Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia has called on Catholics to be “active witnesses” of their faith, taking inspiration from the 17th century missionary Blessed Junipero Serra.

Rejecting the idea that the Christian faith is “a useful moral code” or “an exercise in nostalgia,” he stressed that the Christian faith is “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.”

“Young or old, we need to live our faith as Junipero Serra did – all in, 100 percent, holding nothing back, with charity, endurance, passion and hope,” Archbishop Chaput said. “That kind of faith changes lives and remakes the world.”