Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth. But Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” - John 1:45

In the spring of 1994, I was not a disciple of Jesus. I was a college student who had grown up Catholic, and I could tell you some things about Jesus. But I was not committed to a personal relationship with him; I had not turned over my life to him and decided to follow him.

But that spring I received two invitations. The first was from a group of people I knew at my college – about half of them Catholics and the other half mainline Protestant and nondenominational Christians. They invited me to a Christian music festival that summer. I said to them (more or less), “Can anything good come from a Christian band?” They said to me (more or less), “Come and see!” For some reason, I did. And at that gathering of Christians from various churches, the Holy Spirit used a talk given by a nondenominational speaker to change my life. I knew at that point that God was real and I made an adult decision to follow Jesus.

The second invitation was from a friend who invited me to a Catholic youth conference. There, just two weeks after the music festival, a Franciscan priest led us in Eucharistic adoration, I decided to return to Confession after a long time, and I knew I would follow Jesus as a disciple in the Catholic Church. Those invitations, from Catholics and other Christians, and those experiences, led by Catholics and other Christians, made all the difference in my life. Some of those Catholics and other Christians are still friends of mine today. One thing it’s taught me is that there is so much more that unites Catholics and other Christians than the things that divide us. Those divisions are real and we need to follow the Holy Spirit in seeking to resolve them. But when it came to the foundational message of the Gospel that all followers of Jesus share – and that I needed to experience as a young adult – God used Catholics and other Christians together to lead me on my next steps. The more that kind of collaboration happens, the closer I think we get to the unity of believers Jesus calls us to.

Alpha is a method of saying to people (like me back then): “Come and see!” And to people who are already disciples: “Come and be renewed and find something to invite people to!” Alpha originally came out of an Anglican church in London, and it’s purpose is to share the foundational message of the Gospel that all followers of Jesus share – Catholics and other Christians. It’s designed as a good first step for those exploring faith. Used in a Catholic context like here at St. Raphael, and in many other Catholic churches around the world, we have the chance to invite people after Alpha to take the next steps to discover even more of the richness of following Jesus in the Catholic faith.

Those invitations to “come and see” made all the difference in my life. Will you join me in praying for and inviting at least 3 people to Alpha this Fall?

Come, Holy Spirit…
Fr. Phil Hurley, S.J.
Pastor