The Gospel in the capitals

October is traditionally the missionary month in the Catholic Church. By “tradition” we mean the 19th/20th century tradition. “Missionary work” is a rather remote image. But the Church must necessarily be “missionary”. “We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20), says the Bible. Ever since the origin of the history of the Church this conviction has been the driving force of Christianity.The archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, like other European prelates, such as the retired Archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, the Primate of Belgium, Cardinal Godfried Danneels, and the Hungarian Primate and newly elected President of the Council of the European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE), Cardinal Peter Erdö, has had the courage to newly pose the question of mission within the European church community. Shortly – between 28 November and 5 November – the fourth “civic mission” promoted by the bishops of Europe will be held in Brussels. No different from other theatres of “civic mission” such as Paris, Vienna and more recently Rome, Brussels too was once – and in no very remote period – a thriving capital of Catholic life. It is enough to think of the legendary founder of Catholic Worker Youth (JOC), Cardinal Joseph Cardijn. In the meantime, much of the Catholic substance of former times has vanished in Brussels, symbolic capital of the European Union. Europe today is flourishing but at the same time apprehensive: it is experiencing a sense of disarray; it lacks any profound orientation. At the same time we are witnessing the phenomenon of “hunger for God” – so many people, young and not so young, are desperately seeking an answer to their questions about the ultimate meaning of their life. The “Good News” of the Gospel could be just such an answer. But it is essential that the Church gets out of the sacristy, that she leaves the protected environment of the community of believers and ventures out into the real world, in order freely to dialogue with people and reply to their questions. It is essential that the Church flings open her doors and goes out into the places where the daily life of people actually takes place. Precisely this is the aim of the “civic mission”. The Church needs to adjust herself to the task of bringing “initial evangelization” to the many who have never heard anything of the wonderful closeness of God who became flesh in Jesus Christ. And this mission must have no fear of anyone. Even immigrants from countries that are now islamized have the right to hear the “Good News”. A few days ago the German expert Peter Antes declared in Vienna that 58% of immigrants from “Islamic” countries in Germany are by now completely “secularised”. It happens every so often that baptized Christians, who have abandoned their faith, discover in Islam a response to their inner questions. It must, by the same token, be possible for people of Islamic origin, who have abandoned Islam, to discover in the Gospel a new source of faith. It often happens. Christian Europe ought to be proud of these neophytes and help them.