Fishing with C.S. Lewis and Robert Barron: YL Catholic Relations & the Art of Catching Nones

A friend contacted me recently to ask my advice about a good C.S. Lewis book for her husband. That’s a lot like asking me for the best Henri Nouwen book. They’re all so good it’s impossible to pick one (so I recommended the complete compilation of C.S. Lewis signature classics, of course!). But it prompted me to pull my own copy of Mere Christianity off the shelf and refamiliarize myself. 

I was immediately struck by the description of Lewis’ original motivations to write what would become a timeless spiritual classic for Protestants and Catholics alike: “Ever since I became a Christian I have thought that the best, perhaps the only, service I could do for my unbelieving neighbors was to explain and defend the belief that has been common to nearly all Christians at all times.” Somehow from the beginning, Lewis intuited that the world needed an articulate presentation of Christianity’s heart, not its peripheries, its center of gravity, not its disputed boundaries. 

His ecumenical instincts were beautifully attuned to the signs of the times. He rightly observed that disputes among Christians were, first of all, often matters of high theology suited only for real experts. But he also noted that discussions about controversial points hadn’t the slightest chance of bringing outsiders into the Christian fold. He chose to “fish” for men and women (Mt 4:19; Lk 5:10) with the proposition of “mere” Christianity, a term he borrowed from the oft-forgotten 17^thcentury figure Richard Baxter. By “mere” he didn’t mean minor or measly, but essential and foundational, the very core of the Christian tradition.  

Fast forward to the 21^stcentury and we meet another towering evangelical fisherman, Bishop Robert Barron. Catholic Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles and founder of Word on Fire Ministries, Barron’s effectiveness in proclaiming the Gospel to the postmodern generation can be aptly compared to Lewis’ influence on the generation of moderns before him. Like Lewis, who never hid his Anglican convictions, Barron is solidly Catholic, but he also knows that focusing on the divisions isn’t going to win any converts.

“You’re not going to get a lot of nones coming back to church if you’re ranting and raving,” Barron says. “You have to be more inviting, finding positive things in the culture you can identify with.”[1]Noting the influence of Saint Pope John Paul II, one of his heroes, Barron exhorts, “You should never be browbeating, aggressive, prideful, and all that. Never impose, always propose.”[2]

Why is this missionary strategy so effective (note Barron’s online videos have been viewed over 30 million times and his Facebook followers now number over 1.5 million)? It’s because Bishop Barron is sharply attuned to his audience. He knows that we are living in the age of widespread secularism, skepticism and unbelief. Like Lewis, Barron’s evangelical strategy begins with the kerygmatic core of Christianity, that positive, Christocentric message that Jesus Christ is the thing our restless hearts most yearn for. 

This same approach is at the center of the growing movement of Young Life Catholic Relations. Beginning with what Pope Francis calls “the essentials, that which is most beautiful, most grand, most appealing and most necessary”[3]we seek to address the startling rise of “the nones”, those who aren’t arguing about this denomination or that but who have no religious affiliation at all. How? With a winsome proclamation of Jesus Christ, with real relationships and a steady ministry of accompaniment, and with a spirit of partnership that stacks hands on that “center, rather that Someone, who against all divergencies of belief, all memories of mutual persecution, speaks [to us] with the same voice.”[4]

To find out more about how you can participate in this growing movement of unity and evangelization please click here.

---

[1]Robert Barron, To Light a Fire on the Earth: Proclaiming the Gospel in a Secular Age (Image Books, NY: 2017), 124.

[2]Ibid, 115.

[3]Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), 35. 

[4]C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity found in The Complete C.S. Lewis Signature Classics  (HarperCollins: NY, 2002), 8.

The Young Life Catholic Forum: A Defining Moment

There are moments that define my vocation, moments that make me stop and say, “This is it. This is what my life is about.” January 24-26, 2019 will be one of those moments for me. It just may be one of those moments for you too.

