Together in Faith

There’s no question I am a faith-filled, devout Catholic.  I understand that Christ is the head of the Church and the Church is his body.  I recognize the necessity of the sacraments and the presence of Christ therein.  I am familiar with the history of the Catholic Church and its development, which comes straight from the side of Christ.

With all that being said, though, I realize that Christ works in and through many other churches.  When I consider the New Evangelization and its purpose, I think we must be very careful not to overlook this fact.  Christians of all denominations must work together, despite our differences.

The New Evangelization (which we understand is not actually “new”), should raise awareness that salvation comes through Christ. Through baptism, we become “children of God” and we begin a new life. 

In Go and Announce the Gospel of the Lord , the Pastoral Letter of Catholic Bishop Earl Boyea of the Diocese of Lansing, it says:

“We are all to be missionaries.  We need to meet people where they are—to value them and their own experiences as preparations to receive the Good News of Jesus Christ.  Then, we invite them to Jesus because we believe in this Christian life and we are happy living it.  We want to share our joy with others.”  (pg. 30)

Additionally, as part of Catholic Social Teaching, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops puts it this way:

“The work of the Church is to bring all people into relationship with God, and also to transform and sanctify the society in which we live . . . .”

While it is true that the Catholic Church has a tremendous body of work that explains and defends the faith, the end-game of the mission is less about “making everyone Catholic” than it is about introducing, proposing and offering the truth of faith to those who do not know Christ, and, of course, renewing those that do. 

In the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 28, Verse 29, Jesus gives his disciples this commission: 

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

But, in addition to this “going out,” what is also clearly needed is a re-evangelization of the faithful, because as Jesus cautioned us, we should not become lukewarm in our faith.

Notice in the quote from the USCCB (Conference of Catholic Bishops), that once we are in relationship with God, we also possess the ability to “transform and sanctify” where we live.

I was watching a documentary on St. John Paul II awhile ago. He grew up in Poland which underwent tremendous hardship under Communism.  He understood that culture is a driving force and if you want to bring about change, you have to influence culture, something he did, not only through his papacy, but through his involvement in the solidarity movement.

If we do not like how our culture is moving, the question is, “What am I going to do to change it?”  We could cry out that I am just one person, but if you look at history, one person can make quite a difference.

With the New Evangelization in mind, I would like to recommend a video to you that just came out by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops titled “Outreach to the Unaffiliated.” 

Please take the time to watch this video, it is wonderful.

And while you are at it, check out this great article, from which this quote comes:

"The new evangelization in which the whole continent is engaged means that faith cannot be taken for granted, but must be explicitly proposed in all its breadth and richness" (Bl. John Paul II, Ecclesia in America, no. 69).

Are you going to join this movement?  Please consider how you can participate in some small way, so that Christians everywhere can come together and spread the Good News.

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com
janetcassidy.blubrry.net (podcasts)

It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard (Acts 4:20)