Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. – Martin Luther King Jr.
In his recent homily, Pope Francis recommends an approach to evangelization that is so radical, it is sure to make all comfortable Catholics cringe. Brace yourselves: it actually involves—gasp!—talking about Religion, even if that makes us seem annoying!
I know, I know. No one wants to be that Christian, the buzz kill who somehow manages to “ruin” everything with religion. Who needs religion when you can simply be a nice person? People like nice people. Who would ever dare to be considered pushy, repetitive, or, worst of all, intolerant? That would just drive people away! Let’s not kid ourselves: when it comes to speaking the Truth, there is far more at stake here than your prized congeniality.
The greatest tactic used against us is the numbing belief that we are not in the middle of an epic battle. I read recently in a brilliant work of fiction that “the prize [the devil] is after is no less than to seduce all mankind into his rebellion … and to do it in the name of the good.”
Everyone is looking around for a warped version of peace, which is really a bloody war against logic: “Everyone is right, every opinion is right.” This is also to say “no one is right.”
I’d venture to say that more people are concerned with silencing the alarms than they are with putting out the fire.
Let’s not be afraid to share the Church’s teachings on controversial issues. Let us not be afraid to introduce our friends to Jesus. Let us not be afraid to love others with the Truth, no matter how “annoying” that truth may seem.