A Guide to the Lay Movements
Yet another lay community devoted to evangelization has been approved by the Pontifical Council for the Laity. The Shalom Community was founded in Brazil in 1982 to evangelize youth and to counter the influence of liberation theology according to this New York Times piece on the evangelization of youth written at the time of Pope John Paul II's death.
Maria Emmir, one of the founders, says that Shalom Community has about 50,000 members.
Zenit has publishing a short description of all the approved lay movements and EWTN has a list here. There are 76 listed. It is fascinating to see the breadth of the list. Not all are conservative politically. A number are only 25 -30 years old.
Some are well-known, like Communion and Liberation, Regnum Christ, Sant'Egidio, and the Legion of Mary. I noticed that the Cooperators of Opus Dei are listed but of course, not Opus Dei iteself, since it is not a lay movement. But some are unexpected.
Did you know that the Cursillo movement, Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services (the international office of the charismatic renewal in Rome), Marriage Encounter, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul are officially approved "lay movements?"
More of us are part of or "cooperators" with lay movements than we knew!
Check out less familiar movements like the Emmanuel Community and Foyers de Charité.
And this one, whom I had never heard of: The Association of Missionaries of Political Charity:
"Twenty years ago, a man named Alfred Luciani founded the Association of Missionaries of Political Charity, an organization devoted to the promotion of Catholic social teaching in the world of politics. Cardinal Pironio recognized the group for its efforts to "promote and cultivate authentic Christian vocations toward political engagement."
Thus the canonical recognition of the group is, in effect, an acknowledgment by the Church that the members of the Association have a calling to work within the secular world for the promotion of the Gospel. Cardinal Pironio explained that under the new Code of Canon Law-- informed by the call of Vatican II for lay people to work within the secular world to transform their society-- recognizes the validity and importance of such lay vocations.
For Alfredo Luciani, the founder and president of the Association, the new canonical recognition is "an extraordinary event." Working as a Christian in the political world, he said, is a form of "service for the common good." Such a calling, he insisted, should be presented to the laity as a form of sanctification and evangelization. Toward that end, his Association insists that lay people must receive the political training and spiritual formation they need to make their work a form of apostolate, guided not only by good intentions but by the highest professional standards as well.
Imagine serous formation for Catholic politicians. We could use some of that in this country!
posted by Sherry W @ 6:31 AM
6 Comments
6 Comments:
You say that "Marriage Encounter" is an approved lay ministry, but in fact there are several versions of Marriage Encounter. Only "Worldwide Marriage Encounter" is a lay ministry that is endorsed by the Catholic Church.
Interesting, Sherry. I'm not sure if that's truly a complete list. For example, I don't see the Ecclesial Carmelite Movement listed. (That's a fascinating one to see the rediscovery of an ancient founding charism and the efforts to discern a clear difference to living that charism in a movement versus a third order.)
It's also interesting to see how there are several listed separately that are related. For example, Memores Domini is CL-related.
Sherry W. posted that:
More of us are part of or "cooperators" with lay movements than we knew!
I daresay this is the merit of the "personal prophetic charisms" of movements and orders - not so much their membership, but rather the renewal of Church and society that is accomplished through them.
The rosary, for example, is not regarded as something strange that Dominicans do, but something belonging to all Catholics. The stations of the cross are no longer the sole privilege of Franciscans. Many beyond Catholicism have benefited from (also Franciscan) nativity scene. And the Exercises of Ignatius are increasingly available to lay people and not merely a part of Jesuit formation. Benedictine hospitality fostered the political and cultural climate of Europe.
If movements are indeed the work of the Holy Spirit, then I would expect fruits similar to these of the orders. Charisms, after all, are given for the whole and not merely for a select few.
Fred
Great post!
I do not know of its cooperators embracing and promoting their own spirituality. Cooperators commit to pray for and make financial donations to Opus Dei.
So Opus Dei itself is not a movement but its Cooperators are?
Missing from the list are the original lay movements: the Third Orders. Most have recently moved to drop the Third Order nomenclature in favor of secular or lay.
Many of these groups are over 800 years old. Many of the lay saints in the Church come from these Orders. Cathechists in missionary lands were often from these orders. When persecution came, these were the folks known for their strong faith and abilty to evangelize the community. These were the folks targeted for persecution. Check out the Vietnamese or Korean Matyrs -- may were lay members of the religious orders. Catherine of Siena herself was a lay Dominican woman and member of the Third Order of St. Dominic (now the Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic)
Benedictine Oblates (oldest)
Franciscan Secular Order (over 1 million members world wide)
Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic (over 150,000 )
Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites
Secular Order of Ancient Carmelites
Norbertine Third Order
Agustinian Third Order
Trinitarian Third Order
Secular Servites
Marists
This list at the Vatican website has more groups: list of movements
Movements have their roots in the Third Orders, Catholic Action, and the lay beginnings of some orders, e.g. Franciscans, Jesuits, etc.
There has been such an explosion of lay initiatives that theologians and the Vatican have difficulty keeping up (I recommend Balthasar's The Laity in the Life of the Counsels as a substantial work of theology in conversation with the history of these groups, which also includes secular institutes.
Before Opus Dei received its unique status as a personal prelature, it was classed as a secular institute - a designation that did not do justice to the involvement of married persons in addition to celibate members.
Fred
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