{"id":2179687,"date":"2024-02-19T07:28:02","date_gmt":"2024-02-19T12:28:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-protestants-convert-to-catholicism\/"},"modified":"2024-02-19T07:35:34","modified_gmt":"2024-02-19T12:35:34","slug":"why-protestants-convert-to-catholicism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-protestants-convert-to-catholicism\/","title":{"rendered":"Reasons for Protestant Conversion to Catholicism"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwhy-protestants-convert-to-catholicism%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2179687&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Why Do \u2064Protestants Convert?<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/davenantinstitute.org\/why-do-protestants-convert\"><i>Why Do Protestants Convert?<\/i><\/a>  should be read by many, even though it may please few. Coauthored by Brad \u2062Littlejohn and Chris Castaldo, this slim volume regards conversion holistically,\u200d as a process involving \u200bthe\u2064 whole person, rather\u2062 than only a \u2063matter of \u2064dueling\u2063 theological propositions.<\/p>\n<p>Consequently, the authors\u2019 answers to the question in their title may \u2062irate everyone. \u2064Protestants may feel excessively \u200bcriticized\u2063 while Catholic readers \u200dmay\u200d complain that the authors\u2019 sociological and psychological focus avoids serious engagement with Catholic theology. \u200cBut\u200b there was no need for \u2063another book arguing over theology. Conversions rarely begin from theological contemplation, but from a sense \u2064that Protestantism lacks something Catholicism has. Thus, explaining why Protestants, and especially so many \u200bof their \u2063\u201cbest and brightest,\u201d convert requires examining the failures of modern\u200c American Protestantism.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-584944803\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The basic problem is, as Carl\u200d Trueman\u2063 observed in\u200c a brief \u200cforward, that \u200b\u201cthe idiom of the rock concert\u2062 with added\u2064 TED talk is scarcely adequate to convey the holiness of God, the beauty of worship and the seriousness of the Christian faith.\u201d Generations \u200dof <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sean-penn-botches-theology-evangelical-trump-leaders-should-be-impeached-by-the-vatican\/\" title=\"Sean Penn Botches Theology: Evangelical Trump Leaders Should \u2018Be Impeached By The Vatican\u2019\">evangelical leaders<\/a> have embraced the idea that casual, entertaining,\u2062 \u201cseeker-sensitive\u201d church services are the key to a growing congregation. Some \u200bsucceed, but they leave a\u2064 lot behind in the attempt. This\u200c is \u2062why it often seems that nearly every intellectually or \u2063aesthetically sensitive American evangelical will at\u2062 some point feel the allure of\u200c Catholicism \u2014 the road to Rome often begins with a \u2064sense that one\u2019s Protestant church\u200d is missing something important, if not several things.<\/p>\n<p>For the sake of analysis, Littlejohn and Castaldo try \u2062to \u200bseparate the motives for conversion, even while recognizing that they will\u2064 inevitably be \u200cintermingled in the psyche and\u2063 conversion process. They group \u200bthese factors into triads and begin with the \u201cpsychology of \u2064conversion,\u201d observing that Catholicism offers paternal authority \u201cin an age that has all but blacklisted the very\u2062 word\u201d and that \u201cprecious few of our Protestant churches give their worshippers a \u200bsense of being in the presence \u200bof the holy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Instead, evangelicals in particular are encouraged to \u201cwaltz casually\u201d before\u2064 God \u201cwith gym shorts and a latte.\u201d It\u2063 is no wonder that\u200c some are \u201ccaptivated\u201d when they witness the Catholic Mass, along with the rest of the aesthetic heritage of the Church of Rome\u2064 \u2014 even when wealthy evangelical\u2064 congregations build large churches, they \u200blook \u200dlike\u2062 convention centers, not cathedrals.<\/p>\n<p>And to \u200bthe\u200b promises of real authority, and \u200breverential\u2064 worship aided by \u200dreal beauty, Catholicism adds intellectual and cultural \u2064sophistication absent from much of the evangelical world. For example, Catholics are overrepresented in \u2064conservative legal and intellectual circles. In such \u2063circumstances, conversion may also \u2063seem\u200b like\u200b a route to belonging and even\u2063 status.