When we look at the call from our bishops and cardinals for a New Evangelization, we see many describing this encounter with Jesus that people should have. This kind of encounter is a conversion of the heart that people appear to have once they encounter Jesus.
A great example of this kind of conversion is seen in the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:5-8. The moment Zacchaeus climbed down from the tree, he was prepared to give a huge amount of his wealth away. Jesus touched his heart and invited Himself to dine at the house of this tax collector. Why would a holy man eat with this sinner? He is fishing for souls.
In my travels, I continue to find faith-filled Catholics who are sound in their faith and solid in their teaching of the faith. Yet in the midst of their teaching there continues to be a hesitancy to place any focus on the role of the Holy Spirit, in the life of believers today. By this I mean they are presenting the authentic teachings of the Church, devoid of the life and power of the Holy Spirit. Why? I don’t understand why they teach everything else but the Holy Spirit.
Was it not the work of the Spirit, penetrating the heart of Zacchaeus, as the Lord spoke to him? Is not the call for a New Evangelization, a call for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit? If the original Pentecost story could not have been done without the Holy Spirit, why would we assume that a new renewal could occur without the Spirit?
I have a hunch that those who hold these positions are looking at the vast absence of knowledge missing from our adult Catholics. We all know that the average Catholic adult does not have an adult understanding of the Catholic Faith. So I presume that their focus is to correct the absence of that knowledge.
I agree that we should be increasing their knowledge, but we hit the same wall when they were young. They simply don’t believe the Church and her teachings are relevant to their lives, so why bother giving up precious time learning about God?
When we look at the Pentecost Event of Acts, chapter two, we see the people respond to Peter’s preaching. The text says, “… they were cut to the heart …”. This again was the work of the Holy Spirit, moving through the hearts of the individuals as the “Word of God was preached.”
So the one question I have for us to ponder is – If the people were cut to the heart and wanted to change, then why is our catechesis primarily aimed at the head? Shouldn’t we be aiming through the head to the heart? More to come…
It seems to me that the cause of this problem is that many of those faith-filled catholics doing this work have not encountered the Holy Spirit in a radical way themselves. Their approach to the faith is primarily intellectual and so they want to impart intellectual knowledge rather than the heart-knowledge that comes from an experience of the Holy Spirit, with which they are unfamiliar. I have often met such people. They have a strong faith and desire others to share it with them, but they simply don’t understand the Holy Spirit and don’t see a need for an emotional encounter with Him as a beginning point of conversion/discipleship.
Hi John, I great comment. I recognize that the Holy Spirit does lead people down that road of intellectual faith first. I wouldn’t say that it is not legitimate faith but they certainly lack the power of and passionate love of the Spirit.
drp