IOANNES PAULUS PP. II
REDEMPTORIS MISSIO
On the permanent validity of the Church's missionary mandate
Blessing
Venerable Brothers, Beloved Sons and Daughters,
Health and the Apostolic Blessing!
INTRODUCTION
1. The mission of Christ the Redeemer, which is entrusted to
the Church, is still very far from completion. As the second millennium after
Christ's coming draws to an end, an overall view of the human race shows that
this mission is still only beginning and that we must commit ourselves
wholeheartedly to its service. It is the Spirit who impels us to proclaim the
great works of God: "For if I preach the Gospel, that gives me no ground
for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the
Gospel!" (1 Cor 9: 16)
In the name of the whole Church, I sense an urgent duty to
repeat this cry of St. Paul .
From the beginning of my Pontificate I have chosen to travel to the ends of the
earth in order to show this missionary concern. My direct contact with peoples
who do not know Christ has convinced me even more of the urgency of missionary
activity, a subject to which I am devoting the present encyclical.
The Second Vatican Council sought to renew the Church's life
and activity in the light of the needs of the contemporary world. The Council
emphasized the Church's "missionary nature," basing it in a dynamic
way on the Trinitarian mission itself. The missionary thrust therefore belongs
to the very nature of the Christian life, and is also the inspiration behind
ecumenism: "that they may all be one...so that the world may believe that
you have sent me" (Jn 17:21).
2. The Council has already borne much fruit in the realm of
missionary activity. There has been an increase of local churches with their
own bishops, clergy and workers in the apostolate. The presence of Christian
communities is more evident in the life of nations, and communion between the
churches has led to a lively exchange of spiritual benefits and gifts. The
commitment of the laity to the work of evangelization is changing ecclesial
life, while particular churches are more willing to meet with the members of
other Christian churches and other religions, and to enter into dialogue and
cooperation with them. Above all, there is a new awareness that missionary
activity is a matter for all Christians, for all dioceses and parishes, Church
institutions and associations.
Nevertheless, in this "new springtime" of
Christianity there is an undeniable negative tendency, and the present document
is meant to help overcome it. Missionary activity specifically directed
"to the nations" (ad gentes) appears to be waning, and this tendency
is certainly not in line with the directives of the Council and of subsequent
statements of the Magisterium. Difficulties both internal and external have
weakened the Church's missionary thrust toward non-Christians, a fact which
must arouse concern among all who believe in Christ. For in the Church's
history, missionary drive has always been a sign of vitality, just as its
lessening is a sign of a crisis of faith.1
Twenty-five years after the conclusion of the Council and
the publication of the Decree on Missionary Activity Ad Gentes, fifteen years
after the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi issued by Pope Paul VI, and
in continuity with the magisterial teaching of my predecessors,2 I wish to
invite the Church to renew her missionary commitment. The present document has
as its goal an interior renewal of faith and Christian life. For missionary
activity renews the Church, revitalizes faith and Christian identity, and
offers fresh enthusiasm and new incentive. Faith is strengthened when it is
given to others! It is in commitment to the Church's universal mission that the
new evangelization of Christian peoples will find inspiration and support.
But what moves me even more strongly to proclaim the urgency
of missionary evangelization is the fact that it is the primary service which
the Church can render to every individual and to all humanity in the modern
world, a world which has experienced marvelous achievements but which seems to
have lost its sense of ultimate realities and of existence itself. "Christ
the Redeemer," I wrote in my first encyclical, "fully reveals man to
himself.... The person who wishes to understand himself
thoroughly...must...draw near to Christ.... [The] Redemption that took place
through the cross has definitively restored to man his dignity and given back
meaning to his life in the world."3
I also have other reasons and aims: to respond to the many
requests for a document of this kind; to clear up doubts and ambiguities
regarding missionary activity ad gentes, and to confirm in their commitment those
exemplary brothers and sisters dedicated to missionary activity and all those
who assist them; to foster missionary vocations; to encourage theologians to
explore and expound systematically the various aspects of missionary activity;
to give a fresh impulse to missionary activity by fostering the commitment of
the particular churches - especially those of recent origin - to send forth and
receive missionaries; and to assure non-Christians and particularly the
authorities of countries to which missionary activity is being directed that
all of this has but one purpose: to serve man by revealing to him the love of
God made manifest in Jesus Christ.
3. Peoples everywhere, open the doors to Christ! His Gospel
in no way detracts from man's freedom, from the respect that is owed to every
culture and to whatever is good in each religion. By accepting Christ, you open
yourselves to the definitive Word of God, to the One in whom God has made
himself fully known and has shown us the path to himself.
The number of those who do not know Christ and do not belong
to the Church is constantly on the increase. Indeed, since the end of the
Council it has almost doubled. When we consider this immense portion of
humanity which is loved by the Father and for whom he sent his Son, the urgency
of the Church's mission is obvious.
On the other hand, our own times offer the Church new
opportunities in this field: we have witnessed the collapse of oppressive
ideologies and political systems; the opening of frontiers and the formation of
a more united world due to an increase in communications; the affirmation among
peoples of the gospel values which Jesus made incarnate in his own life (peace,
justice, brotherhood, concern for the needy); and a kind of soulless economic
and technical development which only stimulates the search for the truth about
God, about man and about the meaning of life itself.
God is opening before the Church the horizons of a humanity
more fully prepared for the sowing of the Gospel. I sense that the moment has
come to commit all of the Church's energies to a new evangelization and to the
mission ad gentes. No believer in Christ, no institution of the Church can
avoid this supreme duty: to proclaim Christ to all peoples.
CHAPTER I - JESUS CHRIST, THE ONLY SAVIOR
4. In my first encyclical, in which I set forth the program
of my Pontificate, I said that "the Church's fundamental function in every
age, and particularly in ours, is to direct man's gaze, to point the awareness
and experience of the whole of humanity toward the mystery of Christ."4
The Church's universal mission is born of faith in Jesus
Christ, as is stated in our Trinitarian profession of faith: "I believe in
one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the
Father.... For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the
power of the Holy spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made
man."5 The redemption event brings salvation to all, "for each one is
included in the mystery of the redemption and with each one Christ has united
himself forever through this mystery."6 It is only in faith that the
Church's mission can be understood and only in faith that it finds its basis.
Nevertheless, also as a result of the changes which have
taken place in modern times and the spread of new theological ideas, some
people wonder: Is missionary work among non-Christians still relevant? Has it
not been replaced by inter-religious dialogue? Is not human development an
adequate goal of the Church's mission? Does not respect for conscience and for
freedom exclude all efforts at conversion? Is it not possible to attain
salvation in any religion? Why then should there be missionary activity?
"No one comes to the Father, but by me" (Jn 14:6)
5. If we go back to the beginnings of the Church, we find a
clear affirmation that Christ is the one Savior of all, the only one able to
reveal God and lead to God. In reply to the Jewish religious authorities who
question the apostles about the healing of the lame man, Peter says: "By
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom you crucified, whom God raised from
the dead, by him this man is standing before you well.... And there is
salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among
men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:10, 12). This statement, which was
made to the Sanhedrin, has a universal value, since for all people-Jews and
Gentiles alike - salvation can only come from Jesus Christ.
The universality of this salvation in Christ is asserted
throughout the New Testament. St. Paul
acknowledges the risen Christ as the Lord. He writes: "Although there may
be so-called gods in heaven or on earth - as indeed there are many 'gods' and
many 'lords' - yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all
things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all
things and through whom we exist" (1 Cor 8:5-6). One God and one Lord are
asserted by way of contrast to the multitude of "gods" and "lords"
commonly accepted. Paul reacts against the polytheism of the religious
environment of his time and emphasizes what is characteristic of the Christian
faith: belief in one God and in one Lord sent by God.
In the Gospel of St. John, this salvific universality of
Christ embraces all the aspects of his mission of grace, truth and revelation:
the Word is "the true light that enlightens every man" (Jn 1:9). And
again, "no one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the
Father, he has made him known" (Jn 1:18; cf. Mt 11:27). God's revelation
becomes definitive and complete through his only-begotten Son: "In many
and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; but in these
last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all
things, through whom he also created the world" (Heb 1:1-2; cf. Jn 14:6).
In this definitive Word of his revelation, God has made himself known in the
fullest possible way. He has revealed to mankind who he is. This definitive
self-revelation of God is the fundamental reason why the Church is missionary
by her very nature. She cannot do other than proclaim the Gospel, that is, the
fullness of the truth which God has enabled us to know about himself.
Christ is the one mediator between God and mankind: "For
there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to which was borne
at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and apostle (I am
telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and
truth" (1 Tm 2:5-7; cf. Heb 4:14-16). No one, therefore, can enter into
communion with God except through Christ, by the working of the Holy Spirit.
Christ's one, universal mediation, far from being an obstacle on the journey
toward God, is the way established by God himself, a fact of which Christ is
fully aware. Although participated forms of mediation of different kinds and
degrees are not excluded, they acquire meaning and value only from Christ's own
mediation, and they cannot be understood as parallel or complementary to his.
6. To introduce any sort of separation between the Word and
Jesus Christ is contrary to the Christian faith. St. John clearly states that the Word, who
"was in the beginning with God," is the very one who "became
flesh" (Jn 1:2, 14). Jesus is the Incarnate Word-a single and indivisible
person. One cannot separate Jesus from the Christ or speak of a "Jesus of
history" who would differ from the "Christ of faith." The Church
acknowledges and confesses Jesus as "the Christ, the Son of the living
God" (Mt 16:16): Christ is none other than Jesus of Nazareth: he is the
Word of God made man for the salvation of all. In Christ "the whole
fullness of deity dwells bodily" (Col
2:9) and "from his fullness have we all received" (Jn 1:16). The
"only Son, who is the bosom of the Father" (Jn 1:18) is "the
beloved Son, in whom we have redemption.... For in him all the fullness of God
was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things,
whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his Cross" (Col 1:13-14, 19-20). It
is precisely this uniqueness of Christ which gives him an absolute and
universal significance, whereby, while belonging to history, he remains history's
center and goal:7 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last,
the beginning and the end" (Rv 22:13).
Thus, although it is legitimate and helpful to consider the
various aspects of the mystery of Christ, we must never lose sight of its
unity. In the process of discovering and appreciating the manifold
gifts-especially the spiritual treasures-that God has bestowed on every people,
we cannot separate those gifts from Jesus Christ, who is at the center of God's
plan of salvation. Just as "by his incarnation the Son of God united
himself in some sense with every human being," so too "we are obliged
to hold that the Holy Spirit offers everyone the possibility of sharing in the
Paschal Mystery in a manner known to God."8 God's plan is "to unite
all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth" (Eph 1:10).
Faith in Christ Is Directed to Man's Freedom
7. The urgency of missionary activity derives from the
radical newness of life brought by Christ and lived by his followers. This new
life is a gift from God, and people are asked to accept and develop it, if they
wish to realize the fullness of their vocation in conformity to Christ. The
whole New Testament is a hymn to the new life of those who believe in Christ
and live in his Church. Salvation in Christ, as witnessed to and proclaimed by
the Church, is God's self-communication: "It is love which not only
creates the good, but also grants participation in the very life of God:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. For he who loves desires to give himself."9
God offers mankind this newness of life. "Can one
reject Christ and everything that he has brought about in the history of
mankind? Of course one can. Man is free. He can say 'no' to God. He can say
'no' to Christ. But the fundamental question remains: Is it legitimate to do
this? And what would make it legitimate?"10
8. In the modern world there is a tendency to reduce man to
his horizontal dimension alone. But without an openness to the Absolute, what
does man become? The answer to this question is found in the experience of
every individual, but it is also written in the history of humanity with the
blood shed in the name of ideologies or by political regimes which have sought
to build a "new humanity" without God.11
Moreover, the Second Vatican Council replies to those
concerned with safeguarding freedom of conscience: "The human person has a
right to religious freedom.... All should have such immunity from coercion by
individuals, or by groups, or by any human power, that no one should be forced
to act against his conscience in religious matters, nor prevented from acting
according to his conscience, whether in private or in public, whether alone or
in association with others, within due limits."12
Proclaiming Christ and bearing witness to him, when done in
a way that respects consciences, does not violate freedom. Faith demands a free
adherence on the part of man, but at the same time faith must also be offered
to him, because the "multitudes have the right to know the riches of the
mystery of Christ-riches in which we believe that the whole of humanity can
find, in unsuspected fullness, everything that it is gropingly searching for
concerning God, man and his destiny, life and death, and truth.... This is why
the Church keeps her missionary spirit alive, and even wishes to intensify it
in the moment of history in which we are living."13 But it must also be
stated, again with the Council, that "in accordance with their dignity as
persons, equipped with reason and free will and endowed with personal
responsibility, all are impelled by their own nature and are bound by a moral
obligation to seek truth, above all religious truth. They are further bound to
hold to the truth once it is known, and to regulate their whole lives by its
demands."14
The Church As Sign and Instrument of Salvation
9. The first beneficiary of salvation is the Church. Christ
won the Church for himself at the price of his own blood and made the Church
his co-worker in the salvation of the world. Indeed, Christ dwells within the
Church. She is his Bride. It is he who causes her to grow. He carries out his
mission through her.
The Council makes frequent reference to the Church's role in
the salvation of mankind. While acknowledging that God loves all people and
grants them the possibility of being saved (cf. l Tm 2:4),15 the Church
believes that God has established Christ as the one mediator and that she
herself has been established as the universal sacrament of salvation. 16
"To this catholic unity of the people of God, therefore,...all are called,
and they belong to it or are ordered to it in various ways, whether they be
Catholic faithful or others who believe in Christ or finally all people
everywhere who by the grace of God are called to salvation."17 It is
necessary to keep these two truths together, namely, the real possibility of
salvation in Christ for all mankind and the necessity of the Church for
salvation. Both these truths help us to understand the one mystery of
salvation, so that we can come to know God's mercy and our own responsibility.
Salvation, which always remains a gift of the Holy Spirit, requires man's
cooperation, both to save himself and to save others. This is God's will, and
this is why he established the Church and made her a part of his plan of salvation.
Referring to "this messianic people," the Council says; "It has
been set up by Christ as a communion of life, love and truth; by him too it is
taken up as the instrument of salvation for all, and sent on a mission to the
whole world as the light of the world and the salt of the earth."18
Salvation in Christ Is Offered to All
10. The universality of salvation means that it is granted
not only to those who explicitly believe in Christ and have entered the Church.
Since salvation is offered to all, it must be made concretely available to all.
But it is clear that today, as in the past, many people do not have an
opportunity to come to know or accept the gospel revelation or to enter the
Church. The social and cultural conditions in which they live do not permit
this, and frequently they have been brought up in other religious traditions.
For such people salvation in Christ is accessible by virtue of a grace which,
while having a mysterious relationship to the Church, does not make them
formally part of the Church but enlightens them in a way which is accommodated
to their spiritual and material situation. This grace comes from Christ; it is
the result of his Sacrifice and is communicated by the Holy Spirit. It enables
each person to attain salvation through his or her free cooperation.
For this reason the Council, after affirming the centrality
of the Paschal Mystery, went on to declare that "this applies not only to
Christians but to all people of good will in whose hearts grace is secretly at
work. Since Christ died for everyone, and since the ultimate calling of each of
us comes from God and is therefore a universal one, we are obliged to hold that
the Holy Spirit offers everyone the possibility of sharing in this Paschal
Mystery in a manner known to God."19
"We cannot but speak" (Acts 4:20)
11. What then should be said of the objections already
mentioned regarding the mission ad gentes? While respecting the beliefs and
sensitivities of all, we must first clearly affirm our faith in Christ, the one
Savior of mankind, a faith we have received as a gift from on high, not as a
result of any merit of our own. We say with Paul, "I am not ashamed of the
Gospel: it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith"
(Rom 1:16). Christian martyrs of all times - including our own - have given and
continue to give their lives in order to bear witness to this faith, in the
conviction that every human being needs Jesus Christ, who has conquered sin and
death and reconciled mankind to God.
Confirming his words by miracles and by his resurrection
from the dead, Christ proclaimed himself to be the Son of God dwelling in
intimate union with the Father, and was recognized as such by his disciples.
The Church offers mankind the Gospel, that prophetic message which responds to
the needs and aspirations of the human heart and always remains "Good
News." The Church cannot fail to proclaim that Jesus came to reveal the
face of God and to merit salvation for all humanity by his cross and
resurrection.
To the question, "why mission?" we reply with the
Church's faith and experience that true liberation consists in opening oneself
to the love of Christ. In him, and only in him, are we set free from all
alienation and doubt, from slavery to the power of sin and death. Christ is
truly "our peace" (Eph 2:14); "the love of Christ impels
us" (2 Cor 5:14), giving meaning and joy to our life. Mission is an issue
of faith, an accurate indicator of our faith in Christ and his love for us.
The temptation today is to reduce Christianity to merely
human wisdom, a pseudo-science of well-being. In our heavily secularized world
a "gradual secularization of salvation" has taken place, so that
people strive for the good of man, but man who is truncated, reduced to his merely
horizontal dimension. We know, however, that Jesus came to bring integral
salvation, one which embraces the whole person and all mankind, and opens up
the wondrous prospect of divine filiation. Why mission? Because to us, as to
St. Paul, "this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the
unsearchable riches of Christ" (Eph 3:8). Newness of life in him is the
"Good News" for men and women of every age: all are called to it and
destined for it. Indeed, all people are searching for it, albeit at times in a
confused way, and have a right to know the value of this gift and to approach
it freely. The Church, and every individual Christian within her, may not keep
hidden or monopolize this newness and richness which has been received from
God's bounty in order to be communicated to all mankind.
This is why the Church's mission derives not only from the
Lord's mandate but also from the profound demands of God's life within us.
Those who are incorporated in the Catholic Church ought to sense their
privilege and for that very reason their greater obligation of bearing witness
to the faith and to the Christian life as a service to their brothers and
sisters and as a fitting response to God. They should be ever mindful that
"they owe their distinguished status not to their own merits but to
Christ's special grace; and if they fail to respond to this grace in thought,
word and deed, not only will they not be saved, they will be judged more
severely."20
CHAPTER II - THE KINGDOM OF GOD
12. "It is 'God, who is rich in mercy' whom Jesus
Christ has revealed to us as Father: it is his very Son who, in himself, has
manifested him and made him known to us."21 I wrote this at the beginning
of my Encyclical Dives in Misericordia, to show that Christ is the revelation
and incarnation of the Father's mercy. Salvation consists in believing and
accepting the mystery of the Father and of his love, made manifest and freely
given in Jesus through the Spirit. In this way the kingdom of God comes to be fulfilled:
the kingdom prepared for in the Old Testament, brought about by Christ and in
Christ, and proclaimed to all peoples by the Church, which works and prays for
its perfect and definitive realization.
The Old Testament attests that God chose and formed a people
for himself, in order to reveal and carry out his loving plan. But at the same
time God is the Creator and Father of all people; he cares and provides for
them, extending his blessing to all (cf. Gn 12:3); he has established a
covenant with all of them (cf. Gn 9:1-17). Israel experiences a personal and
saving God (cf. Dt 4:37; 7:6-8; Is 43:1-7) and becomes his witness and
interpreter among the nations. In the course of her history, Israel comes to
realize that her election has a universal meaning (cf. for example Is 2:2-5;
25:6-8; 60:1-6; Jer 3:17; 16:19).
Christ Makes the Kingdom Present
13. Jesus of Nazareth brings God's plan to fulfillment.
After receiving the Holy Spirit at his Baptism, Jesus makes clear his messianic
calling: he goes about Galilee "preaching the Gospel of God and saying:
'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe
in the Gospel'" (Mk 1:14-15; cf. Mt 4:17; Lk 4:43). The proclamation and
establishment of God's kingdom are the purpose of his mission: "I was sent
for this purpose" (Lk 4:43). But that is not all. Jesus himself is the
"Good News," as he declares at the very beginning of his mission in
the synagogue at Nazareth, when he applies to himself the words of Isaiah about
the Anointed One sent by the Spirit of the Lord (cf. Lk 4;14-21). Since the
"Good News" is Christ, there is an identity between the message and
the messenger, between saying, doing and being. His power, the secret of the
effectiveness of his actions, lies in his total identification with the message
he announces; he proclaims the "Good News" not just by what he says
or does, but by what he is.
The ministry of Jesus is described in the context of his
journeys within his homeland. Before Easter, the scope of his mission was
focused on Israel. Nevertheless, Jesus offers a new element of extreme
importance. The eschatological reality is not relegated to a remote "end
of the world," but is already close and at work in our midst. The kingdom
of God is at hand (cf. Mk 1:15); its coming is to be prayed for (cf. Mt 6:10);
faith can glimpse it already at work in signs such as miracles (cf. Mt 11:4-5)
and exorcisms (cf. Mt 12:25-28), in the choosing of the Twelve (cf. Mk
3:13-19), and in the proclamation of the Good News to the poor (cf. Lk 4:18).
Jesus' encounters with Gentiles make it clear that entry into the kingdom comes
through faith and conversion (cf. Mk 1:15), and not merely by reason of ethnic
background.
The kingdom which Jesus inaugurates is the kingdom of God.
Jesus himself reveals who this God is, the One whom he addresses by the
intimate term "Abba," Father (cf. Mk 14:36). God, as revealed above
all in the parables (cf. Lk 15:3-32; Mt 20:1-16), is sensitive to the needs and
sufferings of every human being: he is a Father filled with love and
compassion, who grants forgiveness and freely bestows the favors asked of him.
St. John tells us that "God is love" (1 Jn 4:8,
16). Every person therefore is invited to "repent" and to
"believe" in God's merciful love. The kingdom will grow insofar as
every person learns to turn to God in the intimacy of prayer as to a Father
(cf. Lk 11:2; Mt 23:9) and strives to do his will (cf. Mt 7:21).
Characteristics of the Kingdom and Its Demands
14. Jesus gradually reveals the characteristics and demands
of the kingdom through his words, his actions and his own person.
The kingdom of God is meant for all mankind, and all people
are called to become members of it. To emphasize this fact, Jesus drew
especially near to those on the margins of society, and showed them special
favor in announcing the Good News. At the beginning of his ministry he
proclaimed that he was "anointed...to preach good news to the poor"
(Lk 4:18). To all who are victims of rejection and contempt Jesus declares:
"Blessed are you poor" (Lk 6:20). What is more, he enables such
individuals to experience liberation even now, by being close to them, going to
eat in their homes (cf. Lk 5:30; 15:2), treating them as equals and friends
(cf. Lk 7:34), and making them feel loved by God, thus revealing his tender
care for the needy and for sinners (cf. Lk 15:1-32).
The liberation and salvation brought by the kingdom of God
come to the human person both in his physical and spiritual dimensions. Two
gestures are characteristic of Jesus' mission: healing and forgiving. Jesus'
many healings clearly show his great compassion in the face of human distress,
but they also signify that in the kingdom there will no longer be sickness or
suffering, and that his mission, from the very beginning, is meant to free
people from these evils. In Jesus' eyes, healings are also a sign of spiritual
salvation, namely liberation from sin. By performing acts of healing, he
invites people to faith, conversion and the desire for forgiveness (cf. Lk
5:24). Once there is faith, healing is an encouragement to go further: it leads
to salvation (cf. Lk 18:42-43). The acts of liberation from demonic
possession-the supreme evil and symbol of sin and rebellion against God-are
signs that indeed "the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Mt 12:28).
15. The kingdom aims at transforming human relationships; it
grows gradually as people slowly learn to love, forgive and serve one another.
Jesus sums up the whole Law, focusing it on the commandment of love (cf. Mt
22:34-40; Lk 10:25-28). Before leaving his disciples, he gives them a "new
commandment": "Love one another; even as I have loved you" (Jn
13:34; cf. 15:12). Jesus' love for the world finds its highest expression in
the gift of his life for mankind (cf. Jn 15:13), which manifests the love which
the Father has for the world (cf. Jn 3:16). The kingdom's nature, therefore, is
one of communion among all human beings-with one another and with God.
The kingdom is the concern of everyone: individuals,
society, and the world. Working for the kingdom means acknowledging and
promoting God's activity, which is present in human history and transforms it.
Building the kingdom means working for liberation from evil in all its forms.
In a word, the kingdom of God is the manifestation and the realization of God's
plan of salvation in all its fullness.
In the Risen Christ God's Kingdom Is Fulfilled and
Proclaimed
16. By raising Jesus from the dead, God has conquered death,
and in Jesus he has definitely inaugurated his kingdom. During his earthly
life, Jesus was the Prophet of the kingdom; after his passion, resurrection and
ascension into heaven he shares in God's power and in his dominion over the
world (cf. Mt 28:18; Acts 2:36; Eph 1:18-21). The resurrection gives a
universal scope to Christ's message, his actions and whole mission. The
disciples recognize that the kingdom is already present in the person of Jesus
and is slowly being established within man and the world through a mysterious
connection with him.
Indeed, after the resurrection, the disciples preach the
kingdom by proclaiming Jesus crucified and risen from the dead. In Samaria,
Philip "preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus
Christ" (Acts 8:12). In Rome, we find Paul "preaching the kingdom of
God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ'' (Acts 28:31). The first
Christians also proclaim "the kingdom of Christ and of God" (Eph 5:5;
cf. Rev 11:15; 12:10), or "the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ" (2 Pt 1:11). The preaching of the early Church was centered on the
proclamation of Jesus Christ, with whom the kingdom was identified. Now, as
then, there is a need to unite the proclamation of the kingdom of God (the
content of Jesus' own "kerygma") and the proclamation of the
Christ-event (the "kerygma" of the apostles). The two proclamations
are complementary; each throws light on the other.
The Kingdom in Relation to Christ and the Church
17. Nowadays the kingdom is much spoken of, but not always
in a way consonant with the thinking of the Church. In fact, there are ideas
about salvation and mission which can be called "anthropocentric" in
the reductive sense of the word, inasmuch as they are focused on man's earthly
needs. In this view, the kingdom tends to become something completely human and
secularized; what counts are programs and struggles for a liberation which is
socio-economic, political and even cultural, but within a horizon that is
closed to the transcendent. Without denying that on this level too there are
values to be promoted, such a notion nevertheless remains within the confines
of a kingdom of man, deprived of its authentic and profound dimensions. Such a
view easily translates into one more ideology of purely earthly progress. The
kingdom of God, however, "is not of this world...is not from the
world" (Jn 18:36).
There are also conceptions which deliberately emphasize the
kingdom and which describe themselves as "kingdom-centered." They
stress the image of a Church which is not concerned about herself, but which is
totally concerned with bearing witness to and serving the kingdom. It is a
"Church for others" just as Christ is the "man for others."
The Church's task is described as though it had to proceed in two directions:
on the one hand promoting such "values of the kingdom" as peace,
justice, freedom, brotherhood, etc,, while on the other hand fostering dialogue
between peoples, cultures and religions, so that through a mutual enrichment
they might help the world to be renewed and to journey ever closer toward the
kingdom.
Together with positive aspects, these conceptions often
reveal negative aspects as well. First, they are silent about Christ: the
kingdom of which they speak is "theocentrically" based, since,
according to them, Christ cannot be understood by those who lack Christian
faith, whereas different peoples, cultures and religions are capable of finding
common ground in the one divine reality, by whatever name it is called. For the
same reason they put great stress on the mystery of creation, which is
reflected in the diversity of cultures and beliefs, but they keep silent about
the mystery of redemption. Furthermore, the kingdom, as they understand it,
ends up either leaving very little room for the Church or undervaluing the
Church in reaction to a presumed "ecclesiocentrism" of the past, and
because they consider the Church herself only a sign, for that matter a sign
not without ambiguity.
18. This is not the kingdom of God as we know it from
Revelation. The kingdom cannot be detached either from Christ or from the
Church.
As has already been said, Christ not only proclaimed the
kingdom, but in him the kingdom itself became present and was fulfilled. This
happened not only through his words and his deeds: "Above all,...the
kingdom is made manifest in the very person of Christ, Son of God and Son of
Man, who came 'to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many' (Mk
10:45)."22 The kingdom of God is not a concept, a doctrine, or a program
subject to free interpretation, but it is before all else a person with the
face and name of Jesus of Nazareth, the image of the invisible God.23 If the
kingdom is separated from Jesus, it is no longer the kingdom of God which he
revealed. The result is a distortion of the meaning of the kingdom, which runs
the risk of being transformed into a purely human or ideological goal, and a
distortion of the identity of Christ, who no longer appears as the Lord to whom
everything must one day be subjected (cf. 1 Cor 15:27).
Likewise, one may not separate the kingdom from the Church.
It is true that the Church is not an end unto herself, since she is ordered
toward the kingdom of God of which she is the seed, sign and instrument. Yet,
while remaining distinct from Christ and the kingdom, the Church is
indissolubly united to both. Christ endowed the Church, his body, with the
fullness of the benefits and means of salvation. The Holy Spirit dwells in her,
enlivens her with his gifts and charisms, sanctifies, guides and constantly
renews her.24 The result is a unique and special relationship which, while not
excluding the action of Christ and the Spirit outside the Church's visible
boundaries, confers upon her a specific and necessary role; hence the Church's
special connection with the kingdom of God and of Christ, which she has
"the mission of announcing and inaugurating among all peoples."25
19. It is within this overall perspective that the reality
of the kingdom is understood. Certainly, the kingdom demands the promotion of
human values, as well as those which can properly be called
"evangelical," since they are intimately bound up with the "Good
News." But this sort of promotion, which is at the heart of the Church,
must not be detached from or opposed to other fundamental tasks, such as
proclaiming Christ and his Gospel, and establishing and building up communities
which make present and active within mankind the living image of the kingdom.
One need not fear falling thereby into a form of "ecclesiocentrism."
Pope Paul VI, who affirmed the existence of "a profound link between
Christ, the Church and evangelization,"26 also said that the Church
"is not an end unto herself, but rather is fervently concerned to be completely
of Christ, in Christ and for Christ, as well as completely of men, among men
and for men."27
The Church at the Service of the Kingdom
20. The Church is effectively and concretely at the service
of the kingdom. This is seen especially in her preaching, which is a call to
conversion. Preaching constitutes the Church's first and fundamental way of
serving the coming of the kingdom in individuals and in human society.
Eschatological salvation begins even now in newness of life in Christ: "To
all who believed in him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become
children of God" (Jn 1:12).
The Church, then, serves the kingdom by establishing
communities and founding new particular churches, and by guiding them to mature
faith and charity in openness toward others, in service to individuals and
society, and in understanding and esteem for human institutions.
The Church serves the kingdom by spreading throughout the
world the "gospel values" which are an expression of the kingdom and
which help people to accept God's plan. It is true that the inchoate reality of
the kingdom can also be found beyond the confines of the Church among peoples
everywhere, to the extent that they live "gospel values" and are open
to the working of the Spirit who breathes when and where he wills (cf. Jn 3:8).
But it must immediately be added that this temporal dimension of the kingdom
remains incomplete unless it is related to the kingdom of Christ present in the
Church and straining towards eschatological fullness.28
The many dimensions of the kingdom of God29 do not weaken
the foundations and purposes of missionary activity, but rather strengthen and
extend them. The Church is the sacrament of salvation for all mankind, and her
activity is not limited only to those who accept her message. She is a dynamic
force in mankind's journey toward the eschatological kingdom, and is the sign
and promoter of gospel values.30 The Church contributes to mankind's pilgrimage
of conversion to God's plan through her witness and through such activities as
dialogue, human promotion, commitment to justice and peace, education and the care
of the sick, and aid to the poor and to children. In carrying on these
activities, however, she never loses sight of the priority of the transcendent
and spiritual realities which are premises of eschatological salvation.
Finally, the Church serves the kingdom by her intercession,
since the kingdom by its very nature is God's gift and work, as we are reminded
by the gospel parables and by the prayer which Jesus taught us. We must ask for
the kingdom, welcome it and make it grow within us; but we must also work
together so that it will be welcomed and will grow among all people, until the
time when Christ "delivers the kingdom to God the Father" and
"God will be everything to everyone" (cf. 1 Cor 15:24, 28).
CHAPTER III - THE HOLY SPIRIT: THE PRINCIPAL AGENT OF
MISSION
21. "At the climax of Jesus' messianic mission, the
Holy Spirit becomes present in the Paschal Mystery in all of his divine
subjectivity: as the one who is now to continue the salvific work rooted in the
sacrifice of the cross. Of course Jesus entrusts this work to human beings: to
the apostles, to the Church. Nevertheless, in and through them the Holy Spirit
remains the transcendent and principal agent for the accomplishment of this
work in the human spirit and in the history of the world."31
The Holy Spirit is indeed the principal agent of the whole
of the Church's mission. His action is preeminent in the mission ad gentes, as
can clearly be seen in the early Church: in the conversion of Cornelius (cf.
Acts 10), in the decisions made about emerging problems (cf. Acts 15) and in
the choice of regions and peoples to be evangelized (cf. Acts 16:6ff). The
Spirit worked through the apostles, but at the same time he was also at work in
those who heard them: "Through his action the Good News takes shape in
human minds and hearts and extends through history. In all of this it is the
Holy Spirit who gives life."32
Sent Forth "to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8)
22. All the Evangelists, when they describe the risen
Christ's meeting with his apostles, conclude with the "missionary
mandate": "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,...and lo, I am with you always,
to the close of the age" (Mt 28:18-20; cf. Mk 16:15-18; Lk 24:46-49; Jn
20:21-23).
This is a sending forth in the Spirit, as is clearly
apparent in the Gospel of John: Christ sends his own into the world, just as
the Father has sent him, and to this end he gives them the Spirit. Luke, for
his part, closely links the witness the apostles are to give to Christ with the
working of the Spirit, who will enable them to fulfill the mandate they have
received.
23. The different versions of the "missionary
mandate" contain common elements as well as characteristics proper to
each. Two elements, however, are found in all the versions. First, there is the
universal dimension of the task entrusted to the apostles, who are sent to
"all nations" (Mt 28:19); "into all the world and...to the whole
creation" (Mk 16:15); to "all nations" (Lk 24:47); "to the
end of the earth" (Acts 1:8). Secondly, there is the assurance given to
the apostles by the Lord that they will not be alone in the task, but will
receive the strength and the means necessary to carry out their mission. The
reference here is to the presence and power of the spirit and the help of Jesus
himself: "And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord
worked with them" (Mk 16:20).
As for the different emphases found in each version, Mark
presents mission as proclamation or kerygma: "Preach the Gospel" (Mk
16:15). His aim is to lead his readers to repeat Peter's profession of faith:
"You are the Christ" (Mk 8:29), and to say with the Roman centurion
who stood before the body of Jesus on the cross: "Truly this man was the
Son of God!" (Mk 15:39) In Matthew, the missionary emphasis is placed on
the foundation of the Church and on her teaching (cf. Mt 28:19-20; 16:18).
According to him, the mandate shows that the proclamation of the Gospel must be
completed by a specific ecclesial and sacramental catechesis. In Luke, mission
is presented as witness (cf. Lk 24:48; Acts 1:8), centered especially on the
resurrection (cf. Acts 1:22). The missionary is invited to believe in the
transforming power of the Gospel and to proclaim what Luke presents so well,
that is, conversion to God's love and mercy, the experience of a complete
liberation which goes to the root of all evil, namely sin.
John is the only Evangelist to speak explicitly of a
"mandate," a word equivalent to "mission." He directly
links the mission which Jesus entrusts to his disciples with the mission which
he himself has received from the Father: "As the Father has sent me, even
so I send you" (Jn 20:21). Addressing the Father, Jesus says: "As you
sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world" (Jn 17:18).
The entire missionary sense of John's Gospel is expressed in the "priestly
prayer": "This is eternal life, that they know you the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (Jn 17:3). The ultimate purpose of
mission is to enable people to share in the communion which exists between the
Father and the Son. The disciples are to live in unity with one another,
remaining in the Father and the Son, so that the world may know and believe
(cf. Jn 17:21-23). This is a very important missionary text. It makes us
understand that we are missionaries above all because of what we are as a
Church whose innermost life is unity in love, even before we become
missionaries in word or deed.
The four Gospels therefore bear witness to a certain
pluralism within the fundamental unity of the same mission, a pluralism which
reflects different experiences and situations within the first Christian
communities. It is also the result of the driving force of the Spirit himself;
it encourages us to pay heed to the variety or missionary charisms and to the
diversity of circumstances and peoples. Nevertheless, all the Evangelists
stress that the mission of the disciples is to cooperate in the mission of Christ;
"Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Mt 28:20).
Mission, then, is based not on human abilities but on the power of the risen
Lord.
The Spirit Directs the Church's Mission
24. The mission of the Church, like that of Jesus, is God's work
or, as Luke often puts it, the work of the Spirit. After the resurrection and
ascension of Jesus, the apostles have a powerful experience which completely
transforms them: the experience of Pentecost. The coming of the Holy Spirit
makes them witnesses and prophets (cf. Acts 1:8; 2:17-18). It fills them with a
serene courage which impels them to pass on to others their experience of Jesus
and the hope which motivates them. The Spirit gives them the ability to bear
witness to Jesus with "boldness."33 When the first evangelizers go
down from Jerusalem, the Spirit becomes even more of a "guide,"
helping them to choose both those to whom they are to go and the places to
which their missionary journey is to take them. The working of the Spirit is manifested
particularly in the impetus given to the mission which, in accordance with
Christ's words, spreads out from Jerusalem to all of Judea and Samaria, and to
the farthest ends of the earth.
The Acts of the Apostles records six summaries of the
"missionary discourses" which were addressed to the Jews during the
Church's infancy (cf. Acts 2:22-39; 3:12-26; 4:9-12; 5:29-32; 10:34-43;
13:16-41). These model speeches, delivered by Peter and by Paul, proclaim Jesus
and invite those listening to "be converted," that is, to accept
Jesus in faith and to let themselves be transformed in him by the Spirit.
Paul and Barnabas are impelled by the Spirit to go to the
Gentiles (cf. Acts 13:46-48), a development not without certain tensions and
problems. How are these converted Gentiles to live their faith in Jesus? Are
they bound by the traditions of Judaism and the law of circumcision? At the
first Council, which gathers the members of the different churches together
with the apostles in Jerusalem, a decision is taken which is acknowledged as
coming from the Spirit: it is not necessary for a Gentile to submit to the
Jewish Law in order to become a Christian (cf. Acts 15:5-11, 28). From now on
the Church opens her doors and becomes the house which all may enter, and in
which all can feel at home, while keeping their own culture and traditions,
provided that these are not contrary to the Gospel.
