Through No Fault of Their Own: The Catholic Church and Peoples of Other Faiths (4)
The Church Dialogues with Other Religions
Hence, at all times and in all places, the Church continues to fulfill its mission of drawing people to Christ through itself. The two primary modes of evangelisation prescribed by the Church are dialogue and proclamation.
Proclamation is squarely ”the communication of the Gospel message, the mystery of salvation realised by God for all in Jesus Christ by the power of the Spirit. It is an invitation to a commitment of faith in Jesus Christ and to entry through baptism into the community of believers which is the Church” (Dialogue and Proclamation, point 10).
Dialogue, on the other hand, is less straightforward, and in this article I would like to dwell on this particular facet of evangelisation. Here is what dialogue means:
…in the context of religious plurality, dialogue means "all positive and constructive interreligious relations with individuals and communities of other faiths which are directed at mutual understanding and enrichment", in obedience to truth and respect for freedom. It includes both witness and the exploration of respective religious convictions.
(Dialogue and Proclamation, point 9)
But why do we have to couple dialogue with proclamation? Why would proclamation itself not be sufficient? To put it succinctly, the Church deems it fit that dialogue be an integral part of our evangelisation activity because we represent a God who dialogues. “God, in an age-long dialogue, has offered and continues to offer salvation to humankind. In faithfulness to the divine initiative, the Church too must enter into a dialogue of salvation with all men and women” (Dialogue and Proclamation, point 38).
The Church speaks of four different forms of interreligious dialogue in no particular order of priority:
a) The dialogue of life, where people strive to live in an open and neighbourly spirit, sharing their joys and sorrows, their human problems and preoccupations.
b) The dialogue of action, in which Christians and others collaborate for the integral development and liberation of people.
c) The dialogue of theological exchange, where specialists seek to deepen their understanding of their respective religious heritages, and to appreciate each other's spiritual values.
d) The dialogue of religious experience, where persons, rooted in their own religious traditions, share their spiritual riches, for instance with regard to prayer and contemplation, faith and ways of searching for God or the Absolute.
(Dialogue and Proclamation, point 42; also in
The attitude of the Church Towards the Followers of Other Religions:
Reflections and Orientations on Dialogue and Mission, 1984, points 28-35)
