The great Commission
"Then Jesus approached and said to them, 'All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20) This final commission of Jesus to His disciples, spoken after the Resurrection and before the Ascension, constitutes the Great Commission and the enduring mandate of the Church throughout all time. It is both a declaration of divine authority and a transmission of divine mission. Jesus begins by affirming that "all power in heaven and on earth has been given to me," a clear proclamation of His divine kingship and universal dominion. Having conquered sin and death through His Paschal Mystery, Christ now sends His followers to extend His reign to all nations, not as conquerors, but as evangelizers, inviting all into...