Good News, Bad News

Evangelization, Conversion and the Crisis of Faith

A review of Father McCloskey's book by Stephen Vincent.

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What do Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., Judge Robert Bork, White House spokesman Tony Snow, columnist Bob Novak, publisher Alfred Regnery and international pro-lifer Austin Ruse all have in common?

All converted to the Catholic faith under the guidance of Father C. John McCloskey, an Opus Dei priest who ran the Catholic Information Center in the heart of the nation's capital from 1998 to 2004. Written with Russell Shaw, who has been reporting from Washington for the Catholic press for 40 years, this book tells the story from behind the scenes, in the words (often anonymously quoted) of converts.

Father McCloskey lists 80 converts — some familiar names, some not — who responded to his request to write about their road to Rome. A reader can have fun trying to guess the identity of "the banker" who once "sniggered at the alleged hypocrisies and superstitions of organized religion," or "Mike, a former Methodist who is an attorney and social activist in Washington."

Yet the book is much deeper than a conversion catalog. Father McCloskey is a serious man with a serious message about how every Catholic should be about the business of making converts (he does not shy from using that word). He is unapologetic about the need for apologetics. Every Catholic, he says, should be prepared to give a reasoned and heartfelt presentation or defense of his faith to those who ask — and even to those who don't.

"People aren't shy about recommending restaurants, movies, TV shows … to those they care about," he writes. "Are Jesus Christ and his Church of less importance than the greatest new sushi place in town …?"

In that question lies a key clue to the "crisis of faith" of the subtitle.

Rule No. 1 for making converts, the priest writes, is for a Catholic to live the faith fully himself. He should be faithful, morally upright, kind and caring. Next, he should have more than a surface knowledge of his faith and be familiar with the Catechism and some reliable Catholic authors (the appendix offers a lifetime Catholic reading plan). Then he should talk about the faith to friends and family, and not be afraid to "pop the question."

Father McCloskey says the question that has opened numerous doors into the Church is simply, "Have you ever thought of becoming a Catholic?" Very few people are offended by the question, he points out, and many are flattered that they would be considered a candidate for Church membership.

Despite the bad publicity the Church has received in recent years, Father McCloskey insists, the faith is still held in high regard by those who are seeking honest answers to life's big questions.

Why two authors? Shaw explains in his introduction that he organized the material Father McCloskey provided, asked him questions to clarify issues and added some of his own thoughts. In places, the result of the split duties is a bit uneven and, at times, repetitive.

Yet the great strengths of the book remain: the compelling first-person conversion stories and the uncompromising lessons on how to bring others to Christ and his Church.