Greenville, SC
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The following story comes to us from team leader Caleb with our team in Greenville, SC:
Ernie, Mason, and I went out to the Barnyard Flea Market this morning and set up our table full of Rosaries, Miraculous Medals, Crucifixes, Bibles, and other Catholic literature. After that, we blessed ourselves with Holy Water and prayed. At the Barnyard, it always takes a little while before people show up, but there was eventually a constant stream of passersby. Of course, many people took the little cards we pass out that have on one side a picture of our crucified savior and on the other a short version of the Gospel. This time though, instead of saying, “God bless you”, I was inspired to say, “Repent and believe the Gospel.” Just that short phrase seemed to be a shock for some, but it’s true. It’s a challenge we too receive daily from our Lord, and is the evangelist’s basic message no matter who we’re engaging.
Next, I met a young man interested in a Rosary, as the one he got from the Vatican had broken. He also took a “How to Pray the Rosary” pamphlet and informed me that he’d traveled to Rome with his family and that his Protestant grandma wasn’t happy about it. Before his nephew and grandpa came over, he mentioned he was attending an Orthodox liturgy in Spartanburg. I engaged the nephew, and Ernie continued the conversation with the young man. His nephew asked if he could take anything and I suggested a Miraculous Medal. I used the opportunity to ask him a few questions. “Who is Jesus?” The boy said, “The Savior.” “That’s right” I said, “Now whose image is on this medal?” He said, “Jesus?” “No” I said, “This is actually…”, and the Grandpa chimed in with, “the Virgin Mary.” “Now who is the Virgin Mary?” I asked. “The mother of Jesus”, he rightly proclaimed. I went on, “And mothers really love their sons and daughters. When we believe in Jesus, we become his brothers and sisters, and she becomes our mother. She prays for us because she was so close to Jesus. When she prays for us, sometimes miracles happen. This is the reason we call it the Miraculous Medal, because some people have seen miracles happen with it. You wear it and ask Mary to pray for you, maybe you’ll see a miracle, or maybe you can give it to someone else who needs a miracle.” I then placed it around his neck, and he thanked me with a fist bump.
Later, a few Hispanic families stopped by. They all identified as Catholic, but with low interest. When asked the name of their parish, they hesitated. Although they weren’t active, we were still hopeful as they took rosaries, Miraculous Medals, and a Spanish Bible. I told them how important God is in our lives, so we need to talk with Him in prayer, meditate on the rosary daily, not just use it for decoration. One of the men said he prayed the rosary every day which was a pleasant surprise. I concluded that a difficult life and worldly climate strain anyone’s piety and overall relationship with Our Lord, but the extra effort to overcome that is the path to sainthood.
Praise be Jesus Christ!