Evangelism - As Camillus sees it
A rather insightful article by Camillus on the subject of evangelism and in particular street evangelism, posted almost seven months ago. This article has been slightly edited for the benefit of non-Catholics who read it.
"Evangelism"
Some people treat it just like a game. Somebody once said that I’ve scored 3 “kills” because I’ve brought 3 people to know about Christianity. Is this the attitude that we should have? Is it for personal glory amongst our Christian brothers and sisters? Do we receive a higher place in heaven when we die because of the “kills” we make?
I used to be from a free-denominational church. Over there, they taught us how to do street evangelism. What we would do - would be to spend 5 minutes with the person and try to share Christ with him. Well, can a person explain Christ in 5 minutes? Is our Lord so insignificant, that we can explain Him in 5 minutes? Instead of sharing Christ with others, we end up irritating them. I had a friend who was studying for his final exams, when some one approached him and asked him to spare 5 minutes of his time. Of course that friend agreed because it must have been rude to shoo him away. In the end, that evangelist took 45 minutes and in the end, my friend lost 45 minutes of his time to study for the paper.
Sometimes, I see street evangelists behave like insurance salesmen. Are we trying to sell Christ to others? I don’t see any sincerity in it. It’s like a "hi and bye" thing. Some are even so desperate to the point that they gather in groups to prey on people.
What should be the utmost importance is that we live our lives in goodness, so that we may be living examples of Christ in us. When we share of God’s goodness in our lives, we do it to encourage other Christians that God is with us. Sharing Christ with others in 5 minutes only works for people who have already been searching for God. What about those whom hearts have been hardened? It is our duty to soften hearts so that the spirit of God can touch them; and I feel that in order to do that, we have to live our lives to the fullest of the Gospel. It is through our actions, that people see the Gospel in us. We become the living Gospel. Love can soften hearts. Like in the workplace, offer help to others who need it. Be a good friend to others. Love your enemies. Pray for them. Do not take part in office politics. Not only will you make the office a better place to work in, but also, others will see Christ in you. Christ can change your life, so too, can He change the lives of others.
You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit
John 15:16
And because God chooses his people and calls them to Him, I believe that God will bring the ones He has chosen to you. I have brought people to church, but I didn’t share Christ with them. I was merely a road sign, pointing them to the Church.
- from Camillus’ blog
"Evangelism"
Some people treat it just like a game. Somebody once said that I’ve scored 3 “kills” because I’ve brought 3 people to know about Christianity. Is this the attitude that we should have? Is it for personal glory amongst our Christian brothers and sisters? Do we receive a higher place in heaven when we die because of the “kills” we make?
I used to be from a free-denominational church. Over there, they taught us how to do street evangelism. What we would do - would be to spend 5 minutes with the person and try to share Christ with him. Well, can a person explain Christ in 5 minutes? Is our Lord so insignificant, that we can explain Him in 5 minutes? Instead of sharing Christ with others, we end up irritating them. I had a friend who was studying for his final exams, when some one approached him and asked him to spare 5 minutes of his time. Of course that friend agreed because it must have been rude to shoo him away. In the end, that evangelist took 45 minutes and in the end, my friend lost 45 minutes of his time to study for the paper.
Sometimes, I see street evangelists behave like insurance salesmen. Are we trying to sell Christ to others? I don’t see any sincerity in it. It’s like a "hi and bye" thing. Some are even so desperate to the point that they gather in groups to prey on people.
What should be the utmost importance is that we live our lives in goodness, so that we may be living examples of Christ in us. When we share of God’s goodness in our lives, we do it to encourage other Christians that God is with us. Sharing Christ with others in 5 minutes only works for people who have already been searching for God. What about those whom hearts have been hardened? It is our duty to soften hearts so that the spirit of God can touch them; and I feel that in order to do that, we have to live our lives to the fullest of the Gospel. It is through our actions, that people see the Gospel in us. We become the living Gospel. Love can soften hearts. Like in the workplace, offer help to others who need it. Be a good friend to others. Love your enemies. Pray for them. Do not take part in office politics. Not only will you make the office a better place to work in, but also, others will see Christ in you. Christ can change your life, so too, can He change the lives of others.
You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit
John 15:16
And because God chooses his people and calls them to Him, I believe that God will bring the ones He has chosen to you. I have brought people to church, but I didn’t share Christ with them. I was merely a road sign, pointing them to the Church.
- from Camillus’ blog
posted by Constantine at 12:53:00 am
1 Comments:
You need to learn one thing:
"religions are worthless if they are not backed by set of mind and clear judgement and not by hatred or basic emotions"
So talk talk talk... bla bla...
Just try not to be a dick in your life, live and let live!
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