Vatican - Thou SHALT Evangelize

Since the close of Vatican II there have been several so-called "Spirit(s) of Vatican II" floating arround, each claiming it was the true "Spirit". These "Spirits" got a lot of attention, while the true Spirit of Vatican II that was found in the letter of Vatican II was ingnored. Over the years there have been plenty of people supporting those false spirits & ignoring, denying or downright attempting to malign the true "Spirit".

But, the true "Spirit" cannot & will not be silenced. & the Catholic Church will always ensure that the TRUTH IS proclaimed. So why am I saying all this? Simple what I said is leading up to the latest document issued from the Vatican to put a stake in the heart of another 1 of those false spirits by proclaiming the actual truth. This time the document comes courtesy of Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with a little help from his friends Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation of the Evangelizations of Peoples & Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the Congregation of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. They were all at the press conference announcing the release of the document on Friday.

That document, entitled Doctrinal Note on some Aspects of Evangelization, was approved by Papa Benedetto on 6 October 2007. Short summary: anyone who claims that Catholics should not evangelize, that we don't have to & should not proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ as found in the Gospels & taught by the Catholic Church is WRONG!!!!! In other words, we not only should evangelize, we have a responsibility TO evangelize. Like I said a week ago, let the firestorm begin. There will be people who will ignore this, there will be those who try to downplay it. & there will be those who will attack it & say that it is totally wrong, & a betrayal of the "Spirit of Vatican II". These naysayers are the true betrayers of the real Spirit of Vatican II, The Holy Spirit.

So what does the document say? A lot! From the 1st paragraph it makes it clear that the Church's very existance is for evangelization. "Jesus Christ was sent by the Father to proclaim the Gospel, calling all people to conversion and faith. . . . By means of the Church, Christ wants to be present in every historical epoch, every place on earth and every sector of society, in order to reach every person, so that their may be one flock and one shepherd (cf. Jn 10:16) ‘Go out into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature’ (Mk 16:15)." It uses Scripture, the writings of Popes Paul VI, John Paul II & Benedict XVI as well as the documents of Vatican II to show that this is true. It attacks relativism & the spirit of confusion that relativism has brought about.

The document discusses what is & isn't true evangelism. In other words, no "coercion or tactics unworthy of the Gospel". Rather it needs to be done "by the power of the word of God". Our real motive is to be "the love of Christ for the eternal salvation of all." It also reminds us that the mission is universal. & it is every Catholic's responsibility to participate in this mission.

It also points out that even though we are to respect our non-Catholic Christian brethren "Catholics must enter into a respectful dialogue of charity and truth, a dialogue which is not only an exchange of ideals, but also of gifts, in order that the fullness of the means of salvation can be offered to one’s partners in dialogue. In this way, they are led to an ever deeper conversion to Christ." It goes on to say: "In this connection, it needs also to be recalled that if a non-Catholic Christian, for reasons of conscience and having been convinced of Catholic truth, asks to enter into the full communion of the Catholic Church, this is to be respected as the work of the Holy Spirit and as an expression of freedom of conscience and of religion. In such a case, it would not be question of proselytism in the negative sense that has been attributed to this term."

At the press conference Cardinal Leveda explained the reason for its release now: "Why a document on evangelization? From its conversations with Bishops around the world, and from its analysis of a certain confusion about whether Catholics should give testimony about their faith in Christ, the Congregation decided to address some specific points which seem to undermine the fulfillment of Christ’s missionary mandate."

Cardinal Arinze had this to say: "I consider this Doctrinal Note of great relevance and actuality." In talking about why we should evangelize he said: "The sharing of our Catholic faith with others who do not yet know Christ should be regarded as a work of love, provided that it is done with full respect for their human dignity and freedom. Indeed if a Christian did not try to spread the Gospel by sharing the excelling knowledge of Jesus Christ (cf Phil 3:8) with others, we could suspect that Christian either of lack of total conviction on the faith, or of selfishness and laziness in not wanting to share the full and abundant means of salvation with his fellow human beings.

Conversion to Christianity is rightly seen as liberation, as St Paul puts it in his letter to the Colossians. It is entrance into "the kingdom of his (God’s) beloved Son in whom we have redemption and the forgiveness of our sins" (Col 1:13-14)." (Full Press conference remarks )

It sounds to me like the true Spirit of Vatican II is speaking loud & clear. The Holy Spirit is working to ensure that the truth is out there. & He IS speaking loud & clear.

I can think of no better way to conclude this post than with the conclusion found in the Note (quoting Papa Benedetto). It summarizes the document perfectly & reminds us that this document is a clarion call & challenge to all of us to get out there & evangelize. "The proclamation of and witness to the Gospel are the first service that Christians can render to every person and the entire human race, called as they are to communicate to all God’s love, which was fully manifested in Jesus Christ, the one Redeemer of the world. The love which comes from God unites us to him and ‘makes us a we which transcends our divisions and makes us one, until in the end God is all in all (1 Cor 15:28)’."

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As an aside, the document was sent to every Episcopal Conference by Cardinal Levada on 23 October 2007. In a cover letter sent with it he asked that the text be brought to the attention of every bishop by the 15th of November. Why? "The Dicastry is confident that the Episcopal Conference itself, as well as individual Bishops, will do everything possible to ensure the favourable reception of this document by priests, religious and the lay faithful. In this way, the Doctrinal Note will serve as a normative point of reference with regard to the questions treated." It will be interesting to see how well this document is proclaimed & followed. This document is another one, along with many recent documents from the Vatican, that can be used as a litmus test to see whether something is following the true Spirit of Vatican II or is a false "Spirit" to be rejected & driven out.