Evangelisation
Evangelisation is a word familiar in the Catholic Church
today. The term derives from the word evangelists, which is the name
given to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John who gave us the Good News of Jesus
the Christ through their Gospels. They were among the first Christians
who shared their faith in Jesus as the full revelation of God to the
world.
Pope John Paul II persistently calls all of the baptised to make evangelisation a priority. We do not need to go evangelising but to evangelise and be evangelised as we go; to share the good news of what God has done in our life as we go to work, to play, to study or to minister or be ministered to by the less fortunate in our society. We do this by our witness and by giving reasons for the faith that we have.
Prayer
God of Word and Spirit, speak your life-giving truth, deepen our faith
and quicken our enthusiasm for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Free us to
communicate the faith we profess.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, strengthen us to be people of
hospitality. May we invite others to the Good News of salvation by the
witness of our life! May we extend welcome to those who journeyed from our
midst! May we heal the hurts of alienation and offer a place of belonging
to those in search of community.
Renewed by conversion to Gospel values, may we cast the fire of your
Word and Spirit into our homes, our neighbourhoods, our places of work and
our world!
May our nation and culture be transformed by the redeeming grace of Jesus
Christ, the Good News of Truth and Life now, and always. Amen