25. The missionaries continued along this path, taking into
account people's hopes and expectations, their anguish and sufferings, as well
as their culture, in order to proclaim to them salvation in Christ. The
speeches in Lystra and Athens (cf. Acts 14:15-17; 17:22-31) are acknowledged as
models for the evangelization of the Gentiles. In these speeches Paul enters
into "dialogue" with the cultural and religious values of different
peoples. To the Lycaonians, who practiced a cosmic religion, he speaks of
religious experiences related to the cosmos. With the Greeks he discusses
philosophy and quotes their own poets (cf. Acts 17:18, 26-28). The God whom
Paul wishes to reveal is already present in their lives; indeed, this God has
created them and mysteriously guides nations and history. But if they are to
recognize the true God, they must abandon the false gods which they themselves
have made and open themselves to the One whom God has sent to remedy their
ignorance and satisfy the longings of their hearts. These are speeches which
offer an example of the inculturation of the Gospel.
Under the impulse of the Spirit, the Christian faith is decisively
opened to the "nations." Witness to Christ spreads to the most
important centers of the eastern Mediterranean and then to Rome and the far
regions of the West. It is the Spirit who is the source of the drive to press
on, not only geographically but also beyond the frontiers of race and religion,
for a truly universal mission.
The Holy Spirit Makes the Whole Church Missionary
26. The Spirit leads the company of believers to "form
a community," to be the Church. After Peter's first proclamation on the
day of Pentecost and the conversions that followed, the first community takes
shape (cf. Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35).
One of the central purposes of mission is to bring people
together in hearing the Gospel, in fraternal communion, in prayer and in the
Eucharist. To live in "fraternal communion" (koinonia) means to be
"of one heart and soul" (Acts 4:32), establishing fellowship from
every point of view: human, spiritual and material. Indeed, a true Christian
community is also committed to distributing earthly goods, so that no one is in
want, and all can receive such goods "as they need" (cf. Acts 2:45;
4:35). The first communities, made up of "glad and generous hearts"
(Acts 2:46), were open and missionary: they enjoyed "favor with all the
people" (Acts 2:47). Even before activity, mission means witness and a way
of life that shines out to others.34
27. The Acts of the Apostles indicates that the mission
which was directed first to Israel and then to the Gentiles develops on many
levels. First and foremost, there is the group of the Twelve which as a single
body, led by Peter, proclaims the Good News. Then there is the community of
believers, which in its way of life and its activity bears witness to the Lord
and converts the Gentiles (cf. Acts 2:46-47). Then there are the special envoys
sent out to proclaim the Gospel. Thus the Christian community at Antioch sends
its members forth on mission; having fasted, prayed and celebrated the
Eucharist, the community recognizes that the Spirit has chosen Paul and Barnabas
to be "sent forth" (cf. Acts 13:1-4). In its origins, then, mission
is seen as a community commitment, a responsibility of the local church, which
needs "missionaries" in order to push forward toward new frontiers.
Side by side with those who had been sent forth, there were also others, who
bore spontaneous witness to the newness which had transformed their lives, and
who subsequently provided a link between the emerging communities and the
Apostolic Church.
Reading the Acts of the Apostles helps us to realize that at
the beginning of the Church the mission ad gentes, while it had missionaries
dedicated "for life" by a special vocation, was in fact considered
the normal outcome of Christian living, to which every believer was committed
through the witness of personal conduct and through explicit proclamation
whenever possible.
The Spirit Is Present and Active in Every Time and Place
28. The Spirit manifests himself in a special way in the
Church and in her members. Nevertheless, his presence and activity are
universal, limited neither by space nor time.35 The Second Vatican Council
recalls that the Spirit is at work in the heart of every person, through the
"seeds of the Word," to be found in human initiatives-including
religious ones-and in mankind's efforts to attain truth, goodness and God
himself.36
The Spirit offers the human race" the light and
strength to respond to its highest calling"; through the Spirit,
"mankind attains in faith to the contemplation and savoring of the mystery
of God's design"; indeed, "we are obliged to hold that the Holy
Spirit offers everyone the possibility of sharing in the Paschal Mystery in a
manner known to God."37 The Church "is aware that humanity is being
continually stirred by the Spirit of God and can therefore never be completely
indifferent to the problems of religion" and that "people will
always...want to know what meaning to give their life, their activity and their
death."38 The Spirit, therefore, is at the very source of man's
existential and religious questioning, a questioning which is occasioned not
only by contingent situations but by the very structure of his being.39
The Spirit's presence and activity affect not only the
individuals but also society and history, peoples, cultures and religions.
Indeed, the Spirit is at the origin of the noble ideals and undertakings which
benefit humanity on its journey through history: "The Spirit of God with
marvelous foresight directs the course of the ages and renews the face of the
earth."40 The risen Christ "is now at work in human hearts through
the strength of his Spirit, not only instilling a desire for the world to come
but also thereby animating, purifying and reinforcing the noble aspirations
which drive the human family to make its life one that is more human and to
direct the whole earth to this end."41 Again, it is the Spirit who sows
the "seeds of the Word" present in various customs and cultures,
preparing them for full maturity in Christ.42
29. Thus the Spirit, who "blows where he wills"
(cf. Jn 3:8), who "was already at work in the world before Christ was
glorified,"43 and who "has filled the world,...holds all things
together [and] knows what is said" (Wis 1:7), leads us to broaden our
vision in order to ponder his activity in every time and place.44 I have
repeatedly called this fact to mind, and it has guided me in my meetings with a
wide variety of peoples. The Church's relationship with other religions is
dictated by a twofold respect: "Respect for man in his quest for answers
to the deepest questions of his life, and respect for the action of the Spirit
in man."45 Excluding any mistaken interpretation, the interreligious
meeting held in Assisi was meant to confirm my conviction that "every
authentic prayer is prompted by the Holy Spirit, who is mysteriously present in
every human heart."46
This is the same Spirit who was at work in the Incarnation
and in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and who is at work in the
Church. He is therefore not an alternative to Christ, nor does he fill a sort
of void which is sometimes suggested as existing between Christ and the Logos.
Whatever the Spirit brings about in human hearts and in the history of peoples,
in cultures and religions serves as a preparation for the Gospel47 and can only
be understood in reference to Christ, the Word who took flesh by the power of
the Spirit" so that as perfectly human he would save all human beings and sum
up all things."48
Moreover, the universal activity of the Spirit is not to be
separated from his particular activity within the body of Christ, which is the
Church. Indeed, it is always the Spirit who is at work, both when he gives life
to the Church and impels her to proclaim Christ, and when he implants and
develops his gifts in all individuals and peoples, guiding the Church to
discover these gifts, to foster them and to receive them through dialogue.
Every form of the Spirit's presence is to be welcomed with respect and
gratitude, but the discernment of this presence is the responsibility of the
Church, to which Christ gave his Spirit in order to guide her into all the
truth (cf. Jn 16:13).
Missionary Activity Is Only Beginning
30. Our own time, with humanity on the move and in continual
search, demands a resurgence of the Church's missionary activity. The horizons
and possibilities for mission are growing ever wider, and we Christians are
called to an apostolic courage based upon trust in the Spirit. He is the
principal agent of mission!
The history of humanity has known many major turning points
which have encouraged missionary outreach, and the Church, guided by the
Spirit, has always responded to them with generosity and farsightedness. Results
have not been lacking. Not long ago we celebrated the millennium of the
evangelization of Rus' and the Slav peoples, and we are now preparing to
celebrate the five hundredth anniversary of the evangelization of the Americas.
Similarly, there have been recent commemorations of the centenaries of the
first missions in various countries of Asia, Africa and Oceania. Today the
Church must face other challenges and push forward to new frontiers, both in
the initial mission ad gentes and in the new evangelization of those peoples
who have already heard Christ proclaimed. Today all Christians, the particular
churches and the universal Church, are called to have the same courage that
inspired the missionaries of the past, and the same readiness to listen to the
voice of the Spirit.
CHAPTER IV - THE VAST HORIZONS OF THE MISSION AD GENTES
31. The Lord Jesus sent his apostles to every person, people
and place on earth. In the apostles, the Church received a universal
mission-one which knows no boundaries-which involves the communication of
salvation in its integrity according to that fullness of life which Christ came
to bring (cf. Jn 10:10). The Church was "sent by Christ to reveal and
communicate the love of God to all people and nations."49
This mission is one and undivided, having one origin and one
final purpose; but within it, there are different tasks and kinds of activity.
First, there is the missionary activity which we call mission ad gentes, in
reference to the opening words of the Council's decree on this subject. This is
one of the Church's fundamental activities: it is essential and never-ending.
The Church, in fact, "cannot withdraw from her permanent mission of
bringing the Gospel to the multitudes the millions and millions of men and
women-who as yet do not know Christ the Redeemer of humanity. In a specific way
this is the missionary work which Jesus entrusted and still entrusts each day
to his Church."50
A Complex and Ever Changing Religious Picture
32. Today we face a religious situation which is extremely
varied and changing. Peoples are on the move; social and religious realities
which were once clear and well defined are today increasingly complex. We need
only think of certain phenomena such as urbanization, mass migration, the flood
of refugees, the de-Christianization of countries with ancient Christian
traditions, the increasing influence of the Gospel and its values in
overwhelmingly non-Christian countries, and the proliferation of messianic cults
and religious sects. Religious and social upheaval makes it difficult to apply
in practice certain ecclesial distinctions and categories to which we have
become accustomed. Even before the Council it was said that some Christian
cities and countries had become "mission territories"; the situation
has certainly not improved in the years since then.
On the other hand, missionary work has been very fruitful
throughout the world, so that there are now well-established churches,
sometimes so sound and mature that they are able to provide for the needs of
their own communities and even send personnel to evangelize in other churches
and territories. This is in contrast to some traditionally Christian areas
which are in need of re-evangelization. As a result, some are questioning
whether it is still appropriate to speak of specific missionary activity or
specifically "missionary" areas, or whether we should speak instead
of a single missionary situation, with one single mission, the same everywhere.
The difficulty of relating this complex and changing reality to the mandate of
evangelization is apparent in the "language of mission." For example,
there is a certain hesitation to use the terms "mission" and
"missionaries," which are considered obsolete and as having negative
historical connotations. People prefer to use instead the noun
"mission" in the singular and the adjective "missionary" to
describe all the Church's activities.
This uneasiness denotes a real change, one which has certain
positive aspects. The so-called return or "repatriation" of the
missions into the Church's mission, the insertion of missiology into
ecclesiology, and the integration of both areas into the Trinitarian plan of
salvation, have given a fresh impetus to missionary activity itself, which is
not considered a marginal task for the Church but is situated at the center of
her life, as a fundamental commitment of the whole People of God. Nevertheless,
care must be taken to avoid the risk of putting very different situations on
the same level and of reducing, or even eliminating, the Church's mission and
missionaries ad gentes. To say that the whole Church is missionary does not
preclude the existencec of a specific mission ad gentes, just as saying that
all Catholics must be missionaries not only does not exclude, but actually
requires that there be persons who have a specific vocation to be
"life-long missionaries ad gentes."
Mission Ad Gentes Retains Its Value
33. The fact that there is a diversity of activities in the
Church's one mission is not intrinsic to that mission, but arises from the
variety of circumstances in which that mission is carried out. 51 Looking at
today's world from the viewppoint of evangelization, we can distinguish three
situations.
First, there is the situation which the Church's missionary
activity addresses: peoples, groups, and socio-cultural contexts in which
Christ and his Gospel are not known, or which lack Christian communities
sufficiently mature to be able to incarnate the faith in their own environment
and proclaim it to other groups. This is mission ad gentes in the proper sense
of the term.52
Secondly, there are Christian communities with adequate and
solid ecclesial structures. They are fervent in their faith and in Christian
living. They bear witness to the Gospel in their surroundings and have a sense
of commitment to the universal mission. In these communities the Church carries
out her activity and pastoral care.
Thirdly, there is an intermediate situation, particularly in
countries with ancient Christian roots, and occasionally in the younger
Churches as well, where entire groups of the baptized have lost a living sense
of the faith, or even no longer consider themselves members of the Church, and
live a life far removed from Christ and his Gospel. In this case what is needed
is a "new evangelization" or a "re-evangelization."
34. Missionary activity proper, namely the mission ad
gentes, is directed to "peoples or groups who do not yet believe in
Christ," "who are far from Christ," in whom the Church "has
not yet taken root"53 and whose culture has not yet been influenced by the
Gospel.54 It is distinct from other ecclesial activities inasmuch as it is
addressed to groups and settings which are non-Christian because the preaching
of the Gospel and the presence of the Church are either absent or insufficient.
It can thus be characterized as the work of proclaiming Christ and his Gospel,
building up the local Church and promoting the values of the kingdom. The
specific nature of this mission ad gentes consists in its being addressed to
"non-Christians." It is therefore necessary to ensure that this
specifically "missionary work that Jesus entrusted and still entrusts each
day to his Church"55 does not become an indistinguishable part of the
overall mission of the whole People of God and as a result become neglected or
forgotten.
On the other hand, the boundaries between pastoral care of
the faithful, new evangelization and specific missionary activity are not
clearly definable, and it is unthinkable to create barriers between them or to
put them into watertight compartments. Nevertheless, there must be no lessening
of the impetus to preach the Gospel and to establish new churches among peoples
or communities where they do not yet exist, for this is the first task of the
Church, which has been sent forth to all peoples and to the very ends of the
earth. Without the mission ad gentes, the Church's very missionary dimension
would be deprived of its essential meaning and of the very activity that exemplifies
it.
Also to be noted is the real and growing interdependence
which exists between these various saving activities of the Church. Each of
them influences, stimulates and assists the others. The missionary thrust
fosters exchanges between the churches and directs them toward the larger
world, with positive influences in every direction. The churches in
traditionally Christian countries, for example, involved as they are in the
challenging task of new evangelization, are coming to understand more clearly
that they cannot be missionaries to non-Christians in other countries and
continents unless they are seriously concerned about the non-Christians at
home. Hence missionary activity ad intra is a credible sign and a stimulus for
missionary activity ad extra, and vice versa.
To All Peoples, In Spite of Difficulties
35. The mission ad gentes faces an enormous task, which is
in no way disappearing. Indeed, both from the numerical standpoint of
demographic increase and from the socio-cultural standpoint of the appearance
of new relationships, contacts and changing situations the mission seems
destined to have ever wider horizons. The task of proclaiming Jesus Christ to
all peoples appears to be immense and out of all proportion to the Church's
human resources.
The difficulties seem insurmountable and could easily lead
to discouragement, if it were a question of a merely human enterprise. In
certain countries missionaries are refused entry. In others, not only is
evangelization forbidden but conversion as well, and even Christian worship.
Elsewhere the obstacles are of a cultural nature: passing on the Gospel message
seems irrelevant or incomprehensible, and conversion is seen as a rejection of
one's own people and culture.
36. Nor are difficulties lacking within the People of God;
indeed these difficulties are the most painful of all. As the first of these
difficulties Pope Paul VI pointed to "the lack of fervor [which] is all
the more serious because it comes from within. It is manifested in fatigue,
disenchantment, compromise, lack of interest and above all lack of joy and
hope."56 Other great obstacles to the Church's missionary work include
past and present divisions among Christians,57 dechristianization within
Christian countries, the decrease of vocations to the apostolate, and the
counterwitness of believers and Christian communities failing to follow the
model of Christ in their lives. But one of the most serious reasons for the
lack of interest in the missionary task is a widespread indifferentism, which,
sad to say, is found also among Christians. It is based on incorrect
theological perspectives and is characterized by a religious relativism which
leads to the belief that "one religion is as good as another." We can
add, using the words of Pope Paul VI, that there are also certain "excuses
which would impede evangelization. The most insidious of these excuses are
certainly the ones which people claim to find support for in such and such a
teaching of the Council."58
In this regard, I earnestly ask theologians and professional
Christian journalists to intensify the service they render to the Church's
mission in order to discover the deep meaning of their work, along the sure
path of "thinking with the Church" (sentire cum Ecclesia).
Internal and external difficulties must not make us
pessimistic or inactive. What counts, here as in every area of Christian life,
is the confidence that comes from faith, from the certainty that it is not we
who are the principal agents of the Church's mission, but Jesus Christ and his
Spirit. We are only co-workers, and when we have done all that we can, we must
say: "We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty"
(Lk 17:10).
Parameters of the Church's Mission Ad Gentes
37. By virtue of Christ's universal mandate, the mission ad
gentes knows no boundaries. Still, it is possible to determine certain
parameters within which that mission is exercised, in order to gain a real
grasp of the situation.
(a) Territorial limits.
Missionary activity has normally been defined in terms of
specific territories. The Second Vatican Council acknowledged the territorial
dimension of the mission ad gentes,59 a dimension which even today remains
important for determining responsibilities, competencies and the geographical
limits of missionary activity. Certainly, a universal mission implies a
universal perspective. Indeed, the Church refuses to allow her missionary
presence to be hindered by geographical boundaries or political barriers. But
it is also true that missionary activity ad gentes, being different from the
pastoral care of the faithful and the new evangelization of the non-practicing,
is exercised within well-defined territories and groups of people.
The growth in the number of new churches in recent times
should not deceive us. Within the territories entrusted to these churches -
particularly in Asia, but also in Africa, Latin America and Oceania - there
remain vast regions still to be evangelized. In many nations entire peoples and
cultural areas of great importance have not yet been reached by the
proclamation of the Gospel and the presence of the local church.60 Even in
traditionally Christian countries there are regions that are under the special
structures of the mission ad gentes, with groups and areas not yet evangelized.
Thus, in these countries too there is a need not only for a new evangelization,
but also, in some cases, for an initial evangelization.61
Situations are not, however, the same everywhere. While
acknowledging that statements about the missionary responsibility of the Church
are not credible unless they are backed up by a serious commitment to a new
evangelization in the traditionally Christian countries, it does not seem
justified to regard as identical the situation of a people which has never known
Jesus Christ and that of a people which has known him, accepted him and then
rejected him, while continuing to live in a culture which in large part has
absorbed gospel principles and values. These are two basically different
situations with regard to the faith.
Thus the criterion of geography, although somewhat imprecise
and always provisional, is still a valid indicator of the frontiers toward
which missionary activity must be directed. There are countries and
geographical and cultural areas which lack indigenous Christian communities. In
other places, these communities are so small as not to be a clear sign of a
Christian presence; or they lack the dynamism to evangelize their societies, or
belong to a minority population not integrated into the dominant culture of the
nation. Particularly in Asia, toward which the Church's mission ad gentes ought
to be chiefly directed, Christians are a small minority, even though sometimes
there are significant numbers of converts and outstanding examples of Christian
presence.
(b) New worlds and new social phenomena.
The rapid and profound transformations which characterize
today's world, especially in the southern hemisphere, are having a powerful
effect on the overall missionary picture. Where before there were stable human
and social situations, today everything is in flux. One thinks, for example, of
urbanization and the massive growth of cities, especially where demographic
pressure is greatest. In not a few countries, over half the population already
lives in a few "megalopolises," where human problems are often
aggravated by the feeling of anonymity experienced by masses of people.
In the modern age, missionary activity has been carried out
especially in isolated regions which are far from centers of civilization and
which are hard to penetrate because of difficulties of communication, language
or climate. Today the image of mission ad gentes is perhaps changing: efforts
should be concentrated on the big cities, where new customs and styles of
living arise together with new forms of culture and communication, which then
influence the wider population. It is true that the "option for the
neediest" means that we should not overlook the most abandoned and
isolated human groups, but it is also true that individual or small groups
cannot be evangelized if we neglect the centers where a new humanity, so to
speak, is emerging, and where new models of development are taking shape. The
future of the younger nations is being shaped in the cities.
Speaking of the future, we cannot forget the young, who in
many countries comprise more than half the population. How do we bring the
message of Christ to non-Christian young people who represent the future of
entire continents? Clearly, the ordinary means of pastoral work are not
sufficient: what are needed are associations, institutions, special centers and
groups, and cultural and social initiatives for young people. This is a field
where modern ecclesial movements have ample room for involvement.
Among the great changes taking place in the contemporary
world, migration has produced a new phenomenon: non-Christians are becoming
very numerous in traditionally Christian countries, creating fresh
opportunities for contacts and cultural exchanges, and calling the Church to
hospitality, dialogue, assistance and, in a word, fraternity. Among migrants,
refugees occupy a very special place and deserve the greatest attention. Today
there are many millions of refugees in the world and their number is constantly
increasing. They have fled from conditions of political oppression and inhuman
misery, from famine and drought of catastrophic proportions. The Church must
make them part of her overall apostolic concern.
Finally, we may mention the situations of poverty - often on
an intolerable scale - which have been created in not a few countries, and
which are often the cause of mass migration. The community of believers in
Christ is challenged by these inhuman situations: the proclamation of Christ
and the kingdom of God must become the means for restoring the human dignity of
these people.
(c) Cultural sectors: the modern equivalents of the
Areopagus.
After preaching in a number of places, St. Paul arrived in
Athens, where he went to the Areopagus and proclaimed the Gospel in language
appropriate to and understandable in those surroundings (cf. Acts 17:22-31). At
that time the Areopagus represented the cultural center of the learned people
of Athens, and today it can be taken as a symbol of the new sectors in which the
Gospel must be proclaimed.
The first Areopagus of the modern age is the world of
communications, which is unifying humanity and turning it into what is known as
a "global village." The means of social communication have become so
important as to be for many the chief means of information and education, of
guidance and inspiration in their behavior as individuals, families and within
society at large. In particular, the younger generation is growing up in a
world conditioned by the mass media. To some degree perhaps this Areopagus has
been neglected. Generally, preference has been given to other means of
preaching the Gospel and of Christian education, while the mass media are left
to the initiative of individuals or small groups and enter into pastoral planning
only in a secondary way. Involvement in the mass media, however, is not meant
merely to strengthen the preaching of the Gospel. There is a deeper reality
involved here: since the very evangelization of modern culture depends to a
great extent on the influence of the media, it is not enough to use the media
simply to spread the Christian message and the Church's authentic teaching. It
is also necessary to integrate that message into the "new culture"
created by modern communications. This is a complex issue, since the "new
culture" originates not just from whatever content is eventually
expressed, but from the very fact that there exist new ways of communicating,
with new languages, new techniques and a new psychology. Pope Paul VI said that
"the split between the Gospel and culture is undoubtedly the tragedy of
our time,"62 and the field of communications fully confirms this judgment.
There are many other forms of the "Areopagus" in
the modern world toward which the Church's missionary activity ought to be
directed; for example, commitment to peace, development and the liberation of
peoples; the rights of individuals and peoples, especially those of minorities;
the advancement of women and children; safeguarding the created world. These
too are areas which need to be illuminated with the light of the Gospel.
We must also mention the immense "Areopagus" of
culture, scientific research, and international relations which promote
dialogue and open up new possibilities. We would do well to be attentive to these
modern areas of activity and to be involved in them. People sense that they
are, as it were, traveling together across life's sea, and that they are called
to ever greater unity and solidarity. Solutions to pressing problems must be
studied, discussed and worked out with the involvement of all. That is why
international organizations and meetings are proving increasingly important in
many sectors of human life, from culture to politics, from the economy to
research. Christians who live and work in this international sphere must always
remember their duty to bear witness to the Gospel.
38. Our times are both momentous and fascinating. While on
the one hand people seem to be pursuing material prosperity and to be sinking
ever deeper into consumerism and materialism, on the other hand we are
witnessing a desperate search for meaning, the need for an inner life, and a
desire to learn new forms and methods of meditation and prayer. Not only in
cultures with strong religious elements, but also in secularized societies, the
spiritual dimension of life is being sought after as an antidote to
dehumanization. This phenomenon-the so-called "religious revival"-is
not without ambiguity, but it also represents an opportunity. The Church has an
immense spiritual patrimony to offer humankind, a heritage in Christ, who
called himself "the way, and the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6): it
is the Christian path to meeting God, to prayer, to asceticism, and to the
search for life's meaning. Here too there is an "Areopagus" to be
evangelized.
Fidelity to Christ and the Promotion of Human Freedom
39. All forms of missionary activity are marked by an
awareness that one is furthering human freedom by proclaiming Jesus Christ. The
Church must be faithful to Christ, whose body she is, and whose mission she
continues. She must necessarily "go the same road that Christ went-namely
a road of poverty, obedience, service and self-sacrifice even unto death, from
which he emerged a victor through his resurrection."63 The Church is thus
obliged to do everything possible to carry out her mission in the world and to
reach all peoples. And she has the right to do this, a right given her by God
for the accomplishment of his plan. Religious freedom, which is still at times
limited or restricted, remains the premise and guarantee of all the freedoms
that ensure the common good of individuals and peoples. It is to be hoped that
authentic religious freedom will be granted to all people everywhere. The
Church strives for this in all countries, especially in those with a Catholic
majority, where she has greater influence. But it is not a question of the
religion of the majority or the minority, but of an inalienable right of each
and every human person.
On her part. the Church addresses people with full respect
for their freedom.64 Her mission does not restrict freedom but rather promotes
it. The Church proposes; she imposes nothing. She respects individuals and
cultures, and she honors the sanctuary of conscience. To those who for various
reasons oppose missionary activity, the Church repeats: Open the doors to
Christ!
Here I wish to address all the particular churches, both
young and old. The world is steadily growing more united, and the gospel spirit
must lead us to overcome cultural and nationalistic barriers, avoiding all
isolationism. Pope Benedict XV already cautioned the missionaries of his time
lest they "forget their proper dignity and think more of their earthly
homeland than of their heavenly one."65 This same advice is valid today
for the particular churches: Open the doors to missionaries, for "each
individual church that would voluntarily cut itself off from the universal
Church would lose its relationship to God's plan and would be impoverished in
its ecclesial mission."66
Directing Attention Toward the South and the East
40. Today missionary activity still represents the greatest
challenge for the Church. As the end of the second millennium of the redemption
draws near, it is clear that the peoples who have not yet received an initial
proclamation of Christ constitute the majority of mankind. The results of
missionary activity in modern times are certainly positive. The Church has been
established on every continent; indeed today the majority of believers and
particular churches is to be found no longer in Europe but on the continents
which missionaries have opened up to the faith.
The fact remains however that the "ends of the
earth" to which the Gospel must be brought are growing ever more distant.
Tertullian's saying, that the Gospel has been proclaimed to all the earth and
to all peoples,67 is still very far from being a reality. The mission ad gentes
is still in its infancy. New peoples appear on the world scene, and they too
have a right to receive the proclamation of salvation. Population growth in
non-Christian countries of the South and the East is constantly increasing the
number of people who remain unaware of Christ's redemption.
We need therefore to direct our attention toward those
geographical areas and cultural settings which still remain uninfluenced by the
Gospel. All who believe in Christ should feel, as an integral part of their
faith, an apostolic concern to pass on to others its light and joy. This
concern must become, as it were, a hunger and thirst to make the Lord known,
given the vastness of the non-Christian world.
CHAPTER V - THE PATHS OF MISSION
41. "Missionary activity is nothing other and nothing
less than the manifestation or epiphany of God's plan and its fulfillment in
the world and in history; in this history God, by means of missions, clearly
accomplishes the history of salvation."68 What paths does the Church
follow in order to achieve this goal?
Mission is a single but complex reality, and it develops in
a variety of ways. Among these ways, some have particular importance in the
present situation of the Church and the world.
The First Form of Evangelization Is Witness
42. People today put more trust in witnesses than in
teachers,69 in experience than in teaching, and in life and action than in
theories. The witness of a Christian life is the first and irreplaceable form
of mission: Christ, whose mission we continue, is the "witness" par
excellence (Rv 1:5; 3:14) and the model of all Christian witness. The Holy
Spirit accompanies the Church along her way and associates her with the witness
he gives to Christ (cf. Jn 15:26-27).
The first form of witness is the very life of the
missionary, of the Christian family, and of the ecclesial community, which
reveal a new way of living. The missionary who, despite all his or her human
limitations and defects, lives a simple life, taking Christ as the model, is a
sign of God and of transcendent realities. But everyone in the Church, striving
to imitate the Divine Master, can and must bear this kind of witness;70 in many
cases it is the only possible way of being a missionary.
The evangelical witness which the world finds most appealing
is that of concern for people, and of charity toward the poor, the weak and
those who suffer. The complete generosity underlying this attitude and these
actions stands in marked contrast to human selfishness. It raises precise
questions which lead to God and to the Gospel. A commitment to peace, justice,
human rights and human promotion is also a witness to the Gospel when it is a
sign of concern for persons and is directed toward integral human
development.71
43. Christians and Christian communities are very much a
part of the life of their respective nations and can be a sign of the Gospel in
their fidelity to their native land, people and national culture, while always
preserving the freedom brought by Christ. Christianity is open to universal
brotherhood, for all men and women are sons and daughters of the same Father
and brothers and sisters in Christ.
The Church is called to bear witness to Christ by taking
courageous and prophetic stands in the face of the corruption of political or
economic power; by not seeking her own glory and material wealth; by using her
resources to serve the poorest of the poor and by imitating Christ's own
simplicity of life. The Church and her missionaries must also bear the witness
of humility, above all with regard to themselves-a humility which allows them
to make a personal and communal examination of conscience in order to correct
in their behavior whatever is contrary to the Gospel and disfigures the face of
Christ.
The Initial Proclamation of Christ the Savior
44. Proclamation is the permanent priority of mission. The
Church cannot elude Christ's explicit mandate, nor deprive men and women of the
"Good News" about their being loved and saved by God.
"Evangelization will always contain-as the foundation, center and at the
same time the summit of its dynamism-a clear proclamation that, in Jesus
Christ...salvation is offered to all people, as a gift of God's grace and
mercy."72 All forms of missionary activity are directed to this
proclamation, which reveals and gives access to the mystery hidden for ages and
made known in Christ (cf. Eph 3:3-9; Col 1:25-29), the mystery which lies at
the heart of the Church's mission and life, as the hinge on which all
evangelization turns.
In the complex reality of mission, initial proclamation has
a central and irreplaceable role, since it introduces man "into the
mystery of the love of God, who invites him to enter into a personal
relationship with himself in Christ"73 and opens the way to conversion.
Faith is born of preaching, and every ecclesial community draws its origin and
life from the personal response of each believer to that preaching.74 Just as
the whole economy of salvation has its center in Christ, so too all missionary
activity is directed to the proclamation of his mystery.
The subject of proclamation is Christ who was crucified,
died and is risen: through him is accomplished our full and authentic
liberation from evil, sin and death; through him God bestows "new
life" that is divine and eternal. This is the "Good News" which
changes man and his history, and which all peoples have a right to hear. This
proclamation is to be made within the context of the lives of the individuals
and peoples who receive it. It is to be made with an attitude of love and
esteem toward those who hear it, in language which is practical and adapted to
the situation. In this proclamation the Spirit is at work and establishes a
communion between the missionary and his hearers, a communion which is possible
inasmuch as both enter into communion with God the Father through Christ.75
45. Proclamation, because it is made in union with the
entire ecclesial community, is never a merely personal act. The missionary is
present and carries out his work by virtue of a mandate he has received; even
if he finds himself alone, he remains joined by invisible but profound bonds to
the evangelizing activity of the whole Church.76 Sooner or later, his hearers
come to recognize in him the community which sent him and which supports him.
Proclamation is inspired by faith, which gives rise to
enthusiasm and fervor in the missionary. As already mentioned, the Acts of the
Apostles uses the word parrhesia to describe this attitude, a word which means
to speak frankly and with courage. This term is found also in St. Paul:
"We had courage in our God to declare to you the Gospel of God in the face
of great opposition" (1 Th 2:2); "Pray...also for me, that utterance
may be given me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the
Gospel for which I am an ambassador in chains; that I may declare it boldly, as
I ought to speak" (Eph 6:18-20).
In proclaiming Christ to non-Christians, the missionary is
convinced that, through the working of the Spirit, there already exists in
individuals and peoples an expectation, even if an unconscious one, of knowing
the truth about God, about man, and about how we are to be set free from sin
and death. The missionary's enthusiasm in proclaiming Christ comes from the
conviction that he is responding to that expectation, and so he does not become
discouraged or cease his witness even when he is called to manifest his faith
in an environment that is hostile or indifferent. He knows that the Spirit of
the Father is speaking through him (cf. Mt 10:17-20; Lk 12:11-12) and he can
say with the apostles: "We are witnesses to these things, and so is the
Holy Spirit" (Acts 5:32). He knows that he is not proclaiming a human
truth, but the "word of God," which has an intrinsic and mysterious
power of its own (cf. Rom 1:16).
The supreme test is the giving of one's life, to the point
of accepting death in order to bear witness to one's faith in Jesus Christ.
Throughout Christian history, martyrs, that is, "witnesses," have
always been numerous and indispensable to the spread of the Gospel. In our own
age, there are many: bishops, priests, men and women religious, lay
people-often unknown heroes who give their lives to bear witness to the faith.
They are par excellence the heralds and witnesses of the faith.
Conversion and Baptism
46. The proclamation of the Word of God has Christian
conversion as its aim: a complete and sincere adherence to Christ and his
Gospel through faith. Conversion is a gift of God, a work of the Blessed
Trinity. It is the Spirit who opens people's hearts so that they can believe in
Christ and "confess him'' (cf. 1 Cor 12:3); of those who draw near to him
through faith Jesus says: "No one can come to me unless the Father who
sent me draws him" (Jn 6:44).
From the outset, conversion is expressed in faith which is
total and radical, and which neither limits nor hinders God's gift. At the same
time, it gives rise to a dynamic and lifelong process which demands a continual
turning away from "life according to the flesh" to "life
according to the Spirit" (cf. Rom 8:3-13). Conversion means accepting, by
a personal decision, the saving sovereignty of Christ and becoming his
disciple.
The Church calls all people to this conversion, following
the example of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Christ by
"preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins" (Mk
1:4), as well as the example of Christ himself, who "after John was
arrested,...came into Galilee preaching the Gospel of God and saying: 'The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the
Gospel'" (Mk 1:14-15).
Nowadays the call to conversion which missionaries address
to non-Christians is put into question or passed over in silence. It is seen as
an act of "proselytizing"; it is claimed that it is enough to help
people to become more human or more faithful to their own religion, that it is
enough to build communities capable of working for justice, freedom, peace and
solidarity. What is overlooked is that every person has the right to hear the
"Good News" of the God who reveals and gives himself in Christ, so
that each one can live out in its fullness his or her proper calling. This
lofty reality is expressed in the words of Jesus to the Samaritan woman:
"If you knew the gift of God," and in the unconscious but ardent
desire of the woman: "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst"
(Jn 4:10, 15).
47. The apostles, prompted by the Spirit, invited all to
change their lives, to be converted and to be baptized. Immediately after the
event of Pentecost, Peter spoke convincingly to the crowd: "When they
heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the
Apostles, 'Brethren, what shall we do?' And Peter said to them, 'Repent, and be
baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of
your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit'" (Acts
2:37-38). That very day some three thousand persons were baptized. And again,
after the healing of the lame man, Peter spoke to the crowd and repeated:
"Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted
out!" (Acts 3:19)
Conversion to Christ is joined to Baptism not only because
of the Church's practice, but also by the will of Christ himself, who sent the
apostles to make disciples of all nations and to baptize them (cf. Mt 28:19).
Conversion is also joined to Baptism because of the intrinsic need to receive
the fullness of new life in Christ. As Jesus says to Nicodemus: "Truly,
truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot
enter the kingdom of God" (Jn 3:5). In Baptism, in fact, we are born anew
to the life of God's children, united to Jesus Christ and anointed in the Holy
Spirit. Baptism is not simply a seal of conversion, and a kind of external sign
indicating conversion and attesting to it. Rather, it is the sacrament which
signifies and effects rebirth from the Spirit, establishes real and unbreakable
bonds with the Blessed Trinity, and makes us members of the Body of Christ,
which is the Church.
All this needs to be said, since not a few people, precisely
in those areas involved in the mission ad gentes, tend to separate conversion
to Christ from Baptism, regarding Baptism as unnecessary. It is true that in
some places sociological considerations associated with Baptism obscure its
genuine meaning as an act of faith. This is due to a variety of historical and
cultural factors which must be removed where they still exist, so that the
sacrament of spiritual rebirth can be seen for what it truly is. Local
ecclesial communities must devote themselves to this task. It is also true that
many profess an interior commitment to Christ and his message yet do not wish
to be committed sacramentally, since, owing to prejudice or because of the
failings of Christians, they find it difficult to grasp the true nature of the
Church as a mystery of faith and love.77 I wish to encourage such people to be
fully open to Christ, and to remind them that, if they feel drawn to Christ, it
was he himself who desired that the Church should be the "place"
where they would in fact find him. At the same time, I invite the Christian
faithful, both individually and as communities, to bear authentic witness to
Christ through the new life they have received.
Certainly, every convert is a gift to the Church and
represents a serious responsibility for her, not only because converts have to
be prepared for Baptism through the catechumenate and then be guided by
religious instruction, but also because - especially in the case of adults-such
converts bring with them a kind of new energy, an enthusiasm for the faith, and
a desire to see the Gospel lived out in the Church. They would be greatly
disappointed if, having entered the ecclesial community, they were to find a
life lacking fervor and without signs of renewal! We cannot preach conversion
unless we ourselves are converted anew every day.
Forming Local Churches
48. Conversion and Baptism give entry into a Church already
in existence or require the establishment of new communities which confess
Jesus as Savior and Lord. This is part of God's plan, for it pleases him
"to call human beings to share in his own life not merely as individuals,
without any unifying bond between them, but rather to make them into a people
in which his children, who had been widely scattered, might be gathered
together in unity."78
The mission ad gentes has this objective: to found Christian
communities and develop churches to their full maturity. This is a central and
determining goal of missionary activity, so much so that the mission is not
completed until it succeeds in building a new particular church which functions
normally in its local setting The Decree Ad Gentes deals with this subject at
length,79 and since the Council, a line of theological reflection has developed
which emphasizes that the whole mystery of the Church is contained in each particular
church, provided it does not isolate itself but remains in communion with the
universal Church and becomes missionary in its own turn. Here we are speaking
of a great and lengthy process, in which it is hard to identify the precise
stage at which missionary activity properly so-called comes to an end and is
replaced by pastoral activity. Even so, certain points must remain clear.
49. It is necessary first and foremost to strive to
establish Christian communities everywhere, communities which are "a sign
of the presence of God in the world"80 and which grow until they become
churches. Notwithstanding the high number of dioceses, there are still very
large areas where there are no local churches or where their number is
insufficient in relation to the vastness of the territory and the density of
the population. There is still much to be done in implanting and developing the
Church. This phase of ecclesial history, called the plantatio Ecclesiae, has
not reached its end; indeed, for much of the human race it has yet to begin.
