A NEW ECCLESIOLOGICAL VISION OF POPE FRANCIS IN EVANGELII GAUDIUM

The vision of the Council is reaffirmed by Francis in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium. His dreams of a new vision of Church is well articulated in it. It is the manifesto of Francis which will be more with the heart Jesus. Francis in his own style is trying to reform the self-understanding of the Church. His teachings are shaped in such a way so as to take up the project of Vatican II, and re-engage the Church with the world and move it forward. The way Francis dreams of a Church which is basically has its missionary foundation in Vatican II documents. The first teaching document of Francis is bold and thrilling bid to send the Catholic Church worldwide on mission. Lyrical, direct and energetic and style model the evangelization to which Francis is calling the entire Catholics. In sharp critiques and passionate prose, Evangelii Gaudium polarizes the choices faced both by Catholics and the world, gently but insistently inviting people to opt for mission in the world and to a journey of transformation and reform. As the title says the field of my study is the missiological foundation and missiological vision of the Church of Francis it is born of my interest in the study of contemporary challenges to Mission in the particular context of the diocese of Alleppey. In the religious context of India and in particular context of the diocese of Alleppey it is good to examine the image of the Church. We all called to live and witness more authentically our Christian life. And we are asked to find expression in a local church fully rooted in the culture and traditions of the people. The local Church is no longer considered as administrative wing of the universal church. Universal Church is the communion of local church, so that every local church has its own destiny and identity in the universal church. A characteristic note of every local Church is its desire to adapt to the situation. After the council, this aspect of mission is more intensely and deeply expressed by the term of New way of being Church. Read more