Acts 29

The book of Acts ends in chapter 28 with Paul under house arrest in Rome, still boldly preaching the Gospel. Luke ends without finishing the story because the story of the Church’s mission continues in every age. We are living the 29th chapter of Acts! The ecology of the New Testament by which the Gospel was unleashed in the ancient world is the ecology of the Church today. It thus includes the same elements of repentance and faith; signs and wonders.

Repent and Believe in the Gospel

Just as when Jesus himself began the work of evangelization, so today the good news involves both a call to repent and a call to believe: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mk 1:14-15).

To repent means to “change one’s mind”—to make a life-altering decision to turn away from sin and toward God. There is no true offer of the good news that does not also call for repentance. And calling people to repentance requires that we speak of sin and its consequences, including the ultimate consequence of eternal separation from God.^[17] The apostles’ preaching always included this summons: “Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away” (Acts 3:19).^[18] To speak of repentance is not fashionable today in a world that prefers to ignore sin, yet we who belong to Christ can testify that repentance is the way to forgiveness and freedom. It is the key that unlocks the mercy of God! The call to repentance is always addressed to ourselves first, since all of us are continually in need of deeper conversion.

To be effective in today’s context, our proclamation and teaching must contextualize the moral demands of the Gospel, showing why they are not arbitrary limitations on our freedom but the perfect plan of our loving God for human flourishing. We must provide our pastors, catechists and others with practical help and a systematized approach to presenting Christian morality. In particular, priests and deacons need training and resources for successfully preaching on the “hard topics.” Our presentation of the Gospel’s demands must be pastorally wise, meeting people where they are at and avoiding “truth bombs” that will only turn them away. It must honestly engage the culture, looking for “seeds of the Word”—partial truths and inklings of the Gospel even where mixed with error and confusion.

To believe means to accept the free gift of salvation that God gives us in his Son, which far surpasses anything we could deserve or accomplish (cf. Eph 2:3-10). Our life in Christ is always a response to God’s initiative. Grace comes first; our part is to receive. “The life of the Church should always reveal clearly that God takes the initiative, that ‘he has loved us first’ (1 Jn 4:19) and that he alone ‘gives the growth’ (1 Cor 3:7).”^[19]

The invitation to believe in the Gospel is always personal: it is not a moral program but the offer of communion with a person, Jesus. “Heart speaks to heart,” as Cardinal John Henry Newman put it. The invitation is effective if it is made by a joyful disciple, one who has found joy in responding to the Lord’s demands. The evangelist presents the challenges of the Gospel not as the word of a superior to an inferior, but of a friend to a friend. Relationships are key to this whole process. We prepare the ground by first establishing trust, and then we offer accompaniment to the sinner along the challenging road to life in Christ.

Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well (Jn 4:5-42) is a paradigm of evangelization. When the woman came to the well for her daily task of drawing water, Jesus engaged her in conversation, showing that he cared for her as a person. He spoke to her of “living water” that would quench her deepest thirst. As the conversation went on, he exposed areas of sin and woundedness in her life, implicitly calling her to repentance: “you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband.” Yet looking into his eyes, she saw no condemnation, only a love and mercy she had never experienced before. By the end of their encounter she forgot all about her bucket, because she had now drunk of the living water—that water that is the Holy Spirit (Jn 7:37-39). Because of that encounter the woman herself became an evangelist. She ran back to her village, exclaiming to everyone who would listen, “Come see a man who told me everything I have done! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” Her message was neither eloquent nor complete, yet it was spectacularly effective. The joy of her new life was evident to all who saw her. This formerly isolated, outcast person was now forgiven, healed and reconciled to God. So powerful was her testimony that, as a result, the entire town came to faith in Jesus (Jn 4:39).

Signs and Wonders

Jesus proclaimed the Gospel not only in words but in healings, miracles, signs and wonders that visibly demonstrated the message: in him the kingdom of God had truly become present (Lk 9:11; Acts 2:22). When he commissioned his disciples to continue his mission, he commanded them to preach the Gospel both in words and in deeds of power (Lk 9:1-2; 10:8-9; Jn 14:12). “They went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs” (Mk 16:20). Often it was these signs that moved the hearers to believe the Gospel (Acts 8:6; Heb 2:4). So today we look for the proclamation of the good news to be accompanied by signs and wonders that visibly demonstrate God’s love and convince people that Jesus Christ is truly alive. We have been given a prison-shaking Savior, a deliverer who sets captives free! Signs, small and great, are a normal part of the Christian life. Our focus is not on the signs themselves, but on the risen Lord Jesus to whom they point. “By the power at work within us [he] is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or imagine” (Eph 3:20).

