EVANGELIZATION (Action)
ORIENTATION
This talk concludes the tripod of Holiness, Formation and Evangelization. Conversion will not be complete if the participants do not become aware that Christians, strengthened by love, cannot grow in their life of holiness passively committed only to contemplation. They must pour out this love on others. We are not merely trying to act like Christians. Being Christian, if authentic, involves evangelization.
We emphasize that the obligation to love comes from the very nature of being Christian. It is a concrete realization of the demands of Baptism and Confirmation. We help them see that being Christian unfolds in a vertical relation with God and a horizontal relation with persons: Love God with your whole heart, mind and soul and your neighbor as yourself (Mt. 22:26-40). We should set forth the forms of evangelization, witness of life, and the Christian restoration of the world.
God has entrusted to us the task of continuing His work.
For this the Church
was founded—that she might bring all men to share in Christ’s saving redemption, and that through them the whole world might, in actual fact, be brought into relationship with Him. In the Body of Christ, which is the Church, When each separate part works as it should, the whole body grows and builds itself up through love (Eph. 4:16).Without evangelization, the Church will cease being the salvation for today’s world.
If these people have made Christ the center of their lives, they are capable of announcing the splendor of the reality of God who loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son (Jn. 3:16) (Fundamental Ideas of the Cursillo Movement, No. 165, p. 74).
The principal points of the Evangelization talk are:
1. Evangelization is a natural result of holiness and formation.
2. Evangelization is the giving of self to another for the
purpose of allowing the other to
mature in their relationship with Christ.
3. Evangelization aims to infuse Christianity into the fabric of society.
4. Evangelization is the key to bringing the Christian vision for the world to fulfillment.
GENERAL COMMENTS
The Evangelization talk is at the mid-point of the series of talks in the Weekend. In a certain way, it is the central talk of the Cursillo because it is the talk which describes the importance of evangelization and its place in the life of a Christian leader. In order to explain evangelization, the talk has to show its relationship to the life of grace and also begins to describe an approach to evangelization. The result of the talk should be an increase in the desire of cursillistas to bring others to Christ and to a life of holiness. As a result of that, there will be an increase in their own desire for growth in holiness in order to be able to help others.
The first day of the Cursillo lays the foundation for everything which is done in the second day. It describes the new life of union with God which Christ came to offer to people. And it describes the response which a Christian makes to that offer (the call to holiness). In "Laity—Layperson as Church in the World" talk, the Cursillo describes the Church as a missionary Church, and it makes clear that the laity, because they are members of the Church, have an apostolic mission. They must work to bring the world to Christ and remake the world in Christ. Holiness describes the natural consequence of fully living a life in grace. The Holiness talk focuses on one of the best things we have—the knowledge and love of Christ— the active bringing of the Kingdom of God into our world.
The second day of the Cursillo begins to explain to the participants the various things they can do to grow effectively in the apostolic ideal described on the first day. During the whole second day, a picture is built up of the things each will have to do in order to become a formed Christian leader. The Evangelization talk explains an important part of this formation. If they are going to be true Christian apostles they are going to have to make friends with others in order to help them reach their potential. The apostle will have to become the kind of person who draws others to Christ and to His values.
The Evangelization talk does not just talk of doing good deeds. To be a good father, worker, employer, or whatever, is not evangelization. Non-Christians do the same things. Rather, the Evangelization talk is concerned with actual evangelistic efforts focused on renewing the world in Christ. Being a good neighbor, for instance, is an important step in the role of evangelization. A person could not love or give of themselves (be as Christ) to their neighbor without in fact first being a good neighbor. But being a good neighbor is not automatically evangelization. To be evangelistic it must contain a conscientious effort to build the Kingdom of God. It must strive to renew the world in Christ and to create an atmosphere wherein people can grow in God’s sight. It is the motivation that makes an act evangelistic.
Also, although the Evangelization talk does not lay out the different goals and approaches in evangelization, it is mainly concerned with what has been called personal contact—making friends with others to make them friends of Christ. The concrete change that should come about in peoples lives as a result of this talk is that they should begin to work personally with people to draw them toward Christ. This is the basis of all the rest of their efforts. The Evangelization talk centers on personal contact because it is preparing the participant for what the rest of the Cursillo has to say.