Responsibility for this task belongs to the universal Church
and to the particular churches, to the whole people of God and to all its
missionary forces. Every church, even one made up of recent converts, is
missionary by its very nature, and is both evangelized and evangelizing. Faith
must always be presented as a gift of God to be lived out in community
(families, parishes, associations), and to be extended to others through
witness in word and deed. The evangelizing activity of the Christian community,
first in its own locality, and then elsewhere as part of the Church's universal
mission, is the clearest sign of a mature faith. A radical conversion in
thinking is required in order to become missionary, and this holds true both for
individuals and entire communities. The Lord is always calling us to come out
of ourselves and to share with others the goods we possess, starting with the
most precious gift of all - our faith. The effectiveness of the Church's
organizations, movements, parishes and apostolic works must be measured in the
light of this missionary imperative. Only by becoming missionary will the
Christian community be able to overcome its internal divisions and tensions,
and rediscover its unity and its strength of faith.
Missionary personnel coming from other churches and
countries must work in communion with their local counterparts for the
development of the Christian community. In particular, it falls to missionary
personnel - in accordance with the directives of the bishops and in cooperation
with those responsible at the local level - to foster the spread of the faith
and the expansion of the Church in non-Christian environments and among
non-Christian groups, and to encourage a missionary sense within the particular
churches, so that pastoral concern will always be combined with concern for the
mission ad gentes. In this way, every church will make its own the solicitude
of Christ the Good Shepherd, who fully devotes himself to his flock, but at the
same time is mindful of the "other sheep, that are not of this fold."
(Jn 10:16)
50. This solicitude will serve as a motivation and stimulus
for a renewed commitment to ecumenism. The relationship between ecumenical
activity and missionary activity makes it necessary to consider two closely
associated factors. On the one hand, we must recognize that "the division
among Christians damages the holy work of preaching the Gospel to every
creature and is a barrier for many in their approach to the faith."81 The
fact that the Good News of reconciliation is preached by Christians who are
divided among themselves weakens their witness. It is thus urgent to work for
the unity of Christians, so that missionary activity can be more effective. At
the same time we must not forget that efforts toward unity are themselves a
sign of the work of reconciliation which God is bringing about in our midst.
On the other hand, it is true that some kind of communion,
though imperfect, exists among all those who have received Baptism in Christ.
On this basis the Council established the principle that "while all
appearance of indifferentism and confusion is ruled out, as well as any
appearance of unhealthy rivalry, Catholics should collaborate in a spirit of
fellowship with their separated brothers and sisters in accordance with the
norms of the Decree on Ecumenism: by a common profession of faith in God and in
Jesus Christ before the nations - to the extent that this is possible - and by
their cooperation in social and technical as well as in cultural and religious
matters."82
Ecumenical activity and harmonious witness to Jesus Christ
by Christians who belong to different churches and ecclesial communities has
already borne abundant fruit. But it is ever more urgent that they work and
bear witness together at this time when Christian and para-Christian sects are
sowing confusion by their activity. The expansion of these sects represents a
threat for the Catholic Church and for all the ecclesial communities with which
she is engaged in dialogue. Wherever possible, and in the light of local
circumstances, the response of Christians can itself be an ecumenical one.
"Ecclesial Basic Communities"
As a Force for Evangelization
51. A rapidly growing phenomenon in the young churches - one
sometimes fostered by the bishops and their Conferences as a pastoral priority
- is that of "ecclesial basic communities" (also known by other
names) which are proving to be good centers for Christian formation and
missionary outreach. These are groups of Christians who, at the level of the
family or in a similarly restricted setting, come together for prayer,
Scripture reading, catechesis, and discussion on human and ecclesial problems
with a view to a common commitment. These communities are a sign of vitality
within the Church, an instrument of formation and evangelization, and a solid
starting point for a new society based on a "civilization of love."
These communities decentralize and organize the parish
community, to which they always remain united. They take root in less
privileged and rural areas, and become a leaven of Christian life, of care for
the poor and neglected, and of commitment to the transformation of society.
Within them, the individual Christian experiences community and therefore
senses that he or she is playing an active role and is encouraged to share in
the common task. Thus, these communities become a means of evangelization and
of the initial proclamation of the Gospel, and a source of new ministries. At
the same time, by being imbued with Christ's love, they also show how
divisions, tribalism and racism can be overcome.
Every community, if it is to be Christian, must be founded
on Christ and live in him, as it listens to the word of God, focuses its prayer
on the Eucharist, lives in a communion marked by oneness of heart and soul, and
shares according to the needs of its members (cf. Acts 2:42-47). As Pope Paul
VI recalled, every community must live in union with the particular and the
universal Church, in heartfelt communion with the Church's pastors and the
Magisterium, with a commitment to missionary outreach and without yielding to
isolationism or ideological exploitation.83 And the Synod of Bishops stated:
"Because the Church is communion, the new 'basic communities,' if they
truly live in unity with the Church, are a true expression of communion and a
means for the construction of a more profound communion. They are thus cause
for great hope for the life of the Church."84
Incarnating the Gospel in Peoples' Culture
52. As she carries out missionary activity among the
nations, the Church encounters different cultures and becomes involved in the
process of inculturation. The need for such involvement has marked the Church's
pilgrimage throughout her history, but today it is particularly urgent.
The process of the Church's insertion into peoples' cultures
is a lengthy one. It is not a matter of purely external adaptation, for
inculturation "means the intimate transformation of authentic cultural
values through their integration in Christianity and the insertion of
Christianity in the various human cultures."85 The process is thus a
profound and all-embracing one, which involves the Christian message and also
the Church's reflection and practice. But at the same time it is a difficult
process, for it must in no way compromise the distinctiveness and integrity of
the Christian faith.
Through inculturation the Church makes the Gospel incarnate
in different cultures and at the same time introduces peoples, together with
their cultures, into her own community.86 She transmits to them her own values,
at the same time taking the good elements that already exist in them and
renewing them from within.87 Through inculturation the Church, for her part,
becomes a more intelligible sign of what she is, and a more effective
instrument of mission.
Thanks to this action within the local churches, the
universal Church herself is enriched with forms of expression and values in the
various sectors of Christian life, such as evangelization, worship, theology
and charitable works. She comes to know and to express better the mystery of
Christ, all the while being motivated to continual renewal. During my pastoral
visits to the young churches I have repeatedly dealt with these themes, which
are present in the Council and the subsequent Magisterium.88
Inculturation is a slow journey which accompanies the whole
of missionary life. It involves those working in the Church's mission ad
gentes, the Christian communities as they develop, and the bishops, who have
the task of providing discernment and encouragement for its implementation.89
53. Missionaries, who come from other churches and
countries, must immerse themselves in the cultural milieu of those to whom they
are sent, moving beyond their own cultural limitations. Hence they must learn
the language of the place in which they work, become familiar with the most
important expressions of the local culture, and discover its values through
direct experience. Only if they have this kind of awareness will they be able
to bring to people the knowledge of the hidden mystery (cf. Rom 16:25-27; Eph
3:5) in a credible and fruitful way. It is not of course a matter of
missionaries renouncing their own cultural identity, but of understanding,
appreciating, fostering and evangelizing the culture of the environment in
which they are working, and therefore of equipping themselves to communicate
effectively with it, adopting a manner of living which is a sign of gospel
witness and of solidarity with the people.
Developing ecclesial communities, inspired by the Gospel,
will gradually be able to express their Christian experience in original ways
and forms that are consonant with their own cultural traditions, provided that
those traditions are in harmony with the objective requirements of the faith
itself. To this end, especially in the more delicate areas of inculturation,
particular churches of the same region should work in communion with each
other90 and with the whole Church, convinced that only through attention both
to the universal Church and to the particular churches will they be capable of
translating the treasure of faith into a legitimate variety of expressions.91
Groups which have been evangelized will thus provide the elements for a
"translation" of the gospel message,92 keeping in mind the positive
elements acquired down the centuries from Christianity's contact with different
cultures and not forgetting the dangers of alterations which have sometimes occurred.93
54. In this regard, certain guidelines remain basic.
Properly applied, inculturation must be guided by two principles:
"compatibility with the gospel and communion with the universal
Church."94 Bishops, as guardians of the "deposit of faith," will
take care to ensure fidelity and, in particular, to provide discernment,95 for
which a deeply balanced approach is required. In fact there is a risk of
passing uncritically from a form of alienation from culture to an
overestimation of culture. Since culture is a human creation and is therefore
marked by sin, it too needs to be "healed, ennobled and perfected."96
This kind of process needs to take place gradually, in such
a way that it really is an expression of the community's Christian experience.
As Pope Paul VI said in Kampala: "It will require an incubation of the
Christian 'mystery' in the genius of your people in order that its native
voice, more clearly and frankly, may then be raised harmoniously in the chorus
of other voices in the universal Church."97 In effect, inculturation must
involve the whole people of God, and not just a few experts, since the people
reflect the authentic sensus fidei which must never be lost sight of
Inculturation needs to be guided and encouraged, but not forced, lest it give
rise to negative reactions among Christians. It must be an expression of the
community's life, one which must mature within the community itself, and not be
exclusively the result of erudite research. The safeguarding of traditional
values is the work of a mature faith.
Dialogue with Our Brothers and Sisters of Other Religions
55. Inter-religious dialogue is a part of the Church's
evangelizing mission. Understood as a method and means of mutual knowledge and
enrichment, dialogue is not in opposition to the mission ad gentes; indeed, it
has special links with that mission and is one of its expressions. This
mission, in fact, is addressed to those who do not know Christ and his Gospel,
and who belong for the most part to other religions. In Christ, God calls all
peoples to himself and he wishes to share with them the fullness of his
revelation and love. He does not fail to make himself present in many ways, not
only to individuals but also to entire peoples through their spiritual riches,
of which their religions are the main and essential expression, even when they
contain "gaps, insufficiencies and errors."98 All of this has been
given ample emphasis by the Council and the subsequent Magisterium, without
detracting in any way from the fact that salvation comes from Christ and that
dialogue does not dispense from evangelization.99
In the light of the economy of salvation, the Church sees no
conflict between proclaiming Christ and engaging in interreligious dialogue.
Instead, she feels the need to link the two in the context of her mission ad
gentes. These two elements must maintain both their intimate connection and
their distinctiveness; therefore they should not be confused, manipulated or
regarded as identical, as though they were interchangeable.
I recently wrote to the bishops of Asia: "Although the
Church gladly acknowledges whatever is true and holy in the religious
traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam as a reflection of that truth which
enlightens all people, this does not lessen her duty and resolve to proclaim
without fail Jesus Christ who is 'the way, and the truth and the life.'...The
fact that the followers of other religions can receive God's grace and be saved
by Christ apart from the ordinary means which he has established does not
thereby cancel the call to faith and baptism which God wills for all people."100
Indeed Christ himself "while expressly insisting on the need for faith and
baptism, at the same time confirmed the need for the Church, into which people
enter through Baptism as through a door." 101 Dialogue should be conducted
and implemented with the conviction that the Church is the ordinary means of
salvation and that she alone possesses the fullness of the means of
salvation.102
56. Dialogue does not originate from tactical concerns or
self-interest, but is an activity with its own guiding principles, requirements
and dignity. It is demanded by deep respect for everything that has been
brought about in human beings by the Spirit who blows where he wills.103
Through dialogue, the Church seeks to uncover the "seeds of the
Word,"104 a "ray of that truth which enlightens all men'';105 these
are found in individuals and in the religious traditions of mankind. Dialogue
is based on hope and love, and will bear fruit in the Spirit. Other religions
constitute a positive challenge for the Church: they stimulate her both to
discover and acknowledge the signs of Christ's presence and of the working of
the Spirit, as well as to examine more deeply her own identity and to bear
witness to the fullness of Revelation which she has received for the good of
all.
This gives rise to the spirit which must enliven dialogue in
the context of mission. Those engaged in this dialogue must be consistent with
their own religious traditions and convictions, and be open to understanding
those of the other party without pretense or close-mindedness, but with truth,
humility and frankness, knowing that dialogue can enrich each side. There must
be no abandonment of principles nor false irenicism, but instead a witness
given and received for mutual advancement on the road of religious inquiry and
experience, and at the same time for the elimination of prejudice, intolerance
and misunderstandings. Dialogue leads to inner purification and conversion
which, if pursued with docility to the Holy Spirit, will be spiritually
fruitful.
57. A vast field lies open to dialogue, which can assume
many forms and expressions: from exchanges between experts in religious
traditions or official representatives of those traditions to cooperation for
integral development and the safeguarding of religious values; and from a
sharing of their respective spiritual experiences to the so-called
"dialogue of life," through which believers of different religions
bear witness before each other in daily life to their own human and spiritual
values, and help each other to live according to those values in order to build
a more just and fraternal society.
Each member of the faithful and all Christian communities
are called to practice dialogue, although not always to the same degree or in
the same way. The contribution of the laity is indispensable in this area, for
they "can favor the relations which ought to be established with the
followers of various religions through their example in the situations in which
they live and in their activities." 106 Some of them also will be able to
make a contribution through research and study. 107
I am well aware that many missionaries and Christian
communities find in the difficult and often misunderstood path of dialogue
their only way of bearing sincere witness to Christ and offering generous
service to others. I wish to encourage them to persevere with faith and love,
even in places where their efforts are not well received. Dialogue is a path
toward the kingdom and will certainly bear fruit, even if the times and seasons
are known only to the Father (cf. Acts 1:7).
Promoting Development by Forming Consciences
58. The mission ad gentes is still being carried out today,
for the most part in the southern regions of the world, where action on behalf
of integral development and liberation from all forms of oppression is most
urgently needed. The Church has always been able to generate among the peoples
she evangelizes a drive toward progress. Today, more than in the past,
missionaries are being recognized as promoters of development by governments
and international experts who are impressed at the remarkable results achieved
with scanty means.
In the Encyclical Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, I stated that
"the Church does not have technical solutions to offer for the problem of
underdevelopment as such," but "offers her first contribution to the
solution of the urgent problem of development when she proclaims the truth
about Christ, about herself and about man, applying this truth to a concrete
situation."108 The Conference of Latin American Bishops at Puebla stated
that "the best service we can offer to our brother is evangelization,
which helps him to live and act as a son of God, sets him free from injustices
and assists his overall development."109 It is not the Church's mission to
work directly on the economic. technical or political levels, or to contribute
materially to development. Rather, her mission consists essentially in offering
people an opportunity not to "have more" but to "be more."
by awakening their consciences through the Gospel. "Authentic human
development must be rooted in an ever deeper evangelization."110
The Church and her missionaries also promote development
through schools, hospitals, printing presses, universities and experimental
farms. But a people's development does not derive primarily from money,
material assistance or technological means, but from the formation of
consciences and the gradual maturing of ways of thinking and patterns of
behavior. Man is the principal agent of development, not money or technology.
The Church forms consciences by revealing to peoples the God whom they seek and
do not yet know, the grandeur of man created in God's image and loved by him,
the equality of all men and women as God's sons and daughters, the mastery of
man over nature created by God and placed at man's service, and the obligation
to work for the development of the whole person and of all mankind.
59. Through the gospel message, the Church offers a force
for liberation which promotes development precisely because it leads to
conversion of heart and of ways of thinking, fosters the recognition of each
person's dignity, encourages solidarity, commitment and service of one's
neighbor, and gives everyone a place in God's plan, which is the building of
his kingdom of peace and justice, beginning already in this life. This is the
biblical perspective of the "new heavens and a new earth" (cf. Is
65:17; 2 Pt 3:13; Rv 21:1), which has been the stimulus and goal for mankind's
advancement in history. Man's development derives from God, and from the model
of Jesus - God and man - and must lead back to God.111 That is why there is a
close connection between the proclamation of the Gospel and human promotion.
The contribution of the Church and of evangelization to the
development of peoples concerns not only the struggle against material poverty
and underdevelopment in the South of the world, but also concerns the North,
which is prone to a moral and spiritual poverty caused by
"overdevelopment."112 A certain way of thinking, uninfluenced by a
religious outlook and widespread in some parts of today's world, is based on
the idea that increasing wealth and the promotion of economic and technical
growth is enough for people to develop on the human level. But a soulless
development cannot suffice for human beings, and an excess of affluence is as
harmful as excessive poverty. This is a "development model" which the
North has constructed and is now spreading to the South, where a sense of
religion as well as human values are in danger of being overwhelmed by a wave
of consumerism.
"Fight hunger by changing your lifestyle" is a
motto which has appeared in Church circles and which shows the people of the
rich nations how to become brothers and sisters of the poor. We need to turn to
a more austere way of life which will favor a new model of development that
gives attention to ethical and religious values. To the poor, missionary
activity brings light and an impulse toward true development, while a new
evangelization ought to create among the wealthy a realization that the time
has arrived for them to become true brothers and sisters of the poor through
the conversion of all to an "integral development" open to the
Absolute.113
Charity: Source and Criterion of Mission
60. As I said during my pastoral visit to Brazil: "The
Church all over the world wishes to be the Church of the poor...she wishes to
draw out all the truth contained in the Beatitudes of Christ, and especially in
the first one: 'Blessed are the poor in spirit.' ...She wishes to teach this
truth and she wishes to put it into practice, just as Jesus came to do and to
teach."114
The young churches, which for the most part are to be found
among peoples suffering from widespread poverty, often give voice to this
concern as an integral part of their mission. The Conference of Latin American
Bishops at Puebla, after recalling the example of Jesus, wrote that "the
poor deserve preferential attention, whatever their moral or personal
situation. They have been made in the image and likeness of God to be his
children, but this image has been obscured and even violated. For this reason,
God has become their defender and loves them. It follows that the poor are
those to whom the mission is first addressed, and their evangelization is par
excellence the sign and proof of the mission of Jesus."115
In fidelity to the spirit of the Beatitudes, the Church is
called to be on the side of those who are poor and oppressed in any way. I
therefore exhort the disciples of Christ and all Christian communities - from
families to dioceses, from parishes to religious institutes - to carry out a
sincere review of their lives regarding their solidarity with the poor. At the
same time, I express gratitude to the missionaries who, by their loving
presence and humble service to people, are working for the integral development
of individuals and of society through schools, health-care centers, leprosaria,
homes for the handicapped and the elderly, projects for the promotion of women
and other similar apostolates. I thank the priests, religious brothers and sisters,
and members of the laity for their dedication, and I also encourage the
volunteers from non-governmental organizations who in ever increasing numbers
are devoting themselves to works of charity and human promotion.
It is in fact these "works of charity" that reveal
the soul of all missionary activity: love, which has been and remains the
driving force of mission, and is also "the sole criterion for judging what
is to be done or not done, changed or not changed. It is the principle which must
direct every action, and end to which that action must be directed. When we act
with a view to charity, or are inspired by charity, nothing is unseemly and
everything is good."116
CHAPTER VI - LEADERS AND WORKERS IN THE MISSIONARY
APOSTOLATE
61. Without witnesses there can be no witness, just as
without missionaries there can be no missionary activity. Jesus chooses and
sends people forth to be his witnesses and apostles, so that they may share in
his mission and continue in his saving work: "You shall be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth" (Acts
1:8).
The Twelve are the first to work in the Church's universal
mission. They constitute a "collegial subject" of that mission,
having been chosen by Jesus to be with him and to be sent forth "to the
lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Mt 10:6). This collegiality does not
prevent certain figures from assuming prominence within the group, such as
James, John and above all Peter, who is so prominent as to justify the expression:
"Peter and the other Apostles" (Acts 2:14, 37). It was thanks to
Peter that the horizons of the Church's universal mission were expanded, and
the way was prepared for the outstanding missionary work of Paul, who by God's
will was called and sent forth to the nations (cf. Gal 1:15-16).
