Proclaiming the Gospel of Life in a Post-Christian Culture

By now, it is evident that Western civilization has entered a new era, marked by a series of societal changes that have been advancing rapidly.  We are living in a world that has gradually abandoned its Christian heritage, a heritage that has long underpinned respect for marriage, the family, and for human life in all its stages.  As a result, the foundation of civilization, built on these values, is now crumbling.

It may appear that all is lost, especially if we look at the prevailing culture and the polls that tell us that the majority, it seems, are not on the side of traditional Christian values.

But we ought not to despair.  We are a people of life and of hope!

How do we proclaim the Gospel of Life in a post-Christian culture?

Saint Pope John Paul II explains in Evangelium Vitae that “to proclaim Jesus is itself to proclaim life. For Jesus is ‘the word of life’ … It is in being destined to life in its fullness, to “eternal life”, that every person’s earthly life acquires its full meaning.” (#80)

We have a great treasure – Christ Jesus, the remedy for the moral and spiritual challenges of our age.  Jesus is also our strength as He leads us to the Father and sends the Holy Spirit to give us wisdom, understanding, courage, and many more gifts needed to stand firm in the face of these challenges.

While strategies, such as advocating for pro-life policies, providing services to help mothers and families in need, educational endeavours, and financial resources are all necessary, without the firm conviction that the world needs Christ and that the remedy lies in Him, in the conversion of hearts and minds, we will not have a lasting impact on the culture.

Selfless love of neighbour

We are called to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and care for the sick. We don’t do so out of a desire to change the world (worthy of a goal that might be), but rather, in doing these merciful acts, we do so out of love.  Caring for those we encounter daily requires us to look beyond ourselves and see their inherent dignity, a person made in the image of God and worthy of love and respect – simply because they exist.  

When we selflessly love our neighbours and walk with them with genuine compassion, we change the world, allowing God to be glorified in the smallness of our love.  It begins with a change – a conversion – in our hearts first as we become more willing to serve with joy.  “Pick up a pin from a motive of love, and you may thereby convert a soul.  Jesus alone can make our deeds of such worth, so let us love Him with every fibre of our heart,” said St Therese of Lisieux.

This little way of love is in stark contrast to the ways of the world, which have a false notion of compassion and value freedom and autonomy as the highest good.  

Proposing a new vision to transform minds and hearts

In the book From Christendom to Apostolic Mission, the author declares that “the great apostolic task of our time is to gain a genuine conversion of mind and vision.”  Therefore, we must fearlessly propose a new vision to those around us so that minds may be transformed and hearts converted – one person at a time.  Then, we will gradually restore a culture of life and a civilization of love that bears much fruit. 

When proclaiming the Gospel of Life, Saint John Paul encourages us, saying “we must not fear hostility or unpopularity, and we must refuse any compromise or ambiguity which might conform us to the world’s way of thinking (cf. Rom 12:2). We must be in the world but not of the world (cf. Jn 15:19; 17:16), drawing our strength from Christ, who by his Death and Resurrection has overcome the world (cf. Jn 16:33).” (Evangelium Vitae, #82)

Looking to the first Christians

As we see a return to societal practices and values that are reminiscent of pre-Christian times (and even worse), we must look to what our brothers and sisters in Christ did at the beginning of Christianity.  It was faithful members of the Catholic Church that saved babies from dying from exposure in Roman times (a common practice of infanticide).  It was Christians who fed the hungry, the poor, the needy.  We established hospitals.  We have always cared for the widow and the unwed mother.  It is this selfless giving that is needed again today.

May the Holy Spirit set our hearts ablaze with true Christian charity, a zeal to seek our neighbour’s good through acts of service, and a willingness to stand with great courage in the face of evil.  In this little way of love, we will succeed in proposing a new vision that transforms minds and converts hearts, and that ultimately, will restore a culture of life and civilization of love.