Perspectief 2014-26

2014-26 Towards a Healthy Future of Catholicity in the Roman Catholic Church 43 Reag eer of history.” One is not surprised not to find a reference to UR 11 in Lumen Fidei and one wonders how one is to start the dialogue with other churches from such a doctrinal point of departure. The third chapter of Evangelii Gaudium on ‘The proclamation of the Gospel’ offers pope Francis the occasion to show his faithfulness to the ecclesiological model of the people of God which occupied a central place in Lumen Gentium . It is his deep conviction that ‘The entire people of God proclaims the Gospel’. When characterising the people of God as ‘a people with many faces’ the pope employs the term catholicity: “In the diversity of peoples who experience the gift of God, each in accordance with its own culture, the Church expresses her genuine catholicity and shows forth the ‘beauty of her varied face’.” 4 (§ 116) The pope knows that “cultural diversity is not a threat to Church unity” (§ 117) because it is a sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit. It is he who brings forth a rich variety of gifts, while at the same time creating a unity which is never uniformity but a multifaceted and inviting harmony. Evangelization joyfully acknowledges these varied treasures which the Holy Spirit pours out upon the Church. We would not do justice to the logic of the incarnation if we thought of Christianity as monocultural and monotonous. (ibid.) After paying particular attention to popular piety (§§ 122-126) the pope exhorts the faithful to cherish the existence of different charisms among them and not to be afraid of diversity: Differences between persons and communities can sometimes prove uncomfortable, but the Holy Spirit, who is the source of that diversity, can bring forth something good from all things and turn it into an attractive means of evangelization. Diversity must always be reconciled by the help of the Holy Spirit; he alone can raise up diversity, plurality and multiplicity while at the same time bringing about unity. When we, for our part, aspire to diversity, we become self-enclosed, exclusive and divisive; similarly, whenever we attempt to create unity on the basis of our human calculations, we end up imposing a monolithic uniformity. This is not helpful for the Church’s mission. (§ 131) 4 The citation is from the apostolic letter of Pope John Paul II Novo Millenio Ineunte (2001).