In the early Church's missionary expansion, we find
alongside the apostles, other lesser figures who should not be overlooked.
These include individuals, groups and communities. A typical example is the
local church at Antioch which, after being evangelized, becomes an evangelizing
community which sends missionaries to others (cf. Acts 13:2-3). The early
Church experiences her mission as a community task, while acknowledging in her
midst certain "special envoys" or "missionaries devoted to the
Gentiles," such as Paul and Barnabas.
62. What was done at the beginning of Christianity to
further its universal mission remains valid and urgent today. The Church is
missionary by her very nature, for Christ's mandate is not something contingent
or external, but reaches the very heart of the Church. It follows that the
universal Church and each individual church is sent forth to the nations.
Precisely" so that this missionary zeal may flourish among the people of
their own country," it is highly appropriate that young churches should
"share as soon as possible in the universal missionary work of the Church.
They should themselves send missionaries to proclaim the Gospel all over the
world, even though they are suffering from a shortage of clergy."117 Many
are already doing so, and I strongly encourage them to continue.
In this essential bond between the universal Church and the
particular churches the authentic and full missionary nature of the Church
finds practical expression: "In a world where the lessening of distance
makes the world increasingly smaller, the Church's communities ought to be
connected with each other, exchange vital energies and resources, and commit
themselves as a group to the one and common mission of proclaiming and living
the Gospel.... So-called younger churches have need of the strength of the
older churches and the older ones need the witness and the impulse of the
younger, so that each church can draw on the riches of the other
churches." 118
Those Primarily Responsible for Missionary Activity
63. Just as the risen Lord gave the universal missionary
mandate to the College of the Apostles with Peter as its head, so this same
responsibility now rests primarily with the College of Bishops, headed by the
successor of Peter.119 Conscious of this responsibility, I feel the duty to
give expression to it in my meetings with the bishops, both with regard to new
evangelization and the universal mission. I have traveled all over the world in
order "to proclaim the Gospel, to 'strengthen the brothers' in the faith,
to console the Church, to meet people. They are journeys of faith...they are
likewise opportunities for traveling catechesis, for evangelical proclamation
in spreading the Gospel and the apostolic Magisterium to the full extent of the
world."120
My brother bishops are directly responsible, together with
me, for the evangelization of the world, both as members of the College of
Bishops and as pastors of the particular churches. In this regard the Council
states: "The charge of announcing the Gospel throughout the world belongs
to the body of shepherds, to all of whom in common Christ gave the
command."121 It also stated that the bishops "have been consecrated
not only for a particular diocese but for the salvation of the entire
world."122 This collegial responsibility has certain practical
consequences. Thus, "the Synod of Bishops ...should, among the concerns of
general importance, pay special attention to missionary activity, the greatest
and holiest duty of the Church."123 The same responsibility is reflected
to varying degrees in Episcopal Conferences and their organisms at a
continental level, which must make their own contribution to the missionary
task.124
Each bishop too, as the pastor of a particular church, has a
wide-ranging missionary duty. It falls to him "as the ruler and center of
unity in the diocesan apostolate, to promote missionary activity, to direct and
coordinate it.... Let him also see to it that apostolic activity is not limited
only to those who are already converted, but that a fair share both of
personnel and funds be devoted to the evangelization of
non-Christians."125
64. Each particular church must be generous and open to the
needs of the other churches. Cooperation between the churches, in an authentic
reciprocity that prepares them both to give and to receive, is a source of
enrichment for all of them and touches the various spheres of ecclesial life.
In this respect, the declaration of the bishops at Puebla is exemplary:
"The hour has finally come for Latin America...to be projected beyond her
frontiers, ad gentes. Certainly we have need of missionaries ourselves,
nevertheless we must give from our own poverty."126
In the same spirit, I exhort bishops and Episcopal Conferences
to act generously in implementing the provisions of the norms which the
Congregation for the Clergy issued regarding cooperation between particular
churches and especially regarding the better distribution of clergy in the
world. 127
The Church's mission is wider than the "communion among
the churches"; it ought to be directed not only to aiding
re-evangelization but also and primarily to missionary activity as such. I
appeal to all the churches, young and old alike, to share in this concern of mine
by seeking to overcome the various obstacles and increase missionary vocations.
Missionaries and Religious Institutes Ad Gentes
65. Now, as in the past, among those involved in the
missionary apostolate a place of fundamental importance is held by the persons
and institutions to whom the Decree Ad Gentes devotes the special chapter
entitled "Missionaries."128 This requires careful reflection,
especially on the part of missionaries themselves, who may be led, as a result
of changes occurring within the missionary field, no longer to understand the
meaning of their vocation and no longer to know exactly what the Church expects
of them today.
The following words of the Council are a point of reference:
"Although the task of spreading the faith, to the best of one's ability,
falls to each disciple of Christ, the Lord always calls from the number of his
disciples those whom he wishes, so that they may be with him and that he may
send them to preach to the nations. Accordingly, through the Holy Spirit, who distributes
his gifts as he wishes for the good of all, Christ stirs up a missionary
vocation in the hearts of individuals, and at the same time raises up in the
Church those institutes which undertake the duty of evangelization, which is
the responsibility of the whole Church, as their special task."129
What is involved, therefore, is a "special
vocation," patterned on that of the apostles. It is manifested in a total
commitment to evangelization, a commitment which involves the missionary's
whole person and life, and demands a self giving without limits of energy or
time. Those who have received this vocation, "sent by legitimate
authority, go out, in faith and obedience, to those who are far from Christ,
set aside for the work to which they have been called as ministers of the
Gospel."130 Missionaries must always meditate on the response demanded by
the gift they have received, and continually keep their doctrinal and apostolic
formation up to date.
66. Missionary institutes, drawing from their experience and
creativity while remaining faithful to their founding charism, must employ all
means necessary to ensure the adequate preparation of candidates and the
renewal of their members' spiritual, moral and physical energies.131 They
should sense that they are a vital part of the ecclesial community and should
carry out their work in communion with it. Indeed, "every institute exists
for the Church and must enrich her with its distinctive characteristics,
according to a particular spirit and a specific mission"; the guardians of
this fidelity to the founding charism are the bishops themselves.132
In general, missionary institutes came into being in
churches located in traditionally Christian countries, and historically they
have been the means employed by the Congregation of Propaganda Fide for the
spread of the faith and the founding of new churches. Today, these institutes
are receiving more and more candidates from the young churches which they
founded, while new missionary institutes have arisen in countries which
previously only received missionaries, but are now also sending them. This is a
praiseworthy trend which demonstrates the continuing validity and relevance of
the specific missionary vocation of these institutes. They remain
"absolutely necessary,"133 not only for missionary activity ad
gentes, in keeping with their tradition, but also for stirring up missionary
fervor both in the churches of traditionally Christian countries and in the
younger churches.
The special vocation of missionaries "for life"
retains all its validity: it is the model of the Church's missionary
commitment, which always stands in need of radical and total self-giving, of
new and bold endeavors. Therefore the men and women missionaries who have
devoted their whole lives to bearing witness to the risen Lord among the
nations must not allow themselves to be daunted by doubts, misunderstanding,
rejection or persecution. They should revive the grace of their specific
charism and courageously press on, preferring - in a spirit of faith, obedience
and communion with their pastors - to seek the lowliest and most demanding
places.
Diocesan Priests for the Universal Mission
67. As co-workers of the bishops, priests are called by
virtue of the sacrament of Orders to share in concern for the Church's mission:
"The spiritual gift that priests have received in ordination prepares
them, not for any narrow and limited mission, but for the most universal and
all embracing mission of salvation 'to the end of the earth.' For every
priestly ministry shares in the universal scope of the mission that Christ
entrusted to his apostles." 134 For this reason, the formation of
candidates to the priesthood must aim at giving them "the true Catholic
spirit whereby they will learn to transcend the bounds of their own diocese,
country or rite, and come to the aid of the whole Church, in readiness to
preach the Gospel anywhere." 135 All priests must have the mind and the
heart of missionaries - open to the needs of the Church and the world, with
concern for those farthest away, and especially for the non-Christian groups in
their own area. They should have at heart, in their prayers and particularly at
the Eucharistic Sacrifice, the concern of the whole Church for all of humanity.
Especially in those areas where Christians are a minority,
priests must be filled with special missionary zeal and commitment. The Lord
entrusts to them not only the pastoral care of the Christian community, but
also and above all the evangelization of those of their fellow-citizens who do
not belong to Christ's flock. Priests will "not fail to make themselves
readily available to the Holy Spirit and the bishop, to be sent to preach the
Gospel beyond the borders of their country. This will demand of them not only
maturity in their vocation, but also an uncommon readiness to detach themselves
from their own homeland, culture and family, and a special ability to adapt to
other cultures, with understanding and respect for them." 136
68. In his Encyclical Fidei Donum, Pope Pius XII, with
prophetic insight, encouraged bishops to offer some of their priests for
temporary service in the churches of Africa, and gave his approval to projects
already existing for that purpose. Twenty-five years later, I pointed out the
striking newness of that encyclical, which "surmounted the territorial
dimension of priestly service in order to direct it toward the entire
Church."137 Today it is clear how effective and fruitful this experience
has been. Indeed, Fidei Donum priests are a unique sign of the bond of
communion existing among the churches. They make a valuable contribution to the
growth of needy ecclesial communities, while drawing from them freshness and
liveliness of faith. Of course, the missionary service of the diocesan priest
must conform to certain criteria and conditioning. The priests to be sent
should be selected from among the most suitable candidates, and should be duly
prepared for the particular work that awaits them.138 With an open and
fraternal attitude, they should become part of the new setting of the Church
which welcomes them, and form one presbyterate with the local priests, under
the authority of the bishop.139 I hope that a spirit of service will increase
among the priests of the long-established churches, and that it will be
fostered among priests of the churches of more recent origin.
The Missionary Fruitfulness of Consecrated Life
69. From the inexhaustible and manifold richness of the
Spirit come the vocations of the Institutes of Consecrated Life, whose members,
"because of the dedication to the service of the Church deriving from
their very consecration, have an obligation to play a special part in missionary
activity, in a manner appropriate to their Institute."140 History
witnesses to the outstanding service rendered by religious families in the
spread of the faith and the formation of new churches: from the ancient
monastic institutions, to the medieval Orders, up to the more recent
congregations.
(a) Echoing the Council, I invite institutes of
contemplative life to establish communities in the young churches, so as to
"bear glorious witness among non-Christians to the majesty and love of
God, as well as to unity in Christ."141 This presence is beneficial
throughout the non-Christian world, especially in those areas where religious
traditions hold the contemplative life in great esteem for its asceticism and
its search for the Absolute.
(b) To institutes of active life, I would recommend the
immense opportunities for works of charity, for the proclamation of the Gospel,
for Christian education, cultural endeavors and solidarity with the poor and
those suffering from discrimination, abandonment and oppression. Whether they
pursue a strictly missionary goal or not, such institutes should ask themselves
how willing and able they are to broaden their action in order to extend God's
kingdom. In recent times many institutes have responded to this request, which
I hope will be given even greater consideration and implementation for a more
authentic service. The Church needs to make known the great gospel values of
which she is the bearer. No one witnesses more effectively to these values than
those who profess the consecrated life in chastity, poverty and obedience, in a
total gift of self to God and in complete readiness to serve humanity and
society after the example of Christ.142
70. I extend a special word of appreciation to the
missionary religious sisters, in whom virginity for the sake of the kingdom is
transformed into a motherhood in the spirit that is rich and fruitful. It is
precisely the mission ad gentes that offers them vast scope for "the gift
of self with love in a total and undivided manner."143 The example and
activity of women who through virginity are consecrated to love of God and
neighbor, especially the very poor, are an indispensable evangelical sign among
those peoples and cultures where women still have far to go on the way toward
human promotion and liberation. It is my hope that many young Christian women
will be attracted to giving themselves generously to Christ, and will draw
strength and joy from their consecration in order to bear witness to him among
the peoples who do not know him.
All the Laity Are Missionaries by baptism
71. Recent popes have stressed the importance of the role of
the laity in missionary activity.144 In the Exhortation Christifideles Laici, I
spoke explicitly of the Church's "permanent mission of bringing the Gospel
to the multitudes - the millions and millions of men and women - who as yet do
not know Christ the Redeemer of humanity," 145 and of the responsibility
of the lay faithful in this regard. The mission ad gentes is incumbent upon the
entire People of God. Whereas the foundation of a new church requires the
Eucharist and hence the priestly ministry, missionary activity, which is
carried out in a wide variety of ways, is the task of all the Christian
faithful.
It is clear that from the very origins of Christianity, the
laity - as individuals, families, and entire communities - shared in spreading
the faith. Pope Pius XII recalled this fact in his first encyclical on the
missions,146 in which he pointed out some instances of lay missions. In modern
times, this active participation of lay men and women missionaries has not been
lacking. How can we forget the important role played by women: their work in
the family, in schools, in political, social and cultural life, and especially
their teaching of Christian doctrine? Indeed, it is necessary to recognize -
and it is a title of honor - that some churches owe their origins to the
activity of lay men and women missionaries.
The Second Vatican Council confirmed this tradition in its
description of the missionary character of the entire People of God and of the
apostolate of the laity in particular,147 emphasizing the specific contribution
to missionary activity which they are called to make.148 The need for all the
faithful to share in this responsibility is not merely a matter of making the
apostolate more effective, it is a right and duty based on their baptismal
dignity, whereby "the faithful participate, for their part, in the
threefold mission of Christ as Priest, Prophet and King."149 Therefore,
"they are bound by the general obligation and they have the right, whether
as individuals or in associations, to strive so that the divine message of
salvation may be known and accepted by all people throughout the world. This
obligation is all the more insistent in circumstances in which only through
them are people able to hear the Gospel and to know Christ." 150
Furthermore, because of their secular character, they especially are called
"to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and ordering
these in accordance with the will of God."151
72. The sphere in which lay people are present and active as
missionaries is very extensive. "Their own field...is the vast and
complicated world of politics, society and economics..."152 on the local,
national and international levels. Within the Church, there are various types
of services, functions, ministries and ways of promoting the Christian life. I
call to mind, as a new development occurring in many churches in recent times,
the rapid growth of "ecclesial movements" filled with missionary
dynamism. When these movements humbly seek to become part of the life of local
churches and are welcomed by bishops and priests within diocesan and parish
structures, they represent a true gift of God both for new evangelization and
for missionary activity properly so-called. I therefore recommend that they be
spread, and that they be used to give fresh energy, especially among young
people, to the Christian life and to evangelization, within a pluralistic view
of the ways in which Christians can associate and express themselves.
Within missionary activity, the different forms of the lay
apostolate should be held in esteem, with respect for their nature and aims.
Lay missionary associations, international Christian volunteer organizations,
ecclesial movements, groups and solidarities of different kinds - all these
should be involved in the mission ad gentes as cooperators with the local
churches. In this way the growth of a mature and responsible laity will be
fostered, a laity whom the younger churches are recognizing as "an
essential and undeniable element in the plantatio Ecclesiae."153
The Work of Catechists and the Variety of Ministries
73. Among the laity who become evangelizers, catechists have
a place of honor. The Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church speaks of
them as "that army of catechists, both men and women, worthy of praise, to
whom missionary work among the nations owes so much. Imbued with the apostolic
spirit, they make a singular and absolutely necessary contribution to the spread
of the faith and of the Church by their strenuous efforts." 154 It is with
good reason that the older and established churches, committed to a new
evangelization, have increased the numbers of their catechists and intensified
catechetical activity. But "the term 'catechists' belongs above all to the
catechists in mission lands.... Churches that are flourishing today would not
have been built up without them."155
Even with the extension of the services rendered by lay
people both within and outside the Church, there is always need for the
ministry of catechists, a ministry with its own characteristics. Catechists are
specialists, direct witnesses and irreplaceable evangelizers who, as I have
often stated and experienced during my missionary journeys, represent the basic
strength of Christian communities, especially in the young churches. The new
Code of Canon Law acknowledges the tasks, qualities and qualifications of
catechists.156
However, it must not be forgotten that the work of
catechists is becoming more and more difficult and demanding as a result of
ecclesial and cultural changes. What the Council suggested is still valid
today: a more careful doctrinal and pedagogical training, continuing spiritual
and apostolic renewal, and the need to provide "a decent standard of
living and social security."157 It is also important to make efforts to
establish and support schools for catechists, which are to be approved by the
Episcopal Conferences and confer diplomas officially recognized by the
latter.158
74. Besides catechists, mention must also be made of other
ways of serving the Church and her mission; namely, other Church personnel:
leaders of prayer, song and liturgy; leaders of basic ecclesial communities and
Bible study groups; those in charge of charitable works; administrators of
Church resources; leaders in the various forms of the apostolate; religion
teachers in schools. All the members of the laity ought to devote a part of
their time to the Church, living their faith authentically.
The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and Other
Structures for Missionary Activity
75. Leaders and agents of missionary pastoral activity
should sense their unity within the communion which characterizes the Mystical
Body. Christ prayed for this at the Last Supper when he said: "Even as
you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the
world may believe that you have sent me" (Jn 17:21). The fruitfulness of
missionary activity is to be found in this communion.
But since the Church is also a communion which is visible
and organic, her mission requires an external and ordered union between the
various responsibilities and functions involved, in such a way that all the
members "may in harmony spend their energies for the building up of the
Church."159
To the congregation responsible for missionary activity it
falls "to direct and coordinate throughout the world the work of
evangelizing peoples and of missionary cooperation, with due regard for the
competence of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches."160 Hence, its
task is to "recruit missionaries and distribute them in accordance with
the more urgent needs of various regions...draw up an ordered plan of action,
issue norms and directives, as well as principles which are appropriate for the
work of evangelization, and assist in the initial stages of their work."
161 I can only confirm these wise directives. In order to re-launch the mission
ad gentes, a center of outreach, direction and coordination is needed, namely,
the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. I invite the Episcopal
Conferences and their various bodies, the major superiors of orders,
congregations and institutes, as well as lay organizations involved in
missionary activity, to cooperate faithfully with this Dicastery, which has the
authority necessary to plan and direct missionary activity and cooperation
worldwide.
The same congregation, which has behind it a long and
illustrious history, is called to play a role of primary importance with regard
to reflection and programs of action which the Church needs in order to be more
decisively oriented toward the mission in its various forms. To this end, the
congregation should maintain close relations with the other Dicasteries of the
Holy See, with the local churches and the various missionary forces. In an
ecclesiology of communion in which the entire Church is missionary, but in
which specific vocations and institutions for missionary work ad gentes remains
indispensable, the guiding and coordinating role of the Congregation for the
Evangelization of Peoples remains very important in order to ensure a united
effort in confronting great questions of common concern, with due regard for
the competence proper to each authority and structure.
76. Episcopal Conferences and their various groupings have
great importance in directing and coordinating missionary activity on the
national and regional levels. The Council asks them to "confer together in
dealing with more important questions and urgent problems, without, however,
overlooking local differences,"162 and to consider the complex issue of
inculturation. In fact, large-scale and regular activity is already taking
place in this area, with visible results. It is an activity which must be
intensified and better coordinated with that of other bodies of the same
Conferences, so that missionary concern will not be left to the care of only
one sector or body, but will be shared by all.
