The beginning of the critically important meeting of church leaders, clergy and lay alike, on the New Evangelization, is fast approaching on October 7. Cardinal Wuerl and Dolan and Archbishop Kurtz offer a 3 minute insight into their work. CNS did a video clip on what they said.
Category: Evangelization & Formation
Ecclesial Movements impact Synod of Bishops on Evangelization
By now you ought to see a significant theme in the work of Communio, both on this blog and as a way of being in the Church: it is as Dom Luigi Gioia, OSB Oliv., has said about this theological point, “To describe the whole Church, as well as each Christian community, as a communio before speaking of ‘body,’ or ‘society,’ or ‘institution,’ -terms which have of course their share of truth- is knowingly to make charity the essential element of a Christian community, the condition sine qua non of its existence, its raison d’être.” Charity has as its essential element of extroversion the living and sharing of the truth of the faith received by us from the Trinitarian life of God. Faith is a lens by which we live, it is not a pious statement of what we supposedly believe about God. The sharing of faith, this sharing of charity and faith in a communio, is the heart of evangelization.
Categories being what they are, are helpful in seeing the division of labor and thinking. This is no less is the true for the Thirteenth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, 7 to 28 October, discussing “The new evangelization for the transmission of the Christian faith.”
The leaders from the various ecclesial movements are worth noting because the vital presence they and the movements they represent have in the life of the Church:
- Br. Enzo Bianchi, prior of the Monastero of Bose (Italy)
- Maria Voce (Italy), president of the Focolari Movement
- Marco Impagliazzo (Italy), president of the Sant’Egidio Community
- Lydia Jimenez Gonzalez (Spain), director general of the “Cruzadas de Santa Maria” Secular Institute
- Francisco Jose Gomez Arguello Wirtz (Spain), co-founder of the Neo-Catechumenal Way
- Chiara Amirante, founder and president of the New Horizons Community (Italy)
- Florence De Leyritz, member of the Alpha France Association (France)
- Marc De Leyritz, president of the Alpha France Association (France)
- *Father Julián Carrón, the President of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation might be counted here, too, but he actually is listed by the Holy See among the bishops.
America’s Voice in the World’s New Evangelization
The Holy See has appointed 45 persons as Experts and Observers for the forthcoming Thirteenth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, 7 to 28 October on the theme: “The new evangelization for the transmission of the Christian faith.”
While they are not the full members of the Synod of Bishops (they’re not bishops) these people do have an essential role in that they will contribute to the conversation and will help to frame the outcome. Noteworthy are the number of women invited: 10 experts and 19 observers.
There will be seven US bishops and ten other Americans at the Synod.
The is the list of non-bishops from the Americas which ought to be noted (more noted here):
Sr. Sara Butler M.S.B.T., professor, St. Mary of the Lake University, Mundelein, and member of the International Theological Commission
Sr. Paula Jean Miller F.S.E., professor, Department of Theology of the University of St. Thomas, Houston
Sr. Mary Lou Wirtz F.C.J.M., president of the International Union of Superiors General
Marylee J. Meehan, president of the International Catholic Committee of Nurses and Medico-Social Assistants
Fr. Jeremy Driscoll O.S.B., professor, Theological Faculty of Rome’s St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum, and professor, Mount Angel Seminary, St. Benedict, OR
Edward Peters, professor, Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit
Ralph Martin, director of graduate theological programs in the new evangelization at the Sacred Heart Seminary, Detroit
Carl Albert Anderson, supreme knight of the Knights of Columbus
Curtis A. Martin, founder and president of the Fellowship of Catholic University Students – Focus Missionaries
Peter Murphy, executive director of the Secretariat fo Evangelization and Catechesis, US Conference of Catholic Bishops.
A Light from the South illuminating the World?
“…the whole purpose of evangelism is to foster friendship with Jesus Christ, the Son of God who reveals both the face of the merciful Father and the truth about our humanity,”
In a June 13, 2012 column on the First Things website, George Weigel published a few brief reflections on his visit to Argentina and the evangelization work being done that resulted in what is being called the “Aparecida Document” (the full text is below) which is a collation of the documents from the Fifth General Assembly of Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean (CELAM) of 2007. Weigel is naming the very long Aparecida Document as the master plan of evangelization. We ought to take note.
Here’s the master plan: Aparecida – Benedict XVI to Latin American and Caribbean Bishops.pdf
We in the north need this document; we need to study it and to apply its perspective to our context. But beware: we need to have the same thrust —
+ “everything in the Church must be mission-driven”
+ we need a “permanent catechesis: an ongoing encounter with the Lord Jesus, deepened spiritually through Word and Sacrament, the Bible and the Eucharist.”
+ we need to live the Gospel and the Tradition given to us.
NEXT World Meeting of Families to be held in Philadelphia, 2015
The Holy Father concluded the Seventh World Meeting of Families in Milan today but before he said his final prayers of the Mass and good-byes, Benedict announced that the 2015 Meeting will take place in Philadelphia.