When I consider my life in Christ and my service to the Church, there are a few things that I stand for, ideals that draw the best out of me, horizons that tug at my heart and guide my journey. The first is Jesus Christ. I can never forget that my faith was forged in an encounter with the living God who came in the person of Jesus. Not just a creed, not merely a moral compass, but a divine Person who speaks and listens, who challenges and forgives, who saves me from the pit and sets my foot upon the rock. Like He did for every one of us, I live and die for Jesus Christ.

The second defining ideal is unity in the body of Christ. This has always been a deep plumb line for me. Christ’s body is one. Many parts we are, but together we are the Mystical Body of Christ on earth. Broken and tattered as we are, we are the ark of salvation. Darkened by sin and prone to wander, we are nonetheless the People of God. When Jesus prayed “that they all may be one” (Jn 17:21), it always resonated with me. It struck me as one of the most important parting words that He spoke. As Christians we are called to overcome the stain of division and love each other in a way that the world would see Jesus (Jn 17:23). I want my life to build up the Church, the body of Christ, “until we have come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord” (Eph 4:12). 

The third defining ideal is mission. We don’t just have a mission, we are a mission. We are a sent people. From our encounters with Christ we are sent out to proclaim the kingdom of God and manifest His will “on earth as it is in heaven.” We can’t wait for it. We can’t wait passively in our church buildings, Pope Francis reminds us. We have to go. Like Jesus came searching for us, we have to go after people – engage them, listen to them, love them. This is precisely how the kingdom will come. Saints like you and I leaving our comfort zone and sacrificing our lives so that others might encounter Jesus and have eternal life in Him. I want my life to be a mission.

So it is with great enthusiasm that I invite each of you to participate in an event that is decidedly about Jesus, unity, and mission – the Young Life Catholic Forum. Co-sponsored by Young Life Catholic Relations and the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, we invite you to a historic gathering in the heart of New York City, January 24-26, 2019. Be a part of the surging movement of unity, friends on mission for Christ and for kids. Young Life staff and volunteers, Catholics from parishes, schools and dioceses from around the country, coming together to glorify God and equip God’s people to do His work in reaching every kid, everywhere for eternity. 

This is a defining moment. Be a part of it. Come to New York. Jesus is calling.

Click on this link for more details! https://younglifecatholicforum.splashthat.com

"What Can We Do Together?"

“What can we do together?” Pope Francis asked this week in Geneva during his address to the World Council of Churches, representing 350 Christian denominations and over 500 million Christians worldwide. It is a question which echoes through my mind after spending a week with delegates from Catholic dioceses and parishes from around the US at the 6^thAnnual YL Catholic Adult Guest Camp at Timber Wolf Lake. We’re all asking, “What can we do together to reach young men and women who are struggling without a sense of worth, belonging and hope that can only be found in Jesus?” 

We begin with spiritual friendship. Spending time together throughout the week made us realize that underneath the titles and positions, we are all human beings with names and families, joys and hopes, hurts and frailties. We listened to one another. We prayed over each other. We laughed our heads off at club and we cried through so many beautiful moments. We tackled the ropes course together and we heard the gentle voice of Jesus beckoning us forth. This week we became not merely co-laborers in the Lord’s harvest but friends in Christ.

Second, we committed to a common path. With eyes focused on Jesus, we stacked hands on introducing kids to Christ and helping them grow in their faith. We honored our differences without getting mired in disagreements. We chose a path of graciousness and trust rather than arousing suspicion and putting up walls. We discovered that we want the same things – for kids to know Christ, to place their trust in Him as the source of their lives, and to reconnect to the Church, each according to his or her tradition. 

Kathy Goller, Director of Youth & Young Adult Ministry at the Diocese of Buffalo, NY shared, "My experience at the Catholic Adult Guest Week convicted me more than ever that the Catholic Church can, and needs to, partner with Young Life to reach our young people with the hope and love of Christ. Further, it gave me clear ideas and a plan for how to transform those convictions into actions for our diocese!"

Third, we leaned into hope. We all know the state of affairs today. We know that faith is out of fashion and that for every 1 who enters the Church 6 leave. We know what kids are exposed to through social media and modern “entertainment.” Yet the power of the Resurrection compels us forward with hope. God is writing a beautiful story. We saw it right before our eyes. The victory of goodness over evil is real. Walls are coming down. Reconciliation is happening. Lives are being transformed. “The best of Young Life is yet to come,” Jim Rayburn proclaimed in his last days. And I believe that includes widespread partnership with the whole body of Christ – Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox. 

“What can we do together?” A lot, it turns out. And the best is yet to come. 

Sunset on Timber Wolf Lake

Young Life Brings Protestants and Catholics Together in the Holy Land by Deacon Nathan Gunn

Young Life’s commitment to unity in diversity and bridge-building just reached new heights. In some parts of the world, bridges need to be built between socio-economic groups.  In other places, the need is to bring healing to issues of racial tension.  On the continent of Europe, the biggest need for unity is between Catholics and Protestants. 

In late May, the staff and spouses from YL Europe joined with Mission Leaders and guests representing a group of over 200 pilgrims.  For a week, people from nearly 20 European countries toured the Holy Land, following in the footsteps of Jesus, His family and His apostles.  The journey began in the tightly-wound ancient city of old Jerusalem.  The group descended the Mount of Olives and ascended the Via Dolorosa – trodding the very paths that Jesus took, carrying His cross to Calvary.  We floated in the Dead Sea and looked into the Caves at Qumran. We sailed across the Sea of Galilee and traced Christ’s miraculous works through ancient Capernaum.  With every turn and every detail, the mercy and grace of God was extended through the landscape, the history, the recollection of the stories, and the vividness of the setting.

Then, in a powerful movement of God’s grace, another element emerged.  At YL “Club” each night, we heard from one of two European ministers.  Rev Dr. Keith McCrory, a Protestant pastor from Northern Ireland, and Father Lukasz Szymanski, a Roman Catholic priest from Poland, took turns preparing us for the next day’s sites and leading us into deeper communion with Christ.  Two men from two Christian traditions, overcoming centuries of division and strife to lead Young Life hand in hand through the Holy Land, was a living testament to Young Life’s priority of unity within the Body of Christ.  Along with the shared teaching, the corporate prayer of the Stations of the Cross, walking Christ’s steps to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher brought more reflection and deeper unity among us.  

But the biggest movement of the Holy Spirit was experienced in Nazareth.  Together, with one voice, all two hundred-strong sang worship songs and prayed together as Fr. Lucasz celebrated Catholic Mass at the Basilica of the Annunciation.  Not only was the setting dramatic, but the movement of God’s Spirit as Catholics and Protestants basked together in the Presence of God was awe-inspiring.  For many, this was their first experience of the Mass.  For others, this was their first experience of Mass in such a powerful Catholic setting.  During small groups that night, pilgrim after pilgrim shared that the Mass was the highlight of their day, if not their trip.  While the Mission Leadership set the direction and put the players in place, it was the Holy Spirit that took over and sparked the unity that Christ prayed for in John 17.

As the pilgrimage ended, conversations continued. There are about a dozen meaningful entry points for cooperation between YL and the Catholic Church that are ready for immediate follow-up.  Beyond those venues, there are dozens more YL staff who are hungry and eager to learn more. Plans for partnership are being crafted, trying to keep pace with the unity that the Spirit is forging. The groundswell of unity is happening. The tsunami of partnership is coming. And at the center of it all are two elements that YL has always held most sacred – the love of Christ for every kid and every kid’s need to hear of His love for them.   

*post written by Deacon Nathan Gunn, a 20-year veteran of Young Life who serves as Associate Director of YL-Catholic Relations for the Eastern States, and is a permanent deacon in the Roman Catholic Church.