‘One little conversation’ sets Indianapolis man on course to Catholicism

Isaiah Doss, his wife Brianna and their daughter enjoy a family trip to the Indianapolis Zoo. (Submitted photo)

By Natalie Hoefer

Martial arts student Isaiah Doss typically trains at a particular studio. But every now and then he goes to the School of Self Defense in Carmel, Ind., to train with the studio’s owner Michael Valenti.

The two had “only met a few times,” says Doss, when he, Valenti and their mutual friend, Wesley Stevens, traveled to Chicago for a martial arts seminar in November of 2022. (Related story: How martial arts students went from mat, to Mass, to receiving sacraments)

They were seated at a restaurant table ready to dig into their dinner, but Valenti and Stevens paused first to pray.

“I remember they made the sign of the cross,” says Doss. “I was like, ‘Interesting—you’re Catholic.’ I’d never met anyone so into their Catholic faith until that moment.”

He attended a few Masses with his maternal grandfather “when I was very, very young,” says Doss. But he was raised in the Christian faith as a Baptist.

After realizing Valenti and Stevens were Catholic, Doss became curious.

“I said, ‘Enlighten me: I think Jesus was anti-organized religion and was just about love and peace.’

“In a couple of sentences, Michael already broke my knowledge with [an explanation of] apostolic succession and the concept of Communion as the body and blood of Christ, which I’d never heard before,” says Doss.

‘Our faith has a strong backbone’

After the seminar in Chicago, he and Valenti “didn’t see each other much,” he says.

But Doss started researching the Catholic faith online. Eventually he turned to his friend Stevens for book recommendations.

“I read several books on theology and where the Catholic Church really found its roots,” says Doss. “I learned the Church’s 2,000 years of history and documentation show it’s the first [Christian religion]. I learned that the teachings of the Catholic faith were in line with my beliefs—the [early] Church Fathers put into words what I was thinking.”

Doss also found that sources on apologetics—explaining and defending the faith—were a way “to strengthen my knowledge.

“It’s a lot like martial arts. You take in these facts, you learn so much, and you’re in time able to stand on what you believe in.

“That’s the charm of the Church for me. Faith is not a gamble. Our faith has a strong backbone through apostolic succession. I quickly realized that it’s dangerous to have a faith based on different interpretations because humans are just so flawed.”

Doss found another similarity between martial arts and the Church.

“The hardest thing in martial arts is starting,” he says. “That’s how it felt with the Catholic faith. It took a lot of courage to take that first step.”

He recalls training with Stevens one evening in the fall of 2024 when he “just finally said, ‘You guys really opened my eyes about the Church. I’m in. I want to become Catholic, but I don’t know where to start.’ He told me to text Michael.”

‘I can’t see myself in any other Church’

Doss and Valenti, a member of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in Indianapolis, met to discuss Doss becoming Catholic.

“So, I sat down with Isaiah and got right to the hard stuff,” says Valenti.

He asked Doss what he believed about the Eucharist. “It’s the true body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ,” Doss answered.

And what about Mary? “She’s the Mother of God and a perpetual virgin.”

And what about praying for the saints’ intercession? “Sounds like a good idea to me.”

“I was like, ‘Wow!’ He basically catechized himself!” says Valenti. “We just had this one little conversation, then he disappeared, and two years later he came back on fire.”

Doss’ comment to Valenti proved those words true: “I can’t see myself in any other Church.”

I’ve found a whole new family’

He enrolled in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) at SS. Peter and Paul last fall. Doss, who was already baptized, was welcomed into the full communion of the Church at the cathedral’s Easter Vigil Mass on April 19, receiving the sacraments of confirmation and the Eucharist.

Before the Mass, the OCIA catechumens and candidates practiced receiving the Eucharist using unconsecrated hosts.

“Later, I joked and said [the Eucharist] tastes substantially different as the body and blood of Christ,” Doss quips. “I said it jokingly, but it’s true—not literally, but it’s a different experience, receiving the true body and blood of Christ.”

The married father of a 14-week-old daughter recalls feeling “a lot of emotion when I made the decision” to become Catholic. “So, when I was confirmed, I was like, ‘Finally! I’m Catholic!’ ”

There’s one more martial arts connection to round out the story—Doss’ sponsor Aaron Ryker.

“I slept on his couch for the Chicago conference,” says Doss. “He was from Indy, but he was living [in Chicago] as a student.”

By the time Doss was looking for a sponsor late last year, Ryker “had moved back to Indy and recently became Catholic”—another martial artist influenced by Valenti’s witness.

“He’s a brother for life now,” Doss says of Ryker.

“I’ve never had such a strong sense of community as an adult,” he adds. “Before, I went to church because it’s where the family went. But here [at SS. Peter and Paul], I found that, with God’s help, I’ve found a whole new family.” †