Caroline Gambale-Dirkes ’93 does not speak Mandarin. Even so, she finds herself preaching the Gospel weekly to Chinese migrants in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Her journey in ministry has been long and Spirit-led. At the age of 19, she experienced a “radical conversion” that led her to study theology and psychology at Franciscan University.
“The formation I received there just made me really want to go into full-time ministry,” she says.
Caroline later worked as a speaker at the Steubenville Youth Conferences, as a regional director for LifeTeen, and as a parish youth minister. She and her husband created a parish mission program designed for families called 2Tim4Ministries. Now, she works as a director of Evangelization at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Ann Arbor.
Over the years, she has learned to adjust her methods to fit the culture of a certain parish or group. This adaptability makes her an effective evangelist with her local Alpha group for the Chinese community. In recent years, the international organization developed a program to share the Gospel with the Chinese population.
She says “every single thing Catholics take for granted is completely a new concept” to the Chinese attendees. One person told Caroline, “What you’re trying to say to me is like asking me to believe in aliens from outer space.”
The Chinese government heavily regulates and often discourages religious practice.
“A lot of them will say to me, ‘It’s really, really hard to undo what I was taught,’” Caroline says. “So, even when they make the choice for the Lord, they’re taking a deep step in faith.”
Although she felt called to kickstart this ministry, she did not feel qualified. At the time, she had very little knowledge of Chinese culture. However, she couldn’t deny that God’s hand was over the project.
“When I relied on the Lord completely, he was literally the best. He opened up doors. He provided,” she says.
The Alpha group has been a great success, and they’ve seen multiple members enter the Church.
Caroline has come to see her little corner of Michigan as her true mission field. “We really need to pray and ask the Lord, ‘Where is the mission territory?’” she says. “Sometimes we’re struggling in our ministry, or the numbers are really low. And maybe the reason is because we’re just not reaching the people God really wants us to reach. The mission is not in another country; the mission is here.”
Caroline says “there’s always a way” to preach the Gospel. “We might have to be really creative … but it’s worth it if souls are coming to God.”
