Evangelization
Evangelization or evangelism is a term primarily used in the Roman Catholic Church , which describes the totality of all that is to serve to preach the Christian gospel to all people and to spread it over the entire world . In the Protestant area, the term evangelism (which is synonymous in the literal sense of the word) is more in use for this.
The Papal Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (“Doctrinal Note on Certain Aspects of Evangelization” of December 3, 2007) explains the term as follows:
“The word evangelization has a very rich meaning. In a broader sense it sums up the entire mission of the Church : her whole life consists in the realization of the traditio Evangelii , the proclamation and transmission of the Gospel, which "is a power of God that saves everyone who believes" ( Rom 1.16 EU ), and is ultimately identical with Jesus Christ ( 1 Cor 1.24 EU ). That is why evangelization, understood in this way, is aimed at all of humanity. "
Evangelization equally includes the proselytizing of non-Christians, which aims at the conversion ( conversion ) and baptism of the evangelized (first evangelization), as well as catechesis addressed to believers with the aim of strengthening or reviving the Christian faith ( new evangelization ).
Biblical introduction
The apostolic institutions responsible for church mission and evangelization work draw their evangelization mandate from the New Testament . Their explanations are as follows: Jesus Christ calls all people to conversion and to faith ( Mk 1.14–15 EU ) by entrusting the apostles with the continuation of his evangelization mission after his resurrection ( Matt 28.19–20 EU ); ( Mk 16.15 EU ); ( Lk 24.4-7 EU ); ( Acts 1,3 EU ): “As the father sent me, so I send you” 20,21 EU . Through the Church he wants to reach every epoch of history, every place in the world and every social environment and come to every person so that everyone can become one flock and one shepherd ( Jn 10:16 EU ): “Go out into the whole world, and proclaim the gospel to all creatures! Those who believe and are baptized will be saved; but whoever does not believe will be condemned ”( Mk 16.15–16 EU ). The apostles ", moved by the Holy Spirit , invited all to change of life, to conversion and to receive baptism ". (see encyclical Redemptoris Missio No. 47)
At the beginning of the third millennium the invitation comes again ...: “Go out on the lake! Throw out your nets there to catch! ”( Lk 5,4 EU ). So Pope Benedict XVI. during his visit to Germany in 2006: "Evangelizing in any case means not only teaching a teaching, but proclaiming the Lord Jesus in word and deed, thus becoming an instrument of his presence and effectiveness in the world."
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
The task of this congregation has always been to spread the faith throughout the world and based on missionary cooperation. The institution goes back to the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, which Pope Gregory XV. Founded in 1622. After the Second Vatican Council in 1967 the official name was changed to “Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples”.
Evangelization theses
From the point of view of the Catholic Church, evangelization is necessary due to the turning away from the faith of young people, especially young people and young families . The approach to evangelization is therefore also applied where the two areas of life meet: in kindergartens , youth facilities, schools and in the virtual world of the Internet . The theologians offer to answer questions based on faith, which can track people in their daily lives. Missionary work, which is directly related to evangelization, is divided into two main themes:
- Mission as first evangelization: The mission / evangelization of those who have not yet heard of Christ and as a consequence the establishment of new local churches .
- The so-called new evangelization: the revival and strengthening of the faith in those who have already come into contact with the Christian message. It includes the revitalization of already existing local churches.
Mission Decree Ad gentes
With the decree Ad gentes (abbreviation: AG, Latin: To the peoples), of December 7th, 1965, the Second Vatican Council passed its own ordinance on the missionary activity of the church, in which it says: The pilgrim church is her essence after "missionary" (ie as a messenger on the way), since it itself derives its origin from the sending of the Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit according to the plan of God the Father (see AG, 2). Missionary work and evangelization is thus a task that the college of bishops, with the successor of Peter at the head, has to fulfill with the prayers and cooperation of the whole church (cf. AG, 6). Under her leadership, however, all Christians are invited to participate in it, because "the whole Church is missionary and the work of evangelization is a fundamental duty of God's people" (AG, 35).
Apostolic Letter
Evangelii Nuntiandi 1975
The Apostolic Exhortation " Evangelii nuntiandi " (EN), by Pope Paul VI. , is an important part of the Church's missionary activity today. The letter is the result of the Roman Synod of Bishops of 1974 and was published on December 8, 1975. In summary, this letter expresses the following features:
- For the church, it is not just a matter of capturing ever wider regions or ever larger ethnic groups through the preaching of the gospel, but rather to achieve that through the power of the gospel the judgment criteria, the determining values, the points of interest, the habits of thought, the sources of the Inspiration and the models of human life that are in opposition to the Word of God and the plan of salvation are transformed. (EN, 19)
- It applies - and not only decoratively as by a superficial coating, but with vital force in the depth and to their roots - the culture and cultures of man in the full and comprehensive sense, which these terms in " Gaudium et Spes " ( No. 53) have to evangelize, always starting from the person and then always progressing towards the relationships of people with one another and with God (EN, 20).
