Why Go To Italy?

When you hear about Italy, the first thing that you probably think of is the food. The second thing you may think of is the Roman Catholic Church. Italy is a nation that is deeply rooted in church history and tradition; yet, sadly, it has strayed very far from Christ.

While the Catholic Church has a huge presence in the lives of Italians—from the grandiose buildings on nearly every street corner to its place in family history—the sad reality is that, for many people, faith and religion have become solely a cultural identity and nothing more. This became evident through the conversations we had during our survey trip to Italy.

We asked a local if he went to church, and his response was no. He claimed to be Catholic, but when we asked what he believed, he said that he did not believe in Jesus or the “God of the Catholic Church” because he did not like the institution. Another local we had the opportunity to speak with had grown up in the Catholic Church and had traveled the world, yet he had never heard the truth of John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

This was heartbreaking, but what is also heartbreaking is the lack of Gospel-preaching churches in Italy. During our survey trip, we visited 11 suburbs of Rome, each with populations of 30,000–70,000 people, and only four of them had a Gospel-preaching church.

People in Italy are walking in spiritual darkness, and they desperately need the true light of the Gospel in their lives. That is why Cassidy and I have surrendered to go and bring the light of Jesus to the heart of Italy.

Written by Cody and Cassidy Gaeta, Missionaries to Italy
cody.gaeta@bbfimissions.org