Mission and the

Church: An
Introduction.
(TOPIC NO. 2 – THEOLOGY 3)
Essential Questions:

 Why does my witness and the living of my

Christian faith as a member of the Church still
matter as part of and living in a world that sees
her in negative terms and through negative
experiences throughout history?
 How do I emulate the example of the 3 Great
Women as I stand to be my unique witness as a
Christian who is a member of the Church?
Manang sa Simbahan
Baroque Altar Architecture
Jubilee Door - Indulgences
 “Faith-Experience”

God
LANGUAGE OF FAITH – the historical and
dogmatic content of our faith (the faith
we believe)

God is … ACT OF FAITH - our personal

experience of God (the faith by
which we believe)

6
 Faith-Experience God

God is…

We are “doing theology” or “thinking

theologically” when we consciously and
methodically reflect on our faith-experience.

11
THEOLOGY IN THREE HISTORICAL AND
CULTURAL CONTEXTS 13

Karl Rahner, SJ - “Fundamental Theological Interpretation of Vatican II”

“WORLD or
GLOBAL
GRAECO-ROMAN / CHURCH”
MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN
CULTURE
HEBREW-JEWISH
CULTURE
The Jewish period
 It started with their experience of Jesus in the actual
sense (before the resurrection), and the confession of
faith after the experience (post-Resurrection). It didn’t
last even as “many were added to their number”.
 They understood their mission as apostles (“being
sent”) proclaiming the coming of God’s reign to the
“lost house of Israel”.
 “Paul” – became the archetype of the “apostle” who
didn’t encounter Jesus, and had the calling to
proclaim their “faith” in Jesus and the message of the
Kingdom.
 With the council of Jerusalem (50 AD/CE), came the
gradual break from the Jewish understanding of Jesus
and his message to a Gentile (later Greco-Roman)
understanding of him and of it.
The Greco-Roman (later Latin/Euro-
Centric Period)
 Starting gradually from St. Paul who journeyed beyond the
boundaries of Israel, the understanding of Jesus and His message
shifted from His original Spirit to a Gentile (Greco-Roman)
understanding.
 Paul – a Diaspora Jewish Pharisee whose knowledge of the
Greco-Roman language and culture enabled him to
communicate the Gospel to many communities beyond the
boundaries of Israel. He inculturated the Gospel for the Gentiles
to understand, and used their language to verbalize and make
it understandable for them (as seen from the letters of Paul).
 Church and Apostolic Fathers – 2nd and 3rd generation followers
of Jesus who enriched and made the Gospel more
understandable to people by their writings, and for some, the
witness of their lives unto death. Later, with the legitimation of
Christianity, they served as advisers and experts of the Empire
creating the structure of doctrine, morals and worship of the
Church.
The Greco-Roman (later Latin/Euro-
Centric Period)
 Later, after many centuries of struggle and
martyrdom, the Church came into the world as a
powerbroker from the last centuries of Roman rule
to the rise of the European medieval and post-
medieval civilizations, and unto the ages until the
age of modernity.
 Constantine – the emperor who recognized Christianity
after his ascension as Emperor on 312 AD/CE. He was
recognized for having started the rise of Christendom.
 The Edict of Milan – the official document promulgated by
Constantine to make Christianity legal
 The Council of Nicaea – held in 325, this major council
was called by Constantine to resolve the Arian
controversy, and became one of the first councils to
make the Christian truth understandable in the context of
the Greco –Roman culture.
The Greco-Roman (later Latin/Euro-
Centric Period)
 Theologians and popes – mostly
maintained and interpreted the teachings
of the Church according to the worldview,
language and trends of their time.
• Development of doctrinal formulations
and Scholastic theology
• The Council of Trent and Vatican I –
development of catechism and papal
pronouncements
• Gave rise to the Church as a
hierarchical society (institutional model)
The Greco-Roman (later Latin/Euro-
Centric Period)
 Mystics – gave enrichment to the doctrines and
morals of the Church through the spirituality they
practiced in living the Gospel. These were the
people who despite using the language of their
time are very much in touch with the Source (i.e.,
God)
• Jesus praying at his “rest” moments
(withdrawing to the desert, or to a secluded
place in the mountains)
• Ps. 46: 11 – “Be still and know that I am God! I
am exalted among the nations, exalted on the
earth.”
• Immersed in this experience, the mystics often
became prophets and critics of the seeming
excesses of the hierarchy in the Church, and
somehow made a difference in the living
vocation of the Church.
The World Church (Rahner)
 The world Church period (Vatican II) – the latest break in
the life of the Church as she re-examined herself and her
place in the world especially in the proclamation of the
Gospel. This was heralded by three principles: Scriptures,
Tradition and Experience (signs of the times).
 Recognized the fact that there were other continents
and nations with different and diverse cultures.
 There are different local churches that are diverse in
character among these nations. With this came the
formation of episcopal conferences both in the
regional (eg., FABC in Asia, CCEE in Europe, CELAM in
Latin America) and in the national (eg., CBCP in the
Philippines, USCCB in the US) to address the faith and
morals of the universal church in the local areas.
The World Church (Rahner)
 The world Church period (Vatican II) – the latest break in
the life of the Church as she re-examined herself and her
place in the world especially in the proclamation of the
Gospel. This was heralded by three principles: Scriptures,
Tradition and Experience (signs of the times).
 The rise of the BEC’s also became a factor as a return
to the spirit of the Gospel was espoused as seen in the
early Christian community (koinonia). Dialogue, not
condemnation became the norm, in most Churches.
 There is still a struggle though to come up with a
unified sense for all the faithful especially in keeping
with the task of evangelization vis-à-vis the changing
trends of the world today especially with the
emergence of globalization.
Dawson: The Six Ages of the Church
 From his monumental work, The Historic Reality of
Christian Culture (1960), Christopher Dawson, a Catholic
sociologist makes an initial attempt of a historical survey
of the missionary response of the Church in each age
based on what he calls “apostolic creativity”
 Apostolic creativity – the initial creativity of the
apostolic Church in responding to the missionary
impetus of each age.
 In using this methods he asks this question for his inquiry –
How well/How badly the Church is doing its real task of:
1. spreading the message of the Kingdom?
2. of giving people a participation in divine life through
Word and sacrament?
Dawson: The Six Ages of the Church
 According to Dawson, there are six stages which follow
a similar course:
Dawson: The Six Ages of the Church
Synthesis:
 The Church has been in quite a long journey of both self-discovery and reflection.
 From a humble community of disciples seeking to follow the way of Jesus, they
transformed into a bigger community and had changed exponentially through time.
 At times, they were faithful to the Gospel; more often, they were not. But despite the
situations, the Church seeks to follow the will of God in the example of Jesus:
1. Positive examples:
 The transplanting of the Gospel in every age (from the Jewish to Hellenistic; from
Roman to Medieval; from Europe to Asia; from First-World Dominance to Third-
World Plurality) using the method of inculturation.
 The prophetic witnessing and voice of reform in every age of the Church (Inclusion
of the Gentiles, the Apostolic and Church Fathers, monasticism, theologians and
mystics, visionary Popes, founders and their idea of reform as witness to the Gospel
through the religious orders, bishops and experts of Vatican II)
 The rich tradition that was produced through writings, literary and theological
works, sound papal decrees and today in the CST documents.
 The gradual shift towards inclusion, empowerment and power-sharing in the
Church (PCP II – Participation. Communion and Mission)
Synthesis:
2. Not-so-good events:
 The interpretation of empire-building as the actualization of the
Kingdom of God (Christendom and colonization)
 Inability to reform by returning to Gospel witness.
 Exclusivity and co-optation in power structures (Pope as
kingmaker, Inquisition, the Crusades)
 Bad examples of Christian witnessing not only in leaders, but also
in cultural and attitudinal mindsets