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c86be3459e744d54f31629f91ac4a5fe fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c86be3459e744d54f31629f91ac4a5fe\"><\/div>\n<p>A \u2062point\u2064 that might \u200chave been fruitfully drawn out more is that potential converts are disproportionately exposed to what \u2063is best in\u2064 Catholicism. Encountering Catholicism through\u200d the sort \u2062of devout, intellectual, and artistic circles the authors describe obscures and blunts the reality\u2064 of much \u2064of modern \u200cAmerican Catholicism. The \u200bhospitality, warmth, and \u200dbeauty \u2064that such circles offer are precious, but that \u2064is not the norm for American Catholic life, which is full of \u200bplenty of other parishes that function as sacrament factories \u200cwith\u2063 terrible preaching and little community, to say nothing\u200b of\u2062 the apostasy and scandals that plague the \u200bChurch of Rome. Consequently, potential converts \u2064should reckon \u200cwith the disappointing realities of American Catholicism outside of the rarified circles of the conservative Catholic elite.<\/p>\n<p>The authors next turn to how Catholic theological claims\u200b appeal to\u200b converts, highlighting Rome\u2019s promises of certainty, \u200chistorical continuity, and\u2064 a\u2062 sacramental life with \u2062tangible sources of\u200d grace. Each of these fills\u2063 gaps common to American evangelicalism.<\/p>\n<p>To those unsettled \u200dby \u2062the prospect of trusting nothing more than\u2062 their \u2064private interpretation and the disparate interpretations\u2064 of a plethora of\u2064 ill-educated evangelical \u2062leaders \u200dand influencers, Catholicism offers certainty,\u2064 with\u2062 the weight\u200c of tradition behind\u2062 it. \u200bLikewise, Catholic tradition provides a sense of the continuity of the faith that many Protestants \u2063crave in contrast to the numerous\u200c pastors and teachers who essentially ignore Christian teaching and history between around \u206490 A.D. and sometime \u2062in the 20th century, and\u200c the many who \u200bregard the majority of \u200bChristian history as essentially an extended festival of heresy.<\/p>\n<p>Evangelical converts also appreciate Catholicism\u2019s\u200c sacramental focus. For example, the Catholic reverence for the Eucharist is a stark contrast to an evangelical culture in which communion, for \u2064example, is \u2063just a symbol that is \u200cpoorly explained, infrequently administered, and irreverently received.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-d080621d4339a5096c122838e3ac4129 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-d080621d4339a5096c122838e3ac4129\"><\/div>\n<p>Littlejohn\u200d and Castaldo conclude their tour of \u200cconversion motivations by surveying sociological factors. For those weary of division, Catholicism offers unity. For those\u2062 sick of shallowness,\u2062 it\u200d promises \u2063depth. And for those exhausted by\u200b irrelevance, its institutional and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/summertime-and-the-reading-is-easy-20-writers-worth-diving-into\/\" title=\"Summertime And The Reading Is Easy: 20 Writers Worth Diving Into\">intellectual power<\/a> promises importance and effective action. That these echo prior\u200d points illustrates how the different angles of investigation chosen by the authors keep \u200dfinding the same core reasons for conversion.<\/p>\n<p>Their conclusion is \u2063that Protestants convert because of Protestant failures. For Catholics, these\u2064 failures are evidence of the fundamental deficiencies\u2064 of Protestantism, but for Protestants such as Littlejohn and Castaldo, they are \u2063an urgent warning demanding renewal. Thus, the core audience for this book is not so much potential converts as Protestant pastors and\u2064 other leaders who can help remedy the deficiencies of American Protestantism.<\/p>\n<p>The authors insist that the Reformed tradition has the resources \u2064to fill the holes that are leading many of Protestantism\u2019s \u201cbest and brightest\u201d to\u2063 look \u2062toward Rome. The book reminds \u200breaders that, \u201cFar from trying \u200dto break with \u2062tradition, the Reformers were seeking to recover it, a legacy that we must recapture and emulate \u200bin our own day.\u201d Protestant worship can \u2062be beautiful, reverent, liturgical, and sacramental. Protestant preaching \u200cand teaching can be authoritative, intellectually formidable, and historically informed.<\/p>\n<p>The Reformed heritage can meet the needs that lead many \u2064to look \u200ctoward Rome. But this will \u2064require leaders who want \u2064to maintain and develop their spiritual patrimony, rather\u200c than chasing\u200b the latest trends. As Littlejohn and Castaldo bluntly put\u2063 it, \u200b<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/macarthur-the-end-of-frivolous-religion\/\" title=\"MacArthur: The End of Frivolous Religion?\">evangelical churches<\/a> need to follow the Reformers\u2019 example in trying to carefully balance \u201cWord and Sacraments\u2064 in worship, bringing together mind and heart, \u200bsoul\u2064 and \u200cbody, individual and \u2062community\u201d rather than focusing on the \u201cright balance of Coffee Hour and \u200dPraise Band Hour.\u201d \u200bHarsh, but fair.