So onto the topic of discussion for today. Samuel Gregg wrote a very interesting blog on religious dialogue (that is, dialogue between those of different faiths - generally in Christianity, we refer to this type of dialogue between denominations as ecumenism). He makes some very good points about what is good and bad approaches to dialogue and I encourage you all to read it. While I don't agree with everything he says (his notes on Karl Rahner try to place a very particular theology in a realm that I am not sure it should go...Rahner doesn't really fit into a mold except for his own), he places dialogue, a seemingly 'new' idea into the light of 2000 years of tradition. In fact, he shows that it is not a new idea, but something the Church has been doing all the way back to the times of St. Peter and Paul. His blog article can be found here.
While reading his article, I realized that his argument also nicely fits into pastorally working in the Church. Pope Francis has been very firmly pushing the Church to evangelize to the people around us. And he has been making it clear that we have to meet them where they are in order to be the inviting catalyst to begin to show them the faith. He has repeatedly called priests to head into the streets and meet the people where they are. This same message has come to the youth at World Youth Day 2013. At the Prayer Vigil with Young People, Pope Francis told them: "Today too, as always, the Lord needs you, young people, for his Church. My friends, the Lord needs you! Today too, he is calling each of you to follow him in his Church and to be missionaries. The Lord is calling you today! Not the masses, but you, and you, and you, each one of you. Listen to what he is saying to you in your heart." The Lord is asking each of us to go out into the fields for him. But how do we do this without trying to 'force Jesus down someone's throats' (anyone who has even walked through the streets of DC as I have most likely have seen this at play from a street corner, doom and gloom, preacher) and without losing the truth of our faith in the midst of the world? Building off Samuel's article, I have a few thoughts.
Know the Lord and have a life that includes Him in the center of it - I think this is the more important step. Before we can go out running around trying to share Jesus with everyone, we need to have a good relationship with him. In other words, a solid prayer life. Now, I didn't say you have to pray for so long everyday or practice certain prayers, etc. No, I think only a person can truly know where he or she is in relationship with Our Lord, but we have to be able to say that when the chips are down and stuff is tough, that we trust enough to turn to God in prayer and 'recharge our batteries' before we can try to go out past our own lives. For me, its offering praise to God every morning and talking throughout the day with Him to keep myself focused. For others I know, its daily Mass, a Rosary, the Angelus, even just five minutes of silence to start and end the day. Whatever it is, the habit trains us to trust God and bring our needs to Him. Plus, we learn to love Him more and to take His Love and share it with others.
Start small - When I was 14, the Lord tapped me on the shoulder one day and my life began to take a very different direction. I became interested in my faith and in God. The first people I told were my siblings and my parents, because I trusted them that they wouldn't spread it too far. As a family, we talked and saw a renewal in all our faiths as God invaded not only my life, but theirs as well. If you want to share God's love, start with those you know trust and love you. Family and friends are good because even if they are not so sure about your love of God and how it might fit in their lives, they know you deeply and thus those conversations will start easier. Its far harder to have a deep conversation with a total stranger.
Its not all talk - I think one of the great 'rediscoveries' that Pope Francis is calling us to is that actions speak just as loudly as words. Our evangelization needs to be the light that people see in us of a life changed. Work on doing little things for those around you that you normally wouldn't do. Take those situations to prayer and ask God where you might be able to show His Love - a word of encouragement, helping someone complete a task that normally would be left for them, etc. Our Church, especially in places like Philly and Boston, where it has really taken a beating and lost a lot of trust in the past decade, desperately need people to step out of the their own lives and be examples of good will and charity to others. Groups like Knights of Columbus and St Vincent DePaul still have active ministries because they are based on doing small acts of charity, helping people whenever and wherever they are. Join a group you believe in, begin to look to be a positive change in your community.
And finally:
Don't be afraid to speak in the language of the world - This point I am directly taking from Gregg's article (and thank you for writing such a great example from St Paul! Huge burst of encouragement!). I think we as a Church have gotten very comfortable with 'Church speak'. We have certain words that make us different and we use them when we are doing 'Church things'. This is one of the many reasons we struggle as a Church with compartmentalization in the United States. We have yet to discover how to show others our faith in the Monday to Saturday fashion. If we use our 'Church language', many will be left alienated and confused. Instead, we have to find ways to express God's love in light of the surrounding culture.
In youth ministry, this kind of idea is thrown around a lot. I will probably have to use examples of MTV, homework, nagging parents, etc to show the youth that I can relate to their lives. And through that, I can be an open invitation for them to begin to relate to mine, one of someone who also believes in Christ and can be a mentor for them as they work through having faith in this world. I think we all are called to do this, be it if we are speaking to a teenager or a grandparent. Age, culture, and life-experience dictates that their lives are going to be very different. But if we can ask God for the guidance to relate to those we want to share the Good News with, we will begin to see walls come down. And for those we are sharing with, they will see that God fits in their lives as well. Those fallen away from the Church will begin to return and new believers with passion and fire from God's love will begin to walk through the doors of our parishes. This kind of evangelization is a domino-effect: each person brings more opportunity to spread the love of Jesus Christ to the ends of the world.
God Bless! See you next week!
No comments:
Post a Comment