“Evangelizing Passion”, or “Apostolic Passion”, is the theme of the new series of catechisms by Pope Francis. The Pope recalled that the joy of proclaiming the Gospel to the ends of the earth is a crucial dimension of the Church: everyone must start from their own environment, not to induce people to change their faith, but to bear witness to Christ.
(Vatican News Network) On the morning of January 11, Pope Francis presided over the Wednesday public audience in the Paul VI Hall, opening a new cycle of catechisms on the theme of the “Passion for evangelization”, that is, the “Apostolic Passion”. The Pope indicated that this is an urgent and crucial issue for Christian life and for the Church, born as a missionary and called to be a witness who proclaims Jesus and spreads his light on earth. The Pope also stressed that evangelizing does not mean convincing people to change their faith, the two things are different.
However, the fire to go out and preach the gospel to others will also have diminished. This desire is sometimes overshadowed and Christians become withdrawn people who stop paying attention to others. The Pope said: “Once the Christian life loses the vision of evangelization, the vision of proclamation, it becomes sick: closed in on itself, self-centered, shy and withdrawn. Without apostolic zeal, faith withers. The mission is Christian life. make it strong and purified.”
To “rekindle the fire that the Holy Spirit wants to burn forever in our hearts”, the Pope explained the evangelical episode of the call of the apostle Matthew (Mt 9:9-13). According to the story of Saint Matthew, Matthew the publican was despised by all as a collaborator and traitor to the people, but Jesus saw him as a human being. The Pope underlined the word “look”, that is the loving gaze of Jesus who approaches the sinner. It all started there, Jesus didn’t see him either as a publican or as a sinner, but he went all the way down and came to this man.
“We can also ask: How do we see people? How often do we see their shortcomings rather than their needs; how many times do we label people for what they do or think! isn’t he our man? Jesus looked differently: he always looked at everyone with kindness and love. Christians must be like Christ, above all like him who thus fixes the so-called ‘distant'”.
Matthew, the Pope continued, responded to Jesus’ gaze and made a gesture, “rising up and following Jesus”. The Pope explained that the detail of the Gospel “get up” is important because it means the exit from Matthew’s power. “In that age, the one who sits has authority over the one who stands before him”, Jesus opened to Matthew “the vision of the service”.
“This is what Christ did, and it’s so important to Christians: Do we as disciples of Jesus, as a church, sit and wait for people to come, or do we get up and walk with others and seek out others? This kind of of speech is not Christ. The Christian attitude: “They should come, I’m here, they’re coming”. No, you should go and see them, you should take the first step”.
The Pope then asked: Matthew to act, but what to do? We’d think, maybe he’s about to have a new experience. Instead, the future disciple returned to his house, where, as Luke recalls, “there was a great banquet and many tax collectors and others sat with them” (Lk 5:29). “Matthew returned to his surroundings”, the Pope said, “but he changed and returned there with Jesus. His apostolic zeal did not begin in a new, pure and ideal place, but with the people he lived and met . .”
“This is the message for us: we don’t have to wait to be perfect and go a long way with Jesus before we can testify; our preaching begins today, where we live. It’s not starting trying to convince others, not persuading, but testifying daily the beauty of love that looks at us and lifts us up, it is this beauty that spreads the beauty of convincing not us, but God himself. , nor a political party, an ideology.”
Speaking of this, the Pope recalled the relevant teaching of Benedict XVI: “The Church does not persuade people to convert, but develops by attraction.” Then, the Pope described what happened in a hospital in Argentina. A group of Korean nuns arrived who could not speak Spanish but immediately won the affection of the sick because they announced Jesus with gestures and with their eyes. “This is attraction, the opposite of proselytism”, concluded the Pope. The purpose of this “attractive and joyful witness” is to bring us the love of Jesus.
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