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Rev Noel Connolly SSC Head of Mission & Culture The Broken Bay Institute

The Francis Effect : His Theology of Mission. Rev Noel Connolly SSC Head of Mission & Culture The Broken Bay Institute Conjoint Lecturer, School of Humanities & Social Science The University of Newcastle . The Joy of the Gospel. I. A joyful, positive message

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Rev Noel Connolly SSC Head of Mission & Culture The Broken Bay Institute

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  1. The Francis Effect: His Theology of Mission Rev Noel Connolly SSC Head of Mission & Culture The Broken Bay Institute Conjoint Lecturer, School of Humanities & Social Science The University of Newcastle

  2. The Joy of the Gospel • I. A joyful, positive message • II. A warm & beautiful Church • III. A missionary Church • IV. A merciful, involved Church • V. A poor Church serving the poor • VI. A discerning, pilgrim Church

  3. I. A joyful, positive message • An inspiring vision rather than a critique of the world • A joy ever new, a joy ever shared. #1 • “A sinner” who has experienced the healing love of Christ • And wants to share this • Francis confessed that "perhaps we have reduced our way of speaking about mystery to rational explanations, but for ordinary people the mystery enters through the heart." This leads him to understand the missionary role of the church not as winning an argument but as offering something beautiful. “Only the beauty of God can attract.”

  4. II. A warm, beautiful Church that can dialogue • We need a church unafraid of going forth into their night. We need a church capable of meeting them on their way. We need a church capable of entering into their conversation. • "Unless we train ministers capable of warming people's hearts, of walking with them in the night, of dialoguing with their hopes and disappointments, of mending their brokenness, what hope can we have for our present and future journey?" • We need to know and show joy

  5. III. A missionary message • Whenever our interior life becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades. #2 • “Life grows by being given away, and it weakens in isolation and comfort.”. #10 • I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security. #49

  6. IV. A merciful, involved church • What “the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle.” • The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel. #114 • The Church is called to be the house of the Father, with doors always wide open. One concrete sign of such openness is that our church doors should always be open, so that if someone, moved by the Spirit, comes there looking for God, he or she will not find a closed door. …. This is especially true of the sacrament which is itself “the door”: baptism. The Eucharist, although it is the fullness of sacramental life, is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak. #47

  7. For Jesus mercy takes precedence over holiness • Jesus doesn’t demand formal rites of repentance • Often he just dines with “sinners”, touches or is touched by them • He understands that those who lack everything are also condemned to live in shame without honour and dignity • This does not mean that commandments are unimportant, but spiritual progress takes time and right now they need acceptance, love and confidence • Grace comes before judgement in the reign of God

  8. V. A poor Church that serves the poor • Reading the Scriptures also makes it clear that the Gospel is not merely about our personal relationship with God. #180 • To evangelize is to make the kingdom of God present in our world. Yet “any partial or fragmentary definition which attempts to render the reality of evangelization in all its richness, complexity and dynamism does so only at the risk of impoverishing it and even of distorting it” #176 • It is essential to draw near to new forms of poverty and vulnerability, in which we are called to recognize the suffering Christ….. I think of the homeless, the addicted, refugees, indigenous peoples, the elderly who are increasingly isolated and abandoned, and many others. #210 • Special place for the poor …it means working to eliminate the structural causes of poverty and to promote the integral development of the poor. #188

  9. VI. A discerning, pilgrim Church • Deus semper major • Pilgrim church always searching, crossing frontiers & journeying to the outskirts to find God in all things • Respecting others and befriending the world • We will need to develop skills of discernment • Discernment done in consolation and not out of fear

  10. Questions for Reflection • Are we able to share the joy/hope that is within us? • How can we present a warmer, more merciful and beautiful image of Church?

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