Called to follow Christ

BEFORE JESUS EVEN preaches, heals someone, or performs a miracle, he calls people to follow him.

John W. Martens is associate professor of theology at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota and director of the master’s in theology program at the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity. He writes “The Word” column for America magazine.

THE CALLING OF THE APOSTLES PETER AND ANDREW (1308-1311), DUCCIO DI BUONINSEGNA

by Johnw. martenS

What’s the purpose of the church, and does it change with the times?

AT THE HEART OF THE CHURCH IS VOCATION. The earliest idea of what is today called “church” starts with the Greek word ekklesia, which is only found twice in the gospels, both times in Matthew, and means those who have been “called out.” Jesus “calls out” all who follow him to share in his ministry in different ways.

Before Jesus even preached, healed someone, or performed a miracle, he called people to follow him. At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, after his baptism and temptation in the wilderness, the first thing he did was to call two sets of brothers. He asks Simon and Andrew and then James and John to follow him (Mark 1:16-20). And that is the church in its simplest terms: the followers of Jesus Christ.

Jesus came proclaiming the kingdom, or reign, of God, and it

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was essential that people responded to that call for the sake of salvation. Even more, though, Jesus chose people to share in his ministry so that the message could be brought more widely, that is, to everyone. Twelve apostles were “appointed,” called “to be with him,” and “sent out to proclaim the message” (Mark 3:13-19). Jesus sent “them out two by two,” instructing them to proclaim “that all should repent” (Mark 6:7-13).

The same, and changing

The church’s growth and change allows it to become what it is intended to be: the body of Christ that is to serve the needs of those both inside and outside the church. The church continues to develop throughout history so that it can fulfill its mission to bring the gospel to the world.

While the mission of the church—the calling and gathering of people as followers of Jesus Christ for the purpose of salvation—is the same as it was when Jesus first proclaimed the gospel and chose the apostles, soon after this early date things in the church began to change. Already in the Acts of the Apostles people were being called specifically to serve Greek-speaking Christians (Acts 6:1-6), and in the second century Ignatius, the bishop of Antioch, spoke of the positions of bishop, priest, and deacon necessary to serve the needs of the growing Christian church.

“There is a growth in the understanding of the realities and the words which have been handed down,” says the Second Vatican Council’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum, no. 8). Sometimes that’s because the church needs to refocus on its central mission; sometimes it’s because the culture has changed, making the means by which the church has expressed itself less relevant for the current day; and sometimes it might mean that the church is encountering a new culture and finding the best ways to proclaim the gospel in a fresh context. The church must meet and speak to people where they are, and what the church stresses will depend upon the people or culture in which it finds itself. Some examples:

• The internet is a global culture, which requires the presence of the gospel if all peoples are to encounter Jesus. How should the successors of the apostles evangelize online? • The Western world is less focused on titles and authority than it used to be. So the question today is how should the church bring its message to people less interested in the institutional church and suspi-

cious of institutions in general? • How does one speak to many people today who are less convinced of the need for God and other fundamental beliefs of the church? • Pope Francis is not altering the mission of the church in his writing or preaching, but he is emphasizing different aspects of the gospel message and challenging the church to rediscover and reinvigorate itself.

Followers of Jesus

Christians are still calling people to come to the church, God’s gathered people here on earth, in order to enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ and prepare for eternal life in the reign or kingdom of God. It is a task that requires new approaches to answer the ancient and eternal call, “Follow me.” =

Poor Clares are a contemplative branch of the Franciscan Order

Love God in Complete Surrender

—St. Clare

Our call is to intimacy with God and prayerful support of all people

Requirements: An attraction to the life 18 to 45 years of age emotional and physical health

Monastery of St. Clare 1271 Langhorne-Newtown Road

Langhorne PA 19047-1297 www.poorclarepa.org vocation@poorclarepa.org

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FORMER SOCCER PLAYER NEAR TO ORDINATION GOAL

MOSTSEMINARIANS don’t make national news over their choice for the priesthood, but when pro soccer player Chase Hilgenbrinck left the Major Soccer League New England Revolution to become a priest in 2008, a flurry of media reports covered the move.

On the Diocese of Peoria website, Hilgenbrinck reflected on his calling: “In 2004 I moved to South America on my own [to play soccer on a Chilean team] and I quickly realized that being an immigrant in a foreign land was not easy. So I did what anyone would do and turned to what I knew: the Catholic Church. In doing so my faith deepened tremendously.

“During a time of adoration [of the Blessed Sacrament] I heard Him call me to pursue a voca- Chase Hilgenbrinck tion in the priesthood. During a two-year discernment process, I fought the idea of priesthood, all the while receiving signs and confirmations that priesthood was God’s will for my life. The call was persistent and progressively grew stronger until it consumed my daily thoughts. A day came when I no longer had excuses or barriers to put in the way. I knew that I had nothing left to do but say, ‘Yes.’ ”