The Grace Needed For Conversion to the Catholic Church

As one who, by default, thought about conversion to Catholicism from an Anglo-catholic position in an objective apologetical sort of way, via the intellect, I am now convinced that all the great arguments for conversion for me boiled down to one theological ingredient; GRACE. The grace of conversion is coming to grips with one's conscience. Meeting the grace of God, who is rich in goodness and love, allows us to see that we are no longer capable of hiding behind the real fears of making serious breaks in our lives. The GRACE needed in conversion is the grace of the illumined light radiating in our hearts, allowing us to come to terms with who we are and where we need to be. In the face of Jesus, the grace of God has appeared to all and it is in that grace that we are moved to make the decisions we know our conscience is telling us to make. Deep within our hearts God speaks to us and calls us to live out what we know to be true. We cannot always bring everyone we love along with us but when the grace of conversion comes, we act on the illumined love of Christ.

Sometimes it takes time for us to accept this grace. When our dignity and rights are trampled on, when we are not getting what we believe is our fair share, wherever we feel exploited and taken for granted, the grace of conversion calls us to move towards truth and love. I discovered that when I was looking out only for my self-interest, my ecclesial world seemed to be falling apart. I desperately needed the grace of conversion. I needed that prompting of the Holy Spirit to move me in the direction I knew God was calling me. I recall the voice of a Catholic bishop saying to me, 'do not be afraid.' That voice was the voice of Jesus saying, 'Do not be afraid: I have come to bring you the love of the Father, and to show you the way of peace.' The way of peace came when I acted upon the conscience within and the somewhat reluctant step of faith of trying not to be afraid. The grace given in conversion is that added gift that enables us to overcome fear with faith and move towards the light and truth of Christ. The grace of conversion moves us to seek Jesus, to be drawn to his light that dispels the darkness of self-interests and fear from the human heart. The grace of conversion allows us to bow down in humility and adore the Lord in the confidence of his love for us. The grace of conversion allows us not to find "excuses" and "reasons" to move but is simply the quiet movement of the heart to embrace what we know must be if we are to be true to ourselves and to God.

May God give us the grace needed for further conversions in our lives!