 At the heart of every activity, though the understanding in every

context is different: mission (sharing in God’s work).
Synthesis:
 The Church today is but a product of these historical instances. The real
Church in history, is both “justified and sinner” [simul justus et peccator].
Far from being perfect, the Church realizes its imperfections and the
damage it caused in itself (CCC 817).
 What is wonderful in all of these, however, is that the Church for all its
flaws and imperfections, its complicity and silence against cases of
marginalization and injustice, still realizes that the hand of God is at
work in her (CCC 854).
 We underwent this pilgrimage to recognize that while the Church has
imperfections and flaws, this was to show a realistic evaluation of the
Church. You have offered in your insights a way to correct the past
mistakes of the Church, and so move forward opening a way to
proclaim in a better and life-giving way the Gospel entrusted to us by
the Lord Jesus.
Synthesis:
 After all, marami na rin ang nagsabi, “Eto ang kinagisnan kong
Simbahan! Parang may kulang pag umalis ako.” It is a call for us
to recognize that while we belong to an imperfect Church, we
see the hand of God working in us, inspiring us to continue.
Moreover, we see the mercy of God as the grace that enables
us to share in His work and to be His instruments in the world. We
are not worthy to be part of it, but it is His love that calls and
moves us to take part and be part of the Church!
 Kung tayo nga nde perpekto, Simabahan pa kaya! – The
Church is still a human institution. But, what makes the Church
still relevant despite this is that while we are imperfect as agents
of God’s Reign, we are still chosen by God by the virtue of the
grace which we have received in our baptism. (cf. I Cor. 15:10)
CCC 817: The dissensions in the
Church recognized
In fact, "in this one and only Church of God from its very beginnings
there arose certain rifts, which the Apostle strongly censures as
damnable. But in subsequent centuries much more serious dissensions
appeared and large communities became separated from full
communion with the Catholic Church - for which, often enough, men
of both sides were to blame." The ruptures that wound the unity of
Christ's Body - here we must distinguish heresy, apostasy, and schism -
do not occur without human sin:

Where there are sins, there are also divisions, schisms, heresies, and
disputes. Where there is virtue, however, there also are harmony and
unity, from which arise the one heart and one soul of all believers.
CCC 854: The mission of the Church
marches on
By her very mission, "the Church . . . travels the same journey as all
humanity and shares the same earthly lot with the world: she is to be a
leaven and, as it were, the soul of human society in its renewal by
Christ and transformation into the family of God." Missionary endeavor
requires patience. It begins with the proclamation of the Gospel to
peoples and groups who do not yet believe in Christ, continues with
the establishment of Christian communities that are "a sign of God's
presence in the world,“ and leads to the foundation of local churches.
It must involve a process of inculturation if the Gospel is to take flesh in
each people's culture. There will be times of defeat. "With regard to
individuals, groups, and peoples it is only by degrees that [the Church]
touches and penetrates them and so receives them into a fullness
which is Catholic.”
I Cor. 15:10 – Paul boasts his claim
to be an apostle
But by the grace of God I am what
I am, and his grace to me has not
been ineffective. Indeed, I have
toiled harder than all of them; not I,
however, but the grace of God
[that is] with me.
Thus like Paul, we can also say as
Church:
But by the grace of God we are
what we are (despite our sinfulness
and transgressions), and his grace
to us has not been ineffective.
Indeed, we have toiled harder than
all of them; not we, however, but
the grace of God [that is] with us.