Catechetical Sunday 2012 What Is New About the New Evangelization

Catechetical Sunday 2012: What Is New About the New Evangelization? by  Fr. James A. Wehner, STD Rector/President of the Pontifical College Josephinum 

The “new” in the New Evangelization does not mean a new Gospel but new fervor, new methods, and new expression to proclaim the timeless truth of Christ. It calls Catholics to:

• Deep personal conversion
• Clear Catholic identity
• Engagement with culture
• Lifelong formation
• Evangelization within and beyond the Church

1.Evangelization as an Ecclesial Act

• Evangelization is the mission of the entire Church, rooted in each person’s vocation and guided by the Magisterium.
• The Gospel proclaimed today must be the same Gospel preached by the apostles.
• Every Christian must discern how the Holy Spirit has gifted them for mission.
• Evangelization is never an individualistic effort detached from the Church; it leads people into the Church, not away from it.

2.Evangelization as Mission

• The Church’s essential mission is to bring the Gospel to all people in all situations, as reiterated by Vatican II and Evangelii Nuntiandi.
• Despite historical challenges—persecution, false teaching, schisms—the deposit of faith remains intact through the Church’s indefectibility and Magisterial interpretation.
• Evangelization requires discerning how to apply the unchanging Gospel to the new realities of human life and history.

3.Development of the New Evangelization

• First used by Latin American bishops (1968) to address social and political upheaval.
• Adopted and expanded by St. John Paul II, especially in response to:
  • Communist oppression
  • Secularism
  • Doctrinal confusion
  • Large numbers of Catholics leaving the Church
• The New Evangelization aims not only to reach the unbaptized but also to reawaken baptized Catholics who no longer practice the faith.
• John Paul II identified two main methods: inculturation and catechesis.

4.Evangelization through Inculturation

• Inculturation means bringing the Gospel into culture and allowing culture to express the Gospel’s beauty.
• Culture and faith are meant to enrich each other; when separated:
  • Faith becomes abstract or superstitious.
  • Culture becomes chaotic or ideological.
• The Church responds to cultural crises (e.g., secularism) by reasserting the dignity of the human person and the truth of the Gospel.

5.Evangelization as Lifelong Catechesis

• Catholics cannot evangelize effectively unless they understand and can articulate their faith.
• Catechesis must be lifelong and intentional; faith cannot be assumed.
• Recent major catechetical resources (CCC 1992, GDC 1997, NDC 2005, USCCA 2006, YouCat) are tools to strengthen this dimension.
• A lack of formation has led to gaps in living out moral teachings, especially in areas like sexuality, marriage, and ethics.

6. The New Evangelization: Freedom of Faith

• Pope Benedict XVI notes the crisis of Christian culture losing its identity through secular humanism.
• New laws and societal pressures silence Christian witness.
• The Church works to protect:
  • Freedom of faith
  • The integrity of natural law
  • The Church’s role in public life
• Evangelization is not cultural destruction but the offering of a truth that leads to human flourishing and peace.

What-is-New-About-Evangelization-2.pdf