John Paul II and New Evangelization - Essay Example

? Pope John Paul II was very much a person of reform. The following will look at one area of his progressive ideas which is known as the 'new evangelization' (NE). It will be argued in the following that the goal of this was to incorporate some of the ideas of the growing Evangelical movement in Christianity, and to widen the appeal of the Church as a consequence. The NE calls for a new and more immediate relationship with the teachings of Jesus, but also the idea that a renewed sense of promoting this among Catholics ought to be one of the agendas for the coming age. To this end, the following will look at both the theoretical underpinnings of the NE, and in turn, present some of the practical implementations of these ideals. While the NE is a doctrine and set of ideas that was put forward by John Paul II in the early 1990's, the roots of this belong in the establishment of the Second Vatican Council (1962) and in documents like the LUMEN GENTIUM (1964)[1]. In the broadest terms, it can be said that the Second Vatican Council or Vatican II was the Catholic Church's attempt to adapt and assimilate some of modernity or modernism. For instance, one of the changes or transformations that most Catholics are likely aware of, is that Mass is no longer required to be in Latin. The significance of this historically is rather rich. The very Reformation which split the Catholic Church in the Sixteen Century, partially happened because of a new movement to bring the Bible into the vernacular or to the language of the people [2]. And, while the Bible had made it into the languages that common people spoke many centuries earlier, Mass continued to be conducted in Latin until 1962: "Since these duties, so very necessary to the life of the Church, can be fulfilled only with difficulty in many regions in accordance with the discipline of the Latin Church as it exists today" [3]. Another aspect of the NE that is both central, and which has its roots in Vatican II and the the Lumen Gentium, is the incorporation of lay individuals into the body and mission of the Church. That is, viewing lay people as not just the object of being converted or taught, but as valuable members of the community who have a contribution to make in spreading the word, so to speak: "every layman, in virtue of the very gifts bestowed upon him, is at the same time a witness and a living instrument of the mission of the Church itself 'according to the measure of Christ's bestowal'" [4]. Compare this remark with what John Paul II says about the NE: Today, in particular, the pressing pastoral task of the new evangelization calls for involvement of the entire people of God, and requires a new fervor, new methods and a new expression for the announcing and witnessing of the gospel [5]. The first important and general dimension of the NE, and as it relates to changes in the Catholic Church since the early 1960's, is the inclusiveness, and a less hierarchal approach to the ministry of the Church. However, where Vatican II and the Lumen Gentium are a way of accommodating or assimilating modernism to some extent, the NE as established by John Paul II is succinct insofar as it can be said to be a set of ideas that is actually reactionary modernism or modernization. By reactionary, it is not implied in terms of having as its object Catholic doctrine, rather, society itself. One of the concerns of the NE, is increased secularization, a decrease in the basic lay understanding of the tenets of Christianity, and Catholic Catechism. As John Paul II's assistant states on the subject of his concern with secularization in Western Europe that it was "gradually drifting further and further from its roots and so from its history and culture" [6]. This is a perspective about secularization, according to one of John Paul's biographer's that began in the post-war period of the late 1940's and early 1950's, and as far back as then he viewed: "new forms of pastoral activity open to a broader participation by the laity" [7]. Although there is a lot in common between the burgeoning era of Vatican II and the NE, one of the important distinctions is the notion of inclusion. Where Vatican II views the non-Latin mass as a means of reaching more people and being more inclusive, the type of inclusion that John Paul II was seeking was more practically minded. He viewed the inclusion of the laity as a practical way of spreading the word more expansively and more efficiently. That is not to say that he wasn't broad minded in terms of dissolving a bit of the hierarchal tendencies of the Church, but it is to say that his expansion toward including the laity also had an important pragmatic dimension for him. It can be said that expansion and rejuvenation are two of the core guiding ideas of the NE. So far, what has been discussed has mostly been focused on the broader issue of modernization -- and, where to accommodate and where to react. At this juncture, a more refined of this reactionary dimension will be outlined. As mentioned, he did see the incorporation of the laity as significant, but he also viewed this in terms of the populism of the other religions around him. One of the more contemporary trends that distinguishes John Paul's era from that of Vatican II, is the decline of the traditional churches and the rise of more evangelical Christianity. John Paul was aware of this transformation in conventionally church going trends, and wanted to incorporate some of the dimensions of this into Catholicism but also to increase the actual outreach of the Church toward these movements which he saw as on the rise in the US and in Latin America: "Catholics could learn a great deal about what John Paul has called the 'new evangelization' calling those no longer involved with the church to a living sense of the faith, from Evangelical Christians" [8]. There is unquestionably an immediacy and a certain sensible passion