Ask a Franciscan

The Ask a Franciscan section from St. Anthony Messenger discussed whether the Gospel affects social issues.

Q: Recently I have been reading about several 20th-century Christians who applied Jesus' teaching to social issues. That prompted a number of questions in my mind. Is this an essential aspect of the gospel message? Why is it necessary that the life and message of Jesus be embodied in new ways in each historical period?

A: The Good News of Jesus Christ affects all our relationships—not simply those with friends and family members but also relationships with people we will never meet. Jesus did not preach a privatized religion that influences only a fraction of someone’s daily life. Anyone who tries to keep the Good News so tightly reined runs the risk of saying “Lord, Lord” but refusing to do God’s will (see Matthew 7:21). When Jesus told the parable about the sheep and the goats at the Last Judgment (Matthew 25:31-46), Jesus taught that following him has implications for every relationship, for every attempt to reflect divine justice.

You can read more at http://www.americancatholic.org/Messenger/Dec2002/Wiseman.asp