In any case the friendship broke up a few months later and I never saw the priest again. I was still not able to receive Holy Communion. However, I kept the book Leila had loaned me and this week I found out why.
This week I found Leila on facebook. I had attempted to contact her via snail mail about 8 years ago and she hadn't responded. However, things must have changed in her life because when I sent her a "friend request" this week she quickly responded and we picked up where we left off catching up on marriages, children, siblings, work, etc.
She mentioned that her children had gone to Catholic school and I thought "there's my opening." I asked her if she still went to church and she said she did sometimes. I told her how inviting me to her brother's FHC so long ago had impacted my life and how much fruit it had borne. I thanked her for taking me Mass with her family and teaching me about the faith. She got quite emotional when I said that.
Honestly, looking back I see she knew very little about the faith but at that time she knew more than I did. And the book she gave me - even though it was published in the 1970's - was solid. What I learned at 15 years of age about Transubstantiation, the Consecration and the Real Presence has never left me.
I feel I have a chance to continue to build trust with her and lead her to Truth. I think she has a lot of misconceptions about the Faith and I think her cultural and ethnic background has overshadowed the Truths of the Faith. She does believe in God but she's just not looking in the right place - she joined the Order of the Eastern Star, a Masonic organization for women. I didn't go all hard-core on her and tell her she needs to quit ASAP - I went all Divine Mercy on her instead (silently) until the time comes to let her know that it would be in the best interests of her eternal soul to quit.
Today might be Step One of her conversion. Or - it might not be. But that's in God's hands. I am only a little pencil in His hand - or His data entry clerk!
I am mailing the little green book that travelled hundreds of miles through 10 moves over 29 years back to Leila tomorrow. It's time to go Home.
♥♥♥
