Hekima Review No. 52 (May 2015)

The fundamental mission of the Church is to evangelize. The Church evangelizes “when it seeks to convert, solely through the divine power of the message which it proclaims, both the personal and collective consciences of people, the activities in which they engage, and lives and concrete milieus which are theirs.” While aware of its mission, the Church is also conscious of the diversity and specificity of the contexts within which it carries out this mission. This diversity and specificity accords the One and Catholic Church different characteristics proper to the different regions of the world where it carries out its mission. This legitimate diversity is a feature that was also present in the early stages of the Church, hence Paul’s letters to the Church in Thessalonica, to the Church in Corinth, to the Church in Galatia, to the Church in Rome, and so forth; a recognition of the diversity of these local churches within the Universal Church. Today, we can thus legitimately speak of the Church in Europe, the Church in Asia, the Church in America, and the Church in Africa.