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In our day, what has
happened to that hidden energy of the Good News, which is able to have a
powerful effect on man's conscience?" (Evangelii Nuntiandi, Pope
Paul VI, #4)
"I must proclaim the
Good News of the kingdom of God." Luke
4:43
You will do the
works I do and even greater. cf. John
14:12.
In a "Declaration of
the Synod Fathers" in October 1974, and repeated by Pope Paul VI in his
apostolic exhortation, "Evangelii Nuntiandi," #14, we hear, "We wish to
confirm once more that the task of evangelizing all peoples constitutes
the essential mission of the church." This is the church's deepest
identity; she exists in order to evangelize. The church is born of
the evangelizing activity of Jesus and the twelve. (#15) "Day by
day the Lord added to their community those destined to be
saved." Acts 2:47.
For the church,
evangelizing means bringing the Good News into all the strata of humanity
and through its influence transforming humanity from within and making it
new. (#18) "Now I am making the whole of creation new."
Rev. 21:5.
Above all the gospel
must be proclaimed by witness. (#21) Love, which is caring for the
other, exemplifies the Christian life and love can be irresistible to
anyone living in darkness. There was a significant time in my
life when, by grace, I realized I had been a Christian spectator, looking
and loving the drama, but not involved in a real way as a participant
whose sleeves are rolled up, steeped in the living-out of this call.
Visiting a neighborhood Bible study
brought about the grace of conversion in my life. |
We are strongly hearing
the Holy Spirit encouraging us to provide opportunities for our family
members, neighbors, friends, and/or coworkers to discover their identity
as sons and daughters of God through sharing in God's word. We have
a new tool, a book called Paul's Letter to the Romans, which we are
offering as a bible study opportunity. We suggest "Bible Coffees" as
a way to evangelize and bring the good news to people right where we live
and work. For an hour or so a week, these "Bible Coffees" will be
doing the very work of evangelizing referred to above.
The DCCR will be presenting a
one-day facilitator class on Saturday August 27, 2005, from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00
P.M., at the DCCR Center on the grounds of Manresa Jesuit Retreat House, for those who hear this call to
facilitate a bible study, and we will continue to provide opportunities
for training for future facilitators as the need arises.
We believe in keeping it
simple; aware of our busy schedules, we can carve out a time and place for
sharing Scripture with our family, neighbors, coworkers and/or
friends. We hold a treasure that needs to be
shared.
We will provide you with
invitations to send to prospective participants, and we have the book,
Paul's Letter to the Romans, available at the Center for $5.00
each, to get started on the "Bible Coffees." Call the DCCR Center
(1-248-593-4888)
for more information and to register for the training
class.
"Never give in then,
my dear brothers, never admit defeat; keep on working at the Lord's work
always, knowing that, in the Lord, you cannot be laboring in
vain." 1 Cor. 15:58.
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