Should Catholics Evangelize?

An inspiring new book, Catholic Street Evangelization: Stories of Conversion and Witness, answers an important question: should Catholics evangelize? And how can they effectively share their faith with others? This book begins with the inspiring story of the Editor, Steve Dawson – his dramatic conversion to Catholicism as a young man and his founding of St. Paul Street Evangelization, an international apostolate that has grown to hundreds of teams in seven countries in just a few years.

This book includes many moving stories of conversion and witness. The authors are ordinary Catholics who have come to love Christ so much that they now talk about Him with total strangers in public places—street corners, parks, and shopping areas. They aren’t theologians, nor are they highly trained apologists with Ambrosian rhetorical skills or Dale Carnegie slickness, yet their simple missionary efforts have yielded amazing results.

 The book’s style is readable, accessible, and conversational. It illustrates the missionary calling of all baptized Christians, including Catholics. It reveals the joy and fulfillment that come to those who humbly yet boldly share the good news of God’s mercy with others.

 “This book is a great reminder of the mission of the laity in evangelizing the world,” says the Most Reverend Allen Vigneron, Archbishop of Detroit.

Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers, author of Behold the Man: A Catholic Vision of Male Spirituality, explains, “Dawson’s unique approach to sharing the Good News proves that it is not polemics but showing people the face of Christ that wins the day.”

Al Kresta, the President of CEO of Ave Maria Communications, says, “I love this book. I love these stories. This could be the most effective single volume at changing American Catholic attitudes about evangelization.”

“The young Catholics of St. Paul Street Evangelization have been remarkably successful in drawing to the Catholic faith people who had little interest in religion. In these pages are their stories: full of hope, full of joy, and full of success,” says Karl Keating, author of What Catholics Really Believe.

Dr. John Bergsma, Professor of Theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville, says, “Pope St. John Paul II called for a New Evangelization, but who’s actually doing it? These people are. Read their stories, learn, and be encouraged.”

“These modern-day ‘apostles’ have undertaken the momentous task of teaching Catholics to step up and live out their calling,” says Steve Ray, author of Crossing the Tiber: Evangelical Protestants Discover the Historical Church.

 
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About the Author:

Steve Dawson is the founder and National Director of St. Paul Street Evangelization. He has been featured on EWTN Television and Radio, Catholic Answers Live, Catholic Connection, the Radio Maria Network, Sirius Satellite Radio, and Archangel Radio. He lives with his wife and two children in Bloomington, Indiana.

Courtesy of Ignatius Press.