THE NEW AREOPAGI OF

MISSION
CFE 105a
 Working together for a common goal is
imperative for people living in a church
community. Every member of a community
possesses a gift to be shared. This sense of
community belongingness is to benefit our
community and affirm the indispensable
contribution of everyone for the welfare of
others.
 This Christian attitude is the constitutive
dimension of the call of Jesus to become
missionaries, as narrated in the Gospel of Luke,
which we shall revisit in this module.
INSPIRED WORD
 The Mission of the Seventy (Luke 10:1-20)

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent

them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place
where he himself intended to go. He said to them, “The
harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, ask
the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his
harvest. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like
lambs into the midst of wolves.
 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet
no one on the road. Whatever house you enter,
first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is
there who shares in peace, your peace will rest
on that person; but if not, it will return to you.
Remain in the same house, eating and drinking
whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves
to be paid.
 Do not move about from house to house.
Whenever you enter a town and its people
welcome you, eat what is set before you; cure
the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘The
kingdom of God has come near to you.’
But whenever you enter a town and they do not
welcome you, go out into its streets and say,
‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our
feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet
know this: the kingdom of God has come near.’
I tell you, on that day it will be more tolerable
for Sodom than for that town.
 The Return of the Seventy

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, in

your name even the demons submit to us!” He
said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven
like a flash of lightning.
 See, I have given you authority to tread on
snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of
the enemy; and nothing will hurt you.
Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the
spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your
names are written in heaven.”
 Reflect on the following questions:

1. Why do you think Jesus has given His

specific instructions to His Apostles on how
they will do their mission?
2. If you were one of the apostles, how would
you respond to Jesus' instructions?
Here is an outline of Jesus’ instructions to the
70 disciples whom He sent for a mission.

1. Go in pairs and visit all the places where

Jesus was about to go.

2. Be wary that you would be like lambs among

wolves, surrounded by danger.
3. Live by faith; carry no extra provisions.

4. Be focused. Greet no one along the road and

not allow yourselves to be sidetracked from
your mission.
5. Extend your blessing to whoever housed you
using the standard greeting of the day, “Peace
to this house.”

6. Be content. Stay in the home that first

receives you.
7. Receive your due for doing your mission.

8. Eat whatever your hosts served; as God’s

servants, you are not to be finicky.

9. Heal the sick. Heal the peoples’ diseases and

illnesses.
 The text is unique in the gospel of Luke.
The reading presents that the apostles do not
monopolize mission. Instead, preparing the way
of the Lord is everybody's task. It has already
been said that Jesus had sent the twelve apostles
on a mission.
 This time, He is sending 70 disciples.
Biblical narratives state that number seventy is
symbolic. It may represent the 70 elders with
whom Moses shared his mission of leading the
people of God in the desert to become a
community.
 The disciples must travel light because they
should rely solely on God's providence. They
need to adopt humility and observe non-
violence in preaching the Good News. In every
place they visit, they must remain focused,
determined, and undistracted.
 The disciples must follow the way of peace
in doing their mission. They must remember
that they are there to bring faith hope and love
and not anything else. Jesus advised His
disciples on how to handle possible rejection.
 There were instances that Jesus experienced
rejection, so He knew what awaits some of
them. Yet, Jesus implored them to keep basic
missionary attitudes, to keep going, do the right
thing, and be an embodiment of God's love.
 The joy experienced by the disciples
indicates their foretaste of God's Kingdom.
Saint Luke needs to remind everybody of their
role to help overcome evil and allow Christ to
reign. The joy of missionary life does not
depend on authority, power, and luxury but the
experience of intimacy, either present or future,
with God.
 After more than two thousand years
wherein missionaries come and go in the
Christian faith, missionary work is still alive and
getting stronger. The more serious concern
now is the ever-changing context of the
recipients of missionary works.
 The term New Areopagi was used by Pope
John Paul II in a missionary context, referring
to it as "spaces opened for missionary
activities." New evangelization requires strategic
ways and methodologies to meet present needs
and demands on how to bring the Good News
to all. This new areopagi is what we shall
encounter in this module's Church Teaching.
CHURCH TEACHING
 The Church at present is challenged to be
involved in the new sectors of evangelization –
the new Areopaguses (Areopagi) of mission.
“Mission today is described as crossing
boundaries. It is going to the public square.
 It is described as going to the new
Areopagi of contemporary times (RM 31-37)”.
The new sectors of evangelization as: cultural
sector, social sector, economic sector, civic life
sector, scientific research and technology sector,
communications sector, and religious sector.
 These new sectors of evangelization
involve new techniques and circumstances
whereby the laity are called to participate. With
the present world struggle to fight against
pandemic, crisis, terrorism, and other forms of
inhuman acts, a new sector was highlighted as
the frontliner in this battle:
 The sector of the our strong human
individuals and other sectors that are rising to
gain recognition for their eagerness of help and
willingness to promote good against evils deeds.
End of the topic!
Closing Prayer: