Dear Catholic Exchange:
I was just reading Mark Shea's essay about pleading the Blood of Jesus and how this led him to the Catholic faith.
I'll be brief in my question — just what is the best approach to the evangelicals and esp. the lasped Catholics that joined them too — in regard to the real presence of Jesus Christ in Holy Communion? So many are held back by misconceptions and outright prejudice and among the lasped crowd there is anger as well. I would like to know what you think is best.
Clare Lynch
Clare:
There is no “the” best approach. Protestantism is highly diverse. People reject various aspects of Catholic teaching for an enormous range of reasons. It's generally best to take each person (particularly in Evangelicalism) on a case by case basis. At the same time, there is usually a common menu of theological arguments against the Real Presence among Evangelicals. To deal with the most common items on that menu, I would recommend my own book: This is My Body: An Evangelical Discovers the Real Presence. You can order it at www.mark-shea.com/books.html.
That said, I should also note that lapsed or ex-Catholics don't typically become Evangelicals for theological reasons. They become Evangelicals typically for social or emotional reasons (i.e., Evangelicals know how to welcome and affirm the believer in his gifts and Catholics seem to have a genius for creating parishes full of lonely people) and then various theological excuses are layered on top of those real reasons as a justification (“I realized to my *horror* that we called the priest “father” when Jesus said “Call no man 'father'! How could I have been so blind to the unbiblical teachings of Rome!” etc.) If that's the case with the person you are talking with, then realize that once the theological objections to the Real Presence are dealt with, the job is only half-done. For the real reasons for leaving the Church are not yet dealt with. And they are reasons that have some real justification: namely, we Catholics stink at providing the social and spiritual support at the parish level for brothers and sisters eager to follow Christ. If the person you are talking to is an Evangelical because he found he was not lonely in Evangelicalism and he was deeply lonely in his local parish, then the thing to do is to provide him with support and a real welcome back to parish life, not try to argue him out of his experience.
But that's a whole 'nother discussion. In terms of the Real Presence, my book may well do the trick. If it doesn't, write back and I'll point to more resources.
Mark Shea
Senior Content Editor
Catholic Exchange
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