TheJoyof the Gospel ofLife

Abstract

Abstract Together towards Life (TIE) and Evangelii Gaudium (EG) convey a renewed and fresh understanding of mission and evangelism that speaks meaningfully to contemporary context, reminds churches of their primary task of mission and evangelism, and challenges them to reflect on and practice mission and evangelism with joy and life. This essay strives to discuss three important aspects of mission and evangelism that TTL and EG share, albeit with their own distinct perspective. The inseparability of ecclesiology and missiology is one affirmation that is commonly shared by TTL and EG. Introduction The present decade has witnessed birth of a trilogy of statements on mission and evangelism that is of historic significance. The Cape Town Commitment of Lausanne Movement (2010), Together towards Life: Mission and Evangelism in Changing Landscapes (TTL) of World Council of Churches (2012), and apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (EG) of Pope Francis (2013) have already made their mark with their vast influence on theological reflections on mission and evangelism today. This article is an attempt to reflect on some of common threads that bind two of them together, namely TTL and EG. (1) Whilst there are several aspects and emphases that make each of them distinct and different, both documents share certain dimensions of mission and evangelism that are pertinent in contemporary global context. The central concept that captures spirit of EG is joy, whereas life is permeating theme of TTL. While TTL adopts a pneumatological perspective (within an overarching Trinitarian scheme), EG tends to opt for a Christo-centric approach to mission and evangelism. EG has been published in response to most recent meeting of Synod of Bishops (October 2012) and is devoted to theme of new evangelization. (2) TTL has been an attempt on part of Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) of World Council of Churches (WCC) to look at mission and evangelism afresh in fast-changing global landscape, as previous official WCC statement on mission and evangelism was getting somewhat outdated. (3) The main objective of both TTL and EG is again somewhat similar. EG has been articulated so that the Church may rediscover original source of evangelization in contemporary world. (4) Likewise, aim of TTL is to seek vision, concepts and directions for a renewed understanding and practice of mission and evangelism in changing landscapes. (5) Both TTL and EG are, therefore, efforts to re- imagine missiology in contemporary global scenario. Pope Francis, a Jesuit himself, offers an Ignatian reading of global context, looking for people, world and trends where God is present. (6) The social analysis of EG is more or less akin to that of classical Latin American liberation theology (hereafter referred to as liberation theology in this essay), whereas TTL seems to go beyond and engage an indigenous/subaltern reading of signs of our times. Trends such as shift of centre of gravity of global Christianity from global North to global South and phenomenal rise of Pentecostal and Charismatic spirituality across globe have been dealt with seriously in TTL. These, however, do not merit much prominence in EG. Whilst EG devotes a great deal of focus to concerns such as inter- religious dialogue, secularization, and postmodernity, they don't seem to get adequate attention in TTL. Whereas a creation-centred perspective on missiology is apparent in TTL, tendency in EG is to take a traditional anthropocentric view on evangelization, which probably accounts for almost a complete absence of missiological reflections on environmental concerns in apostolic exhortation. Both TTL and EG seem to have put considerable emphasis, rightly so, on impact of economic globalization and dictatorship of market. Such has been impact of EG that it is being widely regarded as a remarkable and radical document, one that ranges widely and challenges complacency at every level. …