The bodies and institutions involved in missionary activity
should join forces and initiatives as opportunity suggests. Conferences of
Major Superiors should have this same concern in their own sphere, maintaining
contact with Episcopal Conferences in accordance with established directives
and norms,163 and also having recourse to mixed commissions.164 Also desirable
are meetings and other forms of cooperation between the various missionary
institutions, both in formation and study,165 as well as in the actual
apostolate.
CHAPTER VII - COOPERATION IN MISSIONARY ACTIVITY
77. Since they are members of the Church by virtue of their
Baptism, all Christians share responsibility for missionary activity.
"Missionary cooperation" is the expression used to describe the
sharing by communities and individual Christians in this right and duty.
Missionary cooperation is rooted and lived, above all, in
personal union with Christ. Only if we are united to him as the branches to the
vine (cf. Jn 15:5) can we produce good fruit. Through holiness of life every
Christian can become a fruitful part of the Church's mission. The Second
Vatican Council invited all "to a profound interior renewal, so that
having a lively awareness of their personal responsibility for the spreading of
the Gospel, they may play their part in missionary work among the
nations."166
Sharing in the universal mission therefore is not limited to
certain specific activities, but is the sign of maturity in faith and of a
Christian life that bears fruit. In this way, individual believers extend the
reach of their charity and show concern for those both far and near. They pray
for the missions and missionary vocations. They help missionaries and follow
their work with interest. And when missionaries return, they welcome them with
the same joy with which the first Christian communities heard from the apostles
the marvelous things which God had wrought through their preaching (cf. Acts
14:27).
Prayer and Sacrifice for Missionaries
78. Among the forms of sharing, first place goes to
spiritual cooperation through prayer, sacrifice and the witness of Christian
life. Prayer should accompany the journey of missionaries so that the
proclamation of the word will be effective through God's grace. In his Letters,
St. Paul often asks the faithful to pray for him so that he might proclaim the
Gospel with confidence and conviction. Prayer needs to be accompanied by
sacrifice. The redemptive value of suffering, accepted and offered to God with
love, derives from the sacrifice of Christ himself, who calls the members of
his Mystical Body to share in his sufferings, to complete them in their own
flesh (cf. Col 1:24). The sacrifice of missionaries should be shared and
accompanied by the sacrifices of all the faithful. I therefore urge those
engaged in the pastoral care of the sick to teach them about the efficacy of
suffering, and to encourage them to offer their sufferings to God for
missionaries. By making such an offering, the sick themselves become
missionaries, as emphasized by a number of movements which have sprung up among
them and for them. The solemnity of Pentecost - the beginning of the Church's
mission - is celebrated in some communities as a "Day of Suffering for the
Missions."
"Here I am, Lord! I am ready! Send me!" (cf. Is
6:8)
79. Cooperation is expressed above all by promoting
missionary vocations. While acknowledging the validity of various ways of being
involved in missionary activity, it is necessary at the same time to reaffirm
that a full and lifelong commitment to the work of the missions holds pride of
place, especially in missionary institutes and congregations. Promoting such
vocations is at the heart of missionary cooperation. Preaching the Gospel
requires preachers; the harvest needs laborers. The mission is carried out
above all by men and women who are consecrated for life to the work of the
Gospel and are prepared to go forth into the whole world to bring salvation.
I wish to call to mind and to recommend this concern for
missionary vocations. Conscious of the overall responsibility of Christians to
contribute to missionary activity and to the development of poorer peoples, we
must ask ourselves how it is that in some countries, while monetary
contributions are on the increase, missionary vocations, which are the real
measure of self-giving to one's brothers and sisters, are in danger of
disappearing. Vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life are a sure
sign of the vitality of a church.
80. As I think of this serious problem, I appeal with great
confidence and affection to families and to young people. Families, especially
parents, should be conscious that they ought to "offer a special
contribution to the missionary cause of the Church by fostering missionary
vocations among their sons and daughters."167
An intense prayer life, a genuine sense of service to one's
neighbor and a generous participation in Church activities provide families
with conditions that favor vocations among young people. When parents are ready
to allow one of their children to leave for the missions, when they have sought
this grace from the Lord, he will repay them, in joy, on the day that their son
or daughter hears his call.
I ask young people themselves to listen to Christ's words as
he says to them what he once said to Simon Peter and to Andrew at the lakeside:
"Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Mt 4:19). May they
have the courage to reply as Isaiah did: "Here am I, Lord! I am ready!
Send me!" (cf. Is 6:8) They will have a wonderful life ahead of them, and
they will know the genuine joy of proclaiming the "Good News" to
brothers and sisters whom they will lead on the way of salvation.
"It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts
20:35)
81. The material and financial needs of the missions are
many: not only to set up the Church with minimal structures (chapels, schools
for catechists and seminarians, housing), but also to support works of charity,
education and human promotion-a vast field of action especially in poor
countries. The missionary Church gives what she receives, and distributes to
the poor the material goods that her materially richer sons and daughters
generously put at her disposal. Here I wish to thank all those who make sacrifices
and contribute to the work of the missions. Their sacrifices and sharing are
indispensable for building up the Church and for showing love.
In the matter of material help, it is important to consider
the spirit in which donations are made. For this we should reassess our own way
of living: the missions ask not only for a contribution but for a sharing in
the work of preaching and charity toward the poor. All that we have received
from God - life itself as well as material goods - does not belong to us but is
given to us for our use. Generosity in giving must always be enlightened and
inspired by faith: then we will truly be more blessed in giving than in
receiving.
World Mission Day, which seeks to heighten awareness of the
missions, as well as to collect funds for them, is an important date in the
life of the Church, because it teaches how to give: as an offering made to God,
in the Eucharistic celebration and for all the missions of the world.
New Forms of Missionary Cooperation
82. Today, cooperation includes new forms-not only economic
assistance, but also direct participation. New situations connected with the
phenomenon of mobility demand from Christians an authentic missionary spirit.
International tourism has now become a mass phenomenon. This
is a positive development if tourists maintain an attitude of respect and a
desire for mutual cultural enrichment, avoiding ostentation and waste, and
seeking contact with other people. But Christians are expected above all to be
aware of their obligation to bear witness always to their faith and love of
Christ. Firsthand knowledge of the missionary life and of new Christian
communities also can be an enriching experience and can strengthen one's faith.
Visiting the missions is commendable, especially on the part of young people
who go there to serve and to gain an intense experience of the Christian life.
Reasons of work nowadays bring many Christians from young
communities to areas where Christianity is unknown and at times prohibited or
persecuted. The same is true of members of the faithful from traditionally
Christian countries who work for a time in non-Christian countries. These
circumstances are certainly an opportunity to live the faith and to bear
witness to it. In the early centuries, Christianity spread because Christians,
traveling to or settling in regions where Christ had not yet been proclaimed,
bore courageous witness to their faith and founded the first communities there.
More numerous are the citizens of mission countries and
followers of non-Christian religions who settle in other nations for reasons of
study or work, or are forced to do so because of the political or economic
situations in their native lands. The presence of these brothers and sisters in
traditionally Christian countries is a challenge for the ecclesial communities,
and a stimulus to hospitality, dialogue, service, sharing, witness and direct
proclamation. In Christian countries, communities and cultural groups are also
forming which call for the mission ad gentes, and the local churches, with the
help of personnel from the immigrants' own countries and of returning
missionaries, should respond generously to these situations.
Missionary cooperation can also involve leaders in politics,
economics, culture and journalism, as well as experts of the various
international bodies. In the modern world it is becoming increasingly difficult
to determine geographical or cultural boundaries. There is an increasing
interdependence between peoples, and this constitutes a stimulus for Christian
witness and evangelization.
Missionary Promotion and Formation Among the People of God
83. Missionary formation is the task of the local Church,
assisted by missionaries and their institutes, and by personnel from the young
churches. This work must be seen not as peripheral but as central to the
Christian life. Even for the "new evangelization" of Christian
countries the theme of the missions can prove very helpful: the witness of
missionaries retains its appeal even for the non-practicing and non-believers,
and it communicates Christian values. Particular churches should therefore make
the promotion of the missions a key element in the normal pastoral activity of
parishes, associations and groups, especially youth groups.
With this end in view, it is necessary to spread information
through missionary publications and audiovisual aids. These play an important
role in making known the life of the universal Church and in voicing the
experiences of missionaries and of the local churches in which they work. In
those younger churches which are still not able to have a press and other means
of their own, it is important that missionary institutes devote personnel and
resources to these undertakings.
Such formation is entrusted to priests and their associates,
to educators and teachers, and to theologians, particularly those who teach in
seminaries and centers for the laity. Theological training cannot and should
not ignore the Church's universal mission, ecumenism, the study of the great
religions and missiology. I recommend that such studies be undertaken
especially in seminaries and in houses of formation for men and women
religious, ensuring that some priests or other students specialize in the different
fields of missiology.
Activities aimed at promoting interest in the missions must
always be geared to these specific goals; namely, informing and forming the
People of God to share in the Church's universal mission, promoting vocations
ad gentes and encouraging cooperation in the work of evangelization. It is not
right to give an incomplete picture of missionary activity, as if it consisted
principally in helping the poor, contributing to the liberation of the
oppressed, promoting development or defending human rights. The missionary
Church is certainly involved on these fronts but her primary task lies
elsewhere: the poor are hungry for God, not just for bread and freedom.
Missionary activity must first of all bear witness to and proclaim salvation in
Christ, and establish local churches which then become means of liberation in
every sense.
The Primary Responsibility of the Pontifical Mission
Societies
84. The leading role in this work of promotion belongs to
the Pontifical Mission Societies, as I have often pointed out in my Messages
for World Mission Day. The four Societies - Propagation of the Faith, St. Peter
the Apostle, Holy Childhood and the Missionary Union - have the common purpose
of fostering a universal missionary spirit among the People of God. The
Missionary Union has as its immediate and specific purpose the promotion of
missionary consciousness and formation among priests and men and women
religious, who in turn will provide this consciousness and formation within the
Christian communities. In addition, the Missionary Union seeks to promote the
other Societies, of which it is the "soul,"168 "This must be our
motto: All the churches united for the conversion of the whole world."169
Because they are under the auspices of the Pope and of the
College of Bishops, these Societies, also within the boundaries of the
particular churches, rightly have "the first place. . . since they are the
means by which Catholics from their very infancy are imbued with a genuinely
universal and missionary spirit; they are also the means which ensure an
effective collection of resources for the good of all the missions, in
accordance with the needs of each one."170 Another purpose of the
Missionary Societies is the fostering of lifelong vocations ad gentes, in both
the older and younger churches. I earnestly recommend that their promotional
work be increasingly directed to this goal.
In their activities, these Societies depend at the worldwide
level on the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples; at the local level
they depend on the Episcopal Conferences and the bishops of individual
churches, in collaboration with existing promotional centers. They bring to the
Catholic world that spirit of universality and of service to the Church's
mission, without which authentic cooperation does not exist.
Not Only Giving to the Missions But Receiving From Them As
Well
85. Cooperating in missionary activity means not just giving
but also receiving. All the particular churches, both young and old, are called
to give and to receive in the context of the universal mission, and none should
be closed to the needs of others. The Council states: "By virtue
of...catholicity, the individual parts bring their own gifts to the other parts
and to the whole Church, in such a way that the whole and individual parts grow
greater through the mutual communication of all and their united efforts toward
fullness in unity.... Between the different parts of the Church there are bonds
of intimate communion with regard to spiritual riches, apostolic workers and
temporal assistance."171
I exhort all the churches, and the bishops, priests,
religious and members of the laity, to be open to the Church's universality,
and to avoid every form of provincialism or exclusiveness, or feelings of self-sufficiency.
Local churches, although rooted in their own people and their own culture, must
always maintain an effective sense of the universality of the faith, giving and
receiving spiritual gifts, experiences of pastoral work in evangelization and initial
proclamation, as well as personnel for the apostolate and material resources.
The temptation to become isolated can be a strong one. The
older churches, involved in new evangelization, may think that their mission is
now at home, and thus they may risk slackening their drive toward the
non-Christian world, begrudgingly conceding vocations to missionary institutes,
religious congregations or other particular churches. But it is by giving
generously of what we have that we will receive. Already the young churches,
many of which are blessed with an abundance of vocations, are in a position to
send priests and men and women religious to the older churches.
On the other hand, the young churches are concerned about
their own identity, about inculturation, and about their freedom to grow
independently of external influences, with the possible result that they close
their doors to missionaries. To these churches I say: Do not isolate
yourselves; willingly accept missionaries and support from other churches, and
do likewise throughout the world. Precisely because of the problems that
concern you, you need to be in continuous contact with your brothers and
sisters in the faith. With every legitimate means, seek to ensure recognition
of the freedom to which you have a right, remembering that Christ's disciples
must "obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29).
God Is Preparing a New Springtime for the Gospel
86. If we look at today's world, we are struck by many
negative factors that can lead to pessimism. But this feeling is unjustified:
we have faith in God our Father and Lord, in his goodness and mercy. As the
third millennium of the redemption draws near, God is preparing a great
springtime for Christianity, and we can already see its first signs. In fact,
both in the non-Christian world and in the traditionally Christian world,
people are gradually drawing closer to gospel ideals and values, a development
which the Church seeks to encourage. Today in fact there is a new consensus
among peoples about these values: the rejection of violence and war; respect
for the human person and for human rights; the desire for freedom, justice and
brotherhood; the surmounting of different forms of racism and nationalism; the
affirmation of the dignity and role of women.
Christian hope sustains us in committing ourselves fully to
the new evangelization and to the worldwide mission, and leads us to pray as
Jesus taught us: "Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in
heaven" (Mt 6:10).
The number of those awaiting Christ is still immense: the
human and cultural groups not yet reached by the Gospel, or for whom the Church
is scarcely present, are so widespread as to require the uniting of all the
Church's resources. As she prepares to celebrate the jubilee of the year 2000,
the whole Church is even more committed to a new missionary advent. We must
increase our apostolic zeal to pass on to others the light and joy of the
faith, and to this high ideal the whole People of God must be educated.
We cannot be content when we consider the millions of our
brothers sisters, who like us have been redeemed by the blood of Christ, but
who live in ignorance of the love of God. For each believer, as for the entire
Church, the missionary task must remain foremost, for it concerns the eternal
destiny of humanity and corresponds to God's mysterious and merciful plan.
CHAPTER VIII - MISSIONARY SPIRITUALITY
87. Missionary activity demands a specific spirituality,
which applies in particular to all those whom God has called to be
missionaries.
Being Led by the Spirit
This spirituality is expressed first of all by a life of
complete docility to the Spirit. It commits us to being molded from within by
the Spirit, so that we may become ever more like Christ. It is not possible to
bear witness to Christ without reflecting his image, which is made alive in us
by grace and the power of the Spirit. This docility then commits us to receive
the gifts of fortitude and discernment, which are essential elements of
missionary spirituality.
An example of this is found with the apostles during the
Master's public life. Despite their love for him and their generous response to
his call, they proved to be incapable of understanding his words and reluctant
to follow him along the path of suffering and humiliation. The Spirit
transformed them into courageous witnesses to Christ and enlightened heralds of
his word. It was the Spirit himself who guided them along the difficult and new
paths of mission.
Today, as in the past, that mission is difficult and
complex, and demands the courage and light of the Spirit. We often experience
the dramatic situation of the first Christian community which witnessed
unbelieving and hostile forces "gathered together against the Lord and his
Anointed" (Acts 4:26). Now, as then, we must pray that God will grant us
boldness in preaching the Gospel; we must ponder the mysterious ways of the
Spirit and allow ourselves to be led by him into all the truth (cf. Jn 16:13).
Living the Mystery of Christ, "the One who was sent"
88. An essential characteristic of missionary spirituality
is intimate communion with Christ. We cannot understand or carry out the
mission unless we refer it to Christ as the one who was sent to evangelize. St.
Paul describes Christ's attitude: "Have this mind among yourselves, which
is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count
equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form
of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form
he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross"
(Phil 2:5-8).
The mystery of the Incarnation and Redemption is thus
described as a total self-emptying which leads Christ to experience fully the
human condition and to accept totally the Father's plan. This is an emptying of
self which is permeated by love and expresses love. The mission follows this
same path and leads to the foot of the cross.
The missionary is required to "renounce himself and
everything that up to this point he considered as his own, and to make himself
everything to everyone."172 This he does by a poverty which sets him free
for the Gospel, overcoming attachment to the people and things about him, so
that he may become a brother to those to whom he is sent and thus bring them
Christ the Savior. This is the goal of missionary spirituality: "To the
weak I became weak...; I have become all things to all men, that I might by all
means save some. I do it all for the sake of the Gospel..." (1 Cor 9:22-23).
It is precisely because he is "sent" that the
missionary experiences the consoling presence of Christ, who is with him at
every moment of life - "Do not be afraid...for I am with you" (Acts
18:9-10) - and who awaits him in the heart of every person.
Loving the Church and Humanity As Jesus Did
89. Missionary spirituality is also marked by apostolic
charity, the charity of Christ who came "to gather into one the children
of God who are scattered abroad" (Jn 11:52), of the Good Shepherd who
knows his sheep, who searches them out and offers his life for them (cf. Jn
10). Those who have the missionary spirit feel Christ's burning love for souls,
and love the Church as Christ did.
The missionary is urged on by "zeal for souls," a
zeal inspired by Christ's own charity, which takes the form of concern,
tenderness, compassion, openness, availability and interest in people's
problems. Jesus' love is very deep: he who "knew what was in man" (Jn
2:25) loved everyone by offering them redemption and suffered when it was
rejected.
The missionary is a person of charity. In order to proclaim
to all his brothers and sisters that they are loved by God and are capable of
loving, he must show love toward all, giving his life for his neighbor. The
missionary is the "universal brother," bearing in himself the
Church's spirit, her openness to and interest in all peoples and individuals,
especially the least and poorest of his brethren. As such, he overcomes
barriers and divisions of race, cast or ideology. He is a sign of God's love in
the world - a love without exclusion or partiality.
Finally, like Christ he must love the Church: "Christ
loved the Church and gave himself up for her" (Eph 5:25). This love, even
to the point of giving one's life, is a focal point for him. Only profound love
for the Church can sustain the missionary's zeal. His daily pressure, as St.
Paul says, is "anxiety for all the churches" (2 Cor 11:28). For every
missionary "fidelity to Christ cannot be separated from fidelity to the
Church."173
The True Missionary Is the Saint
90. The call to mission derives, of its nature, from the
call to holiness. A missionary is really such only if he commits himself to the
way of holiness: "Holiness must be called a fundamental presupposition and
an irreplaceable condition for everyone in fulfilling the mission of salvation
in the Church."174
The universal call to holiness is closely linked to the
universal call to mission. Every member of the faithful is called to holiness
and to mission. This was the earnest desire of the Council, which hoped to be
able "to enlighten all people with the brightness of Christ, which gleams
over the face of the Church, by preaching the Gospel to every creature."
175 The Church's missionary spirituality is a journey toward holiness.
The renewed impulse to the mission ad gentes demands holy
missionaries. It is not enough to update pastoral techniques, organize and
coordinate ecclesial resources, or delve more deeply into the biblical and
theological foundations of faith. What is needed is the encouragement of a new
"ardor for holiness" among missionaries and throughout the Christian
community, especially among those who work most closely with missionaries.176
Dear brothers and sisters: let us remember the missionary
enthusiasm of the first Christian communities. Despite the limited means of
travel and communication in those times, the proclamation of the Gospel quickly
reached the ends of the earth. And this was the religion of a man who had died
on a cross, "a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles"! (1 Cor
1:23) Underlying this missionary dynamism was the holiness of the first
Christians and the first communities.
