Number 217 - July 2003

"The charism of an ecclesial movement a resource for evangelization"

Cardinal RYLKO

President

Pontifical Council for the Laity

Dear friends of the Foyers de Charité,

I would like to reflect with you on some principles that lie at the foundation of the evangelization process and constitute a constant in the life of the Church from her beginning.

The first principle is that of the primacy of grace. It is a fundamental starting point : one who forgets it is off to a bad start. In our day it is important to remind ourselves of it, because contemporary culture is a culture with a mania for efficacy that encourages "doing for doing's sake" and seeks immediate, easily quantifiable results. How many Christians today fall into the insidious trap of religious activism ? Evangelization is, moreover, of a different nature because it is not a purely human activity. The vital source of evangelization is the grace of God. And we are only the servants - not the masters ! - of grace. For that reason it is always necessary to begin with the contemplation of the face of Christ. The Pope insists on this point, and in the letter Novo millennio ineunte he writes : "Our witness... would be hopelessly inadequate if we ourselves had not first contemplated his face" (NMI, 16).

And as John Paul II teaches us, we must contemplate the face of Christ with Mary, placing ourselves in her school. He pointed to the rosary as a powerful instrument of evangelization for our time (cf. Rosarium Virginis Mariae). I know that from the very first the Foyers of Charity found in the Virgin Mary, and especially through the recitation of the Rosary, their rule of life.

There exists therefore an intrinsic bond between contemplation and evangelization. "Contemplation which does not give life to mission is condemned to frustration and failure... because contemplation engenders evangelization" (John Paul II, Message to the Catholic Fraternity of Covenant Communities and Fellowships, June 22, 2001). To the one who allows himself to be seduced by an excessive activism, who allows service of neighbor to come before prayer, one must recall that the time given to prayer is never time lost, but - on the contrary - it is time better employed, even in the perspective of the apostolate. How much do all those who give retreats need the support of prayer... How much do all those who come here to follow a retreat, under the impulse of the Holy Spirit, have need of prayer, arriving as they do often burdened with very serious problems, problems that are humanly without solution. Or the students in your schools... Conversion of heart is a miracle obtained on one's knees - for oneself and for others... How many testimonies of this kind could each of you give...

The second principle on which evangelization is based - and of which I wish to speak to you - is the principle of the Good Samaritan. If, as the Pope writes, "man is the first and fundamental way for the Church" (Redeemer of Man, n. 14), the one who suffers, in any way possible, is all the more the way. This is the reason why evangelizers of every age are called to measure themselves by the person of the Good Samaritan, this captivating figure who offers us an accomplished model of love of neighbor. In reality it is love toward the one who suffers that is the only key capable of opening all hearts and preparing the terrain for the preaching of the Gospel. And let us not forget that it is precisely in announcing the Gospel that the Apostle offers his neighbor the most precious gift which exists, and that he becomes the Good Samaritan in the full sense of the word.

Who is the Good Samaritan ? He is the one who stops alongside the man who suffers. And how much suffering is there in the world today ? Not only physical suffering in illnesses of all sorts, in want, and in material poverty, but also suffering of the mind in all its forms. A suffering caused by deep wounds, the absence of any reference point in life, the loss of meaning of one's own life, isolation and abandonment, sin and non-love, violence and hatred... There are so many people in these circumstances who come knocking at the doors of your Foyers of Charity, drawn by this word "charity". Often they are seeking desperately for help - they are in search of a Good Samaritan. And - to be precise - the Good Samaritan is one who does not allow himself only to be moved by different human needs. He tries to open himself to the other, he listens, he makes himself available, he knows how to give of his time... Often, people are in search of the most important things and they don't find them in their associates. The compassion of the Good Samaritan takes the form of an immediate, concrete, disinterested help. The Good Samaritan is an extraordinary witness of attention to the dignity of the human person, of every person. A dignity of which no one can be deprived and which nothing can annul. He is not a philanthropist who accosts the needy with superiority and who comes to inflict a new humiliation. The Good Samaritan is humble, filled with respect toward the dignity of every person.

