Franciscan at Home

In this final installment, we reflect on the most essential characteristic of an effective catechist for the new evangelization: allowing Christ to transform us through holiness of life. Among all of the words spoken during the pontificate of Blessed Paul VI, there is one phrase most often repeated today that came to prominence in one of his last letters, Evangelli Nuntiandi. It was his observation that “modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses” (41).

In this three-part series, I want to focus on a Saint of the New Evangelization who many of you will already have met in the Communion of Saints:  St.

What was it about St. Mother Teresa that gave her such broad appeal? Did she say something new about the Catholic faith, offer people some sort of entertainment, or appeal to them with her physical beauty? Anyone with even a superficial awareness of her life would know it was none of those things.

Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen vividly described the modern thirst for witnesses like Mother Teresa in his book, Remade for Happiness. He wrote, “When you see people crowding into theatres, charging cocktail bars, seeking new thrills in a spirit of restlessness, you would conclude that they have not yet found pleasure, otherwise they would not be looking for it.” One could easily add to this more modern distractions like texting, messaging friends on Snapchat, browsing Facebook, or watching the latest viral video.

During the Jubilee Year of Mercy, Pope Francis gave us much to think about, pray about, and work on. He also gave us an opportunity to gain a special plenary indulgence, by passing through a designated Holy Door and performing certain holy acts with devotion. What a great grace!

In order to teach about indulgences, we need to be able to explain them, which can be challenging.

The Word of God teaches us, clearly and beautifully, with what an eternal and infinite love our Lord Jesus Christ loves us. For us, he willingly endured the agony of the cross. When he rose again from the dead, he rose for us, taking us into his eternal embrace. We are united with him in the New Covenant. Washed in the blood and water that poured from his side on the cross, we remain his alone. This is the mystery of our holy Catholic faith, which has been handed on—vibrantly living, whole, unchanging—through all the generations since the first Easter. By our holy baptism, we become the children of this covenant of divine love. We receive the priceless gift of this faith, this transforming belief in the power of Christ’s victory over death and sin. It is the most basic content of the Word of God, graspable even by young children, that, because of God’s love, we are able to be healed by his wounds and to live in his death. And just as we have received this faith from our Mother, the Church, so also we pass it on to others, whole and intact – “Tradition” (in Latin) or “catechesis” (in Greek).

A couple of years ago, when I celebrated Confirmation at a large, working-class Hispanic parish in our Archdiocese, I was quite edified by two of the young confirmandi, who shared reflections on what their Confirmation meant to them.

As a time of immense grace, this Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis is an opportunity for the Catholic Church and for each one of us to reflect ever more completely the merciful love of the Father (Lk 6:36). Holy doors are open in every diocese throughout the world; these open doors are symbols of hope, healing, and love, and they announce the mercy of God, who is “the beating heart of the Gospel, which in its own way must penetrate the heart and mind of every person.”[1] Each of us in ministry or service to the Church must, during this time, undertake a review of our attitudes, practices, and habits so that we might be a more efficacious sign of the Father’s mercy in our own lives and the lives of others. This applies in a particular way to all those who are involved in the ministry of catechesis and have such an influential role for present generations of children and youth, in particular. I am grateful to all catechists who minister in our Catholic schools and parish religious education programs, and I would like to reflect with you on this new opportunity for the Church, especially in our mutually shared role of teaching and passing down the faith. Each of us in ministry or service to the Church must, during this time, undertake a review of our attitudes, practices, and habits so that we might be a more efficacious sign of the Father’s mercy in our own lives and the lives of others. This applies in a particular way to all those who are involved in the ministry of catechesis and have such an influential role for present generations of children and youth, in particular. I am grateful to all catechists who minister in our Catholic schools and parish religious education programs, and I would like to reflect with you on this new opportunity for the Church, especially in our mutually shared role of teaching and passing down the faith.

When news of the 5-4 decision of the Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage was announced, some said that the question had been settled. But it isn’t. Five people, no matter how prominent, cannot settle such a momentous question for a democratic nation.

There can be no greater sign of hope than the expectant mother. She is the “one who waits” for the pain and joy of childbirth. She affirms the strength of womanhood, cherishing the living hope slowly taking form in her womb, or “beneath her heart” as St. John Paul II put it in Evangelium Vitae.

Therefore, the Church sets a unique pregnant woman before us. In this issue of The Catechetical Review, focused as it is on Christ our Hope, let us turn our gaze to the one who points us all towards the Coming of the Christ through the great sign of hope: Mary Immaculate.