Journey Home

Erik Baldwin was serious about his Presbyterian faith, until a scandal in his congregation led him to reevaluate everything. He realized he could no longer treat his interest in Catholicism as merely an academic exercise.

Lawain McNeil grew up in a strong Christian home, and early on, felt a call to ministry. He pursued a degree in Biblical studies and ended up serving in the Church of Christ. A number of factors in his life led him to begin exploring the Catholic Faith, including an interest in the Catholic literary and artistic tradition, and friendship with others who shared his background and were also interested in Catholicism. He shares how all those threads came together as he made his way home to the Catholic Church.

Kevin Shinkle was baptized in the Church of the Nazarene, but his family left the church when their pastor told his parents they had to stop smoking, and that brought an end to Kevin's churchgoing days for a while. He went on to college, and met some friends who were devout Catholics and helped him develop an initial curiosity about the Church. When his career as a journalist began to become more intense, he decided he needed a foundation of faith, and those seeds planted by his Catholic friendships began to bear fruit.

David Dean came from a Presbyterian background, and went on to college at Kansas University. At the time, it had an Applied Humanities program that focused on classical studies. Through the course of the program, a number of the professors and students became Catholic because of what they were finding about the Church’s role in the great philosophical and theological tradition, and David ended up entering the Church his senior year of college. He went on to spend a number of years working in Catholic education, and now serves as Superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Tulsa.

Kathryn Whitaker was baptized in a Methodist church as an infant in Texas, but after her pastor left, her family skipped around churches looking for a fit, including time spent with the Nazarenes and Disciples of Christ. Visiting Baptist churches in college, Kathryn heard her first real anti-Catholicism from the pulpit, and it shocked her and made her want to learn more about Catholicism, which she poured herself into. This led her to Catholic friendships, and eventually to marry a Catholic. Kathryn shares the incredible story behind how she ended up being confirmed Catholic and receiving her first Holy Communion, an hour before her wedding rehearsal dinner!

Mother Petra was raised in a family full of Wesleyan ministers, missionaries and church planters, and went on to study at Indiana Wesleyan. She became increasingly frustrated by divisions in Christianity over everything from Bible interpretation to worship practices, and at one point even stopped going to church. When one of her sisters became Catholic, it opened up to her the possibility that there really was an authoritative way to understand the reality of what it meant to be a Christian. She entered the Catholic Church, and eventually religious life at a Byzantine monastery.

Dr. Kathryn Wehr talks about her journey from studying the arts and theology at Bethel University and Regent College, being guided towards liturgy and history, entering the Catholic Church, and being a Dorothy L. Sayers scholar. Her most recent project is an annotated edition of Sayers' masterwork, The Man Born to be King.

Robert Tunmire talks to JonMarc Grodi about his journey from a secular lifestyle to the Catholic Faith.

Sharon Ripley, a former African Methodist Episcopal minister, shares her journey to the Catholic Church. She discusses the history of the AME denomination, the importance of evangelization, the ministry of Landings, the power of intercessory prayer, and the challenges of ministry.

Andrea Garrett, a former Evangelical and Anglican, talks to JonMarc Grodi about her journey to the Catholic Faith.