Missionary Disciples: Breaking It Down (part 1 of 4)

You may heave heard the term Missionary Disciple but what does it really mean? Let Janet and Bridgett break it down for you in their latest podcast episodeResources:Living as Missionary Disciples: A Resource for EvangelizationDiscipleship BookToups, Fr. Mark. Rejoice! An Advent Pilgrimage into the Heart of Scripture. Ascension Press, 2023. Edward Sri “Into His Likeness”Joy of the Gospel paragraph 120:"In virtue of their baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples (cf. Mt 28:19). All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization, and it would be insufficient to envisage a plan of evangelization to be carried out by professionals while the rest of the faithful would simply be passive recipients. The new evangelization calls for personal involvement on the part of each of the baptized. Every Christian is challenged, here and now, to be actively engaged in evangelization; indeed, anyone who has truly experienced God’s saving love does not need much time or lengthy training to go out and proclaim that love. Every Christian is a missionary to the extent that he or she has encountered the love of God in Christ Jesus: we no longer say that we are “disciples” and “missionaries”, but rather that we are always “missionary disciples.” If we are not convinced, let us look at those first disciples, who, immediately after encountering the gaze of Jesus, went forth to proclaim him joyfully: “We have found the Messiah!” (Jn 1:41). The Samaritan woman became a missionary immediately after speaking with Jesus and many Samaritans come to believe in him “because of the woman’s testimony” (Jn 4:39). So too, Saint Paul, after his encounter with Jesus Christ, “immediately proclaimed Jesus” (Acts 9:20; cf. 22:6-21). So what are we waiting for?"Baby Steps:Reflect upon your faith journey and your encounters with Jesus and create your storyline.Who is in your mission field? Write down their names and pray for them! Trust that God knows what's best for them and for you.Email us: [email protected] Additional episodes: https://hearingwiththeheart.buzzsprout.com Church of the Ascension: www.ascensionvb.org/podcastSend us Fan MailThanks for joining us. Have a blessed day!