Pope Benedict initiated the “New Evangelization” that leads to “Porta Fidei” because as Cardinal Ratzinger and part of the ‘International Theological Commission’ advising Vatican II he discovered that there was something wrong with the Evangelization used for the last 200 years. He suspects it is even as far as 600 years ago. The error seems to have appeared sometime after the Council of Trent. Like all errors and defects it became more pronounced around the 1800, and it has gone completely berserk this century 2011. As Pope he had made this issue the forefront of his Pontificate and the program for the Bishop’s Synod on October 2012. But as the Schema for this Synod was published a month ago it looks like the Bishop’s schema contain the same error that Pope Benedict is trying to correct.
Maybe the authors of the schema for the Bishop’s Synod do not mean what was published. Maybe they mean exactly what the Pope is saying. Maybe the Bishop’s Synod and the Pope’s schema will coincide eventually. Maybe the Pope will completely control the Synod and eventually come out with what he wants to say. But at this moment the two schemas do not match. And priests like me who wants to prepare the faithful for the year of Faith are confused.
There are a thousand problems destroying the world today; from economic crisis, to abortion, to civil wars, to hunger, to same sex marriages, to priests guilty of pedophilia, to danger of a nuclear war, to floodings and tsunamis, to super volcanoes to etc. etc… But the worst problem in the world today is the LACK OF FAITH because the consequence, eternal damnation, is beyond what man can understand. The Holy Father had given light attention to the other problems and had concentrated his efforts to the lack of faith and the necessity for a proper Evangelization that will lead to True Faith.
Pope Benedict’s schema in his “New Evangelization” that leads to “Porta fidei” is back to basics. He, himself, mentioned that this schema is the traditional, classical way of Evangelization. It is what was used by the Apostles, the Fathers of the Church and by the Catholic Church before something went wrong after the Council of Trent. The Pope’s schema even coincides with the spirituality of the Liturgical Calendar of the Church. Compared to the schema prepared for the Bishop’s Synod, the Pope’s schema is simpler, clearer and easier to explain just like the Liturgy of the Sunday Masses.
Let me repeat Pope Benedict’s schema as he explained it in his document “New Evangelization” delivered in New York for catechists. But this time using the Gospel of the feasts of Sts. Peter and Paul. See how simple it is.
Christ was talking to His apostles and asked them who people say He was. Christ receives two answers. One answer came from the ordinary people, which was wrong but better than the answer of the Pharisees. The other answer came from St. Peter answering for all the apostles. Note the great difference between the two answers.
The first answer coming from the common people states that Christ was a prophet, probably Jeremiah, probably Isaiah which would be the same answer from any Old Testament Jew. Christ described this first answer as coming from flesh and blood, i.e. from human beings, like teachers, professors, doctors of the law, etc. It was NOT Christ nor His Father who taught the common people this answer. This first answer can be naturally and humanly learned as all things in the OLD Testament. It can be learned from human teachers that’s why the ordinary people knew this. This is OLD Testament reply and this natural knowledge is not from Faith.
The second answer did not come from the common people because the common people cannot learn this from human teachers i.e. from teachers of flesh and blood. St. Peter, speaking on behalf of the apostles answered. “You are the Son of the living God.” And Christ said: “Blessed are you Bar Jona because neither flesh nor blood had revealed this to you but My Father in Heaven. So this knowledge came from the Father in Heaven and not from human teachers or professors on earth. The answer was not natural nor from flesh and blood. It is from God. This is supernatural knowledge that comes from Faith that goes hand in hand with contemplation. St. Peter have reached the contemplative life so it is the Father in Heaven who is now teaching him. Christ had lead St. Peter to contemplation. Now the Father is teaching him.
The first answer of the common people was learned in a school-room situation and not through contemplation. The second answer was learned not through a school-room situation but in an infused manner and this is through contemplation.
The first answer of the common people was taught by flesh and blood, by human teachers, professors and doctors of the law. The second answer came from a contemplative, raised up by Jesus Christ to contemplation and now being taught by the Father.
In the first case, the teachers were human and the pupils had remained in the human level. In the second case the teacher, Jesus Christ, was a contemplative and the pupils were raised up to the contemplative level.
So essentially, the “New Evangelization” consists not in teaching that Jesus is the Son of the Living God and other truths….but in teaching the soul to rise up to the level of contemplation like St. Peter so that God the Father can teach them that Jesus is the Son of the living God and mean it.
Pope Benedict in his schema gave the four steps that lead to contemplation. The commission preparing for the Bishop’s Synod skipped the first two steps, repentance or conversion AND entry into the Catholic Church, thus making it impossible for anyone to reach faith. This error is in addition to the fact that most priests had just studied theology from flesh and blood in the seminaries and as such are not really taught by the Father in Heaven. On these two counts it would be impossible for anyone to reach the “Door of Faith.”
Again, the defect that the Pope is correcting is the fact that souls are being taught by teachers with flesh and blood that Jesus is the Son of the Living God. This is both in the seminaries and in the pulpit. No! Evangelization is teaching seminarians and the faithful to become contemplatives….. so that the Father in Heaven can teach them that Jesus is the Son of the Living God and other Catholic truths. All supernatural, Catholic Truths can only be taught by the Father in Heaven to contemplatives.
Note, therefore, how the Holy Father reminded families to hear a good Mass together. Why? Because in the first part of the Mass they learn truths from flesh and blood. In the second part of the Mass they remain silent to learn truths from the Father in Heaven. It is for this same reason that Pope Benedict said that theology should be learned in prayer kneeling down before the Blessed Sacrament.
Summarizing, Jesus Christ is a contemplative who lead the apostles through the four steps of a.)conversion, b.)entrance into the kingdom of God, c.)union with Jesus Christ, d.) union with the Holy Spirit thus leading them to contemplation and eternal life. Having become contemplatives the Father in Heaven can now teach the apostles directly the truths of the Catholic Church. In the “new Evangelization” we must do exactly what Christ did……be contemplatives that we may learn from the Father in Heaven ………and then teach others how to be contemplatives so that they in turn may learn from the Father in Heaven.