CATHOLICS COME HOME
AIRS SUPER BOWL-STYLE TV AD
During College Football Bowl Week
December 27, 2012– Atlanta (Roswell), GA —They say football is like a religion for some die hard fans, that’s why Catholics Come Home® plans to air a new national television commercial during college football bowl week, and ending with the BCS National Championship (Notre Dame vs. Alabama), Jan. 7, 2013.
This one-of-a-kind ad features legendary football Coach Lou Holtz delivering a rallying half-time pep-talk. In the 30-second commercial, Holtz coaches viewers to “the goal in life – heaven.” He is an ideal person to deliver the message, since Holtz is a devout Catholic and well-known veteran of goals, coaching Notre Dame to the National Title in 1988 during their last undefeated season.
Catholics Come Home® Founder and President Tom Peterson says, “Faith is not a spectator’s sport; it must be lived…it’s interactive!” This is why his non-profit is trying a new play with the goal of winning loyal fans for Jesus and the Church.
When Peterson was asked how this campaign would be funded in a sluggish economy, he replied: “With God, all things are possible! After all, the Holy Spirit inspired me to write this script more than a year ago, long before Notre Dame ever played its first game of their undefeated season. Then by God’s grace, I ran into Coach Holtz last July in the Los Angeles airport, inviting him to star in this evangomercial™. So you can understand why I’m confident that God is watching over us and has a wonderful plan in store!”
Some football experts do not think Notre Dame has a prayer of winning against the SEC powerhouse, Alabama, who won the BCS Championship last year. While Peterson, who is a loyal Georgia Bulldogs fan, has not divulged who he is cheering for in the BCS title game, he is certain who will win: “All those viewers who follow the wisdom of Coach Holtz—keeping focused on the goal in life: Heaven. They will be the true winners when their final down is played.”
The new Catholics Come Home® evangomercial™ will air in various markets and programming throughout the United States, reaching an estimated 70 million households between December 27, 2012 and January 8, 2013.
In December 2011 through January 2012, Catholics Come Home® aired their first national television campaign on cable, satellite and major television networks, including CBS, NBC, Univision and others, reaching over 125 million viewers 10 times each, according to Neilsen data. In the 35 regional dioceses where CatholicsComeHome.org and CatolicosRegresen.org (Spanish) ads have aired, many dioceses who conducted census comparisons reported an average increase in Mass attendance of 10 percent. Some dioceses have reported results of a nearly 18 percent increase following the Catholics Come Home® airings, along with other benefits like: stronger Catholic identity, increased participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, increased tithing and volunteerism, and a stronger desire to go deeper into the faith. Current regional Catholics Come Home® evangelization campaigns are also airing in Cincinnati, Vancouver (Canada), New Orleans, Colorado Springs, and Venice, Florida, through the New Year.
Perhaps the new Catholics Come Home® football themed ad will help motivate some loyal football fans and their families to set a New Year’s resolution of coming home to weekly Mass and the Catholic Church!
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CatholicsComeHome.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit media apostolate, dedicated to producing and airing Catholic evangelism television ads on local, national and international television networks. Catholics Come Home® is guided by a 30 person Advisory Board, including Cardinal Seán O’Malley, Bishop James Conley, Bishop Thomas Olmsted, Bishop Michael Sheridan, Bishop Jaime Soto, and other highly respected theologians and Catholic business executives.
Evangomercial™ is a trademark of Catholics Come Home, Inc. Catholics Come Home® is a Federally Registered Trademark of Catholics Come Home, Inc.
The Image/Random House book entitled, “Catholics Come Home…God’s Extraordinary Plan for Your Life” authored by Tom Peterson, with Foreward by Dr. Scott Hahn, is available for pre-order on Amazon.com.