About Use Words- if you have to

[Neighbor]

“Preach the Gospel every day— use words if you have to” A saying attributed to St Francis  by Roman CatholicsMay I quote a commentary that I find agreement with on this declaration?

 

Kevin Cotter 

October 4, 2011  44,599  8 Comments

 Share  Tweet 

 CHURCH

Did Francis really say, Preach the Gospel at all times and if necessary use words? 

As Catholics, we have a number of phrases and sayings we use with one another on a consistent basis. One of the most common sayings is “Preach the Gospel at all times, and if necessary use words.” This quote is popularly attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. The saying is often used as a recommendation for how we should primarily or even exclusively evangelize. But, did St. Francis of Assisi really say this? And, did he really live this out as his primary means of evangelization?

Well, the truth is, there is no evidence that St. Francis said this. It is clear that St. Francis’ life and actions did provide a great deal of evangelization on their own. In the context of a society where many clergy lived extravagant lifestyles, St. Francis’ vow to poverty was a stunning image of the Gospel.

And yet, what is often lost amid a portrayal of a man who is usually pictured with animals is a saint who was not afraid to preach the Gospel verbally to others. It was said that he would go to the extravagant parties of the rich and preach the Gospel to them. When walking the paths of Assisi, St. Francis would often preach the Gospel to those he met. In fact, St. Francis is pictured with birds because the story goes that St. Francis even preached the Gospel to them. If he went so far as to preach to birds than surely he wasn’t afraid to preach to the men and women he met.

There is no doubt that our lives should proclaim the Gospel. But, we should also be able to articulate the Gospel to others. As Pope Benedict says in Verbum Domini, "It is not a matter of preaching a word of consolation, but rather a word which disrupts, which calls to conversion and which opens the way to an encounter with the one through whom a new humanity flowers (no. 93). St. Francis lived this both/and rather than an either/or. If he did ever say, “Preach the Gospel at all times and if necessary use words” then he must have thought it was necessary to do so on a consistent basis.

[Beckett]

Isn't the problem with words this: we don't know how others might understand them. And unless we are saints our own misunderstandings might show through the words, and mislead?

 

And even when reading the Bible, do we have a guarantee that we are understanding the words correctly? there are many different hermeneutical methods of reading the Bible, and different groups of Christians read it in a slightly different manner.

 

I read it this way: I try different interpretations, see if I can understand and find it in my own life. If I do, this is a sort of salvation, cause it leads to understanding.

Edited June 30, 2019 by Beckett

[Beckett]

Maybe it is about finding a tradition, a group of people, that share a common understanding that does not confuse you, but grounds you in wisdom.

 

I don't know. I stay open to different Christian traditions, but I will say this: this openness  also leads to confusion for me.

[Neighbor]

Well, I think  many that say that they just  act Christian like in their walk and that they don't share the word miss out on the idea which I consider to  be fact; that is : Evil does good works too. Just living as though good, doesn't make one Godly, doesn't share the gospel, and so doesn't do what we as Christians are are to  do, go about the world proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus.