Evangelization

A bulletin article written by Angela Amore, FOCUS Team Director, Ramapo College
For more information about FOCUS (the Fellowship of Catholic University Students)
click here.

It’s a scary word to Catholics, but Pope Paul VI tells us that the Church’s very identity is mission. So, what is our Identity, our mission as Catholics? We only need to turn to the last words Christ gave us on this earth, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always to the close of the age.” (Mt 28:19-20) The last command that Jesus gave us before ascending into Heaven, clearly tells us that we need to bring others to know, “the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent.” (Jn 17:3). The apostles took this seriously, hit the ground running, brought people the Gospel, and died for this believe.

Not too many of us our going to preach to the multitudes, but we are still called to fulfill this mission. It can seem like a daunting task with 7.6 billion people on this Earth. As in all things, we need only to look to the example of Christ. Jesus took 12 guys camping for 3 years. Jesus invested His very self into three of these men specifically; Peter, James and John. They were with Him at the Transfiguration and in the Garden before His death. He entrusted
everything He knew to these faithful men who would be able to teach others also. (cf 2 Tim 2:2) And that is all we need to do. Think about 3 people. Just three people in whom you can invest yourself and be ready to give witness for the reason of your hope. (cf 1 Pt 3:15) If these three people meet the person of Jesus Christ and then each find three people to invest in and bring to the Lord, who then find three more, and so on, we can reach the entirety of the 7.6 billion people on this planet for Christ in 33 years (same number Jesus was on this Earth, FYI)

It is as simple as grabbing coffee and over time start bringing up questions of the faith. Or playing basketball and talking after the game. It is not being afraid to ask the person at the desk next to you to come back to Mass. For me, it was seeing the constant joy of my lacrosse teammates day in and day out for three years to question where that kind of peace could come from. Start on the most natural of levels and do not be afraid to go deeper with people. It takes time. It takes patience. It takes trust in the Lord to go outside of our comfort zone and bring Him up to those around us. The battle has already been won and failure is not an option, so we have no reason to fear evangelization. Remember and trust in Christ’s promise as He gave us this mission; “lo, I am with you always until the close of the age.”
~Angela Amore, FOCUS Team Director