Are We Evangelizing?

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childinthefaith

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K, I came to The One True Holy Apostolic from 1st a childhood Pentecostal then an adult United Methodist background.
In both, Evangelization was more of a topic of focus, conversation, and interest than I observe in The One True Faith to which feel soooooo blessed and fortunate to now belong.

Why is that?

I’ve seen Bishop Robert Barron’s “Word on Fire” talks, program, etc., but I fail to understand why the typical layperson neither knows our Faith’s Teachings very well, nor cares to attempt spreading it?

I would call it an “opportunity to excel,” but am only 1 lowly layman, and a convert at that for only almost 5 years now.

Why do I feel as if theres an enormous lack of efforts to evangelize???
 
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Historically, evangelization was the specialty of missionaries, religious or clergy. IDK the history of how Protestants evangelized. So there may be different expectation there. Lay Catholics generally don’t feel the need to canvas the country side on foot in search of potential converts.

There certainly is a noticeable difference in how converts and cradles go about living their faith. And I don’t think it’s just because converts come into the Church as adults and so they maybe have a motivation. It’s also, I think mostly, a cultural thing with Protestants - being more involved with their church community, actively evangelizing with pamphlets and such, and even having no special requirements for being the pastor of a church.
 
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All the people that I encounter on a day-to-day basis and all my non-practicing family would take very poorly to any outward show of evangelization. I evangelize by living my life of faith and doing so as joyfully as I can. I answer questions that people ask me, not to convince and convert, but simply to explain. I let them know I’m available if they want and then leave it to the person to bring up the topics when they are comfortable. Then I leave it to the person and their own response to the Holy Spirit (Lord willing that what I have said is in accord with him) to do what I cannot do.

I’ve seen more people respond to the Spirit after that than I have with those same people interacting with someone on the street asking if they’ve accepted Jesus as their savior. Most of the time street encounters just end in eye-rolling and complaints. Some people might need that in your face encounter to startle them awake, but in my situation none of that would work. The way I go about it is painfully slow for me sometimes. However, it’s not me doing any of the converting. It’s all on God’s time and I simply have to be available as a tool for his use should he call me to do so.
 
I think an awful lot of Catholics believe that evangelization isn’t their job. They believe they don’t know enough or since they’re not a priest it’s not up to them.

They wouldn’t dream of saying to a neighbor “hey, there’s a speaker at my church next week and it sounds interesting. Would you like to come with me?” They see religion as something private that they don’t speak about.

Even something as simple as hearing someone’s bad news and responding with “you’ll be in my prayers” is more than they want to say.

In part I think there’s a fear that they’ll come off too strong so they don’t speak up at all.
 
There is no need to fear. I have done street evangelization. Most people listen, some do not. I don’t force anyone to do anything. Here is what the Archdiocese of Detroit is doing. Notice the gray box on the right side as you scroll down. Spreading the Gospel is the duty of all Christians.

 
Well, I’m a cradle Catholic but didn’t grow into greater awareness of the faith until I was 27, now I’m 38. From what I understand as a Catholic it is up to the individual and family to grow their Faith. Most Catholics I know go to Church weekly or almost weekly, but unless there is occasion like a death won’t make it a practice of praying the Rosary. Of course, the Golden Rule is followed and they are open and empathetic people. So, I assume they are fine. Again, maybe when they get older they’ll explore deeper into Catholicism and the Bible. But again they grew up with the basic principles of Faith, Charity, Empathy, love.

Other Catholics may disagree based on where they grew up, but as a Catholic I’m confident God speaks to different people differently. So, I don’t assume because someone is not Catholic then they are condemned. Also, I think but I may be wrong we are expressly prohibited from trying to convert Jews, I think that was something Pope John Paul emphasized. Again, I personally go further with it and would not try to convert Muslims. Again I grew up with Muslims and they are a fine people and are Abrahamic. I think the Popes John Paul and Francis have done great jobs of being ecumenical with Muslim leaders and reaching out to them. But again I’m aware there are Catholics who didn’t grow up with Muslims and Jews so they will have a narrower perspective based on the media they intake.

Also, I grew up with Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs and for them again I see no immediacy to convert because they weren’t properly exposed to Catholicism growing up. So, again I think they are fine based on the conduct of their life.

I would be most concerned about atheists but there I know I can’t reach them. So, it’s pointless for me to evangelize if they have a bitter hatred of religion. Also, they always want to be smart and listen to so called smart people. So, there is no way to reach them when they don’t have the basic fundamentals down and have a chip. People like that are just not part of my life.
 
