Franciscan Evangelization:: Striving to Preach the Gospel (original) (raw)
Related papers
The New Evangelization Imperative
When considering the new evangelization imperative I cannot help but recall a conversation I had with a few young individuals in Australia. As the conversation progressed, questions about the existence of God and the authenticity of the Scriptures emerged. I had the sense that these were challenging questions which their peers were asking them. However, I wasn't prepared for the reality that it was their Catholic religion teachers who were posing these questions and furthermore, presenting the faith as some superstitious idea. The unfortunate reality is that many young people receive little to no formation in the faith rendering them vulnerable when presented with difficult questions. In light of this singular experience, among many similar situations, there is a crisis of faith that has emerged which paints the Church as an outdated institute with beliefs that are seemingly unintelligible to the modern man. The reality of this crisis of faith is not difficult to see when churches, which once flourished, are closing their doors because of a lack of vocations, parishioners or finances, just to name a few factors.
Evangelism: Witnessing to Our Hope in Christ
International Review of Mission, 2012
Witnessing to Our Hope in Christ Introductory Remarks Evangelism is the queen of all Christian ministries. It is the highest calling of the Christian community because the community itself is borne of evangelism and exists to evangelise. "It is the raison d'être of the Church," according to this paper (¶ 35). As such, this statement is intended to be a call to action, a prophetic voice to remind the church and the entire global Christian community of the duty and joy of telling "the story of Jesus" (¶ 67). Evangelism "is intrinsic to the life of the disciple" (ibid). The paper is not intended to be "just" a theological paper: if you, the reader, accept it only as such, it has failed in its purpose-yet if you are inspired to greater evangelistic effort, then this statement has succeeded.
2013
This thesis explores the essential role of proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ in Blessed Pope John Paul II's New Evangelization. The process of evangelization is defined in terms of proclamation, followed by the acceptance of faith and conversion of the one being evangelized. Following the innovation of the Second Vatican Council, John Paul II reiterates that it is the responsibility of all Catholics to participate in evangelization. Another of the key themes of the Council, inter-religious and ecumenical dialogue is compared and contrasted with evangelization in general, and proclamation in particular, to further clarify the appropriate roles of each. Two landmark Encyclicals written by John Paul II, Fides et Ratio and Veritatis Splendor are reviewed for their insights. Both Encyclicals are seen as correctives of societal trends like rationalism and relativism that will undermine efforts to implement the New Evangelization if they are not addressed.
A Theology of Evangelism: The Heart of the Matter
To exaggerate and oversimplify, evangelism has been reduced to forms of social action among liberals and to manipulative schemes of conversion among conservatives. In the last decade, however, the beginnings of a vital conversation have become noticeable. The argument to be made is that evangelism needs to be construed as a polymorphous ministry aimed at initiating people into the kingdom of God. To accomplish this mill require not only proclamation of the gospel but also instruction in the faith.
Now is the Time: The Urgency of the New Evangelization
At the beginning of his pontificate, Saint John Paul the Great coined the term "new evangelization" to describe a great urgency facing the Church. Nearly forty years on, the use of the term is now widespread among Catholics involved in almost any type of apostolate or ministry. We see diocesan and parish positions dedicated to the new evangelization. The term is employed in numerous articles and as conference themes. There are apostolates and, if I may, even a think-tank dedicated to the new evangelization. These are good developments in as much as they are aimed at attempting to address the pressing issue identified by St. John Paul. Yet, with popularity comes attendant dangers, many of which have been realized. One danger is that with so many parties promoting the new evangelization there appear to be inconsistent interpretations of its meaning.
Franciscan Learning, Preaching and Mission c. 1220-1650
2015
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