The Joy of Sharing the Gospel by Fr. Bryan Howard One month ago we celebrated the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and for the past two weeks weve reflected on the Sacrament of Baptism. In Baptism, we receive the Holy Spirit and are brought into the family of God. In a way, weve celebrated the birth of Christ and our own spiritual birth. Now that weve received the Holy Spirit, what are we supposed to do? In yesterdays Gospel (Mt. 4:12-23) we heard how Christ began to call together His disciples and goes out to spread the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. In our baptisms, we have been called to be a disciple of Christ, but weve also been called to share that Gospel with the world. The very word “Gospel” gives us a clue, as it is derived from Old English and literally means “Good News,” the exact same meaning of the Greek word that it translates, “Evangelion.” To share the Gospel is simply to share the Good News of what Christ has done for us. Pope Frances has reflected on this in his recent Apostolic Exhortation “Evangelii Gaudium,” The Joy of the Gospel. He wrote, “Thanks solely to this encounter... with God’s love, which blossoms into an enriching friendship, we are liberated from our narrowness and self-absorption. We become fully human when we become more than human, when we let God bring us beyond ourselves in order to attain the fullest truth of our being. Here we find the source and inspiration of all our efforts at evangelization. For if we have received the love which restores meaning to our lives, how can we fail to share that love with others (Evangelii Gaudium, paragraph 8)?” The call to discipleship is this encounter with Gods love. The apostles responded to this call, leaving everything behind to follow Jesus. They stayed close to Him, listened to Him, learned from Him. We must form and strengthen this friendship with God through daily prayer and through the Sacraments. Imitating the apostles and gradually letting the love of God completely fill us. This love cant just be an emotion or a sensation; it calls us to act, especially through sharing this love with others. This is the heart of evangelization. Think of a young couple newly in love. You can see their love in the way they gaze at each other, stay close to one another, and behave towards one another. We must fall more deeply in love with God, so that, as the Gospel says, “This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (Jn. 13:35).” That young couple who are so deeply in love, they are not content to let their actions speak for them; you know they are in love because they wont stop talking about each other. So, Pope Frances also wrote, “Each of us should find ways to communicate Jesus wherever we are. All of us are called to offer others an explicit witness to the saving love of the Lord, who despite our imperfections offers us His closeness, His Word and His strength, and gives meaning to our lives (Evangelii Gaudium, paragraph 121).” Pope Frances says that it is not enough to let our actions speak for us, but you must “always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope (1 Peter 3:15).” Why do I believe? In what way has God given meaning to my life and given me hope? How has God touched my life? We should look for opportunities to share our faith with others. Pope Frances has also given us some tips on how to do this. He says that informal preaching should happen in the midst of a conversation. As we speak with someone, sharing our life with them, not in an artificial way, but truly listening to what they have to say, we can use the opportunity afterwards to share a verse from Scripture, or a story from the Bible. Just a way to plant that seed of faith and show them how God can speak to their lives. Then, if it seems prudent and they are willing, perhaps offer a prayer relating to any needs or concerns they may have expressed. You can see how this method of evangelization assumes that we have already taken the Scriptures and Christian Tradition to heart, making it part of our lives, so that it can spring easily from our lips. It is really nothing more than sharing what we have first received ourselves. We must let the Word of God, present in the Bible and in Holy Communion, become embedded in our lives, so that He will come out in our words and actions. When we share the Gospel out of love for our neighbor, we are simply acting from the conviction that God has brought healing, renewal and peace to our lives, and can do the same for others. St. Peter, pray for us. St. Paul, pray for us.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 16:48:51 +0000
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