Chapter five of Evangelii Gaudium: Spirit-filled evangelizers

This contribution examines the opening section of Chapter Five of Evangelii Gaudium, arguing that in it Francis sheds light on the mystagogy of discipleship in contemporary times. After providing a brief synopsis of these reasons for a renewed missionary impulse using the idea of the “why, who, and how” of mission as a framework, the author argues that the contribution of the section to the church's mission is its eloquent articulation of a deep spirituality of mission arising from the human condition, both at the personal and communal level. Positing that three features of this spirituality of mission – holistic, anthropological, and Christological – constitute some of the most important points of this section, the article concludes that Evangelii Gaudium is a passionate exhortation toward imbibing a keen sensibility of the humanum to deepen and open Christian faith in proclaiming a gospel of joy and hope and, in the process, bring wholeness to people and the world. It is about missio homini that is rooted in missio Christi and, therefore, leads to missio Dei.