Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize…” (Pope St. Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, no. 14, Dec 8, 1975). Since that landmark document, Church leaders have continued to declare evangelization a top priority. Why? The urgency of his call comes from the effects of secularization. In cultures historically Christian, Christianity’s influence on all spheres of human life is waning, and an increasing number of people (especially young people) no longer profess or practice Christian faith. So, who is called to witness to their faith in this circumstance? Everybody! Everyone who is a Christian… and yes, that means all Catholics who profess and practice their faith!
 
We expect professed religious and clergy to be ‘public witnesses’ to Catholic faith, but since the Second Vatican Council the call to evangelize has gone out to lay people as well. We are, as the Council taught, a kingly, priestly, and prophetic people— and prophetic means proclaiming the Gospel, through our words and our lives. Jesus’ “Great Commission” to “make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:19) was not just directed to the apostles, but to all his followers. St. Peter urged: “Always have your answer ready for people who ask you the reason for the hope that you have…” (1 Pt 3:15). This evangelization must go on in every profession and place where lay people live, work, and recreate, no matter how ‘secular’ (EN, 70).
 
 So, how is the Church, including its laity, equipped to evangelize? Is there a “charism” of evangelization? St. Paul names gifts that involve speaking the truth through words (words of knowledge and wisdom, prophecy in 1 Cor 12:8,10; apostles, prophets, teachers in 1 Cor 12:28 and Rom 12:6,7). Ephesians 4:11 adds “evangelists” to this list of charisms. Romans 12:8 mentions “exhortation” and St. Peter exhorts “whoever speaks, as one who utters oracles of God” (1 Pt 4:10,11). These gifts are important in evangelizing others: asking God (often right on the spot, in the middle of a conversation) for a word of knowledge or wisdom that would help open up a person to the Lord, or exhorting them on a path that will lead them to Christ. Some people might seem to have more of a “gift” for this, but if we are all called to evangelize, we should expect that the Holy Spirit will provide the words we need, especially if we ask him!
 
Growth in any spiritual gift involves stepping out in faith. Many Catholics need to begin by praying for the desire to evangelize and the courage to speak about God, which in our secular age is not ‘politically correct.’ I think one of the Lord’s central reasons for the “New Pentecost” in our times is to give us the boldness to witness what we see at the first Pentecost. (This is an essential, precious fruit of “baptism in the Holy Spirit.”) Why don’t most Catholics evangelize despite decades of Church teaching and bishops’ synods? It appears that they haven’t been touched by the ‘fire’ that changed the first disciples from fearful people to bold witnesses, ready even to die for their faith! More than any particular charisms, we need this gift of boldness. If we have the burning desire to evangelize, we will!
 
You’ve probably heard, “I witness to God by my life.” Yes, deeds speak more powerfully than mere words, especially in our day. Some of the charisms are ‘service’ charisms (see 1 Cor 12:28; Rom 12:7,8; 1 Pt 4:11), which include healing and miracles, as well as service and administration. They certainly testify to the Lord, but in a famous section of Pope St. Paul VI’s letter On Evangelization in the Modern World he writes:…even the finest witness will prove ineffective in the long run if it is not explained, justified…and made explicit by a clear and unequivocal proclamation of the Lord Jesus. The Good News proclaimed by the witness of life sooner or later has to be proclaimed by the word of life. There is no true evangelization if the name, the teaching, the life, the promises, the kingdom and the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, are not proclaimed. (EN,22)
 
No, we don’t need to explain all of this at once. For the ‘seed’ of faith to grow, it first has to be sown. That’s the first step of evangelization. If we plant the seed, we trust that God will give the growth (1 Cor 3:6,7). 

by Alan Schreck
New Pentecost Magazine, Fall 2018, Volume 43:4. He is a professor of Theology at Franciscan University