Novo millenio ineunte 2000
Pope John Paul II also repeatedly called for evangelization. B. His Apostolic Exhortation " Novo Millennio ineunte ", published on January 6, 2001 at the end of the great Jubilee 2000 . “Duc in altum” - “Go out on the lake” ( Lk 5.4 EU ) becomes the program for the new millennium: “Let us go forward full of hope! A new millennium lies before the Church like a vast ocean to be driven out onto. We count on the help of Jesus Christ. The Son of God, who became man out of love for man two thousand years ago, is still doing his work today ”(Novo Millennio ineunte 58).
Evangelization and social teaching
In the last 50 years alone the popes published more than 260 rallies and declarations on the social question, the teaching of the popes was the subject of lively discussion, commented on and criticized. In 2004 the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace published a “ Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church” (KSLK), in which the relationship between social doctrine and social evangelization is presented: To evangelize the social means to give people meaning and to experience the dynamics of the gospel. People should work towards a society that is appropriate to Christ and thus to people, that is to say, to build a city for people that is more human. (KSLK 63)
The evangelizing mission
The evangelizing mandate derived from this thus encompasses the human being "in the full truth of his existence, his personal and at the same time community-related and social being": (cf. Encyclical Redemptor Hominis , No. 14). The tasks of evangelization, that is, teaching, catechesis and education, which result from the Church's social teaching, apply to each individual Christian according to his respective competencies, charisms , offices and his mission to preach. (KSLK 82 - 83)
Freedom of evangelization
Regarding the cooperation between the Catholic Church and the political community, the Catholic Church demands autonomy and recognition. It calls for freedom of teaching and evangelization. (KSLK 426)
Social evangelization
Doctrinal ministry and social evangelization encompass the whole development of man ... The Church lives and works in history and interacts with the society and culture of the age . The service in social evangelization consists in letting all people participate in their concrete difficulties, struggles and challenges and in the Christian proclamation. This pastoral care is the expression of a church committed to its own mission to evangelize the social, economic, cultural and political realities of the world. (KSLK 524)
New evangelization
The new evangelization is supported in countries where Christianity has already found its way. Like the first evangelization, the new evangelization is primarily the task of the bishops. But through baptism every Christian also has a share in the task of passing on the faith. Mission organizations support and promote this mission in many areas.
Evangelization projects
Based on pastoral objectives, almost every missionary project serves evangelization in one way or another:
- Training of priests , religious , catechists , pastoral officers
- Renovation / construction of churches, chapels , rectories , monasteries ,
- Motorization of pastoral care: bicycles, motorcycles, cars, boats, mounts.
- Subsistence aid for sisters: the contemplative sisters also make an important contribution to evangelization through their hidden lives of prayer and penance
- Pastoral programs for lay people , for special target groups such as young people, families, women; Pro-life projects promote Christian values
- Mass media : Support for Catholic radio programs, print media (e.g. church newspapers).
- Books / Bibles / Children's Bibles
- Mass scholarships: are at the same time existential aid for priests
Evangelization carrier
In the final document of the Roman Synod of Bishops of 1974 it says:
“It is up to the whole people of God, gathered by the Holy Spirit through God's Word and Eucharist , to proclaim the Gospel, and no one who really wants to be a Christian may consider himself dispensed from this commission, but must do it in his in a fitting manner and in communion with his Shepherd. "
The bishops expressed the responsibility of all Christians in evangelization. It is not just an area of activity for the Church, but is understood as part of the Christian core.
Evangelization and Organizations
Since the beginning of the Church, her deepest identity has been rooted in evangelization as her central theme. Evangelization in its sense means "to carry the good news into all areas of humanity, and to transform it through the influence from within and to renew humanity itself" (cf. EN, 14).
The point is that all areas of life should be grasped by the message of the Gospel and a possible gap between the reality of life and the reality of faith must be overcome. The goal of this (corporate) development is not only the individual person, but also the "collective consciousness of the people, the activity in which they are involved, their concrete life and their respective milieu."
The development of ecclesiastical institutions is concrete evangelization. In the context of church institutions, it is always about witnessing the gospel in the world. A modern corporate development under this guiding star is then a concrete attempt to contextualize the Judeo-Christian heritage and to unlock it for today's world. It is an attempt to make the gospel visible and transparent in a modern organizational context.
literature
- Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, Herder Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, 2004, ISBN 3-451-29078-2
- Pope Benedict XVI in Germany, Weltbild Buchverlag, Augsburg, original edition, 2nd edition 2006, ISBN 3-89897-504-5
- Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue - Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples: Dialogue and Preaching - Reflections and Orientations on Interreligious Dialogue and on the Preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. May 19, 1991; Published in: Announcements of the Apostolic See 102, Ed .: Secretariat of the German Bishops' Conference. Bonn: 1991.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Text (PDF; 136 kB) on dbk.de
- ↑ Benedict XVI., Homily at the Holy Mass on the area in front of the New Mass in Munich
- ↑ The Help of Church in Need / Aid for the Eastern Priests for Evangelization ( Memento of August 7, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), kath.de, accessed February 24, 2009
- ↑ a b Evangelii nuntiandi (PDF; 175 kB)
- ↑ a b Evangelization and Organizations: Towards a Christian Identity ( Memento of March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )