A Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization to be Formed? Bring it On!

The rumors began with the respected reporting of Andrea Tornielli. He is the eminently reliable Vatican correspondent for the daily Il Giornale. His report was then picked up by the Vaticanisti and ever reliable, John L. Allen, Jr., the only good thing about the National Catholic Reporter these days. In an April 25, 2010 in NCR Allen wrote:

"According to a report from a well-connected Italian Vatican writer, Pope Benedict XVI will shortly announce the creation of a "Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization," to be presided over by Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella. The office will be dedicated to rekindling the faith in the developed West, above all Europe and North America."

...The term "New Evangelization" is a favorite of Pope Benedict XVI - as it was of his predecessor, the Venerable John Paul II. The Catholic Church is in a season of purification, brought on (at least in part) by the sin of some of her members, including her clergy. Our Church needs conversion at every level. As members of Christ's Body, we are called to grieve, repent and work for the healing and authentic conversion and renewal of this Church that we love. We must also be honest about the reality we face.

There is a desperate need for such a new evangelization. Many Catholic Christians do not know what the Church actually teaches and have embraced what some have called a "cafeteria Catholicism"- choosing what parts of their faith they will follow. Finally, in the worst cases, a practical atheism is abounding wherein those bearing the title Christian are professing the Creed but confining its influence only to Sunday. Exactly what was warned of by the fathers of the Second Vatican Council and called the "greatest error of our age..the separation between faith and life."

The challenge of this "New Evangelization" is clear; we are all called to live out our baptismal vocation through lives of sacrificial service, at the heart of the Church, for the sake of the world. All of the faithful, men, and women, lay, clergy and religious, need to view themselves as missionaries. We also need to view the mission of the Church as OUR mission.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.