Friday of Week 31 in Ordinary Time
Rm 15:14-21
Lk 16:1-8
“…bringing the Good News from God to the pagans…”
It is always a good time to spread the Gospel, and often it does not even require quoting scripture or thumping a Bible. In a nuanced but significant way, evangelisation is different from proselytisation.
Evangelisation creates authentic conversations on God’s goodness and mercy, while proselytisation involves talking at someone, quoting Bible passages at someone, to the extent of forcing ideas down someone’s throat, with the aim to convert him (or her) – a cold, one-sided, human-willed endeavour that’s all head with no heart.
Evangelisation, on the other hand, is about connection and interaction by way of sowing the seeds of the joy of salvation, because when we are bringers and sharers of the Good News – that Jesus Christ came to set us free from sin and death – we inevitably spread hope, peace and love.
Evangelisation involves living as a witness and a disciple of Christ. St. Paul, who wrote today’s epistle to the Romans, is one of Christianity’s most striking examples of one who lived out his faith intentionally — through words (spoken and written) and actions, even when his fearlessness in speaking the truth meant persecution, incarceration, suffering and hardship. After his conversion by Christ, St. Paul lived as God’s witness every day of his life, never stopping until his martyrdom. This evangelist par excellence certainly ‘fought the good fight’ and ‘finished the race’.
In today’s First Reading, he tells the Romans in no uncertain terms that “He has appointed me as a priest of Jesus Christ, and I am to carry out my priestly duty by bringing the Good News from God to the pagans”. For all his zealousness though, St. Paul never claimed to have converted anyone. He was always clear that his work was to be the face of Christ and a conduit for his love, peace, joy, forgiveness and healing.
We, however, easily forget that God is the One who converts hearts. As evangelists, our role is to be instrumental in making it possible for those who do not yet know Him, or those who know Him but reject Him, or are lukewarm towards Him, to experience His infinite graces and blessings. That, not only takes courage and singlemindedness, but a willingness to trust and surrender totally to God’s will, by aligning our desires and plans with His desires and plans for us.
Effective witnessing also takes astuteness. St. Paul is said to be an astute preacher for his strategic approach to evangelism. His charism in adapting his message to different audiences, and his ability to communicate with both profound theological depth and relatable personal testimony made him effective in sowing the seeds of the Gospel.
When preaching to the Jews in synagogues, St. Paul referenced the Old Testament scriptures, which his Jewish listeners already accepted as divine revelation. In Athens, St. Paul addressed pagan philosophers who did not believe in Jewish scriptures. He started with an observation of their culture — an altar dedicated “to an unknown god” — and used it as a bridge to introduce them to the one true Creator God. St. Paul often presented his own dramatic conversion story as a powerful testimony. This allowed him to present the Gospel with a compelling authenticity that was also deeply personal.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus shares a parable about a sacked steward, who, though dishonest and self-serving, was praised for his astuteness in securing future employment for himself. Here, Jesus is not extolling corruption. He uses this startling example to show our grave need as His disciples to be spiritually nimble in doing all we can to share the Good News with those who need it. That can often also involve being creative, thinking out of the box for a good cause, and sharing our material gifts with those who are needy, in the name, and for the love of the Lord.
Fifteen years ago, when I moved into my current home, the priest who blessed my apartment told me pointedly, “May the crucifix on your door be a sign that one of God’s disciples lives here.” His words, which I found rather unexpected, moved me deeply and they have stayed with me ever since. Every time I leave and enter my home, what he said never fails to echo in my heart — that because I have boldly displayed my allegiance to Jesus, I also carry the responsibility of living up to it, of carrying out my Baptismal mission to bring His Good News to others. And that simply is to be deft in sharing my own conversion story in ways that will be compelling to every ‘audience’; to pursue both head and heart knowledge of the Word and Church teachings, so as to also defend my faith with conviction, patience and humility.
Brothers and sisters, to be an everyday evangelist is to live out the fruits of the Holy Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control – as well as the Beatitudes, to an end that always points to Jesus and the hope of eternal happiness with Him for our family, friends, community, and the wide world.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Susanah Cheok)
Prayer: Help me, Lord, to be bold in sharing the joy of Your Gospel, and witnessing to Your magnanimous love and infinite mercy. May all that I say and do always glorify Your name and bring more hearts running back to You. Amen.
Thanksgiving: I can do nothing good without Your grace, Lord, for You are the source of all goodness. I thank You for planting the desire for holiness in me. Thank You for the Spirit that inspires me to always want only what You want for me. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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