Participate
All Christians are called to a life of discipleship and have the obligation of extending his work and presence in the world today, advancing the Reign of God in our own time and place.
All Christians are configured to Christ through baptism, for that is the sacrament by which the new People of God are incorporated into the Church, participate in Christ’s death and resurrection, and assume the name "Christian." All Christians are called to a life of discipleship and have the obligation of extending his work and presence in the world today, advancing the Reign of God in our own time and place. All share in the one same vocation—to be and to build the Body of Christ, building up the Kingdom of God here and now.
It is in the Church, at this time and in this place, that the presence of Christ—the one who witnessed, worshiped, and above all, served—continues. And it is