“Pre-evangelism” is a modern ministry term that refers to the biblical process of preparing people to receive the Good News of Jesus and the salvation available through him. In one sense it is very much like the agricultural process of preparing the soil to receive seed so that the seed has the optimal chance of germinating and springing into life. The farmer prepares the soil by plowing, tilling, and adding various soil supplements, depending on the condition of the soil. This process takes time, energy and money, however without proper soil preparation much seed would be wasted and the harvest greatly diminished.

In December we observed the Celebration of the Incarnation of Jesus the only begotten Son of God, and at the same time the son of Mary. Have you ever thought about how the Incarnation which we celebrate at Christmas should be observed throughout the other eleven months of the year?

In the book Pilgrim Fellowship of Faith Pope Benedict XVI describes the Incarnation "not as a philosophical idea but a historical event, which in its very uniqueness and truth is the point at which God breaks into history and the place at which we come into contact with him. …God has come to meet man. He has shown him his face, opened up his heart to him,” (page 109). Christmas, the Incarnation we celebrate, is primarily about this encounter whichGod has orchestrated between himself and all of mankind. It is primarily about God’s self-revelation that opens the way for all of humanity to enter into a personal and communal relationship with him and become a member of the family of faith. For many this relationship with God through Christ, this invitation to become part of the community of faith is non-existent. For many of those around us, and around the world the precious gift of Jesus remains untouched like an unopened gift sitting under the Christmas tree, waiting to be received.

For those of us who have received this gift and identify ourselves as Catholic Christians we must not allow the Incarnation, the gift of Jesus, to be boxed up and packed away along with our other Christmas decorations. Rather we must in the words of Pope Benedict “make him more widely known.” We keep the Incarnation relevant when we “bring men to Christ and Christ to men, so as to bring God to them and them to God. …The great and central task of the Church today is, as it ever was, to show people this path and to offer a pilgrim fellowship walking it,” (PFF page 292-293).

You probably have already made your resolutions for 2010, so I’m not going to suggest that you include the above task in your list of New Year’s resolutions. Both the Gift, and the responsibility to carry the Gift of Jesus to others, is too important to simply be included as one other New Year’s resolution—it deserves a life commitment. You may not feel comfortable showing people the path to Jesus, you may not believe that you are adequately trained to do so, or there may be other reasons you have hesitated to make this life commitment to help bring people “into contact with him.” But none of those issues can be addressed adequately until you have first resolved in your heart that for the remainder of your life you will participate in the Incarnation by bringing the Gift of Christ to people, and people to the Gift of Christ. It is a task worthy of your life.

Perhaps we at Emmaus Journey can help you engage in this process. We would welcome hearing from you. Our email address is info@emmausjourney.org.