A middle-aged Protestant named Keith was visiting his dying father in a Catholic hospital, sitting quietly in a corner of the room, overcome with helplessness and grief. A Catholic nun came into the room, nodded at him, then went to the dying manโs side; she picked up his hand, patted it, and gently asked, โCan you hear me?โ Keithโs father nodded his head, and she continued, โHave you ever accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?,โ and when he shook his head โNo,โ she asked, โWould you like to do this?โ With almost his last breath, the man eagerly replied, โOh, yes!โ Thereupon the sister asked him to repeat after her, โI accept you, Jesus Christ, as my Lord and Savior.โ The man did this in what turned out to be his dying words (Link, Illustrated Sunday Homilies, Year A, Series I, p. 44). Keith was overwhelmed by what he witnessed, and different emotions were competing in his heart: grief that his father was gone, but joy and gratitude that he had accepted Christ as his Savior. Then a haunting question occurred to him: why had it taken a complete stranger, a Catholic nun, to speak to his father of Jesus Christ? Why hadnโt he, a committed Christian, ever spoken to his dad of the gift of salvation?
Keithโs question, I suspect, is one that could be asked by many Christiansโperhaps by many of us. Sometimes weโre too quick to assume that, because weโre committed followers of Jesus, so is everyone else we know. This might be a charitable assumption on our part, but it isnโt always an accurate one. There are people in our community whoโve never been baptized, people whoโve been baptized as Protestants but who might want to become Catholic, and baptized peopleโboth Protestant and Catholicโwho arenโt taking their faith seriously and who donโt really have Jesus as the Lord of their lives. Itโs entirely possible Jesus is calling us to be the ones who help change this situation, for as His followers, we are commissioned by Him to be His witnesses in the world and to help share the Good News of salvation.
When it comes to evangelization, I think most Christians today look upon the Gospel not in terms of โgood news,โ but in terms of a โworking assumptionโ: they assume that evangelization is something to be done in missionary lands, andโlike Keithโthey assume the people around them, including their loved ones, have already heard and responded to the Gospel. Jesus made no such assumption; He commissioned His followers to go and โmake disciples of all the nations,โ teaching people to observe all that He commanded us. (Mt 28:16-20) We must not take the Gospel for granted; we must not assume everyone automatically knows what to do in order to be saved. Instead, our working assumption should be that every day weโll be given some chance to bear witness to Christ, and that our words, prayers, and example of faith are always necessary and important. St. Paul (Eph 1:17-23) prays ย that the eyes of our hearts be enlightenedโand if this prayer is to be fulfilled, weโll recognize the need to do our part in sharing Christโs Good News. As the angels said to the apostles after Christ ascended, โWhy are you standing there looking at the sky?โโin other words, โGet busy with your mission.โ This same summons is given to us.
In the summer itโs not unusual to see people with fishing rods standing along the shore casting their lines. Most are trying to catch fish, but there are some who seem concerned only with casting their line farther than anyone else. In fact, Ripleyโs โBelieve It Or Not!โ once told of a champion bait-and-fly caster who had never caught a single fish! It makes just as little sense for a Christian to show no concern, or make no effort, to bring others to Christ (Knightโs Master Book of 4000 Illustrations, p. 735).
When Jesus returned to heaven, He commanded His followers to carry on His work. Each one of us is included in this expectation, and there are many ways we can fulfill it. For instance, if a relative, neighbor, or co-worker has a problem and weโre expressing our sympathy and support, we might also ask, โWould you like me to pray for you?,โ or even, โWould you like me to pray with you right now?โ If someone we know is going through a difficult time, or seems lonely or confused, we might invite him or her to come with us to church, or give a small gift like a blessed crucifix or rosary or prayer book, or send a message of support that quotes an appropriate Scripture verse. If we hear someone question or attack the Churchโs teachings, we can speak up in defense of our faith; if we read something in the newspaper that unfairly criticizes our Catholic beliefs and practices, we can write a letter that strongly and respectfully defends Christโs Church. In order for us to share and defend our faith, of course, we must be knowledgeable about it, and this might mean taking a Bible study course, or reading more about the Churchโs history and teachingsโand in the process of doing this, we might come across something interesting or useful that we could share with someone else. There are many wonderful Catholic religious books and booklets, magazines, radio shows, websites, and other such resources; we might share information on, or copies of, such things with loved onesโperhaps by giving someone a gift subscription to a Catholic magazine, or by giving a good Catholic book as a graduation present to a young person, or by enclosing a holy card or prayer card when we send someone birthday greetings. In addition to all these hands-on efforts, our prayers and financial support for the Churchโs missionary activities remains an ongoing and important responsibility for us as Catholics.
Unlike Keith, we shouldnโt assume people have heard the Gospel and accepted Christ into their hearts; we should be like the nun who was willing to make sure, and whose efforts possibly changed a manโs destiny by helping him die in a state of grace. Jesus stated that He was sending His followers to be His witnesses โto the ends of the earth.โ For some Christians, that means going to far-distant lands, but for most of us it involves recognizing and responding to the opportunities all around us that weโre given in everyday life. Instead of thinking someone else will handle the mission of evangelization, our working assumption must be that we personally have an important role to play in Godโs plan of salvationโand if we ask for His guidance and help, Heโll provide us with opportunities and blessings that fill us with wonder and gratitude and joy.