Evangelization and Reconciliation
EvangelizationSome may think the term "evangelization" does not sound very Catholic. But Pope Paul VI made it clear that this has been a core value of the Church's teaching from antiquity, and remains a critical aspect of our faith in modern times. See the quotation from Pope Paul below."The task of evangelizing all people constitutes the essential mission of the Church. Evangelization is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity." We must ask oursleves, if this task of spreading the good news to all people is so central to Catholicism, who then, is responsible for carrying it out? Listen to the words of Pope John Paul II. "All the baptized and confirmed in Christ have received this mission to evangelize. The fulfillment of this mission demands ongoing preparation, education in faith for people of all ages, and a spirit of prayer that the whole message of Chist may be proclaimed." The words of these two popes, taken together, tells us some rather convicting things. First, that there is no job more important in the church than evangelization, and second, that none of us are exempt from the responsibility to perform this vital work. It is important that we not miss the second sentence in the quote from Pope John Paul II. The mission "...demands ongoing preparation, education in faith for people of all ages, and a spirit of prayer that the whole message of Christ may be proclaimed." In other words, in order to evangelize others effectively, we must first evangelize ourselves. This is not to be taken lightly. Evangelizing ourselves is a life-long task, and it requires that we devote time and real effort to learning about our faith, and learning how to communicate it effectively and accurately to others. One element that is almost essential to that is to make a steady diet of the
Church's Daily Readings.
Christ instituted the Sacraments to give us new birth, to heal our wounds, and to nourish us with the food for eternal life. Our faith is so beautiful, and has such a rich history, we could never learn everything. But we can engage in an ongoing search for understanding, and in doing so, we will grow closer to God. In this, we evangelize ourselves. As we grow in our own faith, the little things we say and do will bear witness to our belief, and that is the essence of authentic evangelization. Evangelization cannot be done on a Sunday afternoon. it must be lived. It would be a great disservice to the mission of Jesus Christ, who is in fact the Church, if we were to all set out on this mission of explaining the Good News ill prepared. St. Francis of Assissi is credited with saying "Evangelize always. Use words if necessary." In other words, our strongest witness to Christ comes from our actions, not our words. So, both Logic and our Church leaders tell us that evangelization is really about personal growth. This can come from daily living, but more importantly, it will come from study. There are many excellent resources available, ranging from very scholarly works to simplified presentations with a little tongue-in-cheek humor. The challenge to us is to go out and find good resources, and learn. Our Online Catholic Bookstore has a variety of materials available, and more will be added as the web site expands and developes. That may sound like a sales pitch, but seriously, there is not much worse than ignorance, and informaation is so readily available it would be a shame not grow in our understanding of our faith. An important part of our parish mission is to help people find a more and more intimate relationship with our amazing God. At St. John the Beloved, we have a program for people who are interested in learning more about Catholicism, and exploring the possibility of one day becoming a Catholic. We call this progam
Inquiry.
If you are already a Catholic, you may want to enhance your spiritual experience by becoming involved in a
Small Faith Community.
If you would like to find a small group to be involved with, you may look for information in the
parish bulletin,
or call the
Church Office.
At St. John the Beloved, we allocate a large percentage of our resources to preparing people for this mission. You can find out more about what is available, especially for the formation of Children, at the
Faith Formation
section of this web site. If you have questions about Faith Formation, you may reach
No matter how we try, none of us can sustain a steady growth. We have stops and starts. We step forward, and then slip back into our old ways. The natural tendency toward sin plays a role. For this reason, you will often see the words "Evangelization" and "Reconciliation" grouped together, as they are in the title of this page. They are two aspects of the same growth process. We reach for a higher level, and we fall short. Then we seek reconciliation, and begin again. All along the way, we are nourished by the sacraments, and patiently formed by scripture and the tradition of the Church. This is what it means to be Catholic. This a summary of the day to day experience of Catholicism. Let us look for a moment at the beauty of reconciliation.
ReconciliationDoes it seem strange that the Church places such a large emphasis on reconciliation? It will not seem strange if you consider the following facts. The largest religious denomination in the United States is Catholic. The second largest denomination is disenfranchised Catholics.We believe that the sacrament of baptism places an indelible mark on our soul. Once we are a part of the Body of Christ, nothing can separate us from God. However, the number of our brothers and sisters who feel estranged from the church is almost unfathomable. The Church is a human institution with a history of 2,000 years. There has been ample opportunity for human error in every age, including our own. As the baptized and confirmed, we all bear the responsibility to reach out to our separated family members. The Synod Document for the Diocese of Charleston puts it this way: "Reconciliation is the mission to heal and re-member the Body of Christ. In Christ's Spirit of love and compassion, we must seek to heal the pain caused by alienation. In his Spirit, we need to reach out humbly to inactive Catholics. We need to be willing to admit the real or perceived hurts and injustices that sometimes were experienced by individuals and families in interactions with official representatives of the Church or with Church members, and to ask for forgiveness." The document goes on to discuss some of the ways people become alienated from the church. These include
divorce and anulment,
and a host of
Social Justice issues.
If you are a Catholic who has been away from the Church for a while, We would like to invite you to come back home. Please call and talk to
Sister Carol,
and she will help you find your way, or at least advise you on how you might best proceed. If you would like to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation, they are scheduled for 4:15pm every Saturday afternoon, or you may make a special appointment by calling the
Parish Office.
God bless you.
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