Catholic Ragemonkey

Subversive Evangelization

I don't know where these ideas come from, but I certainly hope this one is inspired by God or at least one of the angels. I was driving around OKC on my day off, when I caught sight of an advert for last year's St. Patrick's Day Bash down in Bricktown. For those not in the know, Bricktown in OKC is a renovated section of the old packing district that now houses posh restaurants and the ballpark. Of course, I was saddened by the thought of the memory of St. Patrick being associated with puking and green beer. And this is where the idea cropped up.

Imagine an outdoor booth with a big sign that says, "Find out what today is really about." You could have two small t.v.'s showing a solid biography of St. Patrick, one for kids and one for adults. On the table near the center, a couple of helpful volunteers and a priest could hand out holy cards and pamphlets on the life of the saint and some evangelization tracts as well. Isn't that evil?

Even if this couldn't happen, we all could stop and take a moment to reclaim this holiday and others like it from paganization. For example, go to Mass on St. Patrick's. Then after Mass, with your family, go to your favorite rowdy restaurant. When it comes time to visit the bathroom, when you are done, leave a pamphlet on the sink. When the check comes, slide in a good tip and a holy card.

You see, the new evangelization isn't all that hard, once you get a little creative about it.