Randy Hain - Joyful Witness: How to Be an Extraordinary Catholic

Wowyou must get to meet a lot of VIPs! What is it like to interview or be around so many famous people? After working in the media for more than thirty years, these are still the most frequent questions posed to me in my work and travels. Even though I transitioned from the secular news media to the Catholic radio, TV, and speaker circuit in 2000, the questions still come up regularly. Now, however, instead of being asked whether I have met this politician or that famous person, people want to know if I have ever met a cardinal, or the pope, or the relative of a saint. Whether in Hollywood, the Holy Land, or Rome, it doesnt matter. Thanks in part to our media-saturated culture, there will always be a great deal of interest in those who are in the spotlight.

Dont get me wrong. It was exciting to cover breaking news and to interview senators, governors, and even an occasional movie star. Being back in the Church and on fire for my faith, you can imagine how it is even more meaningful and exciting to cover the Vatican and be part of a private papal audience. Getting close enough to touch those in charge of our one, holy, catholic, and apostolic faith is an incredible gift that I never take for granted. My work as a Catholic talk show host and journalist provides regular opportunities for me to meet our religious rock stars, so to speakand much more importantly, to learn something more about our beautiful and very deep Catholic faith.

That being said, I will let you in on a little secret. What means even more to me than spending time with a VIP who might have graced the cover of a secular or Catholic magazine is to meet and learn about those whose lives will most likely never be the focus of a front-page newspaper article or the lead story on the local or national news. I am talking about the everyday person, the everyday Catholicthe believer in the trenches who is going about the business of spreading the Gospel and building Gods kingdom in his or her own unique way. My friend Randy Hain calls them ordinary heroes. They probably wont trend on Twitter anytime soon. You probably wont see them posting selfies on Facebook (if they even have Facebook pages). They are too busy being the Lords hands and feetand as Randy illustrates so beautifully in this book, they are all around us.

This is why I am so excited about Randys book and why I am honored to write the foreword. Like Randy, I come across some pretty amazing Catholics who really are rock stars when it comes to taking their faith beyond Sunday and making a real difference in the world around them. They see a need. They have a passion. They might have been hurt themselves and want to help others who find themselves in similar situations, whatever those situations might be. These are truly joyful witnesses, who at first glance might seem ordinary to most but are doing extraordinary things for Jesus and therefore living extraordinary lives.

This concept of joyfully taking on challenging tasks with little or no worldly recognition is countercultural in todays self-centered society. Grab the remote and do some channel surfing, and see how many of todays so-called starsparticularly in the extremely popular reality TV genreare thinking beyond the bling and the boyfriend (and thats putting it politely). They are few and far between. Its not too often that you see the Kardashians pondering the deeper meaning of lifeor anything beyond their own belly buttons and bikinis. The world wants us to believe that our lives should be nothing more than an adult pool party: the culmination of one immediate gratification after the next. Maybe thats why these poor souls, despite their obvious material wealth, often make the news. But their stories deal with self-implosion, not exactly what one would call the proudest mementoes to snip and add to the family scrapbook.

Next, look at the folks on these pages who are so full of joy. How can that be, as they continually give instead of take? They are not out drinking and carousing all night or shopping until they drop along Rodeo Drive. Its not that they dont enjoy nice things or a good life in moderation, but guess what? Life is not about me, myself, and I ; its about Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . The individuals youll meet in this book see the word joy as an acronym: Jesus first, others second, and yourself last. Their joy runs deeper than the fleeting feeling of happiness. Whether its the father from St. Louis who wanted to do something about the quality and affordability of a good Catholic education or the young woman who was determined to help other young adults learn and embrace their faith, these folks are living out James 1:22 by being doers of the Word, not just hearers.

The only way to truly find ourselves is to lose ourselves in Christ. The Lord Jesus, in John 15:13, tells us that there is no greater love than to lay down ones life for a friend. The truth in this idea of putting others first and having a desire to make a difference also shows up repeatedly in secular research. Take the topic of volunteering, for example.

Just a few years back, the Corporation for National and Community Service issued a report entitled The Health Benefits of Volunteering , based on a look at some of the research comparing the well-being of those who volunteer with that of those who dont. Researchers found time after time that reaching out beyond ones immediate world through volunteer work is a really good thing for mental and physical health. There are social benefits as well. Those who volunteer have lower mortality rates, greater functional ability, and lower rates of depression later in life than those who do not volunteer.