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The Church in the world
The faith of Christians
24. The disciples of Jesus
are scattered in the world as leaven but, as in every age, they are not immune
from the influences of human situations. It is therefore necessary to enquire
into the current situation of the faith of Christians. Catechetical renewal,
developed in the Church over the last decades, continues to bear very welcome
fruit.(41) The catechesis of children, of young people and of adults
has given rise to a type of Christian who is conscious of his faith and who
acts consistently with it in his life. In such Christians this catechesis has
encouraged:
– a new and vital experience of God as
merciful Father;
– a more profound rediscovery of Jesus
Christ, not only in his divinity but also in his humanity;
– a sense of co-responsibility on the part
of all for the mission of the Church in the world;
– and a raising of consciousness with regard
to the social obligations of the faith.
25. Nonetheless, in
considering today's religious situation, the Church is also obliged to take
into account the extent to which Christians "have been shaped by the
climate of secularism and ethical relativism?" (42) A prime
category requiring examination is that of the "many people who have been
baptized but lead lives entirely divorced from Christianity".(43)
This in fact constitutes a mass of "non-practising Christians"
(44) even though in many hearts religious feeling has not been
completely lost. Re-awakening these to the faith is a real challenge for the
Church. Then there are "the simple people" (45) who express
themselves, at times with sincere religious feeling and deep rooted
"popular devotion".(46) They possess a certain faith,
"but know little even of its fundamental principles".(47)
There are, moreover, numerous other Christians, often highly educated, whose
religious formation amounts solely to that which they received in childhood.
These also need to re-examine and develop their faith "from a different
standpoint".(48)
26. There is also a certain
number of baptized Christians who, desiring to promote dialogue with various
cultures and other religious confessions, or on account of a certain reticence
on their part to live in contemporary society as believers, fail to give
explicit and courageous witness in their lives to the faith of Jesus Christ.
These concrete situations of the Christian faith call urgently on the sower to
develop a new evangelization,(49) especially in those Churches
of long-standing Christian tradition where secularism has made greater inroads.
In this new context of evangelization, missionary proclamation and catechesis,
especially of the young and of adults, is an evident priority.
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