What is the mission of lay Catholics in the world?
Lay Catholics are full and active members of the People of God. By virtue of their Baptism and Confirmation, the laity share in Christ's priestly, prophetic and royal offices.
The distinctive vocation of lay faithful is to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God's will. While clergy and religious serve primarily within ecclesiastical structures, lay men and women are called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world in secular society.
This means sanctifying daily life in the family, the hospital ward, the university campus, business, science and politics. By professional competence, moral integrity and Christian love, lay Catholics bring the Gospel into realms of society that ordained ministers can rarely enter.
Sources
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 898
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 900
- 1 Peter 2:9
Awaiting review by the chaplaincy. Written in our own words; the Church's own texts are the authority.