Encounter with Jesus

Evangelizing aims to lead others to life-changing encounters with Jesus, with the result that he becomes the Lord of one’s life. An encounter is a person-centered form of contemplation; it is two people being present to each other with no utilitarian purpose. For some people the encounter with Christ is a cataclysmic “Damascus road” kind of experience; for others it is more gradual. In either case, encountering Jesus is like meeting the person you are going to marry: you are overwhelmed by this encounter and cannot imagine going forward in life without that person. The Christian life becomes not just one but a series of encounters with Jesus, especially through prayer and the liturgy, which continually deepen our relationship with him.

Preaching and catechesis in our local Church must foster such encounters, especially by explaining our love relationship with Christ as the purpose of the liturgy. Whenever possible we should invite people to respond to Jesus by surrendering their lives to him, and give them concrete opportunities to do so.

For many of us, even for clergy, there is need for a renewed encounter with Jesus. In the time of the prophet Hosea, Israel needed such a rekindling of their romance with God, so God promised that he would allure them into the desert and speak tenderly to them: “I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the LORD” (Hos 2:21-22). Whenever we feel spiritually fatigued, arid, or battle-worn, it is this return to our first love (Rev 2:4) that lifts us up again and revives our hearts. “We need to implore his grace daily, asking him to open our cold hearts and shake up our lukewarm and superficial existence. Standing before him with open hearts, letting him look at us, we see that gaze of love which Nathaniel glimpsed on the day when Jesus said to him: ‘I saw you under the fig tree'” (Jn 1:48).”^[20]

The Kerygma

The “kerygma” is the New Testament word for the simple, radical, countercultural and joyful message of the Gospel—that “initial ardent proclamation by which a person is one day overwhelmed and brought to the decision to entrust himself to Jesus Christ by faith.”^[21] After two thousand years of development of doctrine, we are used to focusing on the need to transmit Catholic teaching on faith and morals in its fullness. This is indeed essential, but it does not come first. The proclamation of the kerygma must precede catechesis, because people are ready to receive the Church’s doctrine only after they have heard the kerygma and responded in faith. As Pope Francis has reminded us:

The kerygma… needs to be the center of all evangelizing activity and all efforts at Church renewal…. On the lips of the catechist the first proclamation must ring out over and over: ‘Jesus Christ loves you; he gave his life to save you; and now he is living at your side every day to enlighten, strengthen and free you.’ This first proclamation is called ‘first’ not because it exists at the beginning and can then be forgotten or replaced by other more important things. It is first in a qualitative sense because it is the principal proclamation, the one which we must hear again and again in different ways….^[22]

The kerygma is often described in terms of four essential elements: (1) the loving plan of God for human beings; (2) sin and its devastating consequences, especially separation from God; (3) God’s answer to our predicament in the sending of his Son for our salvation; and (4) the response this gift calls for from every person: to repent of our sins, believe in Jesus and be baptized, so we can be filled with his Holy Spirit and live a new life in his family, the Church.

It is essential for all preachers and catechists to learn the art of proclaiming the kerygma and to reflect on how to make all their preaching and teaching more kerygmatic. The kerygma can be proclaimed effectively only by a firsthand witness, one who has met the Lord personally and can speak of what he is doing in one’s own life. Priests and deacons, in particular, should consider how to make use of opportune moments to preach the kerygma, especially to those who are not practicing the faith—occasions such as weddings, funerals, parish social events, baptismal preparation for parents, and sacramental preparation for children and families.

Testimony

Personal testimony has an indispensable role in evangelization. Testimony has a unique power to touch hearts, since it is almost impossible to ignore the witness of someone who has encountered Jesus personally and whose life has been transformed by him. The townspeople of the Samaritan woman at the well came to faith in Jesus because of her testimony, which eventually led them to encounter him themselves (Jn 4:39, 42).

There is a wide variety of appropriate occasions for the giving of personal testimonies, not only in church but also in less formal settings; for instance, at the end of Mass, during times of informal prayer, in catechetical settings, RCIA programs, marriage preparation, small groups, Bible studies, etc. There is need for prudent discernment of whom to invite to give testimony, and it is wise to have them practice and receive guidance beforehand.

The Communion of the Church

The Church is the context given by God in which we encounter Jesus Christ. Although it is common for people today to say they are “spiritual but not religious,” or that they believe in Jesus but not in the Church, in truth there can be no relationship with Jesus that does not include his Church. God relates to his people not as isolated individuals but as a people, a family, united with one another in deep bonds of love (Eph 4:1-6). We learn to give and receive God’s love in and through our relationships with one another. As St. Augustine taught, when we say “amen” before receiving Holy Communion, we are saying “amen” not only to Christ the head, but to all the members of his body.^[23] So profound is this communion that it endures beyond death: we have fellowship not only with the members of the Church on earth but with the saints in heaven, who are cheering us on and helping us draw closer to Christ (cf. Heb 12:1).

