Daily Mass Gospel News- Preaching The Resurrection

Word on Fire Ministry ^ | 01.24.23 | Bishop Robert Barron

[MurphsLaw]

Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle
Mark 16:15–18

Friends, today in our Gospel, Jesus commissions the Apostles to evangelize all people:
“Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”

To evangelize is to proclaim Jesus Christ crucified and risen from the dead.
When this kerygma, this Paschal Mystery, is not at the heart of the project,
Christian evangelization effectively disappears, devolving into a summons to bland religiosity or generic spirituality.
When Jesus crucified and risen is not proclaimed,
a beige and unthreatening Catholicism emerges,
a thought system that is, at best, an echo of the environing culture.

Peter Maurin, one of the founders of the Catholic Worker movement,
said that the Church has taken its own dynamite and placed it in hermetically sealed containers
and sat on the lid.
In a similar vein, Protestant theologian Stanley Hauerwas commented that
the problem with Christianity is not that it is socially conservative or politically liberal
but that “it is just too damned dull”!

For both Maurin and Hauerwas,
what leads to this attenuation is a refusal to preach the dangerous and unnerving news
concerning Jesus risen from the dead.

[MurphsLaw]

+++Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them:
“Go into the whole world
and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved;
whoever does not believe will be condemned.
These signs will accompany those who believe:
in my name they will drive out demons,
they will speak new languages.
They will pick up serpents with their hands,
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.
They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”+++

[BipolarBob]

Pope Frankie: “Never, never bring the gospel by proselytizing,” Francis said. “If someone says they are a disciple of Jesus and comes to you with proselytism, they are not a disciple of Jesus.” “In front of an unbeliever, the last thing I have to do is try to convince him. Never. The last thing I have to do is speak,” Francis said.

[MurphsLaw]

You're jumping the shark there Bob.
First things first.

+++ 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, - IF- you love one another.”

The "Proselytizing" comes after...

[BipolarBob]

I’m simple minded here. So you’re saying the Pope is not one of Jesus’ disciples??? I mean his word seems to contradict the mandate Jesus gave about proclaiming the Gospel. I’m cornfused.

[Big Red Badger]

Preach the Risen CHRIST !

[MurphsLaw]

No confusion necessary there.
The Bishop Of Rome, the Pope, through laying on of hands,
like ALL Bishops,
through Apostolic succession,
received the Holy Spirit
and became a disciple of Jesus when ordained through the Sacrament.
First starting with the 11, and til this day.
[Which by the way, has its roots going way back to the Jewish priests.]

And so no, "proselytizing" has nothing to do with
being a consecrated disciple of Jesus,
which also should not be confused with "Proclaiming the Gospel".
2 very different actions there.

The Pope is very right to remind us to forego the proselytizing-
and leave that up to the power of the Holy Spirit-
who IS the Spirit of conversion,
that will work in the ones who hear the Gospel proclaimed.

You've just been led to believe that it's man (or Popes) who are responsible for converting souls... it's not. Trust me on this.
It is only the Advocate, who Christ sent,
that changes hearts and minds of men to believe in Christ. [And women].

[BipolarBob]

And so no, "proselytizing" has nothing to do with being a consecrated disciple of Jesus, which also should not be confused with "Proclaiming the Gospel". 2 very different actions there.

I'll have to take your word on that. I'm a simple minded person. I realize the Holy Spirit does the conversion work on the heart but not to proselytize seems really really close to not to preach to me. YMMV.
have a good day

[MurphsLaw]

Well... for me... "Proclaiming the Gospel" for me is sharing the Resurrection... the redemption Christ can offer... Peace and Joy...

And thats just my take...
for me it's not about thumping a Bible over someone's head-
or telling someone they're gonna burn in hell...
or for someone telling a Christ loving Christian their faith is meaningless - unless they are a Catholic.
(Which you would agree with I'm sure.)

Those occurrences I mention are "Proseltyzing" for me...
and not what Jesus want from us... its just MY opinion.
This is what I feel this Pope is speaking of...
Triumphalism and using the Bible as a weapon to navigate the secular world...
that's not Evangelizing.

[BipolarBob]

Okay. Thanks for your post. I’ll keep it in mind.