{"id":917,"date":"2011-01-10T10:42:57","date_gmt":"2011-01-10T16:42:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/?p=917"},"modified":"2011-01-10T11:07:40","modified_gmt":"2011-01-10T17:07:40","slug":"evangelization-the-church-ministry-700-pound-gorilla","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/blog\/2011\/01\/10\/evangelization-the-church-ministry-700-pound-gorilla\/","title":{"rendered":"Evangelization: The Church Ministry 700-Pound Gorilla"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
What are you looking at? You need me! <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[This is a part of the Evangelization Basics<\/a> Series. Have you read the other parts?<\/em>]<\/p>\n

I think evangelization is one of the most necessary and most feared aspects of the Christian life. Necessary because it lays the foundation for everything. Feared because it involves engaging people who don\u2019t agree with me and asking them to change.<\/p>\n

It Ain\u2019t Easy, But it Could Be Easier<\/h2>\n

I admit, this is hard stuff to deal with, and we all tend to avoid hard things. However, evangelization is the very reason the Church exists. It\u2019s like the 700-pound gorilla in the middle of the living room. Everyone knows you have to do something about him but he\u2019s so hard to deal with it\u2019s easier to just leave him alone. I think there\u2019s ways to lessen the impact and hostility of proposing change to people. That’s what this blog series is about. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Metanoia<\/em>…A More Positive Spin<\/h2>\n

The first thing Jesus says in Mark\u2019s gospel is this, \u201cThe time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel\u201d (Mk 1:15). I find repent has a negative connotation. It can also be translated as convert. The Greek word used here is metanoia<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I like the way Fr. Robert Barron explains the meaning of metanoia<\/em>. It comes from two words, meta<\/em> (meaning \u201cbeyond\u201d) and noos<\/em> (meaning \u201cmind\u201d or \u201cto think\u201d). It literally means \u201cto go beyond the mind, or the thinking, that you have.\u201d<\/strong> The kingdom is here, God\u2019s order is here, therefore, go beyond the attitude and perspective you have now and open yourself to the larger possibilities available through God.<\/p>\n

Evangelization Facilitates Going Beyond<\/h2>\n

I think of conversion as a change in perspective. We all have our own ideas, opinions and ways of looking at things. These are conditioned by our upbringing, culture and situation in life. We look at the world and judge it through these filters.<\/p>\n

In the process of evangelization, I ask people to step out of their conditioned perspective and look at reality from a new vantage point. Think of it like this, what if there\u2019s an obstacle blocking your line of sight, a column or pole, and you can\u2019t see what I\u2019m seeing? You have to step to the side a bit to see it yourself. Our own projects, plans and agendas are often obstacles blocking our line of sight and keeping us from seeing God\u2019s truth.<\/p>\n

The work of evangelization facilitates this change of perspective. Conversion is a work of the Holy Spirit. What we do is dispose people to allow the Holy Spirit’s work within them, to allow their minds to be opened to God’s possibilities.<\/p>\n

The Necessary First Step<\/h2>\n

Evangelization seeks to \u201cbring about faith and conversion to Christ…a profound change of mind and heart, a change of life, a \u2018metanoia<\/em>\u2019\u201d (National Directory of Catechesis<\/em>, p. 47). To go beyond one\u2019s current thinking, to reorient one\u2019s attitudes and perspectives, this is the necessary first step. <\/strong>Without it, further catechesis can\u2019t gain a foothold in a person\u2019s heart and soul. It becomes just one more ideology instead of life-giving truth. I think the reason our catechesis doesn\u2019t stick is we so often skip this crucial step. But that\u2019s the subject of my next post.<\/p>\n

What do you think? Do you find evangelization scary? Why? Let’s see it in the comments!<\/p>\n

[This is a part of the\u00a0Evangelization Basics<\/a> Series. Have you read the other parts?<\/em>]<\/p>\n

Image: Arvind Balaraman \/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Evangelization facilitates a reorientation of attitudes and perspectives. Going beyond the mind that you have. 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