While we have been inundated in recent years with reports of disaffiliation of former Catholics occurring at surprisingly young ages, or large numbers of Catholics who are unsure about fundamental teachings of the Church, like the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, the news is not all bleak. 

Over the past few years, the Church has begun to see a steady increase in people, largely young people, becoming Catholic or at least exhibiting openness to faith. The “harvest is abundant,” but are we willing to do the labor? Seeing these large increases globally is a positive sign that more laborers are at work, harvesting those whose openness to faith has ripened. Yet, there is no time for us to rest on our laurels, because as long as there are people who have not come to know Christ’s love, there is plenty of work to do. More and more laborers are necessary to get it done.

Over the last year, we have reflected on our call to Proclaim the Faith. We spent quite a bit of time reflecting on what it is that we are to proclaim. In doing so, we looked in detail at the various elements of the kerygma and how each element and the whole taken together are indeed “Good News.” In recent months, we have looked at our call to be authentic witnesses by both word and action. Now as we begin to look ahead to the upcoming next phase of our Via Fidelis journey, it is a fitting time to reflect on the work of evangelization. The “sending of the 72” (Lk 10:1-12), which we mentioned above, gives some guidance as to what this work looks like for us.

First of all, the 72 are told to “carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way” (Lk 10:4). There is both a sense of urgency and reliance on God communicated in this message. The call to share the Gospel is pressing and must be attended to without delay. We are sent out as missionaries, not as tourists. However, even though we are not to get sidetracked by greeting people “along the way,” we are called to give a greeting of peace to those to whom we are sent and to accept their hospitality (Lk 10:5-7). This may appear to be a curious command. 

In this short passage, Jesus twice commands those he is sending out to eat whatever is offered to them (Lk 10:7-8). In his main directive, Jesus tells the 72, “Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you’” (Lk 10:8-9).

So, our calling is to “eat,” “heal” and “proclaim.” Prefacing the call to evangelize with the tasks of “eating” and “curing” is significant. Whenever we share a meal with others, we are sharing the elements of life. After all, we need to eat in order to live. But also, whenever we accept the hospitality of another, we are accepting that individual’s gift of self. Accepting hospitality is a sign of embracing and affirming the one who offers it. In essence, the command to “eat” here is a command to enter into the life and company of those to whom we are sent.

The command to eat is followed by the command to “cure” or “heal.” If we genuinely enter into the reality of the one to whom we are proclaiming the Good News, then we must first listen to and attend to his or her needs. Sometimes our calling is to bring physical healing, but often our calling is to bring the love and attentiveness of Christ the Healer into the lives of those to whom we are sent.

By these two commands, we see that the task of evangelization is not a momentary action, but a lingering duty. We are called to become involved and interested in the lives of those we are evangelizing. This “involvement” may have varying degrees. It is not meant to be intrusiveness or unwelcome self-assertion; note that in the passage, it is the response to invitation. But, it is a gentle receptiveness and a genuine attitude of care for the good of the other.

It is after these two commands that Christ asks the 72 to proclaim the kingdom of God. The explicit proclamation of the Gospel takes place only after we have an understanding of those to whom we are giving the message. Thinking back on the various elements of the message that we have explored together this year, it is helpful to understand the lives of those we are evangelizing; it may help us to understand the elements of the message that they most need to hear. Better yet, it allows us to understand how they need to hear it.

So, let us strive to respond to this great calling to “eat,” “heal” and “proclaim” because the harvest is abundant!