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A local parish priest, Father Joh Riccardo, was giving a talk to his men’s group. From that talk: “If you aren’t evangelizing, why not?”

What does Jesus say to His disciples?

New International Version
"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.

New Living Translation
“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.

English Standard Version
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.

John 15:18
 
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childinthefaith said:
but I fail to understand why the typical layperson neither knows our Faith’s Teachings very well, nor cares to attempt spreading it?
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I was born well before Vatican 2. I had a great uncle who was a Jesuit missionary in China before WW2; and a cousin of my dad was a Maryknoll missionary. That in itself was different that the average Catholic families with whom I grew up. Many Catholics then did not know much of their faith beyond the Baltimore Catechism - and that includes most of my classmates in grade and high school.

After Vatican 2, there was a movement within catechesis to get rid of the Baltimore Catechism (which was a question/answer format); part of that was to get away from what was presumed a strictly “doctrinal” approach. Most of us would have a funny look on our face when approached by a Protestant with the question “Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus?”. It simply was not how we spoke or were taught. And sadly, what replaced it for several decades had the moral equivalent of eating library paste, or pablum. we now have two generations who know even less of their faith than those of us from pre-Vatican 2, and the third generation is adrift except for those who now are being properly catechized.

So, in short, the older people (yeah, like me) were not taught to be evangelical nor were we particularly well equipped to evangelize. Faith had a much more juridical approach than an evangelical one. Words like kerygma were not in the language used. Faith seemed far more circumscribed by the Commandments - go to church on Sunday, don’t eat meat on Friday (juridical), with novenas (I can’t even begin to describe how many Tuesday nights I served as an altar boy at Mother of Perpetual Help novenas, or for Stations of the Cross during Lent), an emphasis on saying the rosary, and Mass and Communion on First Fridays and First Saturdays. we didn’t have programs such as Catholics Returning Home or RCIA (they literally did not exist); we did not have lectures, books, DVDs etc. by theologians or apologists.

Vatican 2 set the stage for what seems like an explosion of lay theologians; apologists, and to a perhaps extent, lay evangelists… Bishop Barron is taking that on, but he is not in major competition to do so.

Let this all seem doom and gloom, I have a friend who is a Methodist minister, and he and I have compared notes that both the Catholic Church and the mainline Protestant churches have seen a gradual erosion of membership, and a falling off of attendance on Sundays - they seem to be suffering loss as much as the Catholics. So the underlying problem seems not to be encompassed by evangelization (or lack thereof), but rather secularism and its attendant offshoots.
 
Comfort zone. It’s our safe haven in many cases. I have hidden there many times in the past myself.

“Oh, I’m Catholic” is not exactly the spirit of evangelization. Toward the end of my civil service career, I had great joy in evangelizing - even if I could have been sanctioned for it. But, it was not a forced issue but a response to hurting souls.

To see the look on a 40-year old pole dancer’s face when I told her that she was loved by God beyond her imagination. And no, it was not at the Superbowl halftime.

But I got sick and was pushed out the door. So, here I am. Yet, it is surprising how many on the medical staff at a cancer center are Catholics. I’ve handed out a few Rosaries there.

None of this occurred until I submitted to the Holy Spirit and a charismatic priest laid hands on me. After that it was, as Emeril Legasse says, “Bam!”
 
I was there before and after Vatican II. I watched good catechesis disappear. That was intentional. By 1970, my Catholic high school no longer offered a class in Latin. In the 1970s, instead of a closing hymn, they played Let It Be by the Beatles at mass. It was all intended to destroy Catholic Education from the inside. And what about Catholic Higher Education? That wasn’t spared either. In 1967, some Universities decided to break their ties with the Church. Here is the result:

 
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Perhaps my title for the OP should’ve been:

“Why are we not more excited to share our Faith?”

The eras during Church history, Vatican II etc., mean very little to me as a convert since 5 years ago. What I fail to comprehend is why, since our Church is soooo truly the One, that laypeople IN the Church aren’t more interested in sharing the treasure of the deposit of faith with the world.

It’s as if I see almost zero excitement about that which is the most exciting thing ever, the true teachings of Christ + the path to Heaven. At least I see little energy for Evangelization from where I am…

There are 75+ yo women at my Mom’s Assemblies of God church who are much more excited to discuss what they believe…
 
I was with a Charismatic Christian for a while and saw how important evangelization was to them. I suggest you talk to a priest and get his guidance. There are Catholic parishes with groups that go door to door in their neighborhoods. It can be done and is being done.
 
