Hear the stories of Presbyterians who were drawn to come home to the Catholic Church.
“Once my brothers were off to college, career, military, marriage, and so forth, I was left to decide what I would do with my life. I started college as a pre-law major, but during my freshman year, I felt a call to the ministry… My senior year in college I was president of the Presbyterian church youth group. I gave the sermons on Youth Sunday, and everyone said I did a great job. My pastor encouraged me to consider the ministry as a calling.”
– Dean Waldt
A FEW GREAT VIDEOS
Casey Chalk 55:45
Though Casey Chalk was baptized Catholic, he grew up developing a relationship with Jesus in an Evangelical context. As he got to college, Reformed theology began to appeal to him, but when a trusted friend from seminary decided to become Catholic, it shook Casey and he began to explore a series of questions that would lead him to the Catholic Church as well. Watch Casey’s episode.
Jennifer Kern 56:09
Jennifer Kern grew up a dyed-in-the-wool Calvinist. She even considered carrying tulips down the aisle at her wedding in honor of John Calvin’s 5 point doctrine! Her husband felt called to ministry, and began taking classes at a Reformed seminary. Curious that her impression of Catholicism might be a caricature, she decided to do research, and what she found surprised her and made her want to know more about the Church. Watch Jennifer’s episode.
Dr. Tim Gregson 56:03
Dr. Tim Gregson came from a wonderful Christian family, and fell in love with music at a young age, going on to become a Presbyterian music minister. However, nagging questions about the nature of worship and the divisions among Christians led him to explore early Christianity, and what he found there drew him more and more toward the reality of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church. Watch Dr. Gregson’s episode.
A FEW GREAT WRITTEN STORIES
What is Truth?
Marcus Grodi
“Every Sunday I would stand in my pulpit and interpret Scripture for my flock, knowing that within a fifteen-mile radius of my church were dozens of other Protestant pastors. They all believed that the Bible alone is the sole authority for doctrine and practice, yet each was teaching something different from what I was teaching. I also had the knowledge — no, the gut-twisting certitude — that one day I would die and stand before the Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal Judge. I would be required to answer for how I led the people He had given me to pastor.” Read Marcus’s story.
A Protestant Historian Discovers the Catholic Church
A. David Anders, PhD
“I accepted the anti-Catholic attitudes of my seminary professors, so when it came time to move on in my studies, I decided to focus on a historical study of the Reformation. I thought there could be no better preparation for assaulting the Catholic Church and winning converts than to thoroughly understand the minds of the great leaders of our faith — Martin Luther and John Calvin. To this end, I began Ph.D. studies in historical theology at the University of Iowa. I never imagined that Reformation Church history would move me to the Catholic Church.” Read Dr. Anders’s story.
More Than the Bible
Mark Hausam
“We became members of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC), a small, conservative Reformed denomination. We continued as members there for the next fourteen years. Six of our nine children were baptized there. Over our time there, we became more and more Reformed in our thought and practice. In 2005, I became a ruling elder in the church, and I continued in that role for seven years. In addition to helping to govern the church, I preached sermons on many occasions, usually when our pastor was out of town.” Read Mark’s story.
More Inspiration for the Journey
Explore the full archive of conversion stories from former Presbyterians.
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RECOMMENDED BOOKS & OTHER RESOURCES FOR PRESBYTERIANS
Rome Sweet Home
by Scott & Kimberly Hahn
Well-known Catholic couple, Scott and Kimberly Hahn, have been traveling and speaking all over North America about their conversion from staunch Presbyterianism to the Catholic faith. In Rome Sweet Home these two outstanding Catholic apologists tell in their own words about the incredible spiritual journey that led them to embrace Catholicism.
How God Hauled Me Kicking and Screaming into the Catholic Church
by Kevin Lowry
A preacher’s kid at a Catholic university, Kevin Lowry settled into a double major in beer and billiards soon followed by uncomfortable run-ins with pious students, failing grades, increasing anxiety, a missing night and the startling realization that some fellow students actually attended Mass the morning after a party instead of sleeping it off. After getting kicked out, Kevin got his act together, got the MBA, and also got the girl. Meanwhile, God was working, drawing him to the inevitable conclusion that Catholicism was true despite his objections.
Stunned by Scripture: How the Bible Made Me Catholic
Dr. John Bergsma
The Pope, devotion to Mary, confession … just where are these topics in the Bible? Why does the Catholic Church seem to focus on so many things that aren’t Scriptural? Or so thought former Protestant pastor John Bergsma. Stunned by Scripture is an engaging examination of the things Dr. Bergsma once considered obstacles to ever becoming Catholic himself. Over an eighteen-month spiritual journey, Bergsma was stunned again and again by the biblical support he found for even the stickiest teachings of the Catholic Church.
