Evangelization Belongs to Us All

With the publication on October 11, 2011 of his Apostolic Letter Porta Fidei (The Door of Faith), Pope Benedict XVI announced that, beginning on October 11, 2012 and concluding on the Feast of Christ the King on November 24, 2013, the Church is called to celebrate a Year of Faith with special emphasis on the work of evangelization.

The choice of October 11 is significant.  It marks the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, and the twentieth anniversary of the publication of The Catechism of the Catholic Church.  In addition, the theme of the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to be held in October 2012 is “The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith.” 

Usually, when we hear the word, evangelization, we think of missionaries, in foreign countries, bringing the Gospel message to those who have never heard it.  This has been the essence of missionary activity from the beginning of the Church; something that we hear over and over again in the Acts of the Apostles during the Easter season.  However, we may need to focus our sights just a little closer to home.

When we hear the statistic that only seventeen percent of Catholics in the Archdiocese of Boston attend Sunday Mass on a regular basis, it is a clear indication that Boston is, once again, mission territory.  At the entrance to our offices in Braintree is the portable desk used by Bishop Cheverus, the first Bishop of Boston.  The presence of Bishop Cheverus’ desk is a powerful reminder of the hardships and challenges endured by the first missionaries in New England as they preached the Gospel.  They are the same challenges faced daily by priests, Religious, and lay missionaries supported by The Society for the Propagation of the Faith around the world.

During this Year of Faith may we rekindle that same fiery sprit of evangelization that animated Boston’s early Catholic community and open the door of faith in order to guide our own brothers and sisters through it to a new experience of life in Christ.

-Rev. Rodney J. Copp, JCL