The Good Samaritan sends us another important message : only in giving himself to others does a person become fully himself. This is the measure by which we can increase in humanity. It often happens to each of us that in rendering service to someone else we discover - not without surprise - that we have received much more than we have tried to give ! By helping him, by paying his lodging at the inn, the Good Samaritan of the parable received much more than he gave to that unfortunate dying person.

This principle is expressed in a sublime way by the words of Christ : "whoever wishes to save his life will lose it but the one who loses his life for my sake will save it" (Luke 9, 24), and : "in the measure with which you have done this to the least of my brothers it is to me that you have done it" (Matthew 25, 40). Your Foyers must become laboratories where the truth of these Gospel words becomes tangible experience.

The third principle at the foundation of evangelization is the principle of the little mustard seed. Once Jesus said : "To what shall we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it ? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade" (Mark 4, 30-32). This parable makes us see the dynamic importance of the growth of the Reign of God : it speaks of little beginnings, of the necessity for much patience and humility. The truly great realities in the Church begin in humility. The evangelical law is not founded on statistics and great numbers. On the contrary : God has a special predilection for what is little : "Be without fear, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the Kingdom" (Luke 12, 32).

Moreover this law goes against the mentality of our modern world in search of efficacy above all else, eyeing size first and the immediate evaluation of success by numbers. This is not the way for evangelization. How much about this can the life of Marthe Robin ("la petite Marthe" !) tell us, a life entirely hidden and so modest, to the point of remaining bedridden in the obscurity of her room because of illness. And how many fruits are born of this littleness. The law of the little mustard seed tells us also that in evangelization each person that we meet counts, individually, each with his own history, which is unique. How important it is to remind oneself of this on the occasion of retreats or with the students of your schools.

And here we are at the last fundamental principle of evangelization about which I want to speak to you : the principle of the grain that dies. The parable of the grain of wheat brings us to the very roots of the secret of growth of the Reign of God in the world and within ourselves : "Truly, truly I say to you, if the grain of wheat fallen into the ground does not die it remains alone ; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12, 24). It is not a metaphor ; we are not dealing with abstract theories. In the life of Christ, in his death on the cross and his resurrection, this word has become reality. In this regard, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger writes : "Jesus did not redeem the world by beautiful words, but by his suffering and by his death. His passion is an inexhaustible source of life for the world ; his passion gives power to his words" (La nuova evangelizzazione, in L'Osservatore Romano, December 11-12, 2000). Suffering accepted with faith is a powerful instrument of evangelization capable of opening breaches in the most hardened human consciences. Speaking of suffering, John Paul II writes : "It is suffering, more than anything else, which clears the way for the grace which transforms human souls And so the Church sees in all Christ's suffering brothers and sisters as it were a multiple subject of his supernatural power. How often is it precisely to them that the pastors of the Church appeal, and precisely from them that they seek help and support ! (Salvifici doloris, n. 27). It is the mystery of suffering which saves the world : an extraordinary strength hidden in weakness ! Today especially apostles of suffering are the indispensable protagonists of evangelization. With the strength of their suffering they penetrate milieus closed to every other evangelizer. Without their contribution even the most persuasive preaching risks remaining in air because it is incapable of shaking consciences, of changing the life of persons. St. Paul speaks of the salvific meaning of suffering when he writes to the Colossians : "at this time I find my joy in the sufferings I endure for you, and I complete in my flesh what is lacking to the sufferings of Christ for his body, which is the Church" (Col. 1, 24). It is in this light that the Foyers of Charity must reread and reread again the life of Marthe Robin and also that of Father Finet, especially in the last stage of his life. The parable of the grain of wheat that dies to bear fruit illustrates very well this evangelical law for the announcing of the Gospel. All this allows us to penetrate the depth of the mystery of salvation in whose service God calls us to collaborate.

Châteauneuf de Galaure, the 31st May, 2003