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\nNothing remains for Us, therefore, but to invite this poor world that has shed so much blood, has dug so many graves, has destroyed so many works, has deprived so many men of bread and labor, nothing else remains for us, We say, but to invite it in the loving words of the sacred Liturgy: “Be thou converted to the Lord thy God.”<\/strong> \u2014POPE PIUS XI,\u00a0Caritate Christi Compulsi,\u00a0<\/em>May 3rd, 1932; vatican.va<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n
…we cannot forget that evangelization is first and foremost about preaching the Gospel to those who do not know Jesus Christ or who have always rejected him<\/i>. Many of them are quietly seeking God, led by a yearning to see his face, even in countries of ancient Christian tradition. All of them have a right to receive the Gospel. Christians have the duty to proclaim the Gospel without excluding anyone… John Paul II asked us to recognize that \u201cthere must be no lessening of the impetus to preach the Gospel\u201d to those who are far from Christ, \u201cbecause this is the first task of the Church\u201d.<\/strong> \u2014POPE FRANCIS,\u00a0Evangelii Gaudium,\u00a0<\/em>n. 15; vatican.va<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
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“THERE <\/strong>must be no lessening of the impetus to preach the Gospel.” That’s the clear and consistent message spanning the last four pontificates. It might seem counterintuitive, even impossible in this climate of anti-Catholicism and political correctness. On the contrary, the deeper the world plunges into darkness, the brighter the stars will be. And you and I ought to be those stars.<\/p>\n
The burning “now word” on my heart in Vermont last weekend was to speak about why the Church exists at all: to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ<\/em>; to make known that, through Him, we have the forgiveness of our sins and that, through the Sacraments, we can find healing, sanctification, and grace to become the people we were created to be: perfect images of God.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This is the raison\u00a0d’etre<\/em> of the Church. This is the reason why Jesus\u00a0has assembled us under the mantle of a hierarchy who are the successors to the Apostles; this is the reason we have our lovely churches and stained-glass windows; it all points toward one reality: God exists and desires that all come to the knowledge of Jesus Christ and be saved.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Satan wants to silence the Church. He wants Christians to be afraid, impotent, and lukewarm men and women who compromise their beliefs for the sake of “keeping the peace” and appearing more “tolerant” and “inclusive.” The Church does not exist to keep the peace, however, but to point the path toward authentic peace, even at the price of martyrdom:<\/p>\n
\n\u00a0\u2026it is not enough that the Christian people be present and be organized in a given nation, nor is it enough to carry out an apostolate by way of good example. They are organized for this purpose, they are present for this:\u00a0to announce Christ to their non-Christian fellow-citizens by word and example, and to aid them toward the full reception of Christ.<\/em><\/strong> \u2014Second Vatican Council,\u00a0Ad Gentes,\u00a0<\/em>n. 15; vatican.va<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
O, how the Church has lost her way if this is not foremost on our minds! How we have lost our “first love” if making Jesus known to those around us does not even enter our thoughts! How deceived we are if we dance to the tune of the social engineers who wish to erase the diversities of the human race, most especially the differences between male and female, man and animal, and the Creator and His creatures. It is not enough to only be nice. It is not enough to be just a good example. Neither are we divinized social workers, but each of us, in our own capacity according to our personal gifts and vocation, are called to be ministers of the Gospel.\u00a0For…<\/p>\n
\n…how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? (Romans 10:14)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Thus, taught Pope St. Paul VI:<\/p>\n
\n\u2026the finest witness will prove ineffective in the long run if it is not explained, justified\u2026 and made explicit by a clear and unequivocal proclamation of the Lord Jesus. The Good News proclaimed by the witness of life sooner or later has to be proclaimed by the word of life. There is no true evangelization if the name, the teaching, the life, the promises, the kingdom and the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God are not proclaimed.<\/strong> \u2014POPE ST. PAUL VI,\u00a0Evangelii Nuntiandi,\u00a0<\/em>n. 22; vatican.va<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The Church is not an NGO. She is not an arm of the United Nations nor some kind of sacred political party. Global warming, migration, and co-existence with Islam are not our battle cry, but “Jesus Christ and him crucified.”\u00a0<\/em>[1]<\/sup><\/a>1 Cor 2:2<\/span><\/span>