# The gospel must change our world
*2015-12-01*

> Bill Young reflects on the first week of Advent, exploring how the Gospel calls believers to move beyond personal piety toward a transformative love that impacts all of society.

## Beyond personal relationship

In the words of Pope Francis, the gospel must change our world. Reading the scriptures makes it clear that the gospel is not merely about our personal relationship with God. Nor should our loving response to God be seen simply as an accommodation of small personal gestures to individuals in need—a kind of charity a la carte or a series of acts aimed solely at easing our conscience.

## The reign of God in society

The gospel is about the kingdom of God and loving the God who reigns in our world. To the extent that God reigns within us, the life of society will be set for universal fraternity, justice, peace, and dignity. Both Christian preaching and life are meant to have a tangible impact on our society as we seek God's kingdom.

## The mission of the kingdom

Jesus' mission was to inaugurate the kingdom of the Father, and He commanded His disciples to proclaim the good news that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, as seen in Matthew 10:7. This kingdom, already present and growing in our midst, engages us at every level of our being. It reminds us of the principle of discernment which Pope Paul VI applied to true development: it must be directed to all persons and the whole person.

## Evangelization and concrete life

Evangelization would not be complete if we did not take into account the uneasy interplay of the gospel and people's concrete lives, both personal and social. As we reflect on Matthew 6:33, we are called to strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness, trusting that all other things will be given to us as well.

*True evangelization requires that the Gospel move beyond the individual to transform the concrete social and personal realities of the world.*