John Martignoni: Why don't Catholics have altar calls?

Q:     I’m a Born-Again Christian and I’ve been wondering why doesn't the Catholic Church do the altar call to have people accept the Lord Jesus as their Lord and Savior since it says that you must make this declaration to be Born Again?  I see my sister and her husband going to church Sunday after Sunday with no clue to this...and know that they will not go to Heaven unless they receive the Lord with the prayer and that they must repent from their sin. I have had my sister become saved but haven't been able to approach my brother in law as of yet.  Isn't this absence doing a dis-service to the people?   

A:    The Catholic Church does indeed, in a sense, make an altar call at every Mass. When people approach the altar to receive Communion, they are indeed accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, as they accept His body and blood into their bodies. Jesus says in John 6, verses 51 and following, that unless you eat His flesh and drink His blood, you have no life in you. If you eat His flesh and drink His blood, you will have eternal life He says, and He will raise you up at the last day.  He repeats Himself on this matter like He does nowhere else in Scripture. Catholics take Jesus' words literally...we believe what He says. That is why we believe we receive Him - His actual body and blood - during Communion (or the Lord's Supper as you might call it).
   
My question to you, however, is where does it say that someone must make a declaration in which they "accept the Lord Jesus as their Lord and Savior" in order to be Born Again? Nowhere does the Bible say that. In fact, the Bible says that one is born again by being baptized. John 3:3-5 says that unless one is born of water and the Spirit (baptism) one cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and it is through water and the Spirit that one is born again. All Catholics, by virtue of their baptism, are Born Again Christians. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that one shouldn't make a declaration of Jesus being their Lord and Savior, but the Bible does not say that one is "born again" by making a verbal declaration of acceptance of Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. And, I assume you want to go by what the Bible says don't you?  
   
And, yes, people must repent of their sin to go to Heaven. Does your sister or her husband ever go to Confession? Have you asked them? Confession, or Reconciliation (being reconciled to God), is one of the 7 Sacraments of the Catholic Church. So, yes, it is necessary for your sister and her husband to confess and repent of their sins in order to be saved. But, it is also necessary for them to forgive others (Matthew 6); to do the Father's will (Matthew 7); to keep the Commandments (Matthew 19); to feed the hungry and clothe the naked (Matthew 25); to love others (1 John); to care for their family (1 Tim 5); to strive for holiness (Hebrews 12:14); to do good works (Romans 2); to eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man (John 6); to be baptized (John 3 and 1 Peter 1:20-21), and so on.
   
It is also vitally important to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ for us as Catholics, but saying one little prayer does not necessarily establish such a relationship with Jesus. That's why we have the Sacraments, and all the other things that we have in the Catholic Faith - it's all about bringing us closer to Christ. It's all about preparing our bodies and souls so that Jesus can be formed within us (Galatians 4:19). And, there is no more personal relationship that one can have with Christ than to receive Him in the Eucharist (Communion). It is even more intimate and more personal than anything that occurs between husband and wife in a marriage.
   
So, there is no absence in the Catholic Church in regards to bringing people to Christ. Everything in the Church is about bringing people to Christ. Again, when your sister and brother-in-law receive Communion, they are accepting Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, even if they have never said some sort of sinner's prayer.
   
Now, it is indeed possible that they are going to church every Sunday and not living lives that are pleasing to Christ.  In other words, they could be on the path to Hell, but that is not the Church's fault. Again, everything in the Church is designed to foster one's relationship with Christ and His Body, the Church. If one ignores what the Catholic Faith offers, it is their fault, not the Church's.
   
Finally, I would simply ask you to look into the Catholic Faith a little more deeply than you apparently have. You are making assumptions about the Catholic Church that are based on a lack of knowledge about the Church. There are a lot of misunderstandings out there about the Catholic Faith. I always tell people that if you want to disagree with what I believe - fine, you are certainly free to do so. But, please disagree with what I really believe, and not with some misperception, half truth, or even outright lie about the Catholic Church that someone has told you. All of us, as Christians, have a duty and responsibility to accurately represent differing faith traditions - even if, or maybe especially if, we disagree them.   

About John Martignoni John Martignoni is the Director of the Office of Evangelization for the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama and also the President of the Bible Christian Society. John's column, Apologetics 101, appears regularly in the diocesan newspaper, the One Voice.  If you have a question about the Catholic Faith, please send an email to: jmartignoni@bhmdiocese.org.  And check out John's free audio and written apologetics materials at: www.biblechristiansociety.com.