I had left the Catholic Church and was never going back. But then a Catholic friend asked me a simple question that changed everything: “Do you think Jesus is really present in the Eucharist?”
After leaving the Catholic Church a few years prior and becoming an evangelical Christian, I had not put any thought into the sacraments. It seemed obvious to me that the sacraments were not important. What really mattered was having faith in Jesus. But when my friend asked me that question about the Eucharist, something disorienting happened. By the time I went to bed that night, I knew in my heart that God was calling me back to the Catholic Church. I did not have any revelation, and I did not even understand the significance of the Eucharist, but somehow, I knew that the Catholic Church was true and that someday God would bring me home.
At the time, this was far from pleasant news! I was angry with the Church. How could I have grown up Catholic but did not understand the basic Gospel message? I had no idea the whole point of Christianity was Christ! Thank the Lord my evangelical friends in college introduced me to Jesus.
My journey back to the Catholic Church took several years. With the nudge toward the Catholic Church sitting comfortably at the back of my mind, I continued in my Protestant faith. Just before that fateful question was asked, I had started dating my now-wife, who was the daughter of an Assembly of God pastor. We got engaged, got married and started raising a family.
But there came a time where I had to get real with God. My prayer life was virtually nonexistent because I was struggling to see how God could have been calling me both to the Catholic Church and, I was sure, to marrying a devout Protestant. These paths were diametrically opposed in my mind, and it brought up old doubts about God’s existence. Was I just making this whole thing up? Is God even listening? This was a very difficult time of doubt and confusion.
By God’s grace, I finally started opening up to the possibility of becoming Catholic and we started going to Mass as a family. After much reading and learning about the Catholic faith, I was received back into full communion with the Church in December 2019 when my wife and I received convalidation, making our marriage a sacrament.
I am Catholic because a faithful Catholic stepped out of his comfort zone and asked me, a former Catholic who wanted nothing to do with the Catholic Church, a simple question. “Do you think Jesus is really present in the Eucharist?” This single question changed my life. I am also Catholic because what the Catholic Church teaches is true. The sacraments are God’s way of sharing his very life with us. Let us rejoice in God’s amazing plan and invite our non-Catholic friends and family to encounter our loving Savior in the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist. By asking a single question, their lives could be changed forever, just as mine was.
Althoff, 34, and his wife, Cara, are members of All Saints in Lakeville. They have four boys ages 9, 6, 4 and 1. Outside of work and family time, Althoff enjoys writing articles for his website gospelcatholic.com and finding ways to encourage Catholics to grow in their faith and evangelize. Althoff completed a Master of Theology degree at Missouri-based Augustine Institute in 2024.
