It’s time to put what we’ve learned into practice. Use everything you’ve learned in this lesson to engage in authentic conversational evangelization with non-Christian believers, using the One Good Reason method. The activity has 4 steps:
- Open your Bible to 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, and read it quietly. After having done so, read it carefully and deliberately out loud. Repeat this step at least one more time or as many times you feel necessary. Reflect on what Saint Paul says and write down everything that comes to mind.
- Recall your most memorable interactions with non-Christian believers in God, and write down what you can remember about those events. If you have not interacted with a non-Christian believer in God, imagine how you would respond if you met a person who either had not heard of Christ or denied His divinity.
- Reflect on steps 1 through 2 using this quote from the 40th Letter of Saint Augustine:
[St. Paul’s words] are to be ascribed to the compassion of pitying love, not the artifices of intentional deceit. For he that ministers to the sick becomes as if he were sick himself; not, indeed, falsely pretending to be under the fever, but considering, with the mind of one truly sympathizing, what he would wish done for himself if he were in the sick man’s place.
How does Saint Augustine’s quote compare and contrast with how you read 1 Corinthians 9: 19-23? How might the words of Saint Paul and Saint Augustine help you evangelize non-Christian believers in God? What role does sympathy and empathy play in evangelization? - When you are ready, post in the School Forums about your experience doing this practical activity. There is a specific topic created for this. Also, give a constructive question or comment about the lesson or somebody else’s post on their experience doing the practical activity. All of this is required for your One Good Reason certificate of completion!