By Leon Bent –
Lent is a special period of transforming grace which opens “The Door of Faith” (Acts 14:27; Also see, Pope Emeritus Benedict VI’s Apostolic Letter for the Year of Faith), and invites us into communion with God. It is a time to rediscover the journey of faith: animate, purify and confess it.
In this kairos time, it is good to dwell on the theme for “The General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that, the Holy Father convoked in October 2012: “The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith”.
What is Faith?
It is a joyous and hope-filled on-going conversion to the Lord, a process of intense relationship with Jesus and personal trust in him. Faith makes it possible for us to see, ever new, the marvels God works for us.
It was by faith that Mary accepted the message of the angel (cf.Lk.1:38). It took faith for the Apostles to leave everything to follow their Master (cf.Mk.10:28). By faith, scores of Christians have, down the ages, proclaimed “freedom from captives” and “a year of favour for all” (cf.Lk.4:18-19). It was on the undying ruins of the ‘bloody’ faith of thousands of martyrs that, the Church is built. Faith is love in action; to believe in the face and voice of Love, Jesus Christ who calls, questions, guides, enlightens and judges.
The Encyclical Letter, “Saved by Hope” reveals the startling fact that, faith draws the future into the present (hope), so that, it is no longer a “not yet” (Heb.11:1). Hope is a key word in Biblical faith (Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, etc.), so much so that, in several passages of Scripture, the words “faith” and “hope” seem interchangeable. Thus, the Letter to the Hebrews closely links the “followers of faith” (10:22), to “the confession of our hope without wavering” (10:23; cf.1 Pet.3:15; Eph.2:12; 1 Th.4:13). In hope we are saved! (Rm.8:24).
What is Evangelization or Mission?
Evangelization comes from the Greek word ev-angelion, which means ‘good news’. To articulate that in human terms, we must read the parable of the Good Samaritan: “Who was ‘Good News’ to the man who fell into the hands of robbers” (Lk. 10:25-37).
Joseph Neuner notes, “…Christian communities in Asia are meant to be the tangible sign and effective agent of the new creation”. George Soares-Prabhu points out that, “mission is not so much noisy proclamation as infectious witness”. It is to be “light” (Mt.5:14), “salt” (Mt.5:13) and “leaven” (Mt.13:33). It is to live the newness of the Gospel which, in the early Church, attracted many to Jesus. Jacob Kavunkal observes (Vidyajyoti, Jan 2013) that Christian mission must become a “love affair” that touches the hearts of the masses. Mother Teresa, despite being immersed in the depths of human misery, kept going with unflagging love for ‘the poorest of the poor’ and joy-giving vitality. Her wrinkled and frail image presented an ‘attractive Jesus’ across the seven seas! St. Francis Xavier, one of the greatest missionaries of the Gospel, worked wonders, not so much by eloquence as by compassion. However, Vatican Council II made it clear that, “the whole Church is, in its purest and most perfect form, missionary, and the work of evangelization is the duty of the whole People of God” (Ad Gentes, 2 & 35).
If you are looking for a step-by-step, clear, succinct account of Evangelization, savour the delectable account of Jesus and the charming Samaritan Woman at the Well, in John 4:3-43.
What Motivates a Person to Evangelize?
According to the Gospels, the women followers were the first to hear about Jesus’ resurrection (cf.Jn.20:14-18; Mk. 16:1-12; Lk. 21:1f), and Mary Magdalene was the first to meet the risen Lord (Mt.28:7-9; Mk.16:9; Jn. 20:16). The apparitions transformed their faith in the dead to a faith in the risen Jesus, and this faith flowered into testimony. This sighting of Jesus not only restored their faith, but prompted them to share their faith. Mary Magdalene is known as the Apostle of the Resurrection as Jesus urged her to share the news of Jesus’ resurrection with the close disciples: “Go to my brothers and say to them (Jn.20:17), “for whom were you mourning and weeping?” (Mk.16:10)…that I am ascending to my father and your father. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing comes from the preaching of Christ” (Rm. 10:17).
The disciples of Jesus and the early Church were a community of love and fellowship, called ecclesia, and joyfully bore witness to Christ, after being fired up by Pentecostal – Spirit power! They enthusiastically embraced prayer, listening to the Word of God, the Apostles’ teaching, a ‘lived’ fraternal charity and the ‘breaking of the bread’ (Acts 2:42-47; 4:29-37). The Lord added to their numbers, day by day, those who were being saved! They will know that we are Christians by our love! (cf.Jn.13:35). Such broadcasters are magnetic, contagious and have ethereal charm! The faith, if it is to be lived, has to be professed, celebrated, prayed, lived and bruited, in SCCs and Neighborhood Groups.
Pope Paul VI said, “Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and, if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses” (Evangelii Nuntiandi 41). Pope John Paul II spoke along the same lines in Redemptoris Missio, 42.
What does the New Evangelization mean?
The People of God are in constant need of being re-evangelized, especially in those parts of the world where the faith was firmly rooted (Europe), but is now adrift on the storm-tossed ocean of secularism and relativism.
The New Evangelization, then, is renewed energy in Jesus: determination, resourcefulness and freshness, to counter consumerism, hedonism, cultural nihilism, silent apostasy, violence and the ‘death of God’. The most famous example of the Re/New Evangelization already in Jesus’ lifetime, by Jesus himself, is the Emmaus story packaged in Luke 24:13-35. Read the captivating, poignant, inspirational narrative to know why!
Lent and the Paschal Triduum strongly and resonantly reiterate that, “The time is fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mk.1:15).
I conclude this Lenten reflection with the reassuring, audacious and prophetic words of Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil (Vidyajyoti, Jan.2013, p 18):’“The world, in its present form is passing away” (I Cor.7:31), and a new world is being born in our own times. We are called to be vibrant heralds of this New Enlightenment. At this glorious moment, do we have the depth and daring to point to Jesus?’
Leon Bent is an ex-Seminarian and studied the Liberal Arts and Humanities, and Philosophy, from St. Pius X College, Mumbai. He holds Masters Degree in English Literature and Aesthetics. He has published three Books and have 20 on the anvil. He has two extensively “Researched” Volumes to his name: Hail Full of Grace and Matrimony: The Thousand Faces of Love. He won The Examiner, Silver Pen Award, 2000 for writing on Social Issues, the clincher being a Researched Article on Gypsies in India, published in an issue of the (worldwide circulation) Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, New Delhi. On April, 28, 2018, Leon received the Cardinal Ivan Dias Award for a research paper in Mariology.