One Who Chose the Path to Rome
Linda Poindexter

The following is from “Those who chose the Path to Rome,” Mrs. Linda Poindexter, Former Episcopal “Priest”

The church of my youth, the Disciples of Christ was very Protestant, but it is very unusual in its practice of having Holy Communion at every service. This Holy Communion is clearly a Protestant understanding of the rite. It is a symbolic memorial…

Recently, I remembered something that I consider very different about the particular church I attended, Third Christian Church of Indianapolis, Indiana. It was a very large church and within it there was a small chapel. It was called the Madonna Chapel and my recollection is that it had a painting of the Blessed Mother on the wall above the communion table. This is a very unusual thing to see in a Protestant Church in the American Midwest!

I believe that these two early influences may have been signposts on the journey bringing me finally home to the Catholic Church.

…I was convinced that the Roman Catholic Church was the fullest expression of the Church established by Jesus Christ. I believed that the Church taught the Truth; that Jesus Christ was truly present, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Eucharist. Why would I want to keep myself away from this communion?

…The Blessed Virgin Mary is a mysterious person to those not raised with a devotion to her. It is like learning a new language to speak to her and seek her intercession and motherly guidance. One of the blessings of being raised Catholic is to know Mary from childhood. She is one of the great riches of the Church, given to strengthen our lives in Christ, our knowledge of God.

It is also a special gift to come to know her in later life and to know that she has been present to me when I was unaware of her love and care.

As many converts have expressed, there is such richness, there are so many gifts that the Church gives us to aid in our sanctification, our becoming holy. I am amazed to discover a huge difference that I never discerned between the Protestant and the Catholic faith. The Church actually believes that people can become holy, that perfection and completeness is a possibility for Christians, and the Church gives us the tools to grow [in] that holiness, and examples in the lives of the saints, and the great ones of the Church. My fervent hope is that I may have some small part in leading others to these great riches that God offers to us through the Church. In His great love, God wants all people to live in true happiness that comes from knowing and loving Him…