Pastors and other leaders should reflect on how to deepen the experience of communion among their parishioners. Do some people attend Mass in isolation, not knowing or being known by others? Do some have the impression that relating to God is sufficient and relating to others in the parish is unnecessary? Are all aware of their responsibility to encourage and build up the faith of others? Do all recognize the need to forgive the offenses of others, to bear with their faults and failings, to avoid cliques and factions, to overcome social and cultural barriers, and to reach out to those who may feel lonely or neglected? Our parishes must be places where people’s “hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in love” (Col 2:2).

One effective way to foster communion is to form well-planned small groups in which the members meet regularly for Bible study or faith formation as well as mutual support, encouragement, and growth in holiness. Social events can also go a long way toward building relationships. It is important to keep in mind that fellowship in the Church is not for its own sake, but is always centered on the Person of Christ.

Scripture

Listening and responding to God’s word in the Sacred Scriptures must be at the heart of our efforts to unleash the Gospel. One who is in love desires to know more and more about the beloved. Since all Scripture speaks of Christ, immersing ourselves in the word is a way to deepen our initial encounter and grow in our relationship with him.

God’s word is “living and active” (Heb 4:12); it renews our minds and changes us. The more grounded we are in Scripture, the more we are able to understand God’s marvelous plan and to see the events in our lives with the eyes of faith. Through Scripture we learn to hear God speaking to us personally: “In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven meets His children with great love and speaks with them.”^[24] As God’s word is dynamic, so must our response be: we take the word to heart and apply it to our lives.

An evangelizing parish is one in which parishioners continually study, talk about, and pray with the Scriptures. To this end, parishes must make Bible study resources available, particularly to put the Scriptures in context for those who know them only through the readings proclaimed at Sunday Mass. Parishioners also need to be taught how to do lectio divina, reading Scripture in prayerful conversation with God. As Pope Benedict XVI stated:

Since “ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ,” making the Bible the inspiration of every ordinary and extraordinary pastoral outreach will lead to a greater awareness of the person of Christ, who reveals the Father and is the fullness of divine revelation. For this reason I encourage pastors and the faithful to recognize the importance of this emphasis on the Bible.^[25]

Reconciliation

The Sacrament of Reconciliation was given to the Church by the Lord Jesus himself as the preeminent place for the baptized to respond anew to his call to repentance and to receive the Father’s mercy. The renewal of this sacrament in our local Church is an essential part of our efforts to unleash the Gospel.^[26]

In the parable of the prodigal son, Jesus reveals God’s joy over returning sinners. The younger son, who insulted his father and wasted his inheritance, is reduced to starvation and decides to come home, hoping to be hired as a servant in his father’s house. But “while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him” (Lk 15:20). Before the young man even finishes his confession, the father commands that he be clothed in a robe, ring and sandals—signs of restoration to full sonship—and that a feast be held to celebrate. Such is God the Father’s heart toward his lost sons and daughters.

A sign of a thriving parish community is a culture of sharing in the “joy in heaven over one sinner who repents” (Lk 15:7). This entails both clear preaching about the consequences of sin and generous availability and use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. “[God’s] mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” (Lam 3:22-23). For those who have fallen away from their faith and the Church, Reconciliation is an open doorway for return. No sin is unforgiveable, and through the sacrament the Father’s embrace and a fresh start await them. For those already practicing the faith, being cleansed of sin is crucial for opening themselves to the movement of the Holy Spirit. Just as the sins of each individual have a negative spiritual effect on the whole community, so even more the spiritual healing and forgiveness received through the sacrament cause grace to flow through the whole community.

The Holy Eucharist

In the Holy Eucharist we reach the summit of our participation in the victory of Christ over sin and death—the triumph we proclaim in the new evangelization. In this Most Blessed Sacrament we have the source of our zeal and strength to unleash the Gospel.^[27]

Evangelization leads to the Eucharist, since the Eucharist is the fullness of communion with Jesus and his whole Church. On the other hand, the Eucharist leads to evangelization, since our ability to announce the Gospel springs from the passion and resurrection of Christ which is made present anew in the Eucharist. This is why the Latin liturgy traditionally ends with the words Ite, missa est: “Go, she is sent.” At every Mass the Church—that is, all her members—are newly empowered and sent forth to bring Christ into the world. Through the Eucharist we become stamped with the pattern of Christ’s own self-giving love so that we can reproduce that pattern in our own lives. Thus the goal of the liturgy is never just to receive the sacrament and go home; it is to become a living tabernacle through which Christ is made present to others. As Pope Benedict XVI stated:

The love that we celebrate in the sacrament is not something we can keep to ourselves. By its very nature it demands to be shared with all. What the world needs is God’s love; it needs to encounter Christ and to believe in him. The Eucharist is thus the source and summit not only of the Church’s life, but also of her mission: “an authentically eucharistic Church is a missionary Church.” We too must be able to tell our brothers and sisters with conviction: “That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us” (1 Jn 1:3).^[28]

The members of our local Church need to be regularly rekindled in “Eucharistic amazement”^[29] by preaching and catechesis that helps to deepen their understanding and faith in this immeasurable gift and moves them to make a gift of self in return. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, since it brings people directly into the presence of Jesus, is a powerful means of revitalizing a parish and equipping it to transform the culture.

