There was a national survey which asked people about their
greatest fears. They listed Aviophobia,
the fear of flying, Lygophobia, fear of the dark, acrophobia, fear of heights, arachnophobia,
the fear of spiders. I read recently,
that zoos are starting to have special programs to help people face their fear
of spiders, where you eventually become comfortable holding those disgusting
eight legged creatures in your hand.
Very high on the list was a fear that Jesus tells us to be free from in
today’s Gospel, Glossophobia, fear of speaking.
High on many of these lists is always that same fear of public speaking,
giving a speech or public presentation.
Psychologists say that this fear is connected with fear of
the unknown, not knowing what’s going to happen when you step up to that
podium, how people are going to react to your message. There’s a fear of making
a mistake, being judged, not measuring up to people’s expectations.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus says that his servants will be
called upon to give public witness to his Gospel. Not only public witness, we
will be dragged before governor’s and kings.
And he tells us, that when it is time to witness to the Christian
Gospel, we are not to worry about speaking, witnessing to these people. Now many of us don’t like sharing our faith
with our closest friends and family. However will we overcome this greatest of
fears?
For one, sharing our faith, sharing the Gospel, speaking
about our faith should be as natural as breathing. We should become some practiced, so familiar
with the Gospel, that sharing it is as customary as sharing our own name. The Gospel, the tenets of our faith should be
so internalized, as if the words are written in our hearts.
Also, we should be confident in the Gospel. St. Paul says in
Romans: “I have complete confidence in the gospel; it is God's power to save
all who believe.”
Ease in sharing the Gospel comes from our confidence in its
saving power. Money can buy food,
medicine can bring bodily health, but the Gospel brings eternal life. So when we come before an unbeliever, their
need for the Gospel is greater than a starving man needs food. And we wouldn’t hesitate to feed the
starving, so we shouldn’t hesitate in sharing the Gospel.
Jesus also mentions that the Holy Spirit will give us the
words to speak. Through a life of prayer, meditation, contemplation, study of
God’s work, putting on the mind and heart of Christ, performing the works of
mercy, we grow in tune with God’s Spirit.
Sharing the Gospel, evangelization, is a fruit of being rooted in the
soil of God’s word. If we fear sharing
the Word, return to the Word, read it, learn it, believe it, practice it.
No comments:
Post a Comment