HOMEPAGE for this issue: July 27, 2011 // Download PDF Version // Click to install/update Adobe Reader on your computer

SPECIAL SERIES:

Conversion stories are as varied as the individual convert

This is the first story in a series on conversion.

By John Gleason

Strictly by definition, to convert means to bring over from one belief to another—first you’re one thing, then you’re something else. Simple. 

But as is often the case with textbook answers, a definition doesn’t give the reason behind the change.  Was it because of the influence of family or friends? Sometimes there’s an emotional or spiritual experience that sets a person on the path to the Catholic Church. Other times there’s an encounter with someone who makes a lasting impression.

Most of us can rattle off the names of a few people who became Catholic—St. Paul and Emperor Constantine come to mind.  More recent history provides us with a list of people from all walks of life who have become Catholic, among them actors John Wayne, Gary Cooper and Sir Alec Guinness; comedian Bob Hope and author Graham Greene. Even right here in the Archdiocese of Denver there are many stories of people who made the decision to become Catholic. 

Below are some conversion stories.

St. Paul
The man who went from being known as the “Enforcer of Judaism” to “Apostle to the Gentiles,” St. Paul’s conversion story is found in the Acts of the Apostles.
Saul of Tarsus never met Jesus.  Before the crucifixion he was not a follower; in fact he persecuted Christians, helping local authorities to suppress what was considered to be a heresy being committed by the followers of Christ. 

Saul sets off to Damascus on a mission to seek out and arrest any Christians he finds in that city.  During the journey he is struck down by a brilliant light.  A voice says, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” When Saul asks who is speaking, the voice answers, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” (Acts 9: 4-5).

Getting up from the ground, Saul discovers he cannot see. Taken to Damascus, there he remains for three days neither eating nor drinking. It isn’t until a disciple named Ananias prays over Saul and lays hands on him that he regains his sight, is baptized and begins to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues.

Returning to Jerusalem Saul attempts to meet with the apostles, who still only know him as a persecutor.  At first they refuse because of their fear; they don’t believe that he is now a disciple.  Only after they hear Saul’s story and discover that he was openly preaching in Jerusalem did they believe him.

Saul, later known as Paul, then embarks on a series of missions. His first takes him to the island of Cypress, Pamphylia and Pisidia, (what is now Turkey) where he preaches and establishes many churches between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. A second journey has him revisiting these churches, passing through Galatia before heading west to preach the Gospel in eastern Macedonia and Greece. On his third missionary journey, Paul visits churches a third time throughout Asia Minor then travels to the Greek city of Ephesus, which he then uses as the center of his missionary activity for the remainder of this journey.

Along the way, the former persecutor became the persecuted.  There were attempts against the life of Paul—on many occasions he was run out of town, beaten and imprisoned. In the city of Lystra, he was stoned for healing a crippled man before being dragged outside of the city by the mob and left for dead.

While making plans for yet another journey Paul was imprisoned by local authorities in the city of Caesarea and kept in chains for two years.  Following his release he started his final journey, which led to Rome where he again was arrested and imprisoned.  He was beheaded in the year 67.

Bishop James D. Conley
Most Rev. James D. Conley was appointed auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Denver on April 10, 2008 by Pope Benedict XVI.  Raised Presbyterian, Bishop Conley said he was reared by parents who were believing Christians in an atmosphere of good Christian morals.  It was during his junior year at the University of Kansas that his journey to Catholicism began, the result of enrolling in a “Great Books” program at school.

“Reading great classics of Western culture, both pagan and Christian, I was introduced to the great ideas such as truth, goodness and beauty,” he said.  “I discovered how much the Catholic Church influenced Western culture over 2,000 years and was very impressed. But, like all conversions, it was a supernatural thing and not just a rational choice. I received a lot of grace during my college years and had the example of good Catholic friends and teachers who became instruments of God’s grace.”

Converting at the age of 20, Bishop Conley told the Register his mother was happy that he had found faith but his father wasn’t as supportive—at least at first.

“He thought I’d be giving up the freedom to think on my own by becoming a Catholic,” he said, “and that the Church would do all my thinking.” 

Not only did his father change his opinion, but both of Bishop Conley’s parents converted to Catholicism in 1991, when they were baptized, confirmed and received their first holy Communion from their son, who was now a priest.

For those interested in learning about the Catholic Church, Bishop Conley suggests beginning by examining the works of others who’ve already trod the path of conversion such as: St. Augustine, Blessed John Henry Newman, author G.K. Chesterton and contemporary converts like apologists Scott Hahn and Marcus Grodi.

“I’d recommend that they be open to the truth and read as much as they can about the Catholic Church, including the lives of the saints,” Bishop Conley said. 

“You find the Church has much to offer to a world that suffers from relativism and skepticism.”

Sir Alec Guinness
Raised in the Anglican Church, the actor who became known to millions of Star Wars fans as Obe-Wan Kenobi converted to Catholicism in 1956.  Sir Alec Guinness, who at one time considered becoming an Anglican priest, was in France filming “The Detective” based on the Father Brown Murder Mysteries.  While in priest’s costume, Guinness came across a child who mistook the actor for an actual priest.  The child proceeded to speak in French and even though Guinness didn’t understand what the youngster was saying, he was moved by the child’s confidence and attitude, which the clerical attire had inspired.

Guinness began to study Catholicism, He also attended Mass, talked with priests and made a retreat at a Trappist Abbey.  Two years later, both Guinness and his wife became Catholic. They remained devout and regular church-goers for the remainder of their lives. Guinness eventually described his entry into the Church by saying, “There had been no emotional upheaval, no great insight, certainly no proper grasp of theological issues; just a sense of history and the fittingness of things.”

In his book, “A Positively Final Appearance,” which published in 1999 when the actor was 85, Guinness said, “My life has been enjoyable and basically content; the rewards I have received, both professionally and privately, have been undeserved and surprising. ... If I have one regret it would be that I didn’t take the decision to become a Catholic in my early 20s.  That would have sorted out a lot of my life and sweetened it.”