CNA reports that a document entitled “A Doctrinal Note on Some Aspects of Evangelization” was published on 14th December 2007 at the Vatican. The note emphasizes the need for Catholics to share their faith in Christ and to be “instruments of His presence and activity in the world.”

The new document states that there is “growing confusion” regarding the Church’s mission to evangelize.  “Some think ‘that any attempt to convince others on religious matters is a limitation of their freedom,’ suggesting that it is enough to invite people ‘to act according to their consciences,’ or to ‘become more human or more faithful to their own religion,’ or ‘to build communities which strive for justice, freedom, peace and solidarity,’ without aiming at their conversion to Christ and to the Catholic faith.”

However, the document observes that this way of thinking contains the false idea that man can be free apart from the truth. It states that, “while some forms of agnosticism and relativism deny the human capacity for truth, in fact, human freedom cannot be separated from its reference to truth.”

In the search for truth, one cannot do it on his own, the note explains.  He needs “help from others and trust in knowledge that one receives from others. Thus, teaching and entering into dialogue to lead someone in freedom to know and to love Christ is not inappropriate encroachment on human freedom, ‘but rather a legitimate endeavor and a service capable of making human relationships more fruitful’.”