The Cursillo describes an approach for the Christian renewal of society. The strategy of the Cursillo approach is described on the third day of the Cursillo, especially in Study and Evangelization of Environments and Developing Christian Community Within Our Environments. The Cursillo is meant to give birth to a movement of apostles. This Movement strives to create strong Christian leaders who are working to penetrate their environments by drawing the people around them to Christ and transforming their environments in Christ. Each leader is working in his or her own environment to draw people toward Christ and to a fuller life, and in that way they are working to change the world, remolding it in the new life which Christ is offering.
The core, or heart of the work of changing environments, is the work of drawing people toward Christ. Everything the Christian does should have as its fundamental motivational force the desire to build the world toward the Christian vision, with all people able to love and be loved in return, in union with God.
To present a need is the goal of the Evangelization talk. The participants are sent to make friends with others in order to build the Kingdom of God. As Christ lives in the participants more and more, they will naturally desire to bring others toward Christ s vision for the world. They will not be satisfied in any situation (or environment) that prevents others from growing toward Christian maturity. The Christian will want to bring Christ within the situation to make it fruitful for all people involved.
The Evangelization talk, then, centers on Christian love—the giving of self to another with the express purpose of helping the other to grow toward God. The talk describes the need to befriend those people God has placed in our everyday lives. The accent is on friendship and caring for others.
The Evangelization talk is concerned with describing mature Christians in their relationships with others. But it also has a special way of talking about this effort. The Evangelization talk is not the only talk in the Cursillo that talks about evangelistic efforts. The talk only has to do part of the work. Just because the title of the talk is Evangelization does not mean that the speaker in this talk has to say everything there is to say about evangelization.
In a certain sense the Evangelization talk describes a method of evangelzation. But it does not describe a method of evangelization in the same way as Study and Evangelization of Environments talk. It does not draw up a plan. Rather it describes an approach to evangelization. It shows how the participants with their new love of others and their new desire to bring them toward Christ can begin to approach them. What is said in the Evangelization talk is incomplete without Study and Evangelization of Environments and Developing Christian Community Within Our Environments. It shows the participants that they are going to have to do certain things, but it does not describe completely how they are to do them.
The Evangelization talk is a transition talk. Along with "Leaders", it makes the transition from considering the life of grace to the third day. It starts the participants thinking about what they have to do in the world. Leaders makes them think about it more. It is, however, not until Study and Evangelization of Environments talk that they actually start considering their own environments and planning what they will do in them.
The Evangelization talk is a talk in which the participants attitudes are changed. They are told about a new kind of activity. They are given some idea of what it is like. Above all, they are given a desire to do it (to bring people toward Christ) and a desire to increase their own life with Christ because they know their evangelistic efforts will result from an overflow of their Christian life. In other words, the participants find out that in order to engage in authentic evangelization they must be able to give a personal witness of their ability to live a strong Christian life.
The "Evangelization" talk is a talk of love. Christians do not engage in evangelization because they want to influence others or because they want their cause to triumph or because they want the world to be more of a place they want to live in. They engage in evangelization because Christs love is in them, and they want others to have the treasure of the life of grace. Even more, their very efforts should be loving. It should be friendship. They should be drawing others to Christ by loving them and befriending them.
The opening section sums up "Holiness and Formation" and once again places the call for personal conversion before the participants. This section is summed up by recalling God's words to Cain: Where is your brother? The remainder of the talk discusses what the Christian 's attitude toward others should be.
Section two defines the general term evangelization.
Section three then describes some false concepts of Christian evangelization; ways in which some Christians practice their efforts that are either incomplete or not necessarily Christian.
Section four describes authentic evangelization by separating good human efforts fror Christian efforts: The prominence of Christ in the life of the Christian underlies and provide the motivational force for acts of service and love. Section four then forms the heart of the talk by discussing Christian love. It sums up all of the previous talks on the Christian approach to life and points out that self-giving is a measure of a persons human and spiritual development. In this way it is a logical extension of the "Ideal" talk.
Section five defines the qualities of evangelization.
Section six introduces the Cursillo's method of evangelization through personal contact of describing how to, " Make a friend, be a friend, and bring your friend to Christ."
The talk then ends by reflecting back to God’s question to Cain from section one.
