Book Review - The New Evangelization and You: Be Not Afraid



By Greg Willits, released June, 2013, Servant Books, Cincinnati, Ohio, 149 pages, Paperback, Kindle, Audiobook,CD, and Audible Audio Edition, CD abridged. Available from Servant Books, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble, Major books stores and Catholic and Christian book stores.

Reviewed by JEAN M. HEIMANN, M.A. in Theology, adult educator, new evangelizer, freelance writer, and oblate with the Community of St. John.

Archbishop Charles Chaput recently made the following controversial statement: “A new evangelization must start with the sober knowledge that much of the once-Christian developed world, and even many self-described Christians, are in fact pagan. Christian faith is not a habit. It’s not a useful moral code. It’s not an exercise in nostalgia. It’s a restlessness, a consuming fire in the heart to experience the love of Jesus Christ and then share it with others — or it’s nothing at all” (CatholicPhilly.com)

In The New Evangelization and You:  Be Not Afraid, Greg Willits helps each one of us rekindle the consuming fire of our faith within our hearts, stir it into flames in our lives, and spread the flames of transformation into our world. As Christians, we all need to be renewed in our faith and reminded what our mission is in this world. We all need a booster shot of enthusiasm and encouragement. The New Evangelization and You is a dose of exactly what I needed to get me fired up about my faith. In his fresh, charismatic, and candid style, Greg articulately explains exactly what the New Evangelization is and what we need to do to be successful evangelists. He inspires, motivates, and teaches us to know the faith more deeply, to live the faith more fully, and to share the faith more effectively.

In this short, but lively book, Greg draws us deeper into our faith and effectively convinces us that each of us has God-given gifts we can use to share the faith with others. With wit and charm, he relates personal anecdotes about his own evangelization experiences and shares brief profiles about average Catholics today who serve as new evangelizers in the world. He keeps us actively involved in the preparation process for becoming new evangelizers with thought-provoking questions and prayer at the end of each chapter.

As an experienced evangelizer, Greg reveals numerous practical, down to earth techniques to touch hearts and souls to bring them closer to the Lord. I found The New Evangelization and You to be a refreshing and exciting book and a must read for all who desire to remain fully and actively alive in their faith. I highly recommend it.

 © Jean M. Heimann, July 2013.

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