Long-time fans of Greg and Jennifer Willits, familiar with the Willits’ raw honesty on the Rosary Army Podcast, their fun and faithful antics on That Catholic Show, and recently, their misadventures in Mass Confusion, will find The Catholics Next Door: Adventures in Imperfect Living a delightful and entertaining book.
Reading their anecdotes is like showing up at their back door in search of a cup of coffee in the kitchen with Jennifer, or a beer on the porch with Greg. It’s friendly. Engaging. Fun.
Honest.
They don’t claim to be perfect…and if you’ve heard them on their Sirius/XM talk show during the week, you’ll know they are sometimes a mess, but that’s what makes them real…and really lovable.
Greg and Jennifer, or how I like to refer to them, Jennifer and Greg, are just regular folks trying to live their lives faithfully. They truly are the family next door…or in my case, sitting in the pew next to me.
They are the folks you worship with and share a handshake with during the Sign of Peace. They’re the ones who wave you into the exit line in the parking lot, or baby-sit your kids, or make taco dinners to celebrate family and friends.
In short, they’re regular people, just like you and me.
So why should you pick up a copy of their book and read it?
Because they’re regular people like you and me.
Sometimes we just need to hear that whatever is going on in our lives is not weird or out of kilter with the rest of the world. Reading about their adventures in imperfect living makes me feel encouraged in my own faith journey, which is full of my own imperfections.
It’s not a guide or a manual; it’s a visit with the Catholic family next door, and no visit is complete without a little catechesis being lived out in the daily grind, a little self-deprecating humor when things go wrong, and a huge dose of love for Jesus Christ, His Mother, and the Holy Church…all thrown in together with a lot of love.