The "Evangelization" talk has set the stage for the rest of the talks. Each succeeding talk shows how the concepts presented in "Evangelization" are applied in the world. The "Evangelization" talk presents the key to true Christian efforts—the redemptive love of the Christian for each person in his or her Iife.
ATMOSPHERE
The Evangelization talk normally comes right after lunch on Saturday. The morning session will have ended with the longer "Sacraments" talk, and this combined with lunch will cause the participants to be emotionally drained and sleepy. It would be good if an opportunity were provided here for the participants to have a good break before the Evangelization talk to allow them to regain their ability to absorb the message.
Most participants will have accepted the call from Christ at this time. The events of the morning will have led most to commit themselves, and they will be eager to begin to learn the "how". Thus, "Evangelization" continues the phase (started by "Formation") wherein the participants are told how the Christian is to act, and lays out a concrete suggestion for how evangelization can be a part of their everyday lives.
METHOD OF WRITING THE TALK
The "Evangelization" talk is intended to be clear and explanatory rather than enthusiastic It is not intended to be a ringing call to action. It should explain the place of action in th Christian life (as a consequence of the nature of Christianity and of the life of grace) and explain an approach to "Evangelization". This is not to say that the talk should lack interest or excitement. It is only to say that it should be more than an enthusiastic call to do something. Its main way of convincing and motivating is through a clarity in the picture it presents an through the greatness of the idea behind it.
The talk should have the tone of embarking upon an adventure. Apostles are trying to do an extra-ordinary thing—to brîng the world to Christ. The talk should be exciting, as th speaker unfolds the ideas and the method. Stories are told of how God works and how the world is brought to Christ. For many, if not most of the participants, this will be a new dimension of Christianity.
The talk should have examples/witness of evangelization efforts. These examples should be used in the talk to clarify the points. The examples do not have to be inspirational the way the examples in "Leaders" and "Christian Community" will be. The examples/witness are instructional and clarifying, showing that the ideas are a reality. The remainder of the ta1k present through their witness the reality of the concepts presented.
This talk should not try to do too much. There are few talks where the temptation is greater. "Evangelization" does not present a complete picture of the apostolate, and should not. The speaker has to exercise restraint. The main job is to explain the place of "Evangelization" in the life of the Christian leader and to present a method of apostolic action within that evangelical life.
The speaker should expect to encounter some prejudice against this talk. Despite all the explicit teaching of the Council (Constitution on the Church, Articles 1 7, 33, 35; Apostolate of the Laity, Articles 2, 6, 13) and of the Popes, most especially Pope Paul's encyclical on evangelization, most participants will come to the Cursillo with the misconception that religious work (Evangelization) is only done under religious auspices, or by special groups organized to work in the Church. Most examples/witness of evangelization efforts should be used in the last part of the talk—Method of Action. Examples of doing Christian works, which can be a form of Evangelization (i.e, teaching C.C.D.), must be avoided in favor of personal contact examples. Most participants will put any thought of evangelization in the same category as preaching or acting as a Jehovah’s Witness. The main way that the speaker will overcome the resistance will be by clearly explaining the place evangelization has in the life of the Christian. A clear, firm, joyful presentation of the ideas in the Evangelization talk will overcome or greatly reduce most of the obstacles. The atmosphere of the Cursillo and remainder of the talks will take care of what remains.
The talk must not be dull, or most participants may literally fall asleep! It is important that the ideas be put across with excitement but, likewise, clarity is of utmost importance to set the stage for the following talks.
Excellent background reading for this talk is Eric Fromms The Art of Loving, Harper & Row Publishers.
The talk should last 35 minutes.
EVANGELIZATION
OUTLINE
1. INTRODUCTION
A.The Christian life is expressed in three distinct elements: Holiness,
Formation,
and Evangelization.
(1) Holiness - Empowers us to love and
attract others to do likewise. It is the
giving of our whole lives to God.
(2) Formation - Helps us to establish a better relationship with God and His Will.
(3) Evangelization - Is the consequence of
being a Christian; an expression of
our desire to
share God’s love.
B. Human maturity is marked by harmony and balance in the
psychological, intellectual,
spiritual and social areas of life.
C. Christian maturity is marked by harmony and balance in the three
aspects of our
Christian life (Holiness, Formation, and
Evangelization).
D. All of us are called to a personal conversion marked by a
fundamental change
in the direction of our lives.
