Discipleship – A Way Of Life For Every Catholic

Christian formation and discipleship are interrelated and are both important elements of the Catholic faith. The two are closely connected with faith, conversion, and experience. Together, Christian formation and discipleship constitute the foundation of the Christian life; the following of Jesus is at the heart of discipleship and formation of the Christian life. The intention of Christian formation is to convey a dynamic process in the power of the Holy Spirit as it extends to the whole of our existence in Christ and therefore to the transformation of all dimensions of human life. As for discipleship, it is an expression of a more explicit and direct personal relationship with Christ. Both elements of Christian life take place in a mutual context: in the life of the Christian family, in Church or ecclesial movements, in the parish or congregational life, and within the Church as a whole.

Biblical Perspectives

The making of disciples gave character to the public ministry of Jesus. He often took the initiative and called those who became His disciples to follow him. The disciples were called and they followed Jesus in response to His call despite their weakness and failures (Mk 1:17-29; Mt 4:19).

They were “to be sent out” and “to be with him” by Him on different missions. This is similar to what happens when a Catholic receives the Sacrament of Confirmation. A Catholic in full communion with the Church receives a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit when they are confirmed; the sacrament enables them to be witnesses of Christ and to be able to practice their faith in all avenues of their lives. A disciple of Jesus is one who goes with Jesus “wherever He goes”. The relationship between Jesus and His disciples is one of communion and fellowship.

Not all disciples in the gospels leave everything and literally follow Christ during His public ministry of healing, teaching, and preaching in different parts of the world. Hence, there are two types of the priesthood in the Church; ministerial priesthood (priesthood of the ordained) and common priesthood (priesthood of the faithful). However, the model of the disciple who follows Jesus wherever he may go remains an ideal model for Christians who attempt to follow the risen Lord amid the various circumstances, contexts, and commitments of their present life. This explains why there are two states of life within the Church – consecrated life and the life of the laity. Through baptism, all share in the priesthood of Jesus but within those who are baptized others are called to live a life of absolute commitment to Christ – “many are called but few are chosen”.

Communion (“to be with him“) is the foundation of every disciple`s mission (“to be sent out“), and the bond of their communion among themselves. Discipleship, therefore, embraces not only the recognition of Jesus’ true identity (“But who do you say that I am?” Mk 8:29) but also the identity of the community of disciples as formed by Jesus. Jesus embraces those who respond to His call for they are doing God’s will (“For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother and sister, and mother.” Mt 12: 50).

In their journey with Jesus, the disciples` initial calling and lifelong vocation to discipleship deepen as Jesus laid before them the challenge of the cross (“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” Mk 8:34) and the attitude of service (“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” Mk 9:35) as he himself approached the fulfillment of the Father’s will on Golgotha.

Discipleship in the Synoptic Gospels

The Synoptic Gospels clearly communicate the importance of discipleship as essential to the response of faith to Jesus’ proclamation of the Gospel of the Kingdom. The images of ‘going with Jesus’, ‘following Jesus’, ‘being with Jesus’ (Mk 1:17.20; Mt 4:19), have been very fruitful in the life of the Church; they have inspired various forms of spirituality and movements of renewal, and have always wielded an appealing attraction to Christianity.

Discipleship is something vital and dynamic; it is ongoing and lived out in many ways by believers of all generations. Disciples follow a Master who fills them with awe (Mk 10:32-34) and who always walks ahead of them. Towards the end of the way, “he went on ahead [of them], going up to Jerusalem” (Lk 19:28; Mk 10:32), where the culminating event of His mission took place. However, the cross and the death were not the end of the journey, for on the eve of His death He made a promise: “But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee” (Mk 14:28; Mk 16:7). Therefore, “to follow” Jesus goes beyond His historical existence.

In the synoptic Gospels, the call to discipleship also takes form in the call to holiness. This requires forsaking all and immediately following Jesus as in the call of the first disciples (Mt 4:18-22). It is also not incidental that in the Gospel of Matthew with its many discourses the call to holiness is communicated in the teaching of Jesus. After the disciples are called and begin to follow Jesus in his tour of preaching and healing throughout Galilee, Jesus gathers them on the mountain and instructs them in the way of life that the kingdom requires. The ‘Sermon on the Mount’ combines the Beatitude, sacredness in the presence of God with maturity and moral transformation — “So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48).

