One of the fastest growing evangelization programs in Evangelical and Charismatic Protestant circles these days is the "Alpha Course," developed over 20 years ago at a charismatic Anglican parish in London, Holy Trinity Brompton, and currently directed by Nicky Gumbel. It has been promoted to Catholics in the United States for six years by ChristLife Catholic Evangelization Services in Baltimore, which claims that "hundreds of Catholic parishes" are now using it. The purpose of this paper is to describe the process and content of the Alpha Course, and to evaluate whether Alpha, either in its original form or in the "Alpha for Catholics" model, should be recommended to Catholic parishes looking for evangelization tools.

What Is Alpha?

Alpha presents itself as "a basic introductory course to the Christian faith." According to the ChristLife website, it

• provides a clear and non-threatening way to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people from all walks of life
• helps lead people to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, within the context of the parish
• is ecumenical in that it covers the basic Christian truths shared by all traditions
• may be the most effective form of direct evangelization in common use today.[1]

The program consists of ten weekly meetings including a meal, a talk, and small group reflection; there is also a retreat and a celebration dinner, which serves as the introduction for the next cycle of the course.

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