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PLAN I
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An
Introduction
"I have come to set the
world on Fire,
and how I wish it were already blazing."
Spreading the Holy
Fire: A Plan and Study Guide for Catholics Evangelizing
in the Archdiocese of Chicago has been designed
to stir up the Catholics of Cook and Lake Counties
with a deeper love for our Savior, Jesus Christ.
It seeks to revitalize our Catholic commitment
to spread the Gospel. The Plan also provides a
concrete template for action within each Archdiocesan
office, each parish, and within the heart and
mind of every Catholic privileged to call him
or herself one of Jesus’ friends. The text
also includes a study guide consisting of reflection
questions for each section of the Plan. The purpose
of these questions is to stimulate discussion,
reflection, prayer, and discernment about how
to best implement the Plan for the respective
audience.
At the direction of
Francis Cardinal George and under the aegis of
the Archdiocesan Office for Evangelization, the
Archdiocesan Committee for Evangelization, formed
and led by Father Joseph Kruszynski, O.F.M.Conv.,
the Director of the Office, has developed this
plan. Its purpose is both simple and comprehensive
to provide catechetical and strategic direction
to implement Go and Make Disciples, A National
Plan and Strategy for Catholic Evangelization
in the United States.1 Go and Make Disciples was
approved by the U.S. Catholic Bishops in November
of 1992 and toward the end of the document, the
Bishops extend an invitation to each Catholic
in the United States to “make this plan
your plan.”
At the very first
Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended in tongues
of fire on Jesus’ disciples. The Holy Fire
empowered them to become witnesses to the Good
News to all nations and fueled their sacred mission
to evangelize the world. From that amazing day
in Jerusalem, through the following centuries,
now, and into the future, the Holy Spirit continues
to empower the Church to evangelize, to spread
the Good News of Jesus Christ. This Plan, Spreading
the Holy Fire, provides concrete ways for Catholics
to evangelize.
Every
Christian, by virtue of Baptism, is called
to collaborate with Jesus through the power
of the Holy Spirit in spreading the Good
News. To evangelize, to make disciples, is
the privilege and duty of every Catholic.
Pope Paul VI has emphatically stated: “Without
the Holy Spirit, evangelization simply cannot
occur.”2
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The Holy Spirit,
the first gift of the Risen Christ to His
people (John 20:22), gives
us both the ability to receive
the Gospel of Jesus and, in response, to
proclaim
it. We believe that Jesus is Savior
and redeemer
of humankind. As His disciples,
we share that conviction with others by living
out His command to love others as
ourselves
and
to gather all into His Body, the
Church. By our faith in Jesus Christ and
our
devotion to Him, we transform the
world.
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As you read this
Plan, we ask that the fire of the Holy Spirit
ignite
your imagination, your zeal, and your love so
that you can indeed carry out Jesus’ command:
“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all
nations...” (Matthew 28:19).
The Plan is organized into three parts:
Part I:
Catholics as Evangelizers establishes
the historical and catechetical foundations
for this fresh evangelizing initiative
within the Archdiocese.
Part II:
Our Reality reflects on the context
of our current cultural and ecclesial
circumstances in which we are called
to spread the Good News as disciples
of Jesus.
Part III:
Objectives, Strategies, and Visible
Signs affirms evangelization as the
essential mission of the Church and
provides strategic ways for individual
Catholics, the parishes and faith communities,
and Archdiocesan departments and agencies
to implement the three goals of Go and
Make Disciples, A National Plan and
Strategy for Catholic Evangelization
in the United States.
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In addition to the
Plan, there is also a planned companion document,
The Implementation Guide for Spreading the Holy
Fire. It offers ways to review and deepen the
commitment to evangelize by growing in holiness,
welcoming others, and transforming society by
the very power of the Gospel itself.
We call upon the Holy
Spirit to descend again in tongues of fire and
fill the hearts of the faithful, to kindle in
us the fire of love, to renew the face of the
earth, to empower us to spread the Holy Fire.
Reflection Questions
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What
are the three key elements to evangelizing?
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How
does your parish encourage its parishioners
to carry out their mission to evangelize?
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What
are the key goals and expectations
you
have for this document?
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PART I: Catholics
as Evangelizers
PART II: Our
Reality
PART III: Objectives,
Strategies, Visible Signs
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