Jeff grew up Catholic, but at age 18 he left the Church and became a protestant pastor. Some years later, he came back to the Catholic Church, and he brought with him a lot of insight from his time in the protestant community. In this interview, he shares those insights, emphasizing how the Catholic Church has the fullness of faith and can better share that faith by learning from practical techniques used by our protestant brothers and sisters.

Shownotes:

Part 1: What 5 Things Can We Learn from Protestants?

1. Hospitality
   • Protestant churches makes this a priority in their churches and in their homes.
   • When people arrive in the parking lot, the welcoming begins.
     • They had special parking spots.
     • They are welcomed into the church.
     • They had home small groups, coffee and donuts, and children’s groups.

2. Scripture
   • Scripture is the center of their faith (scripture and sacraments are the center of our Faith).
   • Protestants have not actually memorized massive amounts of scripture, but typically 5-10 verses. Anyone can pick some verses to memorize.
   • They participate in Bible studies more often, and this would be beneficial for Catholics to do as well.
3. Personal Relationship with Jesus Christ
   • This is a common question from protestants.
   • We as Catholics do have a personal relationship with God.
     • We believe that we have a personal relationship and “corporate” relationship.
   • We need to acknowledge both types of relationships in the Catholic Church and encourage growth in both.
4. Discipleship
   • Helping each other grow in the faith and our relationship with God
   • Protestants will pray with each other and lead each other on; this is not as common in the Catholic Church, but seems to be growing.
5. Preaching vs. Homilies
   • The sermon in a protestant setting is different than a homily
     • A homily is not the center of the mass, it complements the scripture reading
     • A sermon is the heart of the service, it is what they came to hear
   • There are 3 tactics to giving a really good homily
     • Know your faith
     • Know your people, your flock
     • Know how to take the message and how to apply it to the flock
   • Some priests post their homilies online every week. If you want a good homily, you can find many online- bad homilies are no reason to leave the Catholic Faith!

More Great Resources from Jeff

Find free blogs, videos, and resources about Scripture and the Catholic faith at http://biblestudyforcatholics.com/.

Learn more about The Great Adventure Bible Timeline and preview any study for free.

For an easy way to transform your approach to reading Scripture, check out Jeff’s Bible Timeline Chart.

For an illustrated resource introducing God’s love story to children while helping them to understand how the Catholic Church is the body of Christ on Earth try The Great Adventure Storybook.

 We’d Love to Hear from You

Do you have comments, questions, or topic suggestions for the Ascension Roundtable hosts? Use the comment box below or email us at ascensionroundtable@ascensionpress.com. You may hear your question or comment in an upcoming podcast episode!

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