Evangelize?

Jesus said to his Apostles: "Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves. But beware of men, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 

Brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to another. Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes." (Matthew 10:16-23)

Essentially, Jesus is warning his Apostles that following him is extremely risky.  Follow at your own risk because the wolves will lurk in the woods while waiting for an opportunity to pounce.  Worse than the “wolves” will be men angry at their words about mercy and forgiveness because Temple sacrifices for forgiveness were no longer necessary.  Confronting the ruling classes and powerful men such as priests and governors will lead to scourging or worse.  

I wonder at the Apostles’ reaction to Jesus’ do not be afraid “comforting” remark: “When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”  Was that a big confidence booster?  Must have been since they all went forth even knowing that they would be hated because of his name and their brothers would hand them over to death, according to Jesus.  Not much of a pep talk.

Our Church asks us to evangelize.  We are urged to do so.  Obviously, we don’t risk death.  However, we risk the death of our relationships with those who find our religion intolerant and, for example, not supportive of people classified as LGBTQ, all God’s children created in God’s image.

Unfortunately, Catholics as a group have been called “wolf-like” by those aghast at many of our positions and policies – not to mention our Catechism with its stated belief that there is no salvation outside the Catholic Church, notwithstanding a few exceptions.  For those wondering why people, including Catholics, might feel this why, I encourage you to read Brian McLaren’ superb 2022 book “Do I Stay Christian? A Guide for the Doubters, the Disappointed, and the Disillusioned.”  He gives many reasons why he, and we, must remain Christian despite our Churches many faults and failures.

Deacon David Pierce