{"id":163553,"date":"2025-03-26T01:00:42","date_gmt":"2025-03-26T05:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/?p=163553"},"modified":"2025-03-20T22:29:36","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T02:29:36","slug":"lent-2025-day-22-the-churchs-deepest-identity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-22-the-churchs-deepest-identity\/","title":{"rendered":"Lent 2025 &#8211; Day 22 &#8211; The Church&#8217;s Deepest Identity"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"163553\" class=\"elementor elementor-163553\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div data-particle_enable=\"false\" data-particle-mobile-disabled=\"false\" class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cbf6437 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cbf6437\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-deb3cd6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"deb3cd6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<iframe class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/1BmVfqLgDMvSGExWnK3NwI?utm_source=generator\" style=\"border-radius:12px\"  width=\"100%\" height=\"152\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/iframe>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bee7262 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"bee7262\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Day 22\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>The Church\u2019s Deepest Identity<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize, that is to say, in order to preach and teach, to be the channel of the gift of grace, to reconcile sinners with God, and to perpetuate Christ\u2019s sacrifice in the Mass, which is the memorial of His death and glorious resurrection.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 St. Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 14<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you think of the Catholic Church, what\u2019s the first thing that comes to mind? For many, the Catholic Church is primarily an organization. It has a hierarchical structure that moves from a local parish priest up to a local bishop and then all the way up to the pope, the head of the Church. And all the individuals who call themselves \u201cCatholics\u201d are members of that organization, similar to the way soldiers are members of an army, or college students are members of a fraternity or a sorority.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That is true, as far as it goes. The Catholic Church is an organization, with a structured hierarchy and a wide membership. Yet to think of the Church primarily in that way is like thinking of a human being only as a skeleton holding together different muscle groups and biological systems, not as a real person. The concept is too reductive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>More Than Just an Organization<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What does this organization do? Where does it come from? Where is it going? What is its purpose? And what characterizes the Church\u2019s members? These questions point toward a more robust understanding of the Church\u2019s identity \u2014 and therefore a more robust understanding of our own identity as Catholics. And at the core of everything is the Church\u2019s mission to spread the gospel: \u201cEvangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize. . . . \u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The word evangelization can be used in many different ways, but we need to distill it down to an essential meaning in order to achieve clarity in our search for understanding the commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. Here is how the Catechism\u2019s glossary defines evangelization: \u201cthe proclamation of Christ and his gospel (Greek: evangelion) by word and the testimony of life, in fulfillment of Christ\u2019s command.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Greek word evangelion literally means \u201cgood news.\u201d From it derive the English words evangelist, which means one who proclaims the good news, and evangelize, which means to proclaim or spread the good news, and other cognates like evangelism and evangelization. The English word gospel is a translation of those terms. Just as gospel in Old English comes from two words meaning \u201cgood story,\u201d so the original Greek word comes from two words meaning \u201cgood announcement, or news.\u201d Latin adopted the Greek word itself, Latinizing it into evangelium and sometimes translated it literally into bona anuntiatio. The same Greek root gives us our word angels, the spiritual beings who often serve as God\u2019s \u201cannouncers\u201d or messengers throughout the history of salvation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the early years of Christianity, the word evangelion referred primarily to all the Church\u2019s activity of spreading and promoting the Christian faith and message (the content of the \u201cgood news\u201d). And since all Christians were involved in that activity, all Christians were evangelizers. Eventually the four authors of the written accounts of Jesus\u2019s life and ministry were referred to as Evangelists in a more technical sense, and their individual accounts were entitled Gospels (the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today these technical senses are the most well known, and unfortunately that reflects a general diminishment of the everyday Catholic\u2019s understanding of the Church\u2019s true mission. After all, if the four Evangelists have already written down the gospel definitively in the Gospels, then what\u2019s all this talk about evangelization? It\u2019s already happened, hasn\u2019t it?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>The Dynamism of Evangelization<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes and no. This particular piece of good news is more than simple information, though it includes information. The Word of God \u2014 what God speaks to us and announces to us in Jesus \u2014 is actually alive. It takes root and grows, like a seed, bearing spiritual fruit and transforming human lives, communities, and cultures. The Book of Hebrews alludes to this:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So the gospel, the good news about the salvation of sinners through God\u2019s grace and mercy, refers to something that has indeed already happened (the coming of Jesus Christ and the accomplishment of his mission on earth). But it also refers to something that is ongoing: a multi-dimensional process of spreading this grace and mercy that will continue until the very end of history, when Jesus comes again to put an end to all evil and suffering.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>The Dimensions of Evangelization<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The work of evangelization, then, the spreading of the gospel, involves three basic activities, and engaging in these activities constitutes the deepest identity of the Church. The Church\u2019s organization is at the service of these activities, of this mission that announces and promotes the good news of Jesus Christ. Here are the three dimensions or \u201cmoments\u201d of evangelization:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spreading the knowledge of Jesus Christ and his saving mission to those who have not yet heard about it. This is traditionally called the \u201cmission ad gentes,\u201d which is Latin for \u201cto the peoples.\u201d Many times, when we think of missionaries, we think of people who are primarily engaged in this work of spreading the gospel to those corners of the world that haven\u2019t yet heard it even for the first time. Though a critical dimension of evangelization, this is not the only sector of missionary activity.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instructing and initiating into the life of the Church those who have heard and accepted the gospel but are not yet mature in their faith. The traditional term most often associated with this work is catechesis (another word with Greek roots \u2014 this time the Greek origin refers to \u201cinstruction by word of mouth\u201d).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cultivation toward full spiritual maturity and fruitfulness of the seed of grace in the lives of those who have received it, such that it transforms individuals, families, communities, and entire cultures in harmony with God\u2019s will for the human family. This is often referred to as the work of sanctification, or \u201cmaking holy.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Church\u2019s mission is to evangelize, and evangelization involves all these dimensions, along with all their logical corollaries and implications: \u201cThe Church \u2018exists in order to evangelize\u2019; that is the carrying forth of the Good News to every sector of the human race so that by its strength it may enter into the hearts of men and renew the human race.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is what the twelve apostles and the rest of Christ\u2019s first followers were sent out to do by the Lord; it is the Church\u2019s reason for being.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He [Jesus] said to them, \u201cGo into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.\u201d (Mark 16:15)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, the word mission comes from the Latin word for \u201csent out\u201d (missio), which in Greek is related to apostello, the same root that gives us apostle and apostolate. Mission, evangelization, spreading the gospel, apostolate \u2014 this lexicon begins to unveil the richness of the Church\u2019s deepest identity \u2014 which, as we will see in the next meditation, also gives us a clue about our own deepest identity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What idea in this reflection struck you most and why?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you think about the Catholic Church, what images or concepts come spontaneously to mind? Why? What do they tell you about your attitude toward the Church?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Try to explain in your own words the different nuances of these terms related to the Church\u2019s deepest identity: mission, evangelization, apostolate, gospel.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The concept of evangelization is so rich that it can\u2019t really be defined exhaustively with mathematical precision. The Vatican\u2019s General Directory for Catechesis points out: \u201cHowever, no such definition can be accepted for that complex, rich and dynamic reality which is called evangelization. There is the risk of impoverishing it or even of distorting it. . . . Evangelization must be viewed as the process by which the Church, moved by the Spirit, proclaims and spreads the gospel throughout the entire world\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Considering how rich and multi-dimensional this reality is, what will you do today to engage more intentionally in the Church\u2019s work of evangelization?<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will make a visit to the Eucharist and pray for missionaries who are struggling against taxing and dangerous difficulties.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will take five minutes to write a thank you note to God for all the evangelizers whose efforts went into my receiving the Catholic faith (try to list as many of those people as you can think of).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I will get together with a friend and talk about how the Church in my area is continuing the work of evangelization. Then I will pray for the success of those efforts and brainstorm about how I can join in.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Write your own resolution) I will<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Concluding Prayer<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">O God, in the covenant of your Christ <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">you never cease to gather to yourself from all nations <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a people growing together in unity through the Spirit;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">grant, we pray, that your Church, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">faithful to the mission entrusted to her, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">may continually go forward with the human family <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and always be the leaven and the soul of human society, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to renew it in Christ and transform it into the family of God.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 Roman Missal, Collect for Mass for the Church, B<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Day 22\u00a0 The Church\u2019s Deepest Identity Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize, that is to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":359,"featured_media":163111,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6893],"tags":[2965],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-163553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lent-2025","tag-lent"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"","pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.8 (Yoast SEO v28.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Lent 2025 - Day 22 - The Church&#039;s Deepest Identity - Regnum Christi<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/lent-2025-day-22-the-churchs-deepest-identity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lent 2025 - Day 22 - The Church&#039;s Deepest Identity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Day 22\u00a0 The Church\u2019s Deepest Identity Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. 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