Those who hunger for the Word of God

One day, a cousin wrote to me saying: ‘Please, I’d like you to help me with my spiritual life. I used to think that just having a job would be enough to make me feel at peace. But the emptiness inside me just keeps on going. I need God,

I need your help’. Many people are spiritually sick, thirsting for the truth, hungry for the Word of God (Amos 8:11). They are prisoners of sin, which enslaves them. They are not clothed in the armour of God (Eph 6:11). Many people are suffering. The tragedy is that some do not recognise it. It is as if they had an illness gnawing away at them, yet they do not realise it. It is as if they were addicted and could no longer do without cocaine. On the one hand, they want to break free from sin; on the other, those very sins draw them in and bind them.  There are still people who want to follow God, who want to get involved in the Church, but who do not know how to go about it. Will there be anyone to guide and help them? When we organise couples’ days – usually once a term – by the end, people are so happy that they’d like them to be held every month. Because they feel their relationship has been renewed. Partners who have come alone regret that their spouse is not with them to savour the beauty of placing God at the centre of their relationship. Jesus tells us: ‘I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was in prison and you visited me; I was naked and you clothed me… Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom’ (Mt 25:31–46). Whilst it is true that this refers to the material things we give to our brothers and sisters, it is also true that this passage applies to the spiritual life. Indeed, spiritual hunger is the most excruciating, for spiritual death leads to hell and eternal suffering. Are you ready to help Jesus, who suffers spiritually through these people? ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me’ (Mt 25:40). Isaiah had heard the Lord’s message asking him: ‘Whom shall I send?’ ‘Who will go for us?’ He replied: ‘Here am I, Lord; send me’ (Isaiah 6:8).

I used to believe that the task of evangelisation fell solely to priests, religious or catechists. I looked down on anyone who tended to speak to others about God. I told myself that it was enough simply to live a good life, even if in secret. But Pope Paul VI, in his letter on evangelisation, *Evangeli nuntiendi*, says that however beautiful one’s witness of life may be (which is essential), it is not enough. The good news of Christ must be proclaimed with words. Many people have often believed that it was enough simply to seek personal holiness. It is true that the witness of one’s life leads others to God, but it is not enough. The proclamation of the Good News is the other side of the coin when it comes to evangelisation. Pope Paul VI himself also said that the Church exists to evangelise. I am a member of the Church and my life of faith cannot be conceived of without evangelisation. Moreover, Pope John Paul II, in *Redemptoris missio*, says that faith grows when it is shared. How many Christians today are suffering from a decline in faith! To rekindle it, we must share what little remains, the Pope tells us. This also means that if I do not share my faith, it withers away. We are disciples of Christ and we must live like our Master, who came to give us divine life. We have this life through our Baptism, which makes us priests, kings and prophets. A prophet, in the Church’s sense, is not primarily one who foretells the future, but one who speaks in God’s name, who proclaims the Word of God. Yet, through our Baptism, we are all prophets.

It is inconceivable that we should hold the key to the path to happiness, to the path of life, and yet fail to open the door to those who need to enter, or even fail to show them the way. It is as if a doctor were to discover a cure for AIDS today, but kept it to himself, whilst reflecting on what an excellent researcher he is. He would be called a criminal because he has the answer to the suffering of many people but is hiding it. In the same way, we have the ability to help others encounter God. One might say that we are criminals if we do not show them this path. Many do not evangelise because they believe that faith is a private matter. Pope Benedict XVI, on his last visit to the United States, reminded us that faith is not a private matter: ‘We are not born alone, we do not sin alone, and we are not saved alone’. Faith is personal but not private. My brothers and sisters must benefit from my faith. Most Christians who do not like evangelisation are ashamed to speak of God. They are ashamed that they will be treated as outcasts; ashamed that they will be isolated; ashamed that they will be labelled as sectarians; or they are simply ashamed of being rejected. ‘Whoever is ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of them before my Father’ (Mt 10:33). When someone in our families is ill, we brave the shame and the stares of others to take them to receive treatment. What matters is their recovery, and for that we are willing to make many sacrifices. Normally, this is the same attitude we ought to have towards evangelisation. The problem is that we often lack the eyes of faith to see that others are sick. These others, even if we do not know them, are our brothers and sisters, for every man is my brother and every woman is my sister. We are all brothers and sisters of the same Father: ‘you are members of God’s household’ (Eph 2:19).

How can we neglect even those closest to us? Yet we can begin by sharing the Good News with our family members, even if they do not listen to us: ‘whether they listen to you or not, they will know that there is a prophet among them’ (Ezek 2:5). After the Incarnation, the Virgin Mary first went to visit her cousin Elizabeth. How can we hide the good news from our partners, our close friends, our acquaintances?  How can we refuse to show them the light when they need it? People might one day complain to you, saying, ‘You knew about this and you didn’t tell me’? And you will say, ‘I thought you weren’t interested’. And they’ll reply: ‘You really aren’t my friend; you don’t love me, otherwise you wouldn’t have hidden such a treasure from me’. It’s not, above all, a matter of going from house to house. A simple way to evangelise is even to direct someone towards a place where they can rekindle their faith. An example of such a place is a retreat. Here is the preparation for the upcoming major retreat. Who have I invited? Who have I already spoken to about this?

Glory to God, for there are many people—mostly young people—who have a renewed zeal for evangelism within them. For several years now, I have witnessed the zeal of young people for evangelism in the ‘Word of God’ groups and elsewhere. They have spread to many towns. This enthusiasm for evangelism amongst young people has existed for years. However, we must not let this flame fade; we must keep it alive. We must not grow weary. We must even make further progress in evangelism (1 Thessalonians 4:1).  My desire is that the Holy Spirit will help me to continue to grow in evangelism, whatever my family and professional responsibilities may be. If we say we love Jesus, he tells us: ‘Peace be with you, my sheep’ (John 21:15). Our evangelisation, however small it may be, if done according to God’s will, will strengthen our faith, and Jesus will be pleased: ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom’. Let us prepare ourselves earnestly for the great retreat.

Henri Bayemi