Looking to the Laity

The Church landscape has shifted greatly since the Second Vatican Council ended in 1965. Many people have lost trust in the institution. Others find it irrelevant. Those who remain, however, have much to offer the Church they love. Today’s laity is engaged, educated and committed to building God’s kingdom.

Looking to the Laity overflows with real-world experience, hope, inspiration and practical suggestions from experts in liturgy, Catholic education, the contributions of women, sacramental preparation and religious education in parishes, justice, ecology, science and religion, and bioethics. Together with ordained ministers, lay women and men are ready to share their gifts with the Church to continue Christ’s mission.

“These prayerful reflections provide much-needed hope and direction in a time of loss and wounding in the Church and world. From experiences of great love, and some pain, contributors offer critical insights on possibilities for lay participation in shared transforming leadership for renewing all aspects of Church life.”—Nuala P. Kenny, Sister of Charity of Halifax, retired paediatrician and medical ethicist, Officer of the Order of Canada, and author of several books, including The Post-Pandemic Church: Prophetic Possibilities

“One of the shifts from the theology of the laity of Vatican II is that today is no longer merely about ‘collaboration’ of the laity in the apostolate of the hierarchy, but it’s about shared leadership, shared decision making and shared mission. This book is an essential roadmap towards an effective (and not just affective) role of the laity in the mission of the Catholic Church.”—Prof. Dr. Massimo Faggioli, Professor of Historical Theology, Villanova University, Pennsylvania, and author of Joe Biden and Catholicism in the United States

“This is more than a primer; it is a summons. A refreshingly open collection of voices, Looking to the Laity reminds us that the laity are key players, not an afterthought or encumbrance, in the shaping of a church rooted in the Gospel.”—Dr. Michael W. Higgins, President and Vice Chancellor, St. Mark’s College & Corpus Christi College, University of British Columbia, and author of many books, including The Church Needs the Laity