversion story at The Truth Will Set You Free

Some stats

The Catholic Converts blog has received 19,032 page hits since it started in May of 2006. No one really noticed the blog until February of this year and over 18,000 of those hits have came since then.

There are no 68 blogs listed in the Catholic Converts blog roll and the blog roll has been displayed on this or other blogs that display it 23,342 times.

If you would like to help spread the word please consider adding the Catholic Converts blog roll to your site. The code can be found here.

Welcome William and Stephen

Please welcome two new members of the Catholic Converts blogroll by giving them a visit.

William at Fish in a Barrel

Stephen at Proud to be a "Catholic" Convert

Stephen is also in RCIA so please offer up a prayer for him.

Catching up

I've gotten really behind on keeping up with the Catholic Converts email account. I'll try to catch up here.

New to the blogroll:
Chris at Home2Rome

Chris also shares his conversion story: How the Saints Helped Lead Me Home and The Challenges and Graces of Conversion

Also give Sarah a visit at sarah-naded.

And be sure to stop by Suzanne's blog at Out of the Looking - Glass World.

We also have to more to pray for as they participate in RCIA this year.

Chris at Cow Bike Rider

And Amy at Leap of Faith

Welcome Jack

Please give Jack a visit at Pentecostal to Catholic (via solipsism).

New Poll

Have you ever attend a TLM (or Extraordinary Rite Mass)?
Yes
No
I want to ASAP
See Results