Boise, ID
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This report comes to us from team leader Lucy with our team in Boise, ID:
People were in a festive mood, and more of them than usual were open to receiving a Rosary. God loves people! So thank you again for your prayers for the Boise Catholic street evangelization effort.
The free skate rink was open, but we set up in our usual spot. A large, half-lit Menorah had been set up on the side of the skating rink nearest us. Several people posed for pictures in front of it. Not surprisingly, perhaps, none of them accepted a Rosary.
“Barry” was a vendor at the conference next door and stopped to pick up a couple of Rosaries for his daughters. (He had a Rosary of his own that was blessed by the Pope.) He knew what the Rosary was because he had attended a Catholic school when he was a kid, but had spent many years away from any kind of church. His wife had also been raised Catholic, but had quit over feminist issues. They now attend a lookalike non-Catholic Christian church in their home state. He likes it because it is large, successful, and his girls also like it. When Chuck began to bring up the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist, Barry interrupted by partially quoting the Nicene Creed about apostolic succession and the holy catholic church. It was apparent, though, that he believed those things applied to all churches. Please pray for Barry, his wife, and fallen-away Catholics everywhere.
A man on a bicycle wanted a Rosary. He said he had been baptized Catholic but “hadn’t been Catholic” for a long time. We assured him that as a baptized Catholic he was still a Catholic, and encouraged him to get to know Jesus again by praying the Rosary. We gave him a “Come Home” pamphlet. Then he told us he had recently become homeless but he was working to get his life back together. Pray that he works as hard to repair his spiritual life as his economic life.
A large extended family, with 6-8 children under the age of 10, walked by and declined our offer. But the last couple of kids in the line ran to the table and selected a Rosary before running to catch up with the rest of the family. Soon, the other children came running back to get a “necklace” but gave us blank looks when we talked about the prayer. Before the last group had finished choosing, the first 2 groups came back and returned the Rosary pamphlet (plus a Rosary or two), saying, evidently at the prompting of their father, that they “didn’t want to waste them.” We watched one of the boys looking quizzically at the figure of Christ on the Cross. Pray that those blessed Rosaries may be the seed of the Good News planted in their hearts.
Praised be Jesus Christ! Please pray for God to send people to this team with hearts prepared to perceive their need for Our Savior Jesus Christ and His Holy Catholic Church, and that much good fruit for His Kingdom comes from their efforts.