PODCAST: Auspice Maria Ep. 4: Proclaiming the Gospel with Truth and Love

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Transcript:

Hello again, my name is Bishop James Ruggieri, and this is the Auspice Maria podcast. I'm Bishop of the Diocese of Portland, Maine. And today in episode four, I'd like to talk about truth and love, the two pillars of gospel proclamation. 

Quickly though, a recap. Episode one introduced the mission of the church. Episode two focused on the kerygma, that is the core gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Our last episode explored the distinction between the mountain and the plain. Sort of this metaphor where and how Jesus proclaims the Beatitudes. Actually, he did in both gospels on the mountain and on the plain. But the metaphor shows us that proclamation sometimes flows from divine authority and sometimes from walking side by side with others in their humanity. And sometimes a little bit of both. Usually it's a little bit of both. 

Well, today's episode moves us into one of the most crucial tensions in all evangelization, arguably, and that is the relationship between truth and love. In a time when truth is often mistaken for personal opinion and love confused with emotional affirmation, we have to ask, what is truth? How can we know it? Why does it matter? And how do we speak it with compassion in a wounded world? 

I'd like to begin with the words of Jesus from John 8. "Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him, if you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free."

The Church teaches that truth is not subjective. It's not a matter of personal taste or majority opinion. St. Thomas Aquinas gives us the classical definition of truth in the Summa Theologia. "Truth is the conformity of the intellect to the thing." In Latin, "Veritas est adequatio rei et intellectus."

Truth is the conformity of the intellect to the thing. In other words, truth is when what we think or say matches what actually is. But as Christians, we go one step further. For us, truth is not only something, it's actually someone. 

In John 14, verse six, Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Jesus is truth in the flesh. He not only speaks the truth, he embodies it. And in the letter to Timothy, 1 Timothy, St. Paul mentions that, "the church is the pillar and foundation of truth." That's 1 Timothy 3 verse 15. 

To proclaim the gospel then is to proclaim Jesus Christ, the truth about God, the truth about humanity, the truth about life, death and destiny. Still, we often encounter people who hold deep convictions that are not true about themselves, about the church, about God. 

That obviously begs the question, why? Because belief isn't formed only by reason, it's often shaped by emotional experience, especially by pain. This is where we can learn from the insights of Dr. Conrad W. Baars, a Catholic psychiatrist who worked with emotionally wounded souls. He wrote a book in 1979 entitled, Born Only Once, The Miracle of Affirmation. In this book, Baars wrote, "a person who has not received sufficient affirmation often becomes incapable of recognizing truth, not because he lacks intelligence, but because he lacks trust."

Baars makes a very significant point. People who experience trauma, abandonment, rejection, abuse, often construct emotional defenses. These may feel true, but they are based on pain and not reality, and may resonate with such things in their minds and hearts like, "I am unlovable." "Religion is just judgment and control." "God couldn't possibly care about me." and "truth is just someone else's opinion."

Maybe you've heard these actual words come out of people's mouths. Well, Baars, along with Dr. Anna Terui, developed the concept of affective immaturity, the idea that emotional wounds can stunt development. A person may be brilliant intellectually, but unable to receive correction, trust, authority, or believe they're lovable. And in many cases, people resist the gospel, not because it doesn't make sense, but because they fear what it will reveal or demand of them. 

So when we proclaim the truth of Christ, we must do so with the deepest awareness of these wounds. Truth alone may not penetrate. It must come clothed in love. This is exactly what we see in Jesus. and I refer to John chapter one verse 14, "and the word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. And we saw his glory, the glory as of the father's only son, full of grace and truth."

Jesus never compromised the truth, but he never used it as a weapon either. Let's recall the woman caught in adultery from John chapter eight. The passage reads, "then Jesus straightened up and said to her, woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? She replied, no one, sir. Then Jesus said, neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on, do not sin anymore."

Or let's look at the Gospel of Mark for a second and Jesus' encounter with the rich young man. Mark 10, 21 recounts, "Jesus looking at him, loved him and said to him, you are lacking in one thing, go sell what you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven, then come follow me." 

Here we see a concrete example of truth spoken through love, in both cases, with the woman caught in adultery in John and also the rich young man in Mark. Demanding, yes, but never demeaning. That said, there were times Jesus spoke not with gentleness, but with firmness, even righteous anger. 

