May 19, 1991 Dear Friends: Peace be with you! On the occasion of the celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the Promulgation of the Second Vatican Council's document on the laity, "Apostolicam Actuositatem", we, the Catholic Bishops of Florida, address this pastoral letter to the many thousands of devoted lay women and men of Florida who collaborate with us in proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom of God among us. (Lumen Gentium, #5) We express our thanks and admiration and appreciation for the many ways in which the laity serve and enrich the Church. We thank the Lord for all the Lay Ministries that flourish in our dioceses. Women and men of all ages, races and ethnic origins make personal sacrifices in order to volunteer their time, talent, and, on many occasions, their economic resources in service of the Church and its mission. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, these lay persons serve with great generosity and fidelity in their parishes and in a variety of Lay Apostolic Movements and Associations. (Christifideles Laici, #29) These Apostolic Movements and Associations have multiplied the services that the Church makes available to today's world and society. To all of these movements and associations present in Florida today, we offer public recognition and appreciation. Vatican II tells us: "The church is not truly established and does not fully live, nor is a perfect sign of Christ unless there is a genuine laity existing and working alongside the hierarchy. For the Gospel cannot become deeply rooted in the mentality, life and work of a people without the active presence of lay people. Therefore, from the foundation of a Church very special care must be taken to form a mature Christian laity." (Ad Gentes Divinitus, #21) The right and duty of lay persons to be apostle flows from their union with Christ, the head. Inserted into the Mystical Body of Christ by baptism and strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit in Confirmation, it is by the Lord himself that they are appointed to the apostolate. (Apostolicam Actuositatem, #3) "The need for all the faithful to share in this responsibility (of evangelization)... is a right and duty based on their baptismal dignity, whereby the faithful participate in the threefold, they are bound by the general obligation and they have the right, whether as individuals or in associations, to strive so that the divine message of salvation may be known and accepted by all people throughout the world." (John Paul II, Redeptoris Missio: On the Permanent Validity of the Church's Missionary Mandate, #71) The potential of a developed mature laity is enormous. We have many developed and mature people. The formation of lay persons requires ongoing development, a development that will make them better instruments for building up the Kingdom of God. We commit ourselves to collaboration in this project. This training should be spiritual but should also include education concerning Church doctrine, the social teachings of the Church and the development of human values. Lay persons are members of the Church and also citizens of human society. Their lives should not be divided into, on the one hand, a "spiritual life" with its values and demands and, on the other hand, a "secular life" - life in a family, at work, in social relationships and responsibilities. Rather, spiritual values should be integrated into daily life in the family and in the market place. There should be "unity of life." Lay persons should be a leaven in society and the salt of the earth. Faith and life, Gospel and culture, should be one. (Christifidele Laici, #59) Two Specific Fields for Lay Action We should like to emphasize two specific areas that are of vital importance. The first is the family. We want to insist on the fact that the family is threatened today more than ever before, with the danger of disintegration and dehumanization, and should be a priority in the action of the laity. There is a need to create the experience of the Kingdom of God in the midst of each family. The family is the first and basic community. We insist on the need to make our families true communities which witness to the values of the Kingdom. From this experience will emerge great energy and vitality for the evangelization work of the Church. (Cfr Christifideles Laici, #40) The second field is the community involvement. "Their (laity) own field... is the vast and complicated world of politics, society and economics ... on the local, national and international levels." (Redemptoris Missio, #72) "In order to achieve their task directed to the Christian animation of the temporal order, in the sense of serving persons and society, they lay faithful are never to relinquish their participation in "public life, that is, in the many different economic, social, legislative, administrative and cultural areas which are intended to promote organically and institutionally the common good." (Ibid, #42) Some abandon these vital fields of human life and turn to ecclesiastical ministries. Ecclesiastical ministries are, of course, worthy and valuable. Political activity is arduous and sometimes unpleasant. However, "the Church praises and esteems those who devote themselves to the public good for the service of people and take upon themselves the burdens of public office." (Gaudium et Spes, #75) Collaborative Ministry In the service of God one does not work alone but in collaboration with many others. Pope Paul VI taught: "Evangelization is not an individual and isolated act; it is one that is deeply ecclesial." (Evangelii Nuntiandi) When an obscure preacher, catechist or pastor preaches the Gospel, gathers a community together or administers a sacrament, that individual is performing an ecclesial act, united by grace to the evangelizing activity of the whole Church. This presupposes that the person acts not through personal inspiration, but in union with the mission of the Church and in her name. (E.N., #60) It is with the sense of unity and collaboration that we should exercise our ministries. Self-sufficient attitudes, individualism, the lack of mutual collaboration and inability to dialogue do not reflect the image of Christ and his message and result in an ineffective ministry. Collaborative ministry reflects the life of the One Triune God. It also reflects the mission of the Church to be the link between God and human beings among themselves. We--Bishops, priests, and laity are all committed, in communion with Jesus Christ and with each other, to build up the Kingdom of God. As we all work together for His glory, may God bless us all with His wisdom, support and peace. Edward A. McCarthy John J. Snyder J. Keith Symons John J. Nevins John C. Favalora Norbert M. Dorsey |