“Be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.” Jesus instruction to those he was sending out as missionaries is as valuable today as it was when he spoke those words. The shrewdness required of a missionary comes in discerning what is truly Gospel and what is a cultural accretion. For example, presuming that Church music requires an organ or that stained glass windows make a church are cultural prejudices and not a gospel value. The simplicity of a missionary comes in focusing on the message of Jesus as we invite people into the Church. Many Catholic things, for example veneration of the saints, might be a respected pious practice but can muddy the simple Gospel message to those meeting faith for the first time. The history of the Church is littered with examples of missionaries not being shrewd and simple. To proclaim the gospel in this post-Christian era will demand recovering the method proposed by Jesus.
JULY112025
By Church Staff
