It is coming. Among the largest religious media blitzes in U.S.
history---scheduled to air more than 400 times during a three-week
run---these commercials will depict humanity's experience of
hopelessness before presenting redemption in Jesus Christ as the answer.
Millions will view them on major television networks from December 16
through January 8. The program is called Catholics Come Home.
The primary audience---men and women who grew up Catholic, and are
now inactive or "lapsed"---is 27.5 million strong, according to the Pew Forum.
They constitute roughly 10 percent of the U.S. population, making them
the second-largest religious demographic in America behind Roman
Catholics at 77.7 million and ahead of the Southern Baptist Convention
(at 16 million plus). These former Catholics are among your church's
elders, nursery workers, and often compose a sizable portion of your
congregation.
The Message of Catholics Come Home
If you have watched one of the commercials or visited the website,
you were probably impressed by the "evangelical" tone. It is
unmistakably warm and inviting with a refreshingly clear focus on the
person of Jesus. These programs are the fruit of the Second Vatican
Council's vision for mobilizing the laity for outreach (see the
encyclical, Evangelii Nuntiandi, by Pope Paul VI), along with recent statements such as John Paul II's Redemptoris missio and the current agency dedicated to evangelism. Keep Reading >>>
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