I recall here Matthew chapter 23. In verse 25, we read, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence."

And then in verse 33, "you serpents, you brood of vipers, how can you flee from the judgment of Gehenna?"

Jesus' rebuke of the religious elite wasn't unloving. It was a radical act of love, actually, for those in danger of spiritual ruin. Love doesn't always feel tender. Sometimes the most loving thing we can do is speak a difficult truth firmly and clearly, especially when someone is leading others astray. 

So what does all of this mean for us as evangelizers? How do we proclaim the truth in a way that both honors the content of the gospel and the condition of the person receiving it?

Well, I have five principles to suggest. One, we must anchor ourselves in truth. We cannot proclaim what we do not know. Evangelization is not sharing personal feelings about God. It is bearing witness to objective truth revealed by Christ and entrusted to His Church. This means we must be rooted in scripture, grounded in the catechism, and prayerfully open to ongoing formation. When we are anchored in truth, We are not blown about by cultural trends or emotional winds. We speak with confidence, not arrogance, but holy confidence. 

Two, we must examine our hearts. Before speaking the truth to others, we must ask, am I proclaiming this out of love for their soul or out of frustration, fear, or the need to be right? Even true words when spoken from pride or woundedness can harm. Evangelization is not about winning arguments, but about inviting people into freedom. 

Three, we must love the person in front of us more than we love being right. Love never compromises the truth, but it always seeks the good of the other. Sometimes this means waiting before speaking a hard truth. Sometimes it means offering smaller truths that prepare the way for deeper ones. Sometimes it means saying nothing in a moment when listening will do more than words ever could. Love asks, what will help this person move one step closer to Christ? 

Number four, we must be willing to be misunderstood, just like Jesus was misunderstood. When Jesus spoke gently, people accused him of being soft on sin. When he spoke firmly, they accused him of being intolerant. The same will happen to us if we proclaim the truth with love. Some will say we're too judgmental. Others will say we're not forceful enough. Faithful evangelizers are rarely praised by everyone, but our measure of success is not approval, it's fidelity, fidelity to Christ. This means embracing the cross of misunderstanding, of being rejected, not because we are wrong, but because we are speaking into wounded places where the truth feels threatening. Like Jesus, we must speak anyway, trusting that the Holy Spirit is doing more beneath the surface than we can see. 

And point number five, we must live what we proclaim. Our lives are the most credible proclamation of the gospel. When people see truth and love embodied in us, when they see patience, humility, repentance, courage, the truth we speak becomes believable. Truth spoken without a life of integrity rings hollow, but when our words are backed by witness, they carry authority. This includes our personal testimony, how Christ has changed our lives. When we speak from lived experience about God's mercy, the church is healing the power of grace. The gospel becomes real, not just theoretical. People may argue with doctrine, but they cannot argue with transformation. 

Let me close with a prayer from St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. a Carmelite of the 20th century, before she converted to Catholicism known as Edith Stein, a great Jewish philosopher of her day, she was martyred at Auschwitz. She was a lover of truth and a witness of courageous love. And her prayer is this, 

"Oh my God, fill my soul with holy joy, courage and strength to serve you and kindle your love in me and then walk with me along the next stretch of road before me. I do not see very far ahead. When I have arrived where the horizon now closes down, a new horizon will open before me and I shall meet with peace."

Why this prayer today in this particular podcast? Because proclaiming truth and love, especially in a world wounded by fear and confusion, can feel like walking a road where we don't see what's ahead. We often don't know how our words will be received. We don't know how long it will take for the truth to bear fruit. Sometimes we're misunderstood. Sometimes we feel like we failed. But this prayer reminds us that God walks with us. New horizons open in his time. And when we speak the truth in love, even in weakness, peace will come. If not immediately in the other, then within us.

It also speaks to the wounded soul we're trying to reach, the person who cannot yet see far ahead, who does not yet trust the truth, but who, when they take one small step with Christ, may find a new horizon opening before them.

Thank you for joining me today. If you found this episode meaningful, I encourage you to share it. Next week, I'll explore the power of the Holy Spirit in evangelization and how the Holy Spirit emboldens, guides, and anoints those who proclaim the gospel. 

Until then, may the Lord bless you and keep you in his truth and in his peace. 

And I close entrusting all of this to our Blessed Mother Mary, praying, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.