“On a spiritual level, conversion is what God offers each of us,” Joe Ruff, editor-in-chief of The Catholic Spirit, shared with “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley during a conversation about a new podcast series featuring individuals’ encounters with Christ in their lives.
“Some conversions are dramatic, like St. Paul blinded in his first encounter with Christ or the burning bush of Moses,” Ruff continued. “But most often conversion happens in simple but important ways, like men and women turning to their spouses with renewed focus on simply loving them, or turning to the gift of the sacraments, or letting Christ carry us through a tough time. And it is being grateful for the fact that God is working in these small miracles.”
Ruff said he shared the article and podcast project with his brother, Paul, who is assistant director of human formation and director of counseling services at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul. Paul mentioned his own work writing a chapter for a book on St. Augustine’s “Confessions” featuring contributors from around the country. The two talked about the dramatic conversion St. Augustine encountered and about what conversion means. Paul ultimately contributed his expertise to The Catholic Spirit article and podcast project. Joe said Paul “compares the spiritual side, the emotional side and the physical side of these more dramatic conversions to what indeed happened with St. Augustine.”
During Joe’s interviews with Meisha Johnson, Maria Sinchi and Jerry Wind, he said that what happened for each during their conversion experiences “is so ingrained … that it comes right out of the voices, it comes right out of their spirit.” He went on to say, “They know that God’s loving embrace is nothing they earned or could achieve, and they radiate Christ’s love in ways that have changed lives beyond their own. My brother Paul notes that gratitude, humility and service to others are markers of true conversion.”
Conversion is something all Catholics are called to. “We put up these walls. We create barriers between people. We try to control our lives. And conversion is turning back to God and saying, ‘I’m not in charge. God is in charge.’ We learn to pray more deeply. We learn to be closer to our families. We learn to serve those we see who are in need. All of this is conversion, it’s turning back to the Lord.”
The three podcasts produced by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and The Catholic Spirit bring listeners directly into the conversion experiences Johnson, Sinchi and Wind encountered. A separate podcast introduces the topic through a conversation with Paul and Father Rolf Tollefson, pastor of St. Hubert in Chanhassen. Find the podcast package at TheCatholicSpirit.com/podcasts.
To learn more details and to hear the full interview, listen to this episode of “Practicing Catholic,” which debuts at 9 p.m. April 7 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM and repeats at 1 p.m. April 8 and 2 p.m. April 9.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes an interview with Father Michael Carson, assistant director for Native American Affairs with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, who discusses the planning underway for this summer’s Tekakwitha Conference in the Twin Cities; and Jamie Wheeler and Laura Daily, two members of the Catholic Softball Group who talk about the co-ed softball league in the archdiocese. Listen to interviews after they have aired at PracticingCatholicShow.com or choose a streaming platform at anchor.fm/practicing-catholic-show.
