Discipleship Pathway

Evangelization is, very simply, proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus to those around us. At St. Patrick, we are striving to invite all those within our boundaries into a saving, life-changing relationship with Jesus and to become his disciples.

Disciple means student. We are called to be students of Jesus Christ: to follow, listen, and learn from Jesus. But more than that He desires us to be in relationship with Him. Since you can’t love what you don’t know, it is our hope that this pathway of discipleship will enable us to grow in love of Jesus and our neighbor. Being a disciple of Christ is never static; it is always dynamic, always a process of growth and of following Him on the way. Because we adopt the mind of Christ, we, disciples of Jesus, don't just see some things differently, we see everything differently.

The term new evangelization means that the Church in our time exists in a vastly changed situation. It is not that the Gospel has changed, but that we are called to a renewed effort that is new in ardor, method, and expression. We are called to evangelize not only those in distant lands who have never heard the Gospel but also those around us in our post-Christian society. Our mission territory is our own neighborhoods, workplaces, schools and even our own homes.

Since God's desire for us to live with him forever requires a response of love, the invitation to believe in the Gospel is always personal: it is not merely a moral code or set of rules but the offer of communion with a person, Jesus.