E. Christianity is more than,
(1) An individual relationship with God
(Holiness);
(2) A series of truths to be learned
(Formation);
(3) A program to better mankind's place
in the world;
(4) A program to preach the Gospel.
F. Christianity is the whole of life.
(2) All relationships with others are
summed up in God’s words to Cain:
Where
is your brother; What have you done to your brother? (Gen. 4:9).
2. WHAT IS EVANGELIZATION?
A. When our motivations for evangelization are elevated and empowered
by grace
for the spreading of God’s Kingdom,
our evangelistic efforts become apostolic, beyond,
(1) Human actions motivated by friendship, brotherhood, neighborliness;
(2) Christian Acts - doing Christian things.
B. Distinguish between human, Christian, and Apostolic
Actions—Apostolic Action
(Evangelization) is both an
expression and a consequence of our love for God, a
realization that we are sent to
love our neighbor (Paul VI, On Evangelization in the
Modern World, No. 41, No. 46).
C. Our evangelization, by God's design, is tied into His plan
of salvation. Use Moses or
Abraham as an example (Vatican II: Constitution on the Church, No. 33; Decree
on the Apostolate of the Laity, No.
1).
3.
FALSE CONCEPTS OF EVANGELIZATION.C. Only at times when one feels like it or when it allows the doer to be in the spotlight
D. An option, rather than an essential of Christian life
E. Many may believe that Evangelization, and
especially Apostolic Action within
Evangelization, is something that we
engage in solely within our Church or civic
organizations. Others see evangelization
as being solely normal, civilized good behavior.
[Speaker may provide examples of each
form of Evangelization—emphasize
Apostolic Action.]
4. AUTHENTIC EVANGELIZATION
A. Mature Christians are persons empowered by God’s love;
their evangelization
always springs from love of God and love
of neighbor.
(1) What is Love? - St. Paul describes Christian love when he writes to the
Corinthians (Read 1 Cor. 13).(2) We are being called to a personal conversion marked by a fundamental change
in the direction of our lives in all of our relationships.(3) Love is more than showing affection, or sìmply an emotional expression or giving
of gifts. It is more than the manipulation of others, even under the guise of
helping them.(4) Love is having the attitude of Christ toward another person.
a. He treats me as a unique individual.
b. He gives Himself to me, as I know myself to be. (Do Not
Elaborate)
c. He gives Himself faithfully, passionately, constantly, and completely.(5) The total giving of oneself to another for the love of God is the measure
of a persons human and spiritual development.
(6) True love fulfills the Call of the Cross. (Matt. 16:24-25).
B. Bringing God’s love to the world.
Our task is to discover God’s will for us so
that all we do at all
times will make God’s love real to our world (Vatican II,
Pastoral
Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, No. 43).
a. My encounter with Christ—it is self-giving, not self-centered
(Vatican II, Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, No. 4);
b.The sign of true evangelization is revealed by the response of those
around me (Mt. 7:16).
c. The will of God, our place of evangelization, our place in His plan,
is defined by our personal way of life.
5. QUALITIES OF EVANGELIZATION
A. Reasonable and balanced—using ones head.
B. Constant—love is an act of the will and is not dependent on ones emotions.
C. Enthusiastic—the joy of the Lord lifts our hearts (Phil. 4:4-5).
D. Supernatural—Speak to God of man before speaking to man about God. (knees).
6. THE METHOD OF EVANGELIZATION
A. Make a friend. Thís requires a will to take the first step. B. Be a friend. This will take time. (1)Take an interest in others; C. Bring your friend to Christ.
(l) For Christ - He must increase, while I must
decrease (Jn. 3:30).
(2) With Christ - The fact is
that whether you eat or drink, whatever you do,
you should do all
for the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31).
(3) In Christ - A11 have been redeemed by
Christ.
(4) Like Christ - "Do
you really believe what you are proclaiming? Do you
live what you
believe? Do you really preach what you live? The witness of
life becomes more than
ever an essential condition for real efftctiveness in
preaching" (Paul
VI, On Evangelization in the Modern World, No. 76.
Also read Rom. 10:13-15).
[Speaker should provide a
personal witness, as to how he/she has used the three
steps outlined above in
his/her Aposto1ic Action.]
If we live this way we
will be able to give a positive, affirming answer to God's
question, "What have you
done to your brother?" (Gen. 4:9).
