Proselytsm

A quick search in number of dictionaries for the meaning of ‘proselytism’ may give you something  that goes like this: ‘...any effort to persuade a person to give up one point of view in favor of another’. This could be political, (or social?) but very often religious. The most common synonym given for “proselytize” is “convert”.

“Is there anything wrong with conversion?”, someone may ask. Many would respond, “of course not”. And they would point out that if you have “to go and tell”, then your aim is to get results. Some of these results will be the conversion of souls!! When you come back you will show that your efforts yielded fruits.

But, Pope Francis is said to have preached that “Evangelization is not proselytism.” Does he not believe in converting souls? To avoid getting confused, read this clarification  by Dr. Jeff Mirus:

‘In the Church's lexicon, proselytism typically refers to conversion efforts that fail to respect the prospective convert’s freedom and dignity. High pressure tactics; telling lies about the other person’s current religion; comparing the weaknesses of another’s religious community with only the strengths of one’s own; attempting to convert children in opposition to their parents; offering worldly inducements to change one’s religious allegiance—these are what Catholics would call proselytism.’ The Doctor continues:

“In contrast, a sincere effort to share one’s faith so that others might freely choose to embrace it is considered a virtue. Terms with positive connotations are used to describe such generosity: evangelization, apologetics, catechesis, personal witness, or even simply “winning converts”.

So, the pontiff is in no way opposed to converting souls. Amen.

Mon 30, Apr 2018 12:04 pm