We probably all know someone who needs prayer, especially family members or friends who have fallen away from the Catholic Church.
Many parents who raised children in the faith long for their fallen-away children to return home to the Catholic Church.
Both priests and Catholic figures often encourage those yearning for their loved ones' return.
In Brandon Vogt's book, Return: How to Draw Your Child Back to the Church, he explains that "no child is hopeless."
"Your child is ultimately in God’s hands, who loves him even more than you do," Vogt advised. "He wants him back more than you do, and in his providence, he can do anything."
Father Goyo Hidalgo of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles published a book explaining his journey back to the Church after he left for many years.
He often encourages parents of fallen-away children, as well as his followers who fell away from God's grace.
"I am who I am today because of the Mercy of God," Fr. Goyo wrote on X (Formerly Twitter).
"The mercy of God will always be there, for free. The prodigal son took that mercy and came back home. So if you are thinking about your journey to God, don’t hesitate. He is waiting and He wants to forgive you."
Prayer to Saint Joseph to Obtain a Conversion
As the husband of Mary, foster father of Jesus, and the patron of the Universal Church, Saint Joseph is the perfect intercessor for those hoping to obtain the conversion of a family member.
Here's a powerful prayer to Saint Joseph to obtain a conversion:
O Glorious Patriarch Saint Joseph,
who merited to be called “just’ by the Holy Ghost,
I urgently recommend to the soul of [name],
which Jesus redeemed at the price of His Precious Blood.
Thou knowest how deplorable is the state
and how unhappy the life of those
who have banished this loving Savior from their hearts,
and how greatly they are exposed to the danger of losing Him eternally.
Permit not, I beseech thee, that a soul so dear to me
should continue any longer in its evil ways;
preserve it from the danger that threatens it;
touch the heart of the prodigal child
and conduct him back
to the bosom of the fondest of fathers.
Abandon him not, I implore thee,
till thou hast opened to him the gates of the Heavenly city, where he will praise and bless thee throughout eternity
for the happiness which he will owe to thy powerful intercession.
Amen.