that is embodied in the newer forms of Christianity, and while Evangelical Christianity has been developed or has evolved out of Protestantism, the adaption has actually been a two-way dialogue too. That is, in the era of John Paul II, there has been a more active exchange going the other direction too -- Protestant and Evangelical church's in the US have become more open to assimilating Catholic ideas on the issue as well. When John Paul II visited New York City in October 1995, he met with a group of Evangelical pastors and ministers, and among them, figures like Pat Robertson "pledged to work for Christian unity between Catholics and Evangelicals" [9]. As is stated by John Paul II in the Redemptoris missio which is the central official document calling for the NE: "some are questioning whether it is still appropriate to speak of specific missionary activity or specifically "missionary" areas, or whether we should speak instead of a single missionary situation, with one single mission, the same everywhere." [10]. In both theory, e.g. the official document, and in practice, his meeting in 1995 with Christian Evangelicals, John Paul II was interested in both incorporating some of that which made this basically US Christian movement appealing and also, establishing relations among these groups as well. As the quote states above, the goal is to begin viewing Christianity as a whole or one large body as opposed to the divisions that have been created. As a brief aside, it can be said or inferred, that one of the important elements of unifying, is also reactionary. Protestantism has had a number of splits and divisions ever since the time of the Reformation, and these divisions have had the net effect of really fractionalizing Christianity as a whole. One of the unifying dimensions of all Christianity according to John Paul II are the basic teachings of Jesus. John Paul II laid out some very specific aspects of Jesus, and particularly as a figure with a missionary or 'evangelizing' agenda or goal: "above all, however, John Paul knew that what was needed most in our times was a new encounter with the person of Jesus Christ" [11]. In many regards, the NE is really an invocation of an old evangelization -- but one that had been lost in Catholicism, but retained and very central to the churches that were growing at the expense of the traditional churches that were witnessing a decline in Europe and even in Latin America which had actually been an region that was conventionally an area of growth for the Catholic Church. A second aspect that he viewed as a unifying notion, was that Christians share the experience of baptism: "I therefore address myself to the recently baptized members of the young communities and young churches" [12]. While there are a number of important principles that John Paul II uses as the scaffolding for unity among Christians, what is probably more important is the overall goal of creating or establishing unity. One good practical example of this was the creation of World Youth Days and the embracing of "new technologies" [13]. In sum, the NE is 'new' but 'old' at the very same time. Evangelism is just another term for mission. What John Paul II called for through the NE, was a rejuvenated and immediate relationship with Jesus. John Paul II believed that the way to attract Catholics back to their faith, was by making it basically more appealing. He did so by drawing on some of what the newer religions were practicing. Likewise, he also reached out to the new religions calling for a new Christianity that focused on what they all had in common, like the teachings of Jesus and like the fact that baptism is something that unifies all within the faith. The NE is both reactionary, but also accommodating to new ideas. While it has come about as a way of challenging secularization, it is also a challenge that does so through ideas as old as the Gospels themselves. ENDNOTES: 1. Dennis Michael Doyle, The Church Emerging from Vatican II: A Popular Approach to Contemporary Catholicism, New London CT.: 2002, p. 12. 2. ibid. p. 62. 3. Lumen Gentium, 1964. Web Page: http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html 4. ibid. 5. David Ranson, The Contemporary Challenge of Priestly Life: A Meditation on the Paschal Paradox, Strathfield: Saint Pauls Publications, 2009, p. 53. 6. Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, My Life with Karol, New York: Doubleday, 2008, p. 159. 7. Brendan Leahy, Believe in Love: The Life, Ministry and Teachings of John Paul II, Hyde Park NY.: New City Press, 2011, p. 17. 8. Thomas P. Rausch (Ed.), Catholics and Evangelicals: Do They Share a Common Future? Mahwah NJ.: Paulist Press, 2000, p. 51. 9. ibid. p. 51. 10. John Paul II., Redemptoris missio, 1990. Web Page: http://www.vatican.va/edocs/ENG0219/_INDEX.HTM 11. Brendan Leahy, Believe in Love: The Life, Ministry and Teachings of John Paul II, p. 80. 12. John Paul II., Redemptoris missio, 1990. 13. Brendan Leahy, Believe in Love: The Life, Ministry and Teachings of John Paul II, pp. 79-80. REFERENCE LIST: Dziwisz, Cardinal Stanislaw. My Life with Karol, New York: Doubleday, 2008. Doyle, D.M. The Church Emerging from Vatican II: A Popular Approach to Contemporary Catholicism, New London CT.: 2002. Leahy, B. Believe in Love: The Life, Ministry and Teachings of John Paul II, Hyde Park NY.: New City Press, 2011. Lumen Gentium, Vatican. 1964. Web Page: http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html Last Accessed: August 24, 2011. John Paul II., Redemptoris missio, Vatican. 1990. Web Page: http://www.vatican.va/edocs/ENG0219/_INDEX.HTM Last Accessed: August 24, 2011. Ranson, D. The Contemporary Challenge of Priestly Life: A Meditation on the Paschal Paradox, Strathfield: Saint Pauls Publications, 2009. Rausch, T.P. (Ed.), Catholics and Evangelicals: Do They Share a Common Future? Mahwah NJ.: Paulist Press, 2000 ON JOHN PAUL II'S NOTION OF NEW EVANGELIZATION. Read More