A reflection on The Joy of the Gospel

We must let go of the fears, embrace Christ and radical change. Especially at this time in the life of the Church in Malaysia it is very easy to become pessimistic.

Aug 22, 2014

Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel, has rocked the world with his call for solidarity with the poor and many more.

Archbishop Emeritus Soter Fernandez gives his personal reflection on how we can be missionaries according to the Joy of the Gospel in our lives.

We must let go of the fears, embrace Christ and radical change. Especially at this time in the life of the Church in Malaysia it is very easy to become pessimistic. Situations and things don’t look at all promising. We can stand back and say: “Things are not what they used to be.” Alternatively we can ask ourselves: “How can we shape the future to meet the real needs?” Fear of change is the most insidious fear of all. When Jesus appeared among his disciples after the resurrection he was calling on them, not just to change their thinking, but to change it radically. The Jesus of history had gone.

The risen Christ was challenging them to create a new dynamic history, free from fear. That was some challenge for the disciples then. It is the same for us now. We have to be the Church of today, meeting every challenge that lies ahead. We can’t afford to get stuck. When the disciples let go of their fears, they were able to move forward.

Can we move forward free from fear? We have to answer that question, individually, as disciples, and collectively, as faith communties (BECs). History will be our judge. Lets hope that we won’t be judged and found wanting.

Here are some excerpts from Evangelii Gaudium which Archbishop Emeritus Soter Fernandez finds benficial.

A Church which goes forth
Each Christian and every community must discern the path that the Lord points out, but all of us are asked to obey his call to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the “peripheries” in need of the light of the Gospel (20).

An ecclesial renewal which cannot be deferred
I dream of a “missionary option”, that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church’s customs, ways of doing things, times and schedules, language and structures can be suitably channelled for the evangelization of today’s world rather than for her self preservation... (27).

Pastoral ministry in a missionary key seeks to abandon the complacent attitude that says; “We have always done it this way.” I invite everyone to be bold and creative in this task of rethinking the goals, structures, style and methods of evangelization in their respective communities. A proposal of goals without adequate communal search for the means of achieving them will inevitably prove illusory. I encourage everyone to apply the guidelines found in this document generously and courageously without inhibitions or fear. The important thing is to not walk alone, but to rely on each other as brothers and sisters, and especially under the leadership of the bishops, in a wise and realistic pastoral discernment (33).

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