In paragraphs 111 through 114, our Holy Father dwells on the mystery of the Church as the People of God engaged in the task given us by Jesus immediately before his return to the Father. Sometimes referred to as the Great Commission, Jesus instructed his disciples to baptize people of all nations in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Unfortunately, because of the hierarchical nature of the Church, there are those who look at this commission as something which has been given to a particular group of people in the Church; namely, the clergy. As baptized Christians, they have come to understand that their task is to "save themselves" while the clergy continue to preach the Gospel and make converts of those who receive the message. The Holy Father takes issue with this kind of thinking as he makes it clear that the task of evangelization is everyone's commission.
First of all, he reminds us that we cannot possible save ourselves. The salvation which God offers us is the work of his mercy. No human efforts, however good they may be, can enable us to merit so great a gift. God, by his sheer grace, draws us to himself and makes us one with him. (Evangelii Gaudium, 112) God has taken the initiative to show us the mercy that defines God. We cannot merit it. We cannot earn it. We cannot procure it for ourselves. Nothing that we do will make us worthy of God's gratuitous gift of forgiveness. All of the good works we could possibly do will not save us. We have been saved by our faith in God's Son, Jesus.
Then the Holy Father goes on to remind us that having been saved by Jesus, we have been sent to spread this Good News to those who have yet to hear and believe. We are to do this through the formation of relationships, in particular the relationship of those who believe together. This community of believers is called the Church. Thus the Church becomes the sacrament through which we share that which has been freely given to us.
This is precisely why we come together on a weekly basis to worship. We cannot be and are not saved by ourselves as individuals. We are saved by faith which implies that we are in relationship with every other believer. We have all heard those who say that they don't need to go to Church to worship, to pray, to commune with God. They are mistaken. We need one another. We are a community of faith. Those who deny they need the Church deprive themselves of the graces available through the Church as well as denying the other members of the Church the fruits of their faith.
The Holy Father concludes this section by offering his image of the Church: Being Church means being God's people, in accordance with the great plan of his fatherly love. This means that we are to be God's leaven in the midst of humanity. It means proclaiming and bringing God's salvation into our world, which often goes astray and needs to be encouraged, given hope and strengthened on the way. The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel. (Evangelii Gaudium, 114.)
Herein lies the task of evangelization. When we form such a Church, we are participating in the task which Jesus has given to all of us.
Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator