Nudging Conversions

We all want our family and friends to know the joy and peace we’ve discovered in being Catholic, but the last thing we want to do is to force our faith on them. So how can we bring our loved ones back to the Church? In Nudging Conversions, Carrie Gress offers a practical roadmap for reaching out to those around us. You’ll learn the art of asking questions, when to speak and when to keep quiet, basic tools for talking to others about Jesus, how to answer questions about the faith, and more. Conversion doesn’t happen overnight—sometimes all it takes is a little “nudge.”

We all know someone—a parent, sibling, aunt or uncle, coworker, grandparent, child, neighbor, or friend—who has either left the Church or never discovered it. We want them to know the joy and peace we’ve discovered, but the last thing we want to do is to force our faith on them. So how can we bring our loved ones back to the Church? Jesus was the first and greatest evangelizer. As his disciples, we’re called to share in his mission—to spread his message to others. But going outside your comfort zone to engage the disengaged in meaningful conversations about Catholicism can be overwhelming. Fortunately there are common patterns that are easy to follow once you recognize them. In Nudging Conversions, Carrie Gress unveils those common patterns and offers a practical roadmap for reaching out to friends and family. You’ll learn the art of asking questions, when to speak and when to keep quiet, basic tools for talking to others about Jesus, how to answer questions about the faith, and more. Conversion doesn’t happen overnight—sometimes all it takes is a little “nudge.”

Carrie Gress has a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America and was the Rome bureau chief of Zenit’s English edition. She is the co-author with George Weigel of City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II’s Krakow (Image Books, 2015). A mother of four, she and her family live in Virginia.