I am not Catholic but listen to EWTN radio a lot and benefit from it in my spiritual life. On a couple of shows (Al Kresta and Fr John Riccardo, I think) they mention many Catholics are “sacramentalized but not evangelized”.

While I’m not sure exactly what that phrase means, I’m guessing (in addition to what others have already posted on this thread about Catholic history and culture) it’s hard for a person to evangelize when he hasn’t been evangelized himself.
 
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It’s not complicated. I have given tracts to people. Some refuse to take them but most do take them. There are homeless people I have talked to. I mention God to people at work. It’s not hard.
 
I used to think Catholics were more reluctant in general to share their faith in the USA because they were not the majority faith in this country (Protestants are, or were).

But then I noticed how vigorously the JWs and Mormons proselytize, and they are even more in the minority. However, I’ve heard from an ex-JW that these groups tie their salvation (or level of eternal reward) to their success at proselytizing. Someone correct me if I’m wrong on that.

From what I have observed, Catholics are among the least pushy religion I’ve encountered, and I appreciate that.
 
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Tommy999 said:
But then I noticed how vigorously the JWs and Mormons proselytize, and they are even more in the minority. However, I’ve heard from an ex-JW that these groups tie their salvation (or level of eternal reward) to their success at proselytizing. Someone correct me if I’m wrong on that.

From what I have observed, Catholics are among the least pushy religion I’ve encountered, and I appreciate that.
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You’re correct, the JW’s are required to do the door to door thing. I don’t know how “tied to salvation” it is for them, but if they don’t do what they’re supposed to do, I believe they may be disfellowshipped (kicked out and shunned).
Mormons, I do not know much about their door to door, just a little about their theology.

In both cases, I would NEVER wish to do the sort of “evangelization” (door to door) stuff like they do. When I was probably between 11-14 years old, I was with a youth group in the Pentecostal church Mom drug me to, and had to do that. I hated it, and while out with the group refused to participate.

In America today, knocking on doors is probably not a great way to evangelize. I do think, however, we Catholics certainly need to be clear on Church Teachings to share when the opportunity presents, or defend if we must. Since my mother-in-law, wife and I are the only Catholics in our families, I’ve found myself having to defend my faith to my side of the family quite a bit. Her side not so much. The thing is, I know there are a ton of Catholics in my parish who wouldn’t be able to defend our Faith against my own family member’s arguments because they don’t ever have answers to questions when I ask. It’s always, “ask a priest.” And asking a priest will yield the most correct answer, but they aren’t always available to ask.

“Pushy” is bad. It has the opposite of the desired effect. I don’t propose trying that, ever.
 
gama232 said:
I never force anyone to do anything. But most people listen. The goal is to politely share the Gospel or just offer a God bless. When I talk to the homeless, I talk to them like a neighbor
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This reminds me of 1 Cor 13, the “love is patient, love is kind…” passage.
I know that somewhere in the CCC it says we are to shine the light of Christ to the world by how we live, and I do know that we change the world by our example, not our words.
So, perhaps I am just now realizing the difference between those who “preach” to everyone they encounter with words, and those who “show” Christ, a more efficacious way to preach Him…dunno.
 
gama232 said:
Here’s an example:

https://www.rcdony.org/evangelization/parish-evangelization-and-renewal/parish-evangelization-team.htm
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I read over this page. interesting stuff - thx for the link.

I’m reminded that discipleship is key to evangelizing. If we take being disciples seriously, we will want to share, and will indubitably be asked about that which we do differently than non-Catholics/Christians.

That sentence brings me to a question, aside from the OP. We are Catholics, but we are also the OG as far as Christianity goes. However, in the vernacular, “Christians” usually signifies sola scriptura “Bible Christians,” whereas for us, “Catholic” is specifically used. Is one more proper than the other? Does it matter? I consider myself a Catholic Christian, but when asked, I simply say I’m a Catholic as I feel “Christian” is implied by that. Some people, however, don’t think Catholics are Christians I’ve discovered…

So, if asked what Faith I am, is it most proper to answer I am a Catholic, or that I am a Catholic Christian? Just curious.
Thx again for that link btw. My parish has a “Director of Family Evangelization” who organizes studies and such, and we definitely have some good ones. I imagine that simply attending and participating in such things makes a statement to those who know us that we are Christians and are doing something to serve God, do better, whatever they may think going to a study is…it’s a witness to our Faith being the point. So there is one way we can evangelize - participate in discipleship formation and maybe be a little chatty about it with our peers when appropriate…
 
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