Father John McCloskey: Catholic evangelist

America’s most successful Catholic evangelist since Bishop Fulton J. Sheen is not at all as famous as the bishop was in the 1950s with a weekly network TV show. You have probably never heard of Father C. John McCloskey. However, consider some of his converts:

— Dr. Bernard Nathanson, founder of the National Abortion Rights Action League, who was personally involved in 75,000 abortions, before becoming a prominent pro-life advocate with the book “Aborting America” and the stunning video, “The Silent Scream.”

— Lawrence Kudlow, a CNBC economic commentator, whose career was nearly ruined by a cocaine addiction before his conversion.

— Robert Novak, a syndicated political columnist for 40 years and a non-practicing Jew, often called “The Prince of Darkness” for his gloomy presence on CNN’s “Crossfire” and “The Capital Gang.”

— U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, a Methodist and a conservative who teamed up with liberal Sen. Paul Wellstone to sponsor a law to curb sex trafficking, which brings 50,000 prostitutes for brothels in the U.S. annually.

— Judge Robert Bork, who was nominated by President Reagan to the Supreme Court, but suffered defeat in a Democratic Senate opposed to his pro-life views.

What’s common to these men, other than their prominence, is their fierce intellectual brilliance. Each forged a shooting star career from an early age, winning accolades and substantial wealth and worldly success. Yet each felt an emptiness inside and was open to the quiet intellectual priest who began his career as a stockbroker on Wall Street with Merrill Lynch.
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