<\/p>\n<p>The authors\u2019 admonitions regarding why\u200b Protestants should not convert are less helpful, though it is \u2064understandable why they wanted to include them. But these arguments, shoved in at the ends of chapters \u200dand in \u200ca short afterward, are brusque to \u200bthe point of being counterproductive. Forceful but \u200dunderdeveloped denunciations of \u200cCatholic\u200d doctrine and practice \u200bare unlikely to win back those considering conversion. \u2062This book is not the right place for those debates.<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless,\u2064 Littlejohn and Castaldo have succeeded in providing a concise and compelling account of how the failures of Protestant churches are leading \u200dsome to Rome. The diagnosis may be painful, but \u200din providing it, they have outlined the road to renewing and revitalizing the Reformed tradition \u200cand\u2064 American\u200c evangelicalism.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-d0d856d254eebf2cfaa5edfede75c9c1 fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-d0d856d254eebf2cfaa5edfede75c9c1\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"> <\/p>\n<h2> How do the authors caution potential converts about the disappointing\u2064 realities \u2064of American Catholicism outside of the\u2064 circles they describe<\/h2>\n<p><span>  S to convert to\u2062 Catholicism. They argue that the Reformed tradition needs to reclaim a sense of the holiness of God, the beauty \u200bof worship, and the seriousness \u2062of the Christian faith. They emphasize the need for deep, reverential worship that \u2064invokes a sense of awe and presence of \u2064the\u200b holy, rather \u200bthan casual, entertaining services that focus on attracting a larger congregation.<\/p>\n<p>The authors also highlight the importance of intellectual and \u2062cultural sophistication, something that \u200dthey suggest\u200c is lacking in \u200bmany evangelical circles. They note that Catholics are overrepresented in conservative legal and intellectual \u200ccircles, and suggest that \u200dthis may be an appealing aspect for potential converts who are looking for belonging and status.<\/p>\n<p>However, the authors caution potential converts to consider\u2063 the disappointing realities of American Catholicism outside of the circles they describe. They acknowledge that not all Catholic parishes offer the\u2062 same level of hospitality,\u200c warmth, and beauty, and that the Church of Rome\u2063 itself is \u200bnot free of apostasy and scandals.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of theological claims, the authors suggest \u200cthat Catholicism offers certainty, historical continuity, and a sacramental life that fills gaps common to American evangelicalism. They note that Catholic\u200c tradition provides a sense of continuity\u2064 of \u2062the faith, which many Protestants crave. They also highlight \u200dthe reverence for the Eucharist in Catholicism, contrasting it with the symbolic nature of communion in \u2062evangelicalism.<\/p>\n<p>From \u200da sociological\u200d perspective, the authors argue that Catholicism offers unity, depth,\u2064 and relevance to those who are weary of\u2063 division, shallowness, and irrelevance. They\u2062 highlight the institutional and intellectual power of Catholicism as a promise of importance\u2062 and effective action.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, the authors conclude that \u2063the conversions of Protestants to Catholicism are a result of the failures of modern American Protestantism. They \u2064see these \u200bconversions as a wakeup \u2064call for Protestant pastors \u2062and leaders to address the deficiencies in their own tradition. They believe that\u2062 the Reformed tradition has \u200bthe resources to fill the \u2062gaps that are leading many Protestants\u2062 to convert, and urge \u200dProtestant leaders to take \u200daction in renewing their faith and addressing these deficiencies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Why Do Protestants Convert? A thought-provoking read for many, despite potentially pleasing few. Coauthored by Brad Littlejohn and Chris Castaldo, this concise book explores conversion as a holistic process, encompassing the entirety of an individual, rather than a mere theological debate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":538,"featured_media":2179688,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Book-Cover-Featured-Image-4.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2179687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Book-Cover-Featured-Image-4.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2179687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/538"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2179687"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2179687\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2179688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2179687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2179687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2179687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}