Yesterday, as I waited for Little Brother’s coach to arrive at soccer practice, a mom whose son is new to the team parked next to me. We chatted a little about the schedule for the first game and when our boys would be starting school.

When I mentioned that Little Brother attends Catholic school, she commented that she’d grown up next door to one of the teachers from an area Catholic school that closed 7 years ago.

“Even though she was Catholic, she really wasn’t friendly at all,” this mom said of her former neighbor.

I don’t think this mom meant her comment as a slight toward Catholics. On the contrary:  the implication was that Catholics should live by high standards when it comes to how we treat others. Since the mom I met last night had such high expectations of Catholics, this probably means that most of the Catholics she has encountered do live by these ideals. At least, I hope so!

• Are we welcoming and helpful to newcomers?
• Do we anticipate the needs of others?
• Do we show concern for others?

We don’t have to be the most outgoing people in the world to evangelize by treating our neighbors as we would want to be treated.