EVANGELIZATION
A. The Christian life is expressed in three distinct elements, they are: Holiness, Formation, and Evangelization. Evangelization is the third leg of the tripod.
(1) Holiness - Yesterday
we heard that holiness is directing our whole life to God. This
intimate relationship with God empowers us to love and attract others
to do likewise.
(2) Formation - This
morning we heard in the "Formation" talk that to engage in an
ongoing process of formation helps us to establish a better
relationship with God and to come
to know His will for us.
(3) Evangelization - In this talk we
will hear that evangelization is the consequence of
being a Christian; that evangelization is an expression of our desire
to share God’s love.
B. Human maturity is marked by harmony and balance in the psychological, intellectual, spiritual, and social areas of life.
C. Christian maturity is marked by harmony and balance in the three aspects of our Christian life, namely, in our Holiness, Formation, and Evangelization.
D. All of us are called to a personal conversion marked by a fundamental change in the direction of our lives. God wants us to live our Christianity in our daily lives. He calls us to change our attitudes, our way of life, and to include Him in our every day activities.
E. We are called to realize that Christianity is more than an individual relationship with God, which is our life of Holiness. This love of God that we direct to Him must also be directed to help and encourage our brothers and sisters.
Christianity is more than a series of truths to be learned or laws and regulations to be observed. It is more than a program of formation that we develop for ourselves. Many times people feel that if they fulfill their obligations and follow the laws of the Church, they are doing all that is necessary to be a Christian.
Christianity is more than a program to better mankind’s place in the world. There is more to Christianity than social justice and performing Christian acts.
Finally, Christianity is more than a program to preach the Gospel.
F. In essence, Christianity is the whole of life. It is to BE Christian in every aspect of our life; to live with a Christian attitude in all that we do and say.
The acceptance of this life and love of God, so commits and
radically changes a person, that it affects and changes the whole community or communities
to which that person belongs. A person who accepts this life has a greater love,
understanding, and compassion for family, co-workers, and friends. This overall Christian
attitude and direction in life greatly affects all of his/her relationships with others.
In reality, all relationships with others are summed up in God's words to Cain:
"Where is your brother; what have you done to your brother?" (Gen. 4:9).
2. WHAT IS EVANGELIZATION?
We may ask ourselves, then, what is evangelization? How do we define evangelization?
A. When our motivations for evangelization are elevated and empowered by grace for the spreading of God’s kingdom, our evangelistic efforts become apostolic, beyond everyday human actions which are motivated by friendship, brotherhood, and neighborliness. Our next door neighbor needs a ride to the grocery store, to the pharmacy, or needs to borrow a lawn mower; we help them. These are human actions. Working in a soup kitchen or delivering meals to the elderly out of a sense of what God calls us to do and because we feel compassion for others and want to help them. In other words, doing Christian things is Christian action.
B. Apostolic action or evangelization is both an expression and a consequence of our love for God. What the Cursillo Movement means by Apostolic action is taking our Christian actions a step further. The example of the soup kitchen or delivering food to others becomes apostolic when the evangelization of the soup kitchen worker, and those who receive the meals become part of our plan to evangelize that particular environment in which we are presently in or have become a part of by our desire to reach out to others and to be instruments of the Lord.
C. Our evangelization efforts, by God’s design, are tied into His plan of salvation. For example, God chose Moses to lead the Israelites to freedom. At first, Moses didn’t feel worthy to be the Lord’s instrument. He did not believe that he was the right person for such an enormous task. However, after experiencing God’s love, he wanted to take on the responsibility, respond positively to God’s will, and become the leader to save his people. We too take on the responsibility of being God’s messengers, and bringing the Good News to all of our brothers and sisters wherever we are.
D. Evangelization is an all-encompassing term. It
includes many actions we take to help others (food kitchens, St. Vincent DePaul Society,
etc.). Evangelization may be Christian acts, such as teaching C.C.D., being a lector, or
serving as an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist. The focus of evangelization, in the
context of this talk and in the Cursillo, is all of this with the added thrust of Apostolic Actions. Apostolic actions are those actions we plan
and implement as instruments of the Lord to bring someone or a group of people
(Environment) closer to Christ. It is well beyond human and Christian actions. It is an
integral part of the concept of evangelization and the transformation of all society.