Archbishop Charles Chaput made the announcement here.
1979 was the last time the Roman Pontiff visited Philadelphia.
Two new Doctors of the Church: The Lord’s effective witnesses in the world
Reminding us that the Holy Spirit “continues to inspire women and men who engage in the pursuit of truth” Pope Benedict announced that on October 7, at the beginning of the Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, he would proclaim St. John of Avila and St. Hildegard of Bingen as Doctors of the Church. “These two great witnesses of the faith lived in very different historical periods and came from different cultural backgrounds,” he said. “But the sanctity of life and depth of teaching makes them perpetually present: the grace of the Holy Spirit, in fact, projected them into that experience of penetrating understanding of divine revelation and intelligent dialogue with the world that constitutes the horizon of permanent life and action of the Church.”
The Pope continued: “Especially in light of the project of the New Evangelization, to which the Assembly of the Synod of Bishops will be dedicated, and on the vigil of the Year of Faith, these two figures of saints and doctors are of considerable importance and relevance.”
New evangelizers in the United States
The April 21, 2012 issue of L’Osservatore Romano ran this editorial on the work of the evangelization in the United States. We are getting noticed for our zeal for the Gospel. Perhaps we colonialists do have something to contribute to the life of the Church universal.
“Join us in a journey to re-discover the faith or answer questions about reconnecting with the Catholic Church”. This is the call of the document by the Bishops of the United States which intends renew with great strength the mission of spreading and proclaiming the Gospel. The episcopate’s initiative, written for the modern man and for the benefit of the whole community, is centred on references to the Pontifical Magisterium and to other interventions of the episcopate.
The
Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization is the title chosen for the document that “focuses on reaching out to Catholics, practicing or not, who have lost a sense of the faith in an effort to re-energize them”, as described in a note by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
It was chairman of the USCCB Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, Bishop David Laurin Ricken of Green Bay, Wisconsin, to point out this new duty, stating: “Every Catholic has a role in the Church, and every Catholic is called to spread the Gospel”. But he adds “in order to evangelize, a person must first be evangelized. This is really the heart of the New Evangelization”. The document especially highlights the call of Pope Benedict XVI to pursue the New Evangelization with renewed vigor and joy.
Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization
The group deputed to work with questions and programs on the teachings of the Catholic faith and the sharing of that faith with others, USCCB Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis published “Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization.” There are a lot of great resources herein. The opening paragraphs are here:
Christ commands us to be his witnesses to the ends of
the earth. We are to proclaim his Good News to all people, everywhere and at all times. After Christ promises the disciples that the Holy Spirit will come upon them, he ascends into heaven. The disciples, rather than heeding Christ’s command to be his witnesses, stare “intently at the sky.” It takes “two men dressed in white garments” asking, “Men of Galilee, why are you . . . looking at the sky?” for the disciples to begin to realize the meaning of Christ’s command (Acts 1:10-11).
How often do we fail to realize that we are called to be Christ’s witnesses to the world? Do we realize that our Baptism, Confirmation, and reception of the Eucharist bestow on us the grace we need to be disciples? Are we like the disciples staring at the sky rather than inviting those around us to experience Christ’s love and mercy through the Church? How often do we reach out to our missing brothers and sisters by inviting them to join us at Mass or by asking why they no longer feel welcomed at the Lord’s Table? The answers to these questions underlie the evangelizing mission of the Church, especially in the call of the New Evangelization
The New Evangelization seeks to invite modern man and culture into a relationship with Jesus Christ and his Church. The New Evangelization strives to engage our culture and to help us draw our inspiration from the Gospel. The New Evangelization calls all Catholics first to be evangelized and then in turn to evangelize. While it is directed to all people, the New Evangelization focuses specifically on those Christian communities that have Catholic roots but have “lost the living sense of the faith, or even no longer consider themselves members of the Church…”
Christ on the silver screen –Momentum Studios
The laity are stepping up to the plate to evangelize because it is part of the baptismal call to make disciples of all nations. We are now seeing more and more talented young people coming forward to share with the world the Truth of the faith proposed by Christ for our salvation. Two men from Saint Mary’s Church (Greenville, SC) pastored by Father Jay Scott Newman, have formed The Momentum Studios as a Catholic company that aims to ignite our enthusiasm, adherence and love for Christ and His Church.
A recent Momentum Studios piece is on the Stations of the Cross. See it here…
We look forward to more.
Siena Forum for Faith and Culture hosts Frank Hannigan on Marriage lectures
The Siena Forum for Faith and Culture is looking forward to Frank Hannigan’s presentation on “Building a Winning Marriage.”
Hannigan, director of the Office of Family Ministries for the Archdiocese of Chicago, will be here on March 10, 1-4:30.
Join us, bring a friend.