91. I therefore address myself to the recently baptized
members of the young communities and young churches. Today, you are the hope of
this two-thousand-year-old Church of ours: being young in faith, you must be
like the first Christians and radiate enthusiasm and courage, in generous
devotion to God and neighbor. In a word, you must set yourselves on the path of
holiness. Only thus can you be a sign of God in the world and re-live in your
own countries the missionary epic of the early Church. You will also be a
leaven of missionary spirit for the older churches.
For their part, missionaries should reflect on the duty of
holiness required of them by the gift of their vocation, renew themselves in
spirit day by day, and strive to update their doctrinal and pastoral formation.
The missionary must be a "contemplative in action." He finds answers
to problems in the light of God's word and in personal and community prayer. My
contact with representatives of the non-Christian spiritual traditions,
particularly those of Asia, has confirmed me in the view that the future of
mission depends to a great extent on contemplation. Unless the missionary is a
contemplative he cannot proclaim Christ in a credible way. He is a witness to
the experience of God, and must be able to say with the apostles: "that
which we have looked upon...concerning the word of life,...we proclaim also to
you" (1 Jn 1:1-3).
The missionary is a person of the Beatitudes. Before sending
out the Twelve to evangelize, Jesus, in his "missionary discourse"
(cf. Mt 10), teaches them the paths of mission: poverty, meekness, acceptance
of suffering and persecution, the desire for justice and peace, charity - in
other words, the Beatitudes, lived out in the apostolic life (cf. Mt 5:1-12).
By living the Beatitudes, the missionary experiences and shows concretely that
the kingdom of God has already come, and that he has accepted it. The characteristic
of every authentic missionary life is the inner joy that comes from faith. In a
world tormented and oppressed by so many problems, a world tempted to
pessimism, the one who proclaims the "Good News" must be a person who
has found true hope in Christ.
Conclusion
92. Today, as never before, the Church has the opportunity
of bringing the Gospel, by witness and word, to all people and nations. I see
the dawning of a new missionary age, which will become a radiant day bearing an
abundant harvest, if all Christians, and missionaries and young churches in
particular, respond with generosity and holiness to the calls and challenges of
our time.
Like the apostles after Christ's Ascension, the Church must
gather in the Upper Room "together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus"
(Acts 1:14), in order to pray for the Spirit and to gain strength and courage
to carry out the missionary mandate. We too, like the apostles, need to be
transformed and guided by the Spirit.
On the eve of the third millennium the whole Church is
invited to live more intensely the mystery of Christ by gratefully cooperating
in the work of salvation. The Church does this together with Mary and following
the example of Mary, the Church's Mother and model: Mary is the model of that
maternal love which should inspire all who cooperate in the Church's apostolic
mission for the rebirth of humanity. Therefore, "strengthened by the
presence of Christ, the Church journeys through time toward the consummation of
the ages and goes to meet the Lord who comes. But on this journey ...she
proceeds along the path already trodden by the Virgin Mary."177
To "Mary's mediation, wholly oriented toward Christ and
tending to the revelation of his salvific power,"178 I entrust the Church
and, in particular, those who commit themselves to carrying out the missionary
mandate in today's world. As Christ sent forth his apostles in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, so too, renewing that same
mandate, I extend to all of you my apostolic blessing, in the name of the same
Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
Given in Rome, at St. Peter's, on December 7, the
twenty-fifth anniversary of the Conciliar Decree Ad Gentes, in the year 1990,
the thirteenth of my Pontificate.
JOHN PAUL II
1. Cf. Paul VI, Message for World Mission Day, 1972,
Insegnamenti X, (1972), 522: "How many internal tensions, which weaken and
divide certain local churches and institutions, would disappear before the firm
conviction that the salvation of local communities is procured through
cooperation in work for the spread of the Gospel to the farthest bounds of the
earth!"
2. Cf. Benedict XV, Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud (November
30, 1919): AAS 11 (1919), 440-455; Pius XI, Encyclical Letter Rerum Ecclesiae
(February 28, 1926): AAS 18 (1926), 65-83; Pius XII, Encyclical Letter
Evangelii Praecones (June 2, 1951): AAS 43 (1951), 497-528; Encyclical Letter
Fidei Donum (April 21, 1957): AAS 49 (1957), 225-248; John XXIII, Encyclical
Letter Princeps Pastorum (November 28, 1959): AAS 51 (1959), 833-864.
3. Encyclical Letter Redemptor Hominis (March 4, 1979), 10:
AAS 71 (1979), 274f.
4. Ibid.: loc. cit., 275.
5. Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed: DS 150.
6. Encyclical Letter Redemptor Hominis, 13: loc. cit., 283.
7. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral
Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 2.
8. Ibid., 22.
9. Encyclical Letter Dives in Misericordia (November 30,
1980), 7: AAS 72 (1980), 1202.
10. Homily for the celebration of the Eucharist in Krakow,
June 10, 1979: AAS 71 (1979), 873.
11. Cf. John XXIII, Encyclical Letter Mater et Magistra (May
15, 1961) IV AAS 53 (1961), 453.
12. Declaration on Religious Freedom Dignitatis Humanae, 2.
13. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi
(December 8, 1975), 53: AAS 68 (1976), 42.
14. Declaration on Religious Freedom Dignitatis Humanae, 2.
15. Cf. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium,
14-17; Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 3.
16. Cf. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium,
48; Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes,
43; Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 7, 21.
17. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 13.
18. Ibid., 9.
19. Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World
Gaudium et Spes, 22.
20. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution
on the Church, Lumen Gentium, 14.
21. Encyclical Letter Dives in Misericordia, 1: loc. cit.,
1177.
22. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution
on the Church Lumen Gentium, 5.
23. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral
Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 22.
24. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 4.
25. Ibid., 5.
26. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 16: loc.
cit., 15.
27. Address at the opening of the Third Session of the
Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, September 14, 1964: AAS 56 (1964), 810.
28. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
34: loc. cit., 28.
29. Cf. International Theological Commission, Select Themes
of Ecclesiology on the Occasion of the Twentieth Anniversary of the Closing of
the Second Vatican Council (October 7, 1985), 10: "The Eschatological
Character of the Church: Kingdom and Church."
30. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral
Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 39.
31. Encyclical Letter Dominum et Vivificantem (May 18,
1986), 42: AAS 78 (1986), 857.
32. Ibid., 64: loc. cit., 892.
33. The Greek word "parrhesia" also means
enthusiasm or energy; cf. Acts 2:29; 4:13, 29, 31; 9:27-28; 13:46; 14:3; 18:26;
19:8, 26; 28:31.
34. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
41-42: loc. cit., 31-33.
35. Cf. Encyclical Letter Dominum et Vivificantem, 53: loc.
cit. , 874f.
36. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 3, 11, 15; Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 10-11, 22, 26, 38, 41, 92-93.
37. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 10, 15, 22.
38. Ibid., 41.
39. Cf. Encyclical Letter Dominum et Vivificantem, 54: loc.
cit., 875f.
40. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 26.
41. Ibid., 38; cf. 93.
42. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 17; Decree on the Missionary Activity
of the Church Ad Gentes, 3, 15.
43. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 4.
44. Cf. Encyclical Letter Dominum et Vivificantem, 53: loc.
cit. , 874.
45. Address to Representatives of Non-Christian Religions,
Madras, February 5, 1986: AAS 78 (1986), 767; cf. Message to the Peoples of
Asia, Manila, February 21, 1981, 2-4: AAS 73 (1981), 392f; Address to
Representatives of Other Religions, Tokyo, February 24, 1981, 3-4: Insegnamenti
IV/I (1981), 507f.
46. Address to Cardinals and the Roman Curia, December 22,
1986, 11: AAS 79 (1987), 1089.
47. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 16.
48. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 45; cf. Encyclical Letter
Dominum et Vivificantem, 54: loc. cit. , 876.
49. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 10.
50. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici (December 30,
1988), 35: AAS 81 (1989), 457.
51. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 6.
52. Cf. ibid.
53. Cf. ibid., 6, 23, 27.
54. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
18-20: loc. cit. , 17-19.
55. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 35: loc.
cit., 457.
56. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 80: loc.
cit., 73.
57. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 6.
58. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 80: loc.
cit., 73.
59. Cf. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 6.
60. Cf. ibid, 20.
61. Cf. Address to the members of the Symposium of the
Council of the European Episcopal Conferences, October 11, 1985: AAS 78 (1986),
178-189.
62. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 20: loc.
cit., 19.
63. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 5; cf. Dogmatic Constitution on
the Church Lumen Gentium, 8.
64. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Declaration on
Religious Freedom Dignitatis Humanae, 3-4; Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation
Evangelii Nuntiandi, 79-80: loc. cit., 71-75; John Paul II, Encyclical Letter
Redemptor Hominis, 12: loc. cit., 278-281.
65. Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud: loc. cit., 446.
66. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 62:
loc. cit., 52.
67. Cf. De praescriptione haereticorum, XX: CCL, I, 201f.
68. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 9; cf. Chapter II, 10-18.
69. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
41: loc. cit., 31 f.
70. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 28, 35, 38; Pastoral Constitution on
the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 43; Decree on the Missionary
Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 11-12.
71. Cf. Paul VI, Encyclical Letter Populorum Progressio
(March 26, 1967), 21, 42: AAS 59 (1967), 267f, 278.
72. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 27:
loc. cit., 23.
73. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 13.
74. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
15: loc. cit., 13-15; Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 13-14.
75. Cf. Encyclical Letter Dominum et Vivificantem, 42, 64:
loc. cit., 857-859, 892-894.
76. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
60: loc. cit., 50f.
77. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 6-9.
78. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 2; cf. Dogmatic Constitution on
the Church Lumen Gentium, 9.
79. Cf. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, Chapter III, 19-22.
80. Ibid., 15.
81. Ibid., 6.
82. Ibid., 15; cf. Decree on Ecumenism Unitatis
Redintegratio, 3.
83. Cf. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 58: loc.
cit., 46-49.
84. Extraordinary Assembly of 1985, Final Report, II, C, 6.
85. Ibid., II, D, 4.
86. Cf. Apostolic Exhortation Catechesi Tradendae (October
16, 1979), 53: AAS 71 (1979), 1320; Encyclical Epistle Slavorum Apostoli (June
2, 1985), 21: AAS 77 (1985), 802f.
87. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
20: loc. cit., 18f.
88. Address to the Bishops of Zaire, Kinshasa, May 3, 1980,
4-6: AAS 72 (1980), 432-435; Address to the Bishops of Kenya, Nairobi, May 7,
1980, 6: AAS 72 (1980), 497; Address to the Bishops of India, Delhi, February
1, 1986, 5: AAS 78 (1986), 748f; Homily at Cartagena, July 6, 1986, 7-8: AAS 79
(1987), 105f; cf. also Encyclical Epistle Slavorum Apostoli, 21-22; loc. cit.,
802-804.
89. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 22.
90. Cf. ibid.
91. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
64: loc. cit., 55.
92. Ibid., 63: loc. cit., 53: Particular Churches "have
the task of assimilating the essence of the Gospel message and of transposing
it, without the slightest betrayal of its essential truth, into the language
that these people understand, then of proclaiming it in this language.... And
the word ‘language' should be understood here less in the semantic or literary
sense than in the sense which one may call anthropological or cultural."
93. Cf. Address at the General Audience of April 13, 1988:
Insegnamenti XI/I (1988), 877-881.
94. Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris Consortio, (November
22, 1981), 10: AAS 74 (1982), 91, which speaks of inculturation "in the
context of marriage and the family."
95. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
63-65: loc. cit., 53-56.
96. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution
on the Church Lumen Gentium, 17.
97. Address to those participating in the Symposium of
African Bishops at Kampala, July 31, 1969, 2: AAS 61 (1969), 577.
98. Paul VI, Address at the opening of the Second Session of
the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, September 29, 1963: AAS 55 (1963), 858;
cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Declaration on the Church's Relation to
Non-Christian Religions Nostra Aetate, 2; Dogmatic Constitution on the Church
Lumen Gentium, 16; Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes,
9; Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 53: loc. cit. 41f.
99. Cf. Paul VI, Encyclical Letter Ecclesiam Suam (August 6,
1964): AAS 56 (1964), 609-659; Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 11, 41; Secretariat for
Non-Christians, Document L'atteggiamento della Chiesa di fronte ai seguaci di
altre religioni: Riflessioni e orientamenti su dialogo e missione (September 4,
1984): AAS 76 (1984), 816-828.
100. Letter to the Fifth Plenary Assembly of Asian Bishops'
Conferences (June 23, 1990), 4: L'Osservatore Romano, July 18, 1990.
101. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution
on the Church Lumen Gentium, 14; cf. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the
Church Ad Gentes, 7.
102. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on
Ecumenism Unitatis Redintegratio, 3; Decree on the Missionary Activity of the
Church Ad Gentes, 7.
103. Cf. Encyclical Letter Redemptor Hominis, 12: loc. cit.,
279.
104. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 11, 15 .
105. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Declaration on the
Church's Relation to Non-Christian Religions Nostra Aetate, 2.
106. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 35: loc.
cit., 458.
107. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 41.
108. Encyclical Letter Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (December
30, 1987), 41: AAS 80 (1988), 570f.
109. Documents of the Third General Conference of Latin
American Bishops, Puebla (1979), 3760 (1145).
110. Address to Clergy and Religious, Jakarta, October 10,
1989, 5: L'Osservatore Romano, October 11, 1989.
111. Cf. Paul VI, Encyclical Letter Populorum Progressio,
14-21, 40-42: loc. cit., 264-268, 277f; John Paul II, Encyclical Letter
Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, 27-41: loc. cit., 547-572.
112. Cf. Encyclical Letter Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, 28:
loc. cit., 548-550.
113. Cf. ibid. , Chapter IV, 27-34: loc. cit., 547-560; Paul
VI, Encyclical Letter Populorum Progressio, 19-21, 41-42: loc. cit., 266-268,
277f.
114. Address to the residents of "Favela Vidigal"
in Rio de Janeiro, July 2, 1980, 4: AAS 72 (1980), 854.
115. Documents of the Third General Conference of Latin
American Bishops, Puebla, (1979), 3757 (1142).
116. Isaac of Stella, Sermon 31, PL 194, 1793.
117. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 20.
118. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 35: loc.
cit., 458.
119. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 38.
120. Address to Cardinals and those associated in the work
of the Roman Curia, Vatican City and the Vicariate of Rome, June 28, 1980, 10:
Insegnamenti, III/1 (1980), 1887.
121. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 23.
122. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 38.
123. Ibid., 29.
124. Cf. ibid., 38.
125. Ibid., 30.
126. Documents of the Third General Conference of Latin
American Bishops, Puebla (1979): 2941 (368).
127. Cf. Norms for the Cooperation of the Local Churches
Among Themselves and especially for a Better Distribution of the Clergy in the
World Postquam Apostoli (March 25, 1980): AAS 72 (1980), 343-364.
128. Cf. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, Chapter IV, 23-27.
129. Ibid., 23.
130. Ibid.
131. Ibid., 23, 27.
132. Cf. Sacred Congregation for Religious and Secular
Institutes and Sacred Congregation for Bishops, Directives for Mutual Relations
between Bishops and Religious in the Church Mutuae Relationes (May 14, 1978),
14b: AAS 70 (1978), 482; cf. n. 28: loc. cit., 490.
133. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 27.
134. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Ministry and Life of Priests Presbyterorum Ordinis, 10; cf. Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 39.
135. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on Priestly
Formation Optatam Totius, 20: cf. "Guide de la vie pastorale pour les
pretres diocesains des Eglises qui dependent de la Congregation pour
l'Evangélisation des Peuples," Rome, 1989.
136. Address to the Plenary Assembly of the Congregation for
the Evangelization of Peoples, April 14, 1989, 4: AAS 81 (1989), 1140.
137. Message for World Mission Day, 1982: Insegnamenti V/2
(1982), 1879.
138. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 38; Sacred Congregation for the
Clergy, Norms Postquam Apostoli, 24-25: loc. cit., 361.
139. Cf. Sacred Congregation for the Clergy, Norms Postquam
Apostoli, 29: loc. cit., 362f; Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 20.
140. CIC, c. 783.
141. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 40.
142. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi,
69: loc. cit., 58f.
143. Apostolic Letter Mulieris Dignitatem (August 15, 1988),
20: AAS 80 (1988), 1703.
144. Cf. Pius XII, Encyclical Letter Evangelii Praecones:
loc. cit., 510ff; Encyclical Letter Fidei Donum: loc. cit., 228ff; John XXIII,
Encyclical Letter Princeps Pastorum: loc. cit., 855ff; Paul VI, Apostolic
Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 70-73: loc. cit., 59-63.
145. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 35: loc.
cit., 457.
146. Cf. Encyclical Letter Evangelii Praecones: loc. cit.,
510-514.
147. Cf. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium,
17, 33ff.
148. Cf. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 35-36, 41.
149. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 14: loc.
cit., 410.
150. CIC, c. 225, 1; cf. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity Apostolicam
Actuositatem, 6, 13.
151. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 31; cf.
CIC, c. 225, 2.
152. Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 70:
loc. cit., 60.
153. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 35: loc.
cit., 458.
154. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes,
17.
155. Apostolic Exhortation Catechesi Tradendae, 66: loc.
cit., 1331.
156. Cf. c. 785, 1.
157. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 17.
158. Cf. Plenary Assembly of the Sacred Congregation for the
Evangelization of Peoples, 1969, on catechists, and the related
"Instruction" of April 1970: Bibliographia Missionaria 34 (1970),
197-212 and S. C. de Propaganda Fide Memoria Rerum, III/2 (1976), 821-831.
159. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes,
28.
160. Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus (June 28, 1988),
85: AAS 80 (1988), 881; cf. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes,
29.
161. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 29: Cf. John Paul II, Apostolic
Constitution Pastor Bonus, 86: loc. cit., 882.
162. Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad
Gentes, 31.
163. Cf. ibid., 33.
164. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Letter Motu Proprio Ecclesiae
Sanctae (August 6, 1966), II, 43: AAS 58 (1966), 782.
165. Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 34; Paul VI, Apostolic Letter Motu
Proprio Ecclesiae Sanctae, III, 22: loc. cit., 787.
166. Second Vatican
Ecumenical Council, Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes,
35; cf. CIC, cc. 211, 781.
167. Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris Consortio, 54: loc.
cit., 147.
168. Cf. Paul VI, Apostolic Epistle Graves et Increscentes
(September 5, 1966): AAS 58 (1966), 750-756.
169. P Manna, Le nostre "Chiese" e la propagazione
del vangelo, Trentola Ducenta, 1952 2, p. 35.
170. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 38.
171. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 13.
172. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Missionary Activity of the Church Ad Gentes, 24.
173. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree on the
Ministry and Life of Priests Presbyterorum Ordinis, 14.
174. Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles Laici, 17: loc.
cit., 419.
175. Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen Gentium, 1.
176. Cf. Address at CELAM Meeting, Port-au-Prince, March 9,
1983: AAS 75 (1983), 771-779; Homily for the Opening of the "Novena of
Years" promoted by CELAM, Santo Domingo, October 12, 1984: Insegnamenti
VII/2 (1984), 885-897.
177. Encyclical Letter Redemptoris Mater (March 25, 1987),
2: AAS 79 (1987), 362f.
178. Ibid., 22: loc. cit., 390.
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