[Speaker should provide short examples of each form of evangelization—
emphasize apostolic action.]
3. FALSE CONCEPTS OF EVANGELIZATION.
We have heard what evangelization really is. There
are, however, false concepts
of evangelization.
A. The first false concept of evangelization is that we believe that our apostolic action is limited only to our Church or civil organization. This concept limits us in our apostolic endeavors. It prevents us from seeing all of our associations (friends, family, and co-workers) as fertile fields for apostolic work.
B. A second false concept is that our apostolic action is merely normal, civilized, good behavior. We cannot consider our actions to be apostolic if all that we do is to be kind and considerate towards our neighbors. A non-Christian and non-believer can perform good deeds, and act in a civil manner.
C. A third false concept of evangelization limits our apostolic work only to those times when we feel like it or when the particular apostolic action allows us to be in the spotlight. Evangelization is not a hobby. It is part of our vocation as lay people.
D. The last false concept is that apostolic action, within our evangelization efforts, is an option rather than an essential of Christian life. Yesterday we heard, in the "Laity—Layperson as Church in the World" talk, that we are the Church. We were told that, by virtue of our baptism and confirmation, we are obliged to be the bearers and messengers of the Good News; that to do so is an essential part of the Christian life.
E. Many may believe that Evangelization, and especially Apostolic Action within Evangelization, is something that we engage in solely within our Church or civic organizations. Others see evangelization as being solely normal, civilized good behavior.
4. AUTHENTIC EVANGELIZATION.A. I have shared with you the false concepts of apostolic action as an element of evangelization. Now I would like to explain what is meant by authentic apostolic action.
When I think of the word authentic, similar words come to mind, such as: real, genuine, trustworthy, and sincere. Mature Christians are those who are empowered by God's love. Their evangelization, their apostolic action, always springs from love of God, and love of neighbor. It is genuine and sincere.
The love we are talking about is a concept of Christian love. (Read: 1 Cor. 13.)
We are being called to a personal conversion marked by a fundamental change in the direction of our lives in all of our relationships. We are called to love the Lord with our whole heart and whole mind. We are called to love one another.
The love we are talking about is more than showing affection or simply an emotional expression. Love is more than the giving of gifts. Love is certainly more than the manipulation of others, even under the pretense of helping them.
Love is having the attitude of Christ toward another person. He treats me as a unique individual. He gives Himself to me, as I know myself to be. Finally, the Lord gives of Himself faithfully, passionately, constantly, and completely.
lt is possible to say that the total giving of oneself to another for the love of God is the measure of a persons human and spiritual development. True love fulfills the Call of the Cross as we hear in Matthews Gospel Chapter 16, verse 24-25. (Read.)
B. We have found and experienced the love of God and we want to share it with others. We want to bring Gods love, as we know it, to the rest of the world.
But how do we accomplish this goal? Our task is to discover God’s will for us so that all we do will make real God’s love for our world.
Every apostolic effort flows from two conditions: the first is my encounter with Christ; the second is my encounter with my brothers and sisters.
My encounter with Christ is self-giving, not self-centered.
My encounter is with my brothers and sisters; who are uniquely different, and are called to develop their own potential and to have their own life styles.
Authentic evangelization, and likewise authentic apostolic action, is a consequence of being Christian.
In Fr./Deacon/Sr./Br. _______’s Grace talk, we were told that God gives us His grace to accomplish our work. We know we do not have to do it alone. We are united to Christ by grace.
The work of evangelization is normal and we perform our work in accord with our own talents and life style. We do not have to become someone else to be workers for Christ. Our efforts in all of our apostolic endeavors are motivated by the love of God and our love of others.
The evangelizer is Good News to himself/herself and to others. He/She has heard the Christian message and proclaims it in his/her environment. The proclamation of the Christian message transforms people; we begin to change our attitudes and actions and, in turn, we bring about change in all of the structures and environments in which we live.
The sign of true apostolic action is revealed by the response of those around us. This is made clear in the Gospel of St. Matthew (7: 1 6), where he states, You will know them by what they do. Thorn bushes do not bear grapes and briars do not bear figs. It is quite simple for us to discern God's will for us in His plan.
The will of God for us and our place of
evangelization, our place in His plan, is defined by our personal way of life. All we must
be are ordinary people who have a desire to follow Jesus and use the gifts and talents He
has given us to bring others closer to Him.
