The Gospel excerpt of the celebration of the holy Slavic confessors Cyril and Methodius (Mt 28, 16-20) contains the so-called missionary order that Jesus gave to his apostles before his ascension. This is the complete conclusion of Matthew’s Gospel. The whole scene has a festive character. The disciples ascended the mountain as once in the Old Testament, Moses ascended Mount Sinai, where God appeared to him. Now the resurrected Lord has appeared to his apostles and is handing them his spiritual testament.
With power
In a short speech, Lord Jesus first speaks about himself: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Mt 28:18) These words echo the Old Testament prophecy from the Book of the prophet Daniel, where it is said about the Son of Man: “And to him was given the government and the kingdom, so that all nations, tribes, and tongues served him; his reign is an eternal reign that will not pass away, and his kingdom that will not perish.” (Dan 7, 14) We know that one of the titles that the Son of God used during his earthly ministry when he spoke about himself, was the precise “Son of Man “. The glorified Lord is appointed Lord of the world and Judge of all nations.
Emanuel
Matthew put his entire gospel into the awareness of God’s closeness, which in the person of Emmanuel – Jesus Christ received a new and permanent way. In the beginning, at the birth of Jesus Christ in Mt 1:23, the angel announces to Joseph: “Behold, a virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel, which in translation means: God with us.” The newborn child was not named Emmanuel, but Jesus. The evangelist wants to show that in the case of the citation, it is not primarily about determining the name that the Son of God is to bear in human nature, but about the fulfillment of his mission on earth. The newborn baby will be “Jesus = God is salvation” and “Emmanuel = God with us”. At the end of today’s Gospel passage, in Mt 28, 20, an assurance is heard, which is the very last sentence of the entire Gospel of Matthew: “And lo, I am with you always, until the end of the world. The resurrected Christ is still present in the Church and teaches in it what he taught during his earthly life. Jesus’ last words before his ascension are the key to the entire Gospel according to Matthew. It is a source of hope and strength for believers that we are never alone on the journey of proclaiming the Gospel.
Evangelize and catechize
O someone I want to notice the command of Jesus himself. It contains four verbs: go, teach, baptize, and teach. Verbs have their logical order. First, the announcer must reach specific people. The second step is the act of faith, based on which it is possible to baptize. It is expressed by the verb “teach.” The Greek verb “mathetéusate” literally means “make disciples.” So it’s not some kind of disinterested announcement. the ascension is the key to the entire Gospel according to Matthew. It is a source of hope and strength for believers that we are never alone on the journey of proclaiming the Gospel.
Evangelize and catechize
I want to note the command of Jesus himself. It contains four verbs: go, teach, baptize, and teach. Verbs have their logical order. First, the announcer must reach specific people. The second step is the act of faith, based on which it is possible to baptize. It is expressed by the verb “teach.” The Greek verb “mathetéusate” literally means “make disciples.” So it is not some kind of disinterested announcement. After that, the next verb is “baptize”. Baptism is given in the name of the Holy Trinity. The baptismal formula is a synthesis of the entire history of salvation, which is the work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Acceptance of baptism does not end the process of faith. The deepening in the truths of faith continues, therefore the fourth verb is used: “teach”.
We are dealing with two dimensions of the Church’s activity. The first is evangelistic or missionary activity. It is the proclamation of Christ’s gospel to those who have not yet heard of it. The second is catechetical activity, i.e. deepening the faith of the already baptized. Both activities are necessary for Slovakia. Some still have almost never heard of Christ and the Church. Often this is because parents have completely neglected Christian education. While school education in Slovakia has its structure and also at the parish level catechesis takes place in various forms, e.g. before receiving the sacraments, activities within the framework of experiencing the church year, etc., family catechesis is significantly neglected. At the same time, all church documents remind and emphasize that the first teachers of the faith are parents. The reality is that the child encounters the liturgy, prayer, and the basic truths of faith, often only when preparing for the 1st St. reception.
The permanent formation of the already baptized becomes perhaps even more urgent. The number of baptized but non-practicing believers is increasing. It is a challenge for the Church to reach those who profess to believe but are not in any contact with the parish community. As a priest, I can address those who, for example, come regularly to the Sunday St. Mass. The challenge remains, how to speak to those who “need” a priest and the Church literally a few times in their life: at their marriage, at the baptism of their children, who will then hopefully still join the 1st St. reception and confirmation.
The solemn feast of the Slavic saints to proclaim the faith sets before us the task of being comprehensible by our faith. I don’t just mean the means of expression. I mean intelligibility by the authenticity of our faith. Whoever sees our life according to the gospel will feel that it is not something formal, customary, or theatrical, but sincere and true.
