True Evangelization and Works
As we know Catholics are increasingly finding themselves at odds with the secular culture, which is under the dominion of Satan. In fact, a good litmus test to determine if you are truly living the Catholic faith is to observe how much opposition you have with the secular world and its popular ideas. If Jeffrey Sachs’ ethics are in line with yours, you have a serious problem! Using the virtue of prudence, it is our duty to fight against the world by living and preaching the gospel. This means that we use words and actions together under the direction of the Holy Spirit to dispel darkness and bring the light of the gospel to all men. This is done not to make an earthly utopia as many Catholics seem to infer. It is done to build up the Church militant on earth, and the Church triumphant in the kingdom of heaven.
Even though we often must fight against the secular world, we must also have charity for those in the world. This means that we must love those who are our enemies. As we know, this is one of the most difficult tasks Our Lord calls us to. We all have heard the Gospel passage, “This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) How many of us truly understand its meaning? How did Christ love us? He loved us by bringing us to a filial relationship with God the Father, which is divine sonship. So, we too must love others in this way. We should be looking to the salvation of the souls of all people in every nation and culture through evangelization. There is no cultural divide that cannot be overcome by the light of the gospel. The reality is that our neighbor is not really our enemy but is a person in need of Christ. Ultimately the forces of the demonic are what must be overcome. Our strategy of evangelization is therefore at the core of winning this war. “To other cities also I must preach the kingdom of God: for therefore am I sent.” (Luke 4:43)
Works and Evangelization?
This battlefront concerning others we interact with involves both strengthening our brothers and sisters in the faith and evangelizing those outside the Church into the faith. There are many opinions today concerning “evangelization.” Do we evangelize as salesmen or business tycoons preaching a materialist gospel as we see so often with the televangelists? Do we use random acts of charity to lure others to the faith? Does evangelization require meetings and synods to strategize on how we are to preach the gospel? I think that if the apostles would have wasted half the time we waste in the Church today with synods and meetings that they wouldn’t have converted anyone! The synods and meetings of today rarely speak of the true evangelization and usually have the characteristics of a secular charity organization.
It is dangerous to follow the modern invention of what I call ‘Soup Kitchen Evangelization.’ Please do not mistake me as saying that the corporal works of mercy are not to be lived and carried out in the Christian life. On the contrary, they are to be lived within the paradigm of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel must be preached and lived faithfully in order to arrive at any true corporal works of mercy such as feeding the poor or clothing the homeless. The quote most taken out of context in the Church today is one falsely attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi, “preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary, use words.” How often have you heard this quote thrown around at church or at a casual gathering when discussing the role of the Church? Today this is taken to mean that we do not have to orally preach the gospel to those outside of the Church. We wouldn’t want to offend anyone would we?
Are we to just drip the honey of social justice and good works to lure people like bees to God? What did St. Francis really teach? If we read his rule, he clearly endorses two ways of engaging non-believers such as the Saracens when the friars embarked off to foreign lands. “As for brothers who go, they can live spiritually among the Saracens and non-believers in two ways. One way is not to engage in arguments or disputes but to be subject to every human creature for God’s sake and to acknowledge that they are Christians. The other way is to announce the Word of God, when they see it pleases the Lord, in order that unbelievers may believe in almighty God because no one can enter the kingdom of God without being reborn of water and the Holy Spirit.”[1] The first way St. Francis teaches is not that of social justice or works, but he wants them to openly live their Catholic faith to the point of martyrdom, “to acknowledge that they are Christians.” This is done in a bold manner to attract the unbeliever. The second way he wants them to engage is to listen for the movement of the Holy Spirit and openly preach to them. In reading his rule there is no indication that open preaching is to be frowned upon; in fact, everywhere Francis went he preached. He was well known wherever he went for his fiery preaching! Unfortunately, some today in the Church see this active oral preaching in a negative manner referring to it as “proselytism.” They see evangelization only with respect to external works such as feeding the poor.
We must ask an important question. Did Christ anywhere command the apostles to go and open a soup kitchen and wait for converts to come as they happened to be attracted to a warm bowl of soup? No. Christ specifically called the apostles to orally tell others about Him, and that means that evangelization requires oral preaching activity. “Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.” (Matthew 28:19-20). “...how shall they believe him, of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear, without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14) The apostles then inspired by the Holy Spirit went out to all lands, the Jew and the Gentile and orally preached the gospel. They also lived the Christian life to the point of martyrdom! Did they live the gospel by helping the poor and downtrodden? Certainly, but it was not in lieu of oral preaching. If the apostles would have used today’s ‘Soup Kitchen Model’ they wouldn’t have had the mass conversions that were attested to in the Scriptures. This front of the battle depends upon the state of our own soul. Without supernatural grace given by the Holy Spirit, preaching or good works bear little fruit. And if it does bear fruit, we can still lose our own souls in the process if we are not spiritually mature.
How then should we view the corporal works of mercy such as feeding the poor? You will never hear me speak against such actions unless it is done in lieu of orally preaching the gospel. More specifically, if one were to feed the poor in order to merely gain personal satisfaction for one’s works, separated from the mission of Christ to bring Him to all people, then it would only be only an act of natural charity, and not of divine origin. True “works” in the Catholic sense are never separated from faith, hope, charity or from the grace in us which foster those gifts. Therefore, traditionally the Church has called the laity and religious to first tend to the development of their own soul in order to prepare themselves to go out and evangelize. With this preparation, they can exercise the corporal and spiritual works of mercy according to the direction of the Holy Spirit. When external works become ends unto themselves, they fail to connect on a spiritual level. This worldly attitude renders the Church one social charity among others, which it most certainly not.
A book that I recommend reading is called, 'The Soul of the Apostolate' by Jean Baptiste Chautard. In it, he warns Catholics laity and clergy alike that they can easily fall into a naturalist heresy where one’s own public work becomes one’s primary focus, to which he says, “What Our Lord is looking for, above all, is adorers in spirit and in truth. But these activistic heretics, for their part, imagine that they are giving greater glory to God in aiming above all at external results...”[2] So we must first fight to obtain a spiritual maturity where we can hear God and discern the calling to our own particular vocation and mission. It is only then that we will be able to fight the battle against the world in whatever manner God deems, to give Him the most glory and to win souls.
[1] Francis of Assisi, The Saint (New City Press 2003) P74
[2] Jean Baptiste Chautard, The Soul of the Apostolate (By the Abbey of Gethsemani, Inc. 1946) P25
Matthew J. Bellisario
As we know Catholics are increasingly finding themselves at odds with the secular culture, which is under the dominion of Satan. In fact, a good litmus test to determine if you are truly living the Catholic faith is to observe how much opposition you have with the secular world and its popular ideas. If Jeffrey Sachs’ ethics are in line with yours, you have a serious problem! Using the virtue of prudence, it is our duty to fight against the world by living and preaching the gospel. This means that we use words and actions together under the direction of the Holy Spirit to dispel darkness and bring the light of the gospel to all men. This is done not to make an earthly utopia as many Catholics seem to infer. It is done to build up the Church militant on earth, and the Church triumphant in the kingdom of heaven.
Even though we often must fight against the secular world, we must also have charity for those in the world. This means that we must love those who are our enemies. As we know, this is one of the most difficult tasks Our Lord calls us to. We all have heard the Gospel passage, “This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) How many of us truly understand its meaning? How did Christ love us? He loved us by bringing us to a filial relationship with God the Father, which is divine sonship. So, we too must love others in this way. We should be looking to the salvation of the souls of all people in every nation and culture through evangelization. There is no cultural divide that cannot be overcome by the light of the gospel. The reality is that our neighbor is not really our enemy but is a person in need of Christ. Ultimately the forces of the demonic are what must be overcome. Our strategy of evangelization is therefore at the core of winning this war. “To other cities also I must preach the kingdom of God: for therefore am I sent.” (Luke 4:43)
Works and Evangelization?
This battlefront concerning others we interact with involves both strengthening our brothers and sisters in the faith and evangelizing those outside the Church into the faith. There are many opinions today concerning “evangelization.” Do we evangelize as salesmen or business tycoons preaching a materialist gospel as we see so often with the televangelists? Do we use random acts of charity to lure others to the faith? Does evangelization require meetings and synods to strategize on how we are to preach the gospel? I think that if the apostles would have wasted half the time we waste in the Church today with synods and meetings that they wouldn’t have converted anyone! The synods and meetings of today rarely speak of the true evangelization and usually have the characteristics of a secular charity organization.
It is dangerous to follow the modern invention of what I call ‘Soup Kitchen Evangelization.’ Please do not mistake me as saying that the corporal works of mercy are not to be lived and carried out in the Christian life. On the contrary, they are to be lived within the paradigm of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel must be preached and lived faithfully in order to arrive at any true corporal works of mercy such as feeding the poor or clothing the homeless. The quote most taken out of context in the Church today is one falsely attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi, “preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary, use words.” How often have you heard this quote thrown around at church or at a casual gathering when discussing the role of the Church? Today this is taken to mean that we do not have to orally preach the gospel to those outside of the Church. We wouldn’t want to offend anyone would we?
Are we to just drip the honey of social justice and good works to lure people like bees to God? What did St. Francis really teach? If we read his rule, he clearly endorses two ways of engaging non-believers such as the Saracens when the friars embarked off to foreign lands. “As for brothers who go, they can live spiritually among the Saracens and non-believers in two ways. One way is not to engage in arguments or disputes but to be subject to every human creature for God’s sake and to acknowledge that they are Christians. The other way is to announce the Word of God, when they see it pleases the Lord, in order that unbelievers may believe in almighty God because no one can enter the kingdom of God without being reborn of water and the Holy Spirit.”[1] The first way St. Francis teaches is not that of social justice or works, but he wants them to openly live their Catholic faith to the point of martyrdom, “to acknowledge that they are Christians.” This is done in a bold manner to attract the unbeliever. The second way he wants them to engage is to listen for the movement of the Holy Spirit and openly preach to them. In reading his rule there is no indication that open preaching is to be frowned upon; in fact, everywhere Francis went he preached. He was well known wherever he went for his fiery preaching! Unfortunately, some today in the Church see this active oral preaching in a negative manner referring to it as “proselytism.” They see evangelization only with respect to external works such as feeding the poor.
We must ask an important question. Did Christ anywhere command the apostles to go and open a soup kitchen and wait for converts to come as they happened to be attracted to a warm bowl of soup? No. Christ specifically called the apostles to orally tell others about Him, and that means that evangelization requires oral preaching activity. “Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.” (Matthew 28:19-20). “...how shall they believe him, of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear, without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14) The apostles then inspired by the Holy Spirit went out to all lands, the Jew and the Gentile and orally preached the gospel. They also lived the Christian life to the point of martyrdom! Did they live the gospel by helping the poor and downtrodden? Certainly, but it was not in lieu of oral preaching. If the apostles would have used today’s ‘Soup Kitchen Model’ they wouldn’t have had the mass conversions that were attested to in the Scriptures. This front of the battle depends upon the state of our own soul. Without supernatural grace given by the Holy Spirit, preaching or good works bear little fruit. And if it does bear fruit, we can still lose our own souls in the process if we are not spiritually mature.
How then should we view the corporal works of mercy such as feeding the poor? You will never hear me speak against such actions unless it is done in lieu of orally preaching the gospel. More specifically, if one were to feed the poor in order to merely gain personal satisfaction for one’s works, separated from the mission of Christ to bring Him to all people, then it would only be only an act of natural charity, and not of divine origin. True “works” in the Catholic sense are never separated from faith, hope, charity or from the grace in us which foster those gifts. Therefore, traditionally the Church has called the laity and religious to first tend to the development of their own soul in order to prepare themselves to go out and evangelize. With this preparation, they can exercise the corporal and spiritual works of mercy according to the direction of the Holy Spirit. When external works become ends unto themselves, they fail to connect on a spiritual level. This worldly attitude renders the Church one social charity among others, which it most certainly not.
A book that I recommend reading is called, 'The Soul of the Apostolate' by Jean Baptiste Chautard. In it, he warns Catholics laity and clergy alike that they can easily fall into a naturalist heresy where one’s own public work becomes one’s primary focus, to which he says, “What Our Lord is looking for, above all, is adorers in spirit and in truth. But these activistic heretics, for their part, imagine that they are giving greater glory to God in aiming above all at external results...”[2] So we must first fight to obtain a spiritual maturity where we can hear God and discern the calling to our own particular vocation and mission. It is only then that we will be able to fight the battle against the world in whatever manner God deems, to give Him the most glory and to win souls.
[1] Francis of Assisi, The Saint (New City Press 2003) P74
[2] Jean Baptiste Chautard, The Soul of the Apostolate (By the Abbey of Gethsemani, Inc. 1946) P25
Matthew J. Bellisario
Comments
Post a Comment