Denver Catholic

ARCH B I S H O P ' S CO LU M N W hat gave the early Christians the desire to leave behind their professions, travel to foreign lands and, in most cases, give their lives? Their minds were transformed and renewed by their relationship with Jesus Christ as their Lord and God, so that they had what we now call "an apostolic mindset." This worldview is one that is deeply rooted in the Scrip- tures (Rom 12:2), which was the lens through which they saw the world. Because we are now in a post-Christian society, we no longer live in a culture influenced by the faith. We have entered a new era in which the Church must recover and adopt an apostolic mindset to be effective in sharing Jesus Christ with a world that has lost its sense of purpose and believes it can accomplish the impossible task of saving itself. This begs the question: What are the essential characteristics of someone who has an apostolic mindset? There are surely many and the Holy Spirit will undoubtedly give new gifts to people that are specially tailored for our time, but for the purposes of this column, I will focus on five of them. U N I Q U E C A L L I N G FR O M T H E FAT H E R When one looks at apostles and believers of the early Church, one notices that they have an awareness that God the Father has set them apart and uniquely called them to be in relationship with him. We know from his words to the disciples that Jesus reveals the Father to us. "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Remain in my love" (Jn 15:9) and "He who sees me sees the Father" (Jn 14: 9). God the Father has created us for this time in history and he has a definite plan for us. He loves us and reveals to us that we matter to him. He tells us through the prophet Jer- emiah, "For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope." (Jer 29:11). In a world that is desperately confused and searching for meaning, people thirst for the assurance that they are loved and their life has a purpose. The Father provides this. CO S T LY I M ITATI O N O F CH R I S T Contrary to the modern emphasis on avoiding suffering at all costs, Jesus clearly told his followers that their life would be difficult. They first learned this from Jesus calling them to leave everything and follow him and then from traveling with Jesus and being driven out of different towns. At the same time, they learned to recognize the uniqueness of Jesus as their Lord and Savior, as the one who rescued them from sin, the grip of the devil and from death. The Lord reminded them that if they were to be his disci- ples, they must leave everything, even family. As they grew in faith, hope and love, they became willing to suffer for him and give themselves as he gave himself on the Cross. The transformation that occurred in the apostles, from encountering Jesus after his resurrection and then the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, strengthened them for embracing suf- fering for Christ. They knew that they first had to obey God and thus surren- der their hearts, minds and wills to him. Because they were formed by the Word of God and not by the world, they were transformed from men who abandoned Jesus in his Passion to men who rejoiced over suffering for his name BY ARCHBISHOP SAMUEL J. AQUILA Follow Archbishop Aquila on Social media: | How to live as a modern disciple 2 FEBRUARY 2022 | DENVER CATHOLIC U T T E R R E L I A N CE O N T H E H O LY S P I R IT Throughout the early Church we see how the apostles and first believ- ers counted on the Holy Spirit to guide them. In the Acts of the Apos- tles (Acts 16:6), St. Paul speaks about how he was planning to go to modern day Turkey to preach, but when he prayed about it, the Holy Spirit pre- vented him from going. How close is your relationship with the Holy Spirit? Do you allow him to change your plans, give direc- tion to your life and seek out his gifts to bless others? The early Church certainly did this, and we should also pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit so that we are reminded of all Jesus has taught us and spiritually equipped for the mission God gives us. We can count on Jesus' promise of the Holy Spirit and trust in the Holy Spirit's sound guidance. "When the Spirit of truth comes," Jesus said, "he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come" (Jn 16:13).

• Cover