Evangelize or buy moth balls

It’s not a term Catholics are very familiar with: evangelize. But, that’s what Pope Francis is asking everyone to do – and he has good reasons for it.

Pope Francis told Catholic News Agency earlier this year that Catholic laity are hesitant to evangelize because it involves taking risks and stepping outside your comfort zone.

“Sometimes I think the best business we can do with many Christians is to sell them mothballs so that they put them in their clothes and in their lives and aren’t eaten by moths,” the Pope told CNA.

Pope Francis told the news agency many Christians “are locked up and they are going to get eaten by moths.” His message was simply that laity are staying home, stagnant, and not sharing the Good News with others.

It’s been a recurring theme throughout his papacy – evangelize.

Evangelization means for one to preach the gospel, act as an evangelist, and to convert others to Christianity.

That doesn’t mean everyone needs to be a priest. It simply means we should be willing and open to sharing our faith, why we are Christians, and why we love Jesus Christ to anyone around us and everyone we meet. After all, Jesus died for everyone – not just so we can tuck our faith and our Bible in a corner somewhere and go to Mass once a week.

I read a message this week from our priest in our newsletter that talked about evangelization. One of the statements he made stuck with me.

“Sadly, many Catholics are sacramentalized, but not evangelized,” Fr. Robbie Favazza wrote.

That couldn’t be more true. We raise children up through the sacraments and once they ‘graduate’ (are confirmed) then we lose them. In fact, only about 30 percent of Americans who were raised Catholic are still practicing the faith and about 10 percent of ALL adults in America are ex-Catholics.

Not only is it crucial for the survival of the faith and the future of our children and grandchildren, but it’s a command from Jesus Christ.

In Matthew 28: 18-20 as Jesus was preparing to ascend into heaven he gives a command to his disciples. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and behold I am with you always even to the end of the age.”

One could argue since he was speaking to the disciples that he was giving the command for priests and not for everyone. But, that would be inaccurate because the Bible is full of commands from for us to serve Him and to share His message with others.

“Give thanks to the Lord, invoke his name, make known among the peoples his deeds.” (Psalm 105:1)

“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am” I said. “Send me”. (Isaiah 6:8)

You do not need to be an excellent speaker (Moses was far from it) to tell others what God has done for you. After all, if your child was choking and a neighbor ran across the street and saved your child’s life would you tell people? Of course you would. It would be the next status update on your Facebook page, you would find a way to fit it into 140 characters on Twitter, and you would post a picture on Instagram. You would want to share the news that a neighbor saved your child’s life and how thankful you are for that neighbor.

Jesus Christ saved our souls. He died for us. He took our place. But yet, many of us act as if nothing significant ever happened and there’s nothing to tell other people.

You’ll post a picture of yourself at your favorite band’s concert, yet the mention of the homily on Sunday morning is nowhere to be found. We post pictures of our pets and our children, but the mention of the man who saved our souls and died in our place never makes an appearance on our pages. It never comes up in dinner conversations with friends or in casual conversations with the neighbors as we walk our dog.

So, how important is Jesus in your life? Are you willing to share what He has done with others?