5. QUALITIES OF EVANGELIZATION
There are four qualities that are included in every act of evangelization. They are:
First, that our acts be reasonable and balanced. This simply means that we use our heads in beginning or continuing in our apostolic efforts. We should not set goals that are unrealistic in scope or in time. We can start slowly and progress as time goes on.
Secondly, our actions must be constant. Love is an act of the will, not something that is dependent on one's emotions. We have to want to bring people closer to Christ. Also, it is an ongoing desire, not a one-time hit or miss approach.
Thirdly, our actions must be enthusiastic. If we lack enthusiasm for what we say we believe, and for what we say fulfills all of our expectations, how can anyone else be attracted to what we believe? Others will not be attracted to us, and ultimately to Jesus, if we are insincere, depressed, or always negative. God fills our hearts with joy! We cannot hide it. We must let people see this joy and enthusiasm for His work.
The last and most important quality is the
supernatural quality; that quality which enables everything else to happen. We must always
remember to speak to God about our friend before speaking to our friend about God.
//repeat//
6. THE METHOD OF EVANGELIZATION.
We have heard a lot about evangelization, and especially about apostolic action as part of our evangelizing efforts. We could jump out and go into our little corners of the world and try to make them more Christ-like. We may even have some success. There is, however, a specific method of evangelization that will help us to be more effective as evangelizers in our families, work places, and social settings. This method involves a three-step process: make a friend, be a friend, bring your friend to Christ. It is that simple. Lets look at each step individually:
A. Make a friend - This is probably the easiest step. All it takes is the will to take the first step; to make the first introduction to a person with whom you desire to be your friend. A simple hello may start the entire process; maybe a common interest like children, school activities, or work interests. All we need is the desire to become friendly with another person.
B. Be a friend - The next step is to really become a friend. This step takes time. In order to become a true friend, we must have a genuine interest in the other person. We must take the time to get to know the other person along with that persons likes and dislikes, hobbies, etc. This does not mean that we talk without stopping. It means that we LISTEN. Truly listen to what the other person is saying. In this process, be who you are but add joy and optimism; sanctify ourselves for others. Think of them and their needs before our own. Love them spiritually as God loves us. Finally, live for the truth. It is important that we be authentic, and honestly and sincerely share our lives with them. There is no gain in pretense. It can only shatter the relationship when the truth becomes known.
C. Bring Your Friend to Christ - The final step is to bring your friend to Christ.
Lest we believe that we are doing this, alone, it is important for all of us to remember that this final step is accomplished only when done for Christ, with Christ, in Christ, and like Christ.
We are acting for Christ when we realize that we are doing so because of our love of God. We must live the scripture verse in St. John's Gospel, Chapter 3, verse 30: He must increase, while I must decrease.
We are acting with Christ when we understand that we are not alone in our actions. Jesus is beside us, and sometimes carrying us, every step of the way. We also come to the realization that everything we are doing we should be doing for the glory of God. (Can read 1 Cor. 10:31 to emphasize this point.)
We must act in Christ. We all know that Jesus is already inside each person that we try to evangelize. Our role is to be a friend, and to try, as Jesus did in His life, to have others open their hearts to Him. We have to help everyone understand that they too have been redeemed by Christ.
Like Christ – I must act with the qualities of Jesus. I must give witness to my life in Christ. I must show that I am trying to live the life that I am talking about. Jesus was a witness to His preaching, am I? Do I really believe what I am proclaiming? Do I live what I believe? The witness of life becomes more than ever an essential condition for real effectiveness... (On Evangelization in the Modern World, No. 76, p. 52).
[Speaker should witness to how
he/she has used the method set forth above in his/her
evangelization efforts. It is important that
the witness be related to efforts of apostolic
action, not Christian action alone or simple
good human action]
In Romans 10:13-15, St. Paul states, "Äs the scripture says,
everyone who calls out to the Lord for help will be saved. But how can they call to Him
for help, if they have not believed? And how can they believe, if they have not heard the
message? And how can they hear, if the message is not proclaimed? And how can the message
be proclaimed, if the messengers are not sent out?"
We are the messengers and proclaimers of the Good News. The way we live our life will be the answer to God's question—What have you done to your brother?'