On a mission from God

Pope Francis, in his 2013 apostolic exhortation "The Joy of the Gospel" ("Evangelii Gaudium"), says that the church, the people of God, is called to go forth and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to all the world. In order to do this, all of the baptized must see themselves as "missionary disciples" (No. 120), re-creating the missionary zeal of Jesus' first disciples.

Aug 31, 2017

By Daniel S. Mulhall
Pope Francis, in his 2013 apostolic exhortation "The Joy of the Gospel" ("Evangelii Gaudium"), says that the church, the people of God, is called to go forth and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to all the world. In order to do this, all of the baptized must see themselves as "missionary disciples" (No. 120), re-creating the missionary zeal of Jesus' first disciples.

To understand what it means to be a missionary disciple, a good place to start is with the stories that come to us from the early church. Both the Acts of the Apostles and the epistles tell us much about the missionary dynamism experienced in the early years after Jesus' death and resurrection.

The first missionary disciple was Mary Magdalene, who after seeing the risen Jesus in the garden ran to find the other disciples to proclaim the good news that Jesus had indeed risen (Mt 28:1-10; Jn 20:11-18). Jesus tells Mary, "Do not be afraid" (Mt 28:10), good advice for all disciples.

After the disciples received the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4) they took the good news of Jesus out into the world. Peter, as presented in Acts 2:14-41, so enthralled the crowd with his preaching that about 3,000 people were baptized that day. Acts 3-4 tells of Peter's willingness to proclaim the message of Jesus to powerful groups even after they tell him to be quiet.

The first disciple to be put to death for proclaiming the Gospel was the deacon, Stephen. He was stoned for proclaiming a message about Jesus that challenged people's attitudes and beliefs. Most of the apostles and many of the early disciples were put to death for proclaiming Jesus.

Perhaps the most effective missionary disciple -- and certainly the most famous -- was St. Paul. Acts describes the three missionary journeys of Paul and his companions Barnabas, Silas and Timothy. See Acts 13-21 for specific details of these journeys.

So, what can we learn about being missionary disciples from these early disciples?

First, the message Jesus gave to Mary Magdalene, "Do not be afraid." One has to be brave to proclaim the Gospel in the face of possible rejection, violence and even death.

Second, to understand that as disciples we are sent by the larger Christian community. We go because we are compelled by our faith, not because we seek fame or fortune. While we probably won't have Philip's experience of being sent by an angel (Acts 8), we will still be moved to action by the Holy Spirit.

Third, in our proclamation we offer to others what the church believes and teaches, not our own personal ideas. St. Paul had to learn what it meant to follow Jesus before beginning his missionary journeys. Likewise, we have to prepare ourselves for the task at hand. If we are to proclaim the good news of Jesus, we must first understand it and love it deeply.

That's what it means to be a missionary disciple.--CNS