One of the most consoling truths of our Catholic Faith is that conversion is always possible. So long as they are breathing, it is never too late for a soul to return to God. This is beautifully illustrated in this Sunday’s Gospel in the Parable of the Two Sons (Matthew 21:28-32). A father has two sons and asks them to go and work in his vineyard. The first refuses saying, “I will not,” but then changes his mind and goes. The second son says, “I go, sir,” but then does not go. Our Lord then asks the chief priests and the elders which of the sons had done his father’s will, and they correctly answer, “The first.”

So the lesson here is clear. Ultimately, what really matters is not what we say, but what we do. Someone may say “no” to God for most of their life, and then, by His grace, end up saying “yes.” And this is why we can always be full of hope.

There is a wonderful example of this in the life of St Bartolo Longo, canonised by Pope Leo XIV on 19th October last year. Bartolo was born in Italy in 1841. Although he was brought up in a staunch Catholic family, he turned away from the Faith, began attending séances and ended up becoming a satanic priest. He pulled other people away from the Church and also became involved in drugs. Being so heavily involved in Satanism and being exposed to the horrible satanic rituals caused him to suffer from serious depression and paranoia, and eventually a total breakdown. However, his family never gave up on him. They stormed Heaven with prayers for his return to God, and their prayers were later answered. He returned to the Catholic Faith and left behind his involvement with the occult. He became a Third Order Dominican and dedicated his life to bringing people into the Faith, particularly through Our Lady and the Holy Rosary, and many converted because of him. He even built the huge Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii, raising the funds himself and overseeing its construction. So Bartolo had said a firm “no” to God, but that ended up not being his final word.

This is particularly important for parents and grandparents. Many of you will have children or grandchildren who were baptised, made their First Holy Communion, were confirmed, and maybe even attended Catholic schools, and yet have now given up the practice of the Faith. Some may have been hurt by scandals in the Church, or encountered poor formation and false modernist teachings. Others may have simply drifted away, having been influenced by the secular culture, which says that belief in God is unnecessary and even foolish. But never despair! Your child’s falling away from God is not necessarily the end of the story. St Monica prayed for years for the conversion of her son Augustine, who then became one of the greatest and most influential saints in the history of the Church. St Augustine, as a young man, was probably the last person you would imagine as a future Bishop and Doctor of the Church, and yet by the fervent prayers of his mother and the grace of God, that’s what happened. St Bartolo Longo didn’t look like a future Apostle of the Rosary either when he was lost in the occult. And yes, there have been some amazing conversion stories in this parish of St Mary’s, Loughborough.

But this doesn’t mean we should assume that conversion will automatically happen, and neither should we nag and lecture those who have left the Church. Sometimes young people just need to see something in the way we live our lives. This can speak in ways that arguments do not. But always pray for them, have Masses offered for them, offer your trials and sufferings for them, pray the Rosary for them, and place them under the protection of Our Lady. And when the opportunity arises, speak the truth to them, but always with charity. And above all, don’t give up on them.

Fr Paul Gillham, IC