Del Primer Anuncio, o del Encuentro Originario con Jesucristo

Abstract

From the experience of the concrete context of the city of Bogotá, in its ecclesial and social aspects, the need for reflection and research that we propose here arises, articulated around the question: how to carry out a process for those who do not know Jesus Christ? This question leads us to the First Announcement of the Gospel, prophetic action of the ministry of the word, which together with the catechumenate and the pastoral ministry constitute evangelization, or its global process. This prophetic action, as we will have the opportunity to study, through the proclamation of the kerygma, has the purpose of awakening or fostering the "foundational", original, fundamental, or "initial" conversion-so called in view of the fact that the life of the Christian is a permanent conversion-which goes hand in hand with an equally foundational, original, fundamental, and initial act of faith. It is at this stage, of first conversion and act of faith, included in the evangelizing stage of the First Announcement, that those who do not know Jesus Christ come to know Him. How, or what, does such a passage from ignorance to knowledge operate? The encounter with the living God, to find oneself face to face with that Jesus Christ who was announced and promised. In view of the ecclesial reality of the church on pilgrimage in Bogotá, a careful and considered reflection on the role and nature of the First Announcement is necessary: The existence of a "kerygmatic ministry", or of an elaborate, thought-out, systematic exercise in this area, is very rare, as is shown by the rarity of the terms "kerygma" or "First Announcement" among the faithful. However, this reflection is even more necessary because of the effort of renewal that this archdiocese has undertaken: to renew, in fidelity to the Gospel, its conceptions and evangelizing practices. In the face of social reality, this research recognizes the need to announce with renewed impetus and beauty to our contemporaries the great news of Christ the Savior, the Love of the Father, and the Paraclete who gives new life: As we move towards the de-Christianization that is affecting the Western Hemisphere, the value of Christ's message for modern man is once again being questioned in our society. This is due to the more radical questioning, and perhaps unconscious in many cases, of man's ability to place himself beyond what is materially and immediately offered to him in existence; for this reason we examine, with a certain breadth, the constitutively anthropological provisions that make it possible to receive the First Announcement: they open the way for an encounter with Jesus Christ.