Fr. Albert
“Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart.” Have you ever been cut to the heart? You hear something so true, so brutally honest about yourself that you just have to say “you’re right?” It’s not easy to cut to another person’s heart. You have to speak an objective truth, but to speak it directly to the person. It must reach through to their subjective and personal experience in some way.
What do you think? Are people “cut to the heart” by Jesus and his teachings today? Is the Church relevant to people’s lives? If you look at the numbers: baptisms, weddings, and even funerals… they’ve gone down just about every year in just about every diocese in the country. Americans seem think that the Church simply doesn’t matter.
Peter preached to 3000 people who, a few weeks before, were ready to kill him just like they killed Jesus. Was Peter irrelevant? What about his message? Evidently not. They were cut to the heart, they repented, and most importantly, they joined the institutional church. They didn’t just applaud Peter’s public speaking skills, they didn’t just give him props, likes on Facebook, retweets, or shares. They were cut to heart, they asked what to do, and Peter told them to be baptized. Baptism is a sacrament and the official entrance into the Church. Not only was Peter’s speech relevant to these people, his Church was too.
But all of it, the whole process of becoming relevant depends on those present being “cut to the heart.” Yet, even the act of cutting to their hearts requires what is probably the most difficult part. “They heard” what Peter said. That means that Peter actually bothered to speak to them about Jesus Christ. It also means that he spoke in a way that they understood and that struck a chord with them.
“But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep… and the sheep hear his voice.” Jesus Christ is the good shepherd who calls his sheep. He is always calling to all people, but he has entrusted his voice to us. Peter only got 3000 converts because he bothered to speak. True, we usually won’t have that kind of success, but I can guarantee we will have no converts if we never speak.
Just this morning/yesterday I went walking with a few of our parishioners. We’ve been going door-to-door and inviting people to deepen or renew their faith. I know that many people find it annoying to get a surprise visit. I know that it is nerve-wracking to knock on a stranger’s door. I know that it rarely leads to a sudden conversion. But, I also know that that effort is better than nothing. For most Catholics, and I mean most Catholics, nothing is all they do for evangelization. Besides that, the visits have worked and some people have returned to the sacraments. I’ll take it.
And it’s not that everyone has to go door-to-door, but we must speak of Christ and his Church. I do wish that everyone would at least try knocking on doors. If anyone is to be cut to the heart, they have to first hear, and if they are to hear, someone must speak. Perhaps some of you are thinking of the old saying “preach the Gospel always; when necessary, use words.” It’s clever, but there’s no proof that St. Francis said that. Do you really preach the Gospel with your actions? Would someone you never spoke to know that you are a Catholic? Would they be “cut to the heart” by your radical example? To put it more directly, can you show me someone who was converted without any words?
Yes, of course we can and should speak the Gospel without words, proclaim the Gospel by our lives. But, it is necessary to use words more often than we like to admit. So how, how do we preach the Gospel? Here are four key components
First, the Holy Spirit. Peter’s preaching begins with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. For you, that means prayer to the Holy Spirit and gradually learning to recognize the ways that the Spirit nudges and prompts us to act.
Secondly, abundant life. Jesus the good shepherd says “I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” Our message should aim for people’s deepest hopes and desires. We should speak to the desire for friendship, for love, and for overcoming death. Believe it or not, our deepest desires also include being convicted of our sins and called to conversion. Most people know they are not perfect, they know they have made mistakes, and they long to be better.
Thirdly, familiarity. Christ tells us that “the shepherd calls his own sheep by name,” and that “they recognize his voice.” Having the right information, the right answers is not enough. The message must stay rooted in the Truth, but it must also be personal. This usually means being a good friend or family member, developing a relationship of simple human trust. It means being authentic and not resorting to gimmicks. It means taking an interest in the other person. One practical example is to ask questions – to take the time to learn what the other person really thinks and to use questions to lead them to a greater self-reflection. We want people to be familiar with us, but also to be more familiar with their own search for Truth.
Last of all, the sacraments. Put another way, it cannot be about you. Yes, your experience, your personality, your relationship are all important aspects of God reaching out to others, but they have to move past you. We must point others beyond ourselves to Christ himself. Peter doesn’t tell the crowd to follow him on the road or even on Twitter and Instagram. He tells them to repent and be Baptized. No one of us is enough to convert or sustain another’s soul, but the grace of God given through the whole Church is.
Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd; he is the gate, the only way to abundant life, to eternal life. And we, the Church are his body, his voice on earth. He yearns to call out… are we silencing God by keeping our mouths shut? Call out. Listen to the Holy Spirit. Speak of abundant life. Become familiar with the world’s search for truth. Use and point to the Sacraments. Call out for the world’s sake. For God’s sake, call out.