The New Evangelization

Two weeks ago I welcomed seminarians Levi and John into our parish and into my (previously bachelor-pad) rectory for the summer.   It’s a healthy challenge to me because my ideals about hospitality are now confronting the reality of living in a house of three, not me-myself-I.  It’s also given me a chance to learn new ideas and emphases for ministry and the priesthood being taught in seminaries today.  Like most of you it’s easy to fall into a rut when you carry out the same job or vocation for a lengthy period of time.

So when Levi and I sat down to talk last week about the goals for his summer internship, he was enthusiastic to pursue initiatives of “the new evangelization.”  What is the new evangelization?  Basically it’s reaching out to already-baptized Catholics who have grown distant from the church and cold in the practice of the Catholic faith. 

According to the Vatican, this outreach is different from the missionary impulse that comes from Jesus the Lord himself (“Go teach all nations”) directed at those who have never heard his name.  (Think the Apostles Peter and Paul in the Acts of the Apostles, St. Francis Xavier sailing to faraway China, or Blessed Junipero Serra or Blessed Francis Seelos centuries ago in North America.  )  The new evangelization is also different from the regular attempts to deepen the understanding of the faith for those who are regularly attending Mass and putting into action Christian charity and justice in their homes, workplaces and communities.  (Think adult education, parish missions, retreats and pro-life committees.) 

So the new evangelization says to every parishioner and priest, a “business as usual” attitude in the church is not good enough.  We the church have to find new ways of reaching out and sharing the message of God’s love for all people through Christ his Son.

But it’s not just about increasing the number of people attending Mass on Sunday.  In the writings of Pope John Paul II the new evangelization also embraces the challenge of transforming culture itself.  From the violence of war, handgun murder and abortion to strategies of peace-building and hospitality.  From the all-consuming capitalist drive for more, more, more, to what Pope Benedict XVI called “the principle of gratuitousness and the logic of gift” in his 2009 encyclical “Caritas in Veritate.”   From individualism to more awareness and practice of the common good. 

Putting such high-falutin’ (yet very rich) ideas into practice is hard.  Our seminarian Levi came up with two modest events for this summer:  a Festival of Praise and a parish talent show.  The Festival of Praise is sort of a song-filled Catholic charismatic prayer meeting in the context of Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.  The parish talent show is geared to be a fun opportunity for our own parishioners of all ages to let us see their many talents.    He’s hard at work with parish volunteers to reach beyond “the usual suspects” and reach out to potential new (and newly returning) Catholics.  I’m looking forward to see how it all works.   I don’t think these events will change the culture of Sharpsburg.  But we all need some new in our lives.