The September Catholic By Grace Article

Back to School

My husband was pushing forty when he entered the Church. His uncle made the same faith journey a few years earlier, when he was nearly seventy. Both the uncle and the nephew had Catholic wives, but that wasn’t the reason they converted. If that had been their reason, they would have done it much sooner. The real fact of the matter is that both uncle and nephew entered the Church because they had teachable hearts, which eventually gave grace an open door.


Both men are intelligent and highly educated. Without exaggeration, they are the brightest men I know. When I asked my husband why he finally decided to become Catholic, this is what he said:


I realized that I was thinking about it all wrong. There I was, studying for my doctorate, going to class, and listening to professors, and I trusted that these men and women were able to teach me what I need to know. I put faith in the university’s ability to confer degrees on those who attend their institution. It never crossed my mind to ask myself if the instructors were qualified and whether or not I should believe they have the credentials to teach. My job was to show up for class and to be teachable.


Then my husband summarized his epiphany by saying, The Catholic Church is over 2000 years old. The men and women who passed on the faith have been at this faith-thing a long time. The least I can do is trust that they are qualified to hand on the faith to me. I simply needed to show up and be teachable.


The uncle is a man of few words. When asked why he finally became Catholic, he just said, Don’t you think it’s about time?


That kind of midlife (or end-of-life) change in direction requires humility. There’s no room for self-satisfaction. There’s no room for complacency. One must reclaim that childlike hunger for learning. But the challenge isn’t just for those outside the faith. Even the faithful within the Church sometimes lose the joy of learning. All too often, Catholics stop studying their faith once they are confirmed. I’ve heard some non-practicing Catholics say they just stopped going to Mass as a family after the youngest child received First Communion or went through Confirmation.


That is a tragedy. Shortly after being sealed with the Holy Spirit, they put their books on a shelf and let their faith atrophy. The parents proclaimed mission accomplished and the children said that’s cool.


Maybe you have kept the faith better than that. Maybe that doesn’t accurately describe your situation. Great. Even so, there is almost always room for growth.


When was the last time you came to Mass and entered into the Liturgy with deep longing? When was the last time you showed up at Holy Hour and quietly listened for Our Lord’s voice, confident that He was glad to see you and wanted to commune with you? When did you last pause for quiet time, pick up a spiritual book, read the life of a Saint, or join a Bible study? When was the last time you did any of those things with the words on your lips, “Today, I want to learn more. I will be teachable. I will become like a little child.”


You are never too old to become a student of the faith.