On Mondays, I answer questions frequently asked by those considering a return to the Catholic Church. How do I know this stuff? I was away for more than 30 years myself, and am the co-author of When They Come Home: Ways to Welcome Returning Catholics, a book for pastors and parish leaders interested in this ministry.
I admit it–I’m addicted to my phone, and not all Catholic resources are mobile-friendly. What’s a returnee to do?
Let not your heart be troubled. There are a slew of resources you can access on the go. Here are a few from my
go-to list; there are many, many more, but this is a start:
- The U.S. Council of Catholic Bishop’s USACatholicChurch mobile app, available at Google Play or Applie iTunes in English and Spanish. It includes the daily readings, news alerts and updates from the Vatican and Catholic News Service.
- 8.3 million people can’t be wrong: Pope Francis (@Pontifex) is huge on Twitter, with such gems as this from Christmas Day: “When Christ is your friend, you have joy, serenity, happiness. I follow several hundred Catholic/Christian accounts on Twitter; a fun one on the less serious side is @EyeOfTheTiber (“breaking Catholic news so you don’t have to”). You’ll also likely find your parish/diocese/archdiocese/pastor/vicar/favorite woman religious/monk/seminarian is on Twitter.
- On Instagram, I’m especially fond of catholicdaily, which does a marvelous job of marrying beautiful images and profound words (or finding others that have).
- I also follow a number of bloggers who have social media presences. One who may be of special interest to returnees: Sister Theresa Aletheia Noble (a returnee herself!) blogs at Patheos under Pursued by Truth.
- A good go-to resource is the Knights of Columbus’ Catholic Pulse, which each day rounds up news of interest to Catholics.
So, tell me about what I’m missing!