Parishes must also focus sustained attention on the quality of the Sunday liturgy experience, especially from the perspective of newcomers and newly returning Catholics.^[30] Do people who show up for Mass enter into a friendly, hospitable environment where mutual love is evident? Does the music help them to lift up their minds and hearts in worship of God? Does the preaching break open the word of God and help them apply it to their lives? Is there an atmosphere of faith in which people’s attention is truly focused on the Lord? These qualities are not the responsibility of the pastor alone but of the entire congregation. If improvement is needed, let us strive for it with patience and perseverance.

Evangelizing the Evangelizers

To become an effective evangelizer one must first be evangelized, since we cannot give away what we do not have. Thus an urgent priority is to ensure that those who are to invite others to Christ have a deep personal relationship with Christ themselves. Some signs of this relationship are: receiving the sacraments regularly; engaging in personal prayer every day; reading Scripture daily; constantly learning more about the faith and seeking to live by it; and engaging in long-term regular service activities.

There is a tendency to think “once converted, always converted.” But in fact we are all in constant need of evangelization, because we are in need of deeper conversion. Being a disciple of Christ is never static; it is always dynamic, always a process of growth and of “following him on the way” (Mk 10:52). All members of the local Church should examine themselves to ensure that they have not stalled in their discipleship and thus become unable to give credible witness to the power of the Gospel. The Lord always has more for us than what we have yet received. Every one of us is called to, and capable of, sainthood.

Equipping the Evangelizers

Since evangelizing does not come naturally for most people, being effective evangelizers also usually requires the development of some practical skills. A parish that is a community of missionary disciples is one that provides regular opportunities for parishioners to learn and practice skills such as the following:

• Discernment of the “seeds of the Word”—that is, the recognition of how grace is at work, often in hidden ways, in the lives of those who are not currently practicing the faith.^[31] This includes the ability to listen well and to recognize the unexpressed hopes, fears, and longings in a person’s heart, and to show how the Gospel responds to them. It also includes the ability to affirm a person’s sincere spiritual seeking, even if some of their beliefs are misguided.
• Ability to explain the kerygma, the core message of the Gospel (see Marker 2.2). This may include practical training for evangelizing in different contexts (in the extended family, in the workplace, in sports settings, on the street, and so on).
• Ability to offer personal testimony to what Christ has done in one’s life (see Marker 2.3).
• Basic apologetics on common topics, especially topics where there is widespread skepticism or misunderstanding of Catholic beliefs.
• Growth in virtue, since those who are living a life of virtue are credible witnesses and their lives are attractive to unbelievers.^[32]

Charisms

Christ’s disciples were never meant to carry out her divine mandate to evangelize on the basis of human resources alone. Christ has endowed his bride with an abundance of supernatural charisms, gifts of the Holy Spirit that equip every member of the body of Christ to do his or her part in bearing witness to Christ and building up the Church.^[33] These gifts range from the simple and humble to the extraordinary (Rom 12:6-7; 1 Cor 12). The foundation and standard for using these gifts is always love (1 Cor 13).

As Vatican Council II stated,

For the exercise of this apostolate [of the laity], the Holy Spirit Who sanctifies the people of God through ministry and the sacraments gives the faithful special gifts also (cf. 1 Cor. 12:7), “allotting them to everyone according as He wills” (1 Cor. 12:11) in order that individuals, administering grace to others just as they have received it, may also be “good stewards of the manifold grace of God” (1 Peter 4:10), to build up the whole body in charity ( cf. Eph. 4:16). From the acceptance of these charisms, including those which are more elementary, there arise for each believer the right and duty to use them in the Church and in the world for the good of men and the building up of the Church, in the freedom of the Holy Spirit who “breathes where He wills” (John 3:8).^[34]

The Council also instructed that priests, “While testing the spirits to see if they be of God (cf. 1 John 4:1), … should uncover with a sense of faith, acknowledge with joy and foster with diligence the various humble and exalted charisms of the laity.”^[35] Discerning and pastoring the use of charisms is one of the most challenging and yet rewarding aspects of ecclesial leadership. Priests, deacons and lay ecclesial ministers in the Archdiocese should consider how to foster the use of charisms and to make all their evangelistic and pastoral endeavors “charism-based.” When discerning to whom the leadership of a particular ministry should be entrusted, or who should be called upon to volunteer, we must seek as much as possible to match people’s responsibilities to their charisms. Let us also give people room to grow and flourish in the use of their gifts, as St. John Chrysostom counsels: “The most basic task of a church leader is to discern the spiritual gifts of all those under his authority, and to encourage those gifts to be used to the full benefit of all. Only a person who can discern the gifts of others and can humbly rejoice at the flourishing of those gifts is fit to lead the Church.”^[36]

