One of the hallmarks of the Church in our age is the renewed emphasis on the role of the laity. Drawing upon the rich, traditional teaching of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), the Church reminds the laity that all of us are called to holiness by virtue of our Baptism, and we are all called to play an active role in the apostolate, serving as leaven in the world.

All that’s well and good, but saying it doesn’t make it so. All Catholics--and not merely those who are called to the priesthood and/or religious life--need a sound Christian formation to be able to respond generously and well to their own personal vocation in Christ. We need ongoing catechesis. In short, we can’t expect the fruits of discipleship, such as growth in holiness, apostolic zeal, and so forth, unless we truly are disciples.

In recent decades the Church has called the family the “domestic Church.” This is a powerful image that suggests something more than a once-per-week catechism class and maybe a crucifix on the wall. More...

A couple discussions in recent weeks have reminded me of one of my pet peeves in the area of liturgy: namely, the "lay homily."

Now, I should clarify that I have no problem whatsoever with the Church's teaching that all of us, according to our state in life, are called to preach. Hey, I do it here at this blog. Through our Baptism, we are all called to be "prophets" or heralds of God's Word to others. 

And we all have different gifts. Some people are more eloquent, convincing, and "dynamic" as speakers than others. Some lay people have more better oratorial gifts than some priests. No argument there.

Still, the Church very clearly forbids the giving of homilies by lay people (see below). Now, most places that have lay people giving the homily don't call it that. Rather, they call it something else, like a "Gospel reflection." Yet, if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and even takes the place of a duck, then for all intents and purposes, it's a duck.

Okay, you might say, the Church is pretty strict about lay homilies, and yes, some dioceses and parishes play a little fast and loose with the rules. But what's the big deal? More...

Over the years I've received many questions regarding the liturgy. While some of these questions may have been driven by some illicit or odd practice that was going on in their parish, the fundamental question of many sincere Catholics can be boiled down to this: What is the laity's role in the liturgy?

In this short post I can't provide a comprehensive answer, but I can point you to some Church teachings that shed considerable light on the subject. More...