Christian evangelism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Christian evangelism is a term used for telling others about the Christian faith -- specifically, about Jesus Christ. This is done in large gatherings, in small groups or even on a one-to-one basis. This concept is sometimes labeled simply "evangelism" rather than Christian evangelism. In the Christian faith, those people who are seen as the primary preachers of the Gospel of Jesus are called evangelists. The tasks of the evangelist, however, according to the Christian Bible, belong to every Christian. Evangelism as outreach to new people is practiced by nearly every Christian denomination.
Evangelism as a field of study has its own extensive body of literature, ranging from historical and theoretical studies to very practical "how-to-do-it" materials.
Many people who belong to the Christian faith distinquish between 'evangelism' and 'discipleship' and while some consider discipleship a part of evangelism. In either case, the process remains the same: making the effort to tell another person about one's Christian faith in Jesus.
It is widely accepted in the Christian community that Christian evangelism is not to be a harsh, in-your-face process. Nor is it to duplicate what many view as the errors of political leaders like Charlemagne who embraced a 'convert or die' type of evangelism. Rather, most Christians would say that while Christian evangelism should be active and intentional, it should be done peacefully, in love, with kindness, and respectfully, even with a sense of urgency. The urgency grows out of the idea that nobody knows how much longer a person has to live, so it is therefore imperative that everyone hear the Gospel and have the opportunity to accept or reject it.
