I was pleased to read on http://chiesa.espresso.repubblica.it/articolo/205101?eng=y about the Vatican’s plans to prepare new guidelines for inter-religious dialogue. The subtitle of the article announces these welcome words, “Enough with the ceremonies. And more conviction in proclaiming the Gospel.”
Tolerance is the buzz word of our politically correct culture. We are obsessed with avoiding any appearance of imposing our beliefs on others. This misguided paranoia has infiltrated the Church and the Mystical Body of Christ to the degree that we Catholics have faltered in our responsibility to spread the Word. Many of us wear our Catholicism as if it is a Scarlet Letter.
We must remember that we are called to evangelize. And the word evangelize is not passive. It is active and it implies an aggressive, fervent attempt to bring people to Christ . . . particularly those who least want to hear it. In the above article Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran clearly expresses the responsibility all Catholics face:
"We know that the Holy Spirit works in every man and every woman, independently of his religious or spiritual creed. But on the other hand, we must proclaim that Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. God has revealed to us the truth about God and the truth about man, and for us this is the Good News. We cannot hide this truth under a bushel basket."
Let’s remember Christ’s final instruction to his apostles: “Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 28:19). Christ did not instruct that we go forth and teach his message to only some nations. He said ALL nations. His demand is clear: The Truth must be spread to the ends of the earth.
The Lord will tolerate nothing less.
Donald Tremblay
