One week ago, the Cambridge team had its January outing. We had seven (!?) evangelists come out that day, which I think might be a record (or a tie with a record; I don’t recall). We had two first-timers with us, as well two second-timers, plus three veterans including me. It was a beautiful snowy day in Harvard Square. We talked to many people, but four encounters continue to stand out to me one week later. Please pray for these folks!

First, we spoke with a couple who didn’t indicate any religious background, but who seemed interested in receiving free rosaries and chatting. When we asked how we could pray for them, they requested that we pray for them to have a child. They also revealed that they had suffered a miscarriage a short time ago. When people share something so personal like that with us, it always hits me in a deep place; they are likely open to sharing with us as strangers because of what we represent, or rather, Who we represent. And that’s a deep privilege. We prayed for their consolation, for them to conceive and carry to term, as well as for the soul of their little one who had passed away. Please join us in praying for this couple.

The next encounter I want to highlight was with a young adult who was very personable and excited to chat with us. He grew up in a Mexican family but was never baptized. When we learned this, apparently our eyes bugged out, which he found quite entertaining. He asked about our stories, how we came to take Catholicism seriously. I was able to share my testimony. At SPSE, we practice our testimonies during the Intro to Evangelization course, but this was the first time I had a good opportunity to use it! This man revealed to us that he believes in God and prays every day but expressed reluctance in taking it further than that. To which I was able to say, “Same, back before my conversion.” To which he playfully said, “So you’re telling me there’s still a chance for me?” One of my fellow evangelists commented that there was something that made him stop to talk to us and that that was God working. Please pray for him! (He’s also looking for a new, better-paying job, preferably outside the country, if you want to add that to your intentions.)

Another conversation we had was with a middle-aged woman who had grown up Muslim in Iran, though she no longer considers herself religious. She had read a book called Zealot, which she told us is about a Muslim who converts to Christianity. So we talked a bit about that. We also got into a discussion about whether Jesus is God or not, which brought us to C.S. Lewis’s “Lord, Liar, or Lunatic” argument, which seemed to resonate with her. When we asked this woman for her prayer intentions, she said something quite beautiful. She said she wants a place that feels like home, that she has found herself living in many different places and just wants to feel rooted. We prayed with her for that. We ask that you’ll also pray for her!

Finally, we had a brief conversation with a couple of MIT undergrads - an electrical engineer and a computer scientist (the latter of which is my field, so we were able to connect over that). The two students accepted rosaries and pamphlets on how to pray the rosary. We asked whether they had any sort of religious background. Neither did, but one of them said that he is open. We told them about the FOCUS chapter at MIT. I wish I’d asked the open one whether he had any questions we could try to help with…but the conversation just sort of wrapped up. God will take care of the rest! Please pray for these two!