Discipleship in Acts

Discipleship in the Acts of the Apostles entails an active faith response to the Christian proclamation. Multiplicities of expressions are used to describe this, which is the beginning of discipleship, including:

(1) Listening to and receiving the Word of the Lord in preaching and teaching (Acts 11:26; 13:14; 15:17; 17:11-12; 18:11; 28:28),

(2) Believing in the person of Jesus, the Lord, the Christ (Acts 10:43, 11:17; 19:4; 20:21)

(3) Conversion and repentance (Acts 3:19; 26:20)

The response of faith to the announcement of Jesus Christ changes a person’s praxis and life. Luke portrays the early community as an interrelated dimension of Christian discipleship and formation. According to Luke, the community of disciples,

They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common (Acts 2:42-44).

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Church attracted many people who felt drawn to Christ. They enjoyed “favor with all the people” (Acts 2:47), “the people esteemed them” (Acts 5:13), and “great favor was accorded them all” (Acts 4:33). Therefore, the church life of the apostles was the powerful and visible sign of the redeeming grace of the resurrected Lord.

The Acts of the Apostles powerfully exposes the close association of Christian discipleship with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit who anointed and filled Jesus is the same Spirit that Jesus sends from the Father on Pentecost to His apostles gathered in prayer after His resurrection. The Holy Spirit that descends upon the disciples empowers them to establish the church as missionary witnesses,

But you will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).

The Day of Pentecost itself is an event that initiates and portrays the distinct connection between evangelization and the Church. The Holy Spirit is vital for discipleship within the Church, as the Church is on a mission. The power of the Holy Spirit was heard of in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles when He attracted the Jews from all homelands (the initial step of the coming together of all nations) into a new community. Three thousand Jews responded to Peter’s homily and were joined to the community through penitence, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and baptism (Acts 2:38-41). The Holy Spirit continues to empower and guide the missionary work throughout the life of the Church.

Discpleship in the Church

The Second Vatican Council said, “The laity are given this special vocation: to make the Church present and fruitful in those places and circumstances where it is only through them that she can become the salt of the earth” (Lumen Gentium 33). In other words, not only is holiness, discipleship, and vocation for a selected few, it is for all baptized believers so that the society they live in and the entire world can be evangelized. The laity is meant to take up their call as disciples and to assist people to undertake the journey that God has uniquely prepared for them.

Pope Francis wrote the following about discipleship in his encyclical Evangelii Gaudium,

119. In all the baptized, from first to last, the sanctifying power of the Spirit is at work, impelling us to evangelization. The people of God is holy thanks to this anointing, which makes it infallible in credendo. This means that it does not err in faith, even though it may not find words to explain that faith. The Spirit guides it in truth and leads it to salvation. [96] As part of his mysterious love for humanity, God furnishes the totality of the faithful with an instinct of faith – sensus fidei – which helps them to discern what is truly of God. The presence of the Spirit gives Christians a certain connaturality with divine realities, and a wisdom which enables them to grasp those realities intuitively, even when they lack the wherewithal to give them precise expression.

121. Of course, all of us are called to mature in our work as evangelizers. We want to have better training, a deepening love and a clearer witness to the Gospel. In this sense, we ought to let others be constantly evangelizing us. But this does not mean that we should postpone the evangelizing mission; rather, each of us should find ways to communicate Jesus wherever we are. All of us are called to offer others an explicit witness to the saving love of the Lord, who despite our imperfections offers us his closeness, his word and his strength, and gives meaning to our lives. In your heart you know that it is not the same to live without him; what you have come to realize, what has helped you to live and given you hope, is what you also need to communicate to others. Our falling short of perfection should be no excuse; on the contrary, mission is a constant stimulus not to remain mired in mediocrity but to continue growing. The witness of faith that each Christian is called to offer leads us to say with Saint Paul: “Not that I have already obtained this, or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own” (Phil 3:12-13)

In conclusion, being a disciple of Christ means that one has to have an extraordinary love for people, be passionately committed to Christ, have the heart of a servant, submit and be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, live by God`s Word, and have a purpose in life. Most importantly, one has to have a solid relationship with Christ.