Blacksburg, VA
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The following report comes to us from team leader Zach with our team in New River Valley, Virginia:
This past Saturday, a convergence of many local events (Virginia Tech parent visitation weekend and sports) provided great foot traffic and conversations. We had lots of requests for prayers from students approaching finals week and discerning if Virginia Tech was the right school for them. A Virginia Tech band bake sale also set up across from us. One of the organizers was Catholic, and she asked for a Miraculous Medal. Through her witness, other band members witnessed our beautiful faith. One evangelist was recognized by multiple people he works with, so he’s well set-up for fielding questions when he returns to work next week! The funniest connection we made was with a young couple. A large group of well-dressed young adults were walking past, and an attractive young lady accepted our free rosary offer. It was a very brave act for someone so young, as the rest of the group waited for her about 10ft away. Her date was definitely planning to ignore us, but as soon as he saw her take a rosary, he asked for one too. We said a quick prayer with them before they went on their way.
We had two interesting interactions. We ran into many Muslims, including a group of men who asked us if we were Christian. We said yes, and asked about their faith as they walked away. They yelled back something profane, to which we said, “Well, God bless y’all!” It made us wonder how to better connect with Muslims, especially given our diverse campus. The second interesting experience we had was with a guy wearing a shirt that said “Kill All Pedophiles.” He began setting up exactly where we were set up, so we moved to another corner to avoid association. He rambled on with a raised voice which seemed anti-Catholic, but as we were leaving, he said “Christ is King!” and we said “Amen!”
Some key takeaways were: in an age of social media gossip and “hardcore” religious people being seen as crazy, many young folk risk smirks, incredulity, and ostracization to draw closer to Jesus. It is simply incredible, and they testify to the need for Catholic street evangelists. Do not underestimate nor look down upon physical attraction as a vehicle for encountering God’s Love and Mercy. As Fr. Ignatius Schweitzer reminds us, “God Himself woos us like a shy lover.” I’d argue if Love is God’s first language, then Beauty is His second. These facts permeate the Old and New Testament, and can be intuited by single, clerical, religious, and married people. Offering a free rosary may not be the best approach to engaging with Muslims. Perhaps opening with, “Oh, you’re Muslim? Allah al-Wahid” (God is One) is the way to go. According to the Quran, the Christian Triune God is incorrectly composed of the persons Allah, Mother Mary, and Jesus — it might open up conversation if you say “God is One” in Arabic!