The Laity

The special calling and privilege of the lay faithful is to bring Christ into the secular world. “Since the laity, in accordance with their state of life, live in the midst of the world and its concerns, they are called by God to exercise their apostolate in the world like leaven, with the ardor of the spirit of Christ.”^[38] Their role is to transform every aspect of the culture through the Gospel—family life, education, government, business, the media, entertainment, sports, science, the arts. They do so both by “engaging in temporal affairs and ordering them according to the plan of God” and by “revealing Christ by word to those around them.”^[39]

The engagement of every lay person, according to their gifts and state in life, is essential for the mission of the Church to be fulfilled. “Each member of the lay faithful should always be fully aware of being a ‘member of the Church’ yet entrusted with a unique task which cannot be done by another and which is to be fulfilled for the good of all.”^[40] Each one should reflect on how the Lord is calling them to bring the Gospel into their particular spheres of influence both through their deeds and their words.

Priests and Deacons

The leadership of our priests and deacons in unleashing the Gospel is crucial for this mission; every pastoral work must make a contribution to the new evangelization.

As priests, we must resist the idea that we are ecclesiastical civil servants whose primary task is to maintain the organization. Rather, the organization is always at the service of the Gospel. Our role is to be spiritual fathers who bring God’s children to birth and nurture them to maturity in Christ (1 Cor 4:15; Gal 4:19). We lead the sheep to green pastures where they can be fed, refreshed, and spiritually built up so that they themselves can then be sent out into the harvest.

A priest is a servant of the word of God. “The priest is first of all a minister of the word of God. He is consecrated and sent forth to proclaim the good news of the kingdom to all, calling every person to the obedience of faith….”^[41] Although a priest’s highest role is the celebration of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, it is preaching the Gospel that draws people to Christ in the first place and enables them to receive the full saving benefit of the sacraments. Priests and deacons need to be bold in proclaiming all the elements of the Gospel, not only those parts that people want to hear. Preachers need ongoing formation in how to do so with compassion, conviction and clarity.

Consecrated Life and Movements

The Lord has raised up in our local Church men and women in consecrated life, as well as lay people who belong to ecclesial movements, so that they can employ their unique charisms in the new evangelization. We thank God for every religious order, congregation, society, and movement that is present in the Archdiocese, each with its particular gifts.

Consecrated men and women bear witness by their lives to the priceless treasure of Christ—”the pearl of great price” that is worth selling everything to attain (Mt 13:46). Their lives of prayer, service and self-sacrifice cause the fragrance of Christ to fill the atmosphere, so that others are drawn to him (cf. Jn 12:3; 2 Cor 2:14-15). Those in contemplative life are particularly indispensable to our local Church. If our mission is fruitful, it is largely because of their hidden prayers and sacrifices. Those in active apostolates make the good news of Christ visible and tangible to those they serve. I entreat all those in consecrated life to pray fervently and frequently for the success of our efforts to unleash the Gospel.

The ecclesial movements, many of which have sprung up since Vatican Council II, kindle fervor in lay people and bring fresh creativity and dynamism to evangelization. As John Paul II noted, “There is so much need today for mature Christian personalities, conscious of their baptismal identity, of their vocation and mission in the world! … And here are the movements and the new ecclesial communities: they are the response, given by the Holy Spirit, to this critical challenge.”^[42] I invite each of the movements to reflect on how they can contribute, in accord with their specific charisms, to our archdiocesan effort to unleash the Gospel.

Youth and Young Adults

The youth and young adults of our local Church have a particular call, which the Church wholeheartedly supports, to bring the light of the Gospel into southeast Michigan.

On the day of Pentecost St. Peter proclaimed, quoting the prophet Joel, that the Holy Spirit gives to both young and old the ability to prophesy (Acts 2:17)—that is, to speak God’s word under the influence of the Spirit such that it touches people’s hearts and brings conversion. We address our preaching of the Gospel to young people, but we must not forget that they themselves are also agents of the new evangelization. They have a unique ability to reach the people of their own generation, and they can help us think in new ways. We must make every effort to encourage, challenge, mentor, and raise up the young to take up their rightful roles in the mission of the Church, entrusting responsibility to them as appropriate. As Pope Francis wrote, there is an “urgent need for the young to exercise greater leadership.”^[43]

Going Out

Go out to the highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled. Luke 14:23

In his Great Commission, Jesus did not direct his disciples to stay inside and simply welcome those who show up at the Church’s door, but to go out: “Go and make disciples of all nations….” (Matthew 28:20). The new evangelization cannot be accomplished from within the walls of our churches. Jesus himself did not remain in the synagogues where there were already devout people; he also went out to places where tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners could be found. As Pope Francis has urged,

Let us go forth, then, let us go forth to offer everyone the life of Jesus Christ…. I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security…. If something should rightly disturb us and trouble our consciences, it is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters are living without the strength, light and consolation born of friendship with Jesus Christ…^[45]

In recent history our way of sharing Christ has been primarily through the Church’s institutions. Now is the time for our evangelization to become more intentional and more person-to-person. Every individual in the Archdiocese, especially lay people, are called to consider how the Lord may be calling us to go out, beyond where we may have gone before—even to the most unlikely places—to share the good news of Jesus with those who may never have heard it. Wherever the time and circumstances are right, sharing the Gospel also includes inviting people, both fellow parishioners and outsiders, to join in the activities of the Church.

Accompaniment

While they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them. Luke 24:15

Accompaniment of those being evangelized is an essential part of unleashing the Gospel. When Jesus walked with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, he did not immediately begin to instruct them. Instead he first listened to them and allowed them to share their hopes and disappointments, winning their trust. He met them where they were in their faith and helped them to go further.

Sharing the Gospel is only the beginning of evangelization. Those who are being evangelized, including our own parishioners, often need time to assimilate the Gospel and bring their lives into conformity with it. They may have developed worldly habits and ways of thinking that need to be gradually transformed. This is not always an easy process, especially for those who have spent many years living apart from God. They need others to walk by their side and lead them closer to God with patience, compassion, and wisdom. “The Church will have to initiate everyone—priests, religious and laity—into this ‘art of accompaniment’ which teaches us to remove our sandals before the sacred ground of the other (cf. Ex 3:5).”^[46] It is an art that will require the involvement of many lay people who are mature in their own faith, disciples who can disciple others.

Healing

An intrinsic part of accompaniment is healing. Many people today are deeply wounded by contemporary social ills such as the breakdown of the family, abuse, poverty, or racism. Jesus, quoting from the prophet Isaiah, described his own mission as a work of healing and liberation: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free…” (Lk 4:18-19). He also instructed his disciples to make healing a part of their proclamation of the Gospel: “Whatever town you enter and they welcome you… cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you'” (Lk 10:8-9).

The Church today continues the ministry of the apostolic Church, which continued the ministry of Jesus. So we must prayerfully discern how the healing work of Christ can be incorporated into our announcement of the good news. This includes making the two sacraments of healing, Reconciliation and the Anointing of the Sick, easily available. It may also include the establishment of healing prayer ministry teams or providing prayer for healing on a regular basis after Mass. The use of the gift of healing requires discernment, but such discernment is not to be confused with the skepticism of our age. Nor is healing a substitute for the hard work of growing in discipleship; rather, it is a gift to encourage us on that path. Being a minister of healing requires a rich prayer life, wise discernment, and being on guard against the enemy’s snares.

Media

If evangelization is to be “new in method,” to the fullest degree possible we must use new media in unleashing the Gospel. Just as St. Paul used the highly developed Roman road system and St. Maximilian Kolbe used the latest printing technologies to spread the Gospel in their times, so we recognize the advances in social media and information technology as God-given opportunities for spreading the Gospel in our time.

Strong support and gratitude are owed to those members of our local Church who are using the media to spread the Good News. I encourage the media experts among us to share their expertise and help train others in using the media for evangelization. I encourage all Catholics who use social media to recognize it as a powerful platform to engage others in conversation about the faith. At the same time, we must studiously avoid the temptation to lower our standards of charity when using social media. When people see our posts, let them see not only good content but a tone that is respectful, charitable, joyful, peaceful, and hopeful. Every member of the Church is an ambassador of Christ, and some people may form their views of Catholicism based on our conduct. “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for edifying, as fits the occasion, that it may impart grace to those who hear” (Eph 4:29). Our goal is not to win arguments but to win souls.

Ministry to Families

Among the many ministries entrusted to our parishes, the first priority is to assist families to live as domestic churches. Many parents have not been evangelized or well catechized themselves. Just as airline safety videos tell us to put on our own oxygen mask before assisting others—since otherwise we may not be able to help them at all—so parents need to have a living relationship with Jesus and to learn the faith themselves in order to hand it on effectively to their children.^[50]

In recent generations, the pattern for many Catholic parents has been to delegate their children’s religious education entirely to the parish, assuming that by doing so they fulfill their obligation to pass on the faith. Parishes must make every effort to resist this pattern, since catechizing children has little effect if parents themselves are not living as disciples of Jesus. Parishes must look for ways to make catechesis and sacramental preparation family-based, helping parents grow in discipleship so that they can then form their children.

Parishes also need to do everything possible, within their limits, to ensure that struggling families are being cared for, including those affected by divorce, illness or bereavement; infertile couples; those with children with special needs; and those struggling with pornography or other forms of addiction. Ministry to families must be sensitive to the rich cultural diversity within our local Church, appreciating and celebrating the different ways that our Catholic faith is lived out.

Evangelization within Families

Parents are the primary evangelizers as well as the primary catechists and educators of their children. Their role is absolutely irreplaceable. The role of fathers in particular is essential, since one of the greatest factors influencing a child’s future practice of the faith is the religious involvement of his or her father. Amid all the pressure to prepare their children for success in life, parents need to realize there is no greater success and no greater gift they can give their children than a relationship with Jesus and his Church, which endures throughout eternity.

A family of joyful missionary disciples is one where sacrificial love, after Christ’s example and in the power of his Spirit, is the principle that governs all of life. The first priority is given to participation in the Sunday liturgy and daily prayer; decisions about activities and finances are made according to the mind of Christ; the spouses talk freely to one another and to their children about the Lord; the faith is enculturated through various family and cultural traditions and celebrations; and, above all, the mutual gift of self is the norm for all relationships. In such families, the spouses are witnesses of Christ to one another, and often even the children, through the simplicity of their faith, evangelize their parents.

The Witness of Families

“The family lives its spirituality precisely by being at one and the same time a domestic church and a vital cell for transforming the world.”^[51]The witness of a joyful family life rooted in the Gospel can be a spiritual oasis for people in contemporary society. How many have never experienced a family life characterized by warmth, mutual affection, honor, forgiveness, and peace? In order to form healthy Christian families themselves, they need to see what it looks like; they need both teaching and models. I encourage families who are living the Gospel to exercise radical generosity in inviting others to share in your family life, even if you are well aware that it is not perfect. For instance, consider engaging in a ministry or ongoing service project as a family, so that others can witness how you relate to one another and how you raise your children. Consider inviting singles, including young people, to attend Mass with your family or to share meals at your home on a regular basis. Consider serving as mentors to newly married couples. When unchurched families—including relatives—come to your home, recognize that even a prayer before meals, or simple words of thanksgiving to God offered by each member of the family, can be a powerful witness to the presence of Christ among you.

The Joy of the Gospel

Unless we manifest to others the joy that is ours from having found the “pearl of great price” and from being sure of the Gospel’s invincible power, we will not attract others to listen to the good news. A parish of glum faces and grumpy attitudes will attract no one. Let our faces show our joy, which is not based on our changing circumstances but the unchanging presence of the risen Lord among us. Scripture commands us to rejoice, because we are capable of choosing joy: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). As Pope Francis stated:

An evangelizer must never look like someone who has just come back from a funeral! Let us recover and deepen our enthusiasm, that “delightful and comforting joy of evangelizing, even when it is in tears that we must sow… And may the world of our time, which is searching, … be enabled to receive the good news not from evangelizers who are dejected, discouraged, impatient or anxious, but from ministers of the Gospel whose lives glow with fervour, who have first received the joy of Christ.”^[52]

The One Sheep

“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?” (Lk 15:4). Jesus’ parables deeply challenge our human ways of thinking. How can it make sense to leave ninety-nine sheep vulnerable in the desert to go after just one lost one? Yet in his own ministry Jesus clearly made it a priority to reach the lost, those who were not in right relationship with God. He went out of his way to interact with people like Zacchaeus the tax collector and Mary Magdalene who had seven demons (Lk 8:2; 19:1-9). His whole mission was “to seek and save the lost” (Lk 19:10).

Christ’s primary mission must be ours as well. Yet it is easy to lose sight of that mission. Almost everything we do in parish life has been geared to ministering to the ninety-nine who are in the pews. So unleashing the Gospel in our local Church means learning how to make unchurched people a priority. To seek them, invite them, welcome them and accompany them on the way of discipleship is the business of every parishioner. The paradox is that when the attention of the whole flock turns outward to seek the lost, the ninety-nine grow exponentially in their own faith and commitment to Christ.

The Parish as a Place of Welcome

For evangelization to have its effect we must ensure that our communities extend a warm welcome to everyone who walks through the door. This entails changing the way we envision the parish. It is natural to think of the parish as the place for those who belong; we are less accustomed to seeing it as the place for those who do not yet belong but are taking their first steps on the journey toward God.

Every parish should deliberate on how to welcome those who have never come to church, or who have not been there in years, and who may cross the threshold with some trepidation. Are we sometimes tempted to react to such people like the older brother in Luke 15, who responded to the homecoming of his prodigal brother with anger and judgmentalism? Are we sometimes indifferent? Or are we rather like the father, who warmly embraced his son and celebrated his homecoming with great joy? If a homeless person shows up at the parish, let us rejoice! If a teenager covered in tattoos and piercings walks in, let us be glad! Let us make our parishes places where everyone who attends Mass can also make friends, find mentors, and feel known, loved and supported. This will require the committed involvement of many parishioners, especially those who have a charism for hospitality or for accompaniment.

Many of those we evangelize will not be immediately ready for adult catechesis or the RCIA program. To bring an unchurched person directly into such programs is like throwing a non-swimmer into the deep end. An important part of welcoming the newly evangelized is therefore to ensure that every parish, insofar as possible, has a “shallow end”—an entry-level means of getting one’s feet wet in the journey of faith. This may include programs of initial proclamation of the Gospel, such as Alpha; it may also include social events where people can get to know others in a relaxed, non-threatening environment before making a commitment of faith.

Evangelical Charity

Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Our service to the poor and marginalized needs to be a clear witness to Jesus our Lord, not mistaken for humanist philanthropy.

Catholics around the world and in our local Church have developed a remarkable network of charitable programs for health care, disaster relief, hunger alleviation, poverty reduction, refugee aid, family services, counseling, and help for people in every form of need. We must continue and intensify these works of service that manifest God’s love to those around us. In recent decades, however, there has been a tendency for Catholic charitable work to become separated from our primary calling to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is time to overcome that distinction. We need to ensure that in ministering to the material needs of others we are also responding to their spiritual thirst for God. Every Catholic charitable work must also be an authentic expression of Catholic faith. We must be unabashed to speak the name of Jesus and to invite every person to the fullness of life in him. The world needs the light that is in Christ alone.

Encounter

An encounter with Jesus is a moment in our lives that has such impact it causes us to change how we live. Once we have encountered Christ, from that point forward we are either all in or all out. Jesus says, “Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Mk 8:34). We are faced with a decision to either walk away sad like the rich young man, or to surrender our whole life to him and live from that moment on as his disciple. Parishes need to constantly foster opportunities for people to encounter Jesus.

Grow

To follow Jesus is to be in a constant process of growth, like the seed that fell on rich soil. We seek to be more like Jesus, to treat others as he did, to pray as he prayed, to love as he loved, and to honor God in every area of our lives, including marriage, family life, finances, work, and leisure activities. Growing as his disciple demands a daily surrender to the one who loved us and gave his life for us: “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me” (Gal 2:20). Parishes need to help parishioners to grow continually in discipleship and deepen their relationship with Christ.

Witness

Many Catholics tend to think our goal is essentially to be good and make it to heaven. In fact, our goal is to extend the kingdom of God on earth by making the world a place where Christ is known and loved, so that as many people as possible are brought with us to eternal life. To live fully as a disciple is to make disciples. All we need is this conviction: “Knowing Jesus is the best gift that any person can receive; that we have encountered him is the best thing that has happened in our lives, and making him known by our word and deeds is our joy.”^[53] Parishes need to help every parishioner become a witness to God’s everlasting mercy and thereby unleash the Gospel to everyone they meet.

The Star of Evangelization

As at the first Pentecost, still today, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Queen of the Apostles, leads us in prayer for the gift of the Holy Spirit and inspires us with a sure confidence that the Lord hears and will not fail to answer. Mary was the very first person to proclaim the good news of Christ, when she welcomed his presence within her through the Holy Spirit and went in haste to share the good news with her cousin Elizabeth (Lk 1:35-40). Since then she has continued to help and guide the Church’s mission through her powerful intercession. Her appearance as Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico in 1531 led to one of the most fruitful harvests of evangelization in history. Let us call upon her intercession that the Lord may bring about an unprecedented harvest in the Archdiocese of Detroit.

The Role of Intercessors

Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Matthew 9:38

Intercession has always been the hidden engine of the Church’s mission. It is not by accident that the co-patrons of the missions are St. Francis Xavier, who traveled as far as Japan to preach the Gospel, and St. Thérèse the Little Flower, who spent her entire adult life in a cloistered convent, offering all her prayers and sufferings for missionaries around the world. Intercessory prayer cultivates the soil for the sowing of the Word. It can stir up spiritual hunger in a whole city or region, so that the hearts of even those who are far from God are prepared to hear the Gospel when it is preached to them. Those who are suffering, especially, should never feel they are useless to the Church’s mission. In fact, they have a unique capacity to empower evangelization by offering their sufferings in union with Christ, and praying for the grace of conversion for those who are being evangelized.

One way to avail ourselves of the power of intercession is for each parish to form an intercessory prayer team which is regularly informed of the parish’s evangelistic initiatives, prays specifically for their success, and receives regular updates on how their prayers are being answered.

Victory over Spiritual Opposition

The Church’s mission has never been carried out without opposition—sometimes cultural, social, or governmental, but always spiritual. “Our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens” (Ephesians 6:12). We need not be afraid, since we know who has already won the victory. But we do need to arm ourselves for spiritual combat, recognizing that “Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

The faithful need help in understanding how to resist the evil one, exercising the authority they have in Christ. We must use all the weapons the Church has given us: prayer, especially the rosary, Scripture, the sacraments, and sacramentals such as holy water. “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4:7-8).