The Gospel of Life:
Our Common Mission
A Word from Geoffrey Surtees
The Sacrifice of the Mass ends with the words of the celebrant, "Go now in peace to love and serve the Lord." What do these words mean for us? Do they simply indicate that the Mass is over and we are to return to our lives as they were before, as if something radically significant has not just taken place? Of course not. Every Eucharistic celebration is a transforming event which strengthens us, nurtures us, and renews us. Understood in this light, the closing words of the Mass are nothing short of an exhortation to service; an exhortation to both be and act in union with Jesus Christ, whose Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, we have received in the Blessed Sacrament. Speaking in the person of Christ, then, the priest at the close of Mass is reiterating the words of our Lord, "As the Father has sent me, so send I you."
The word which encompasses these two theological concepts of "service" and being "sent" is mission. We often think of this word in popular terms, as in the television show, "Mission Impossible," for example. However, when understood in its proper Christian light, the word mission has the profoundest of meanings. Sacred Scripture tells us that our Lord Jesus Christ is the "One Sent" from the Father and is, therefore, the archetype of mission itself. As Christians, we are called to participate in this redemptive mission of Christ; by virtue of our Baptism, we have been "sent" to preach the Gospel to all nations: through our words and in our deeds. The closing words of the Mass, "Ite, missa est," reflect this missionary task incumbent upon each believer.
John Paul II wrote in his encyclical letter of last year, Evangelium Vitae, that the Gospel of Life is inextricably bound to the Gospel of Salvation, that to proclaim one is to proclaim the other. As the opening words of this incisive encyclical read,
The Gospel of Life is at the heart of Jesus' message. Lovingly
received day after day by the Church, it is to be preached with
dauntless fidelity as 'good news' to the people of every age and
culture.Part and parcel, then, of our call to preach the "good news" of Jesus Christ -- the exhortation we receive at the close of Mass -- is our call to preach the "good news" of the sanctity of human life. No matter our state in life -- married or single, religious or lay -- we all share, by virtue of our Christian identity, in this important mission.
The Center for Law and Justice International is no different. Our task, our very mission, is to proclaim and defend, promote and encourage, the profound Gospel of Life. We exist for no other purpose, no other end. Our common mission brings together persons of various backgrounds and skills: lawyers, professors, writers, students, and others. We are also joined in this mission by our supporters, those who contribute their prayers and financial resources to our work in countering the sweeping "culture of death." Together we are making our presence known in the courtrooms, talk shows, and the lecture circuit. Whenever one of us goes before an audience -- be it a judge on the bench or an assembly of students in a hall -- he does so with the vital support from his colleagues, our donors, and the grace of God. It is because of our common bond in Jesus Christ, and in the Gospel of Life which He is, that are we able to continue our mission; indeed, that we are able to have such a mission at all.
We must ask, however, is our mission impossible? Does it not seem that every power, every agency, every bastion of cultural influence is against us? Is our mission for the Gospel of Life in vain? No. Success is not a Christian word, but victory most certainly is. Our Lord proclaimed His victory in His death and resurrection; but until that time when our Lord returns, and the final victory is His -- and through Him, ours -- we must do all in our power, with all our resources -- always acting through His grace -- to communicate the Good News which He left to the Apostles and to us.
Here at the Center for Law and Justice International, we take this mission most seriously. St. Paul wrote to the faithful in Corinth, "Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel." Amen. Woe to us if we do not preach the Gospel of Life.