Who here is afraid to breach the taboo of talking politics and religion, especially to strangers? Most people won’t, of course, because it’s deemed impolite. However, John Paul The Great had another view, which is why he was the greatest man of the 20th century, in my view.
We are all called, as Catholics, to bring the Lord to all. It is not a calling the Lord limits to priests, bishops and religious; being Catholic is more than attending Church and, literally preaching to the choir. Nothing so important should be restricted by an arbitrary social norm, probably constructed by secularists anyway. Of course, we must be mindful of how we approach people and the particular situations in which we find ourselves. But if volunteers can go door to door for any number of secularcauses (many worthwhile), why don’t Catholics go door to door, or speak up more often publicly, about the Faith?
It is not enough to call, to summon, and to wait for people to come. … You must be a Church which seeks people out, which invites them not only through the general appeal of the media, but also by personal invitation, from house to house, from street to street, in an unflagging effort, respectful but present in all place and social environments.
- John Paul II, from his Address to the Bishops Conference of Brazil, Ad limina visit, September 5, 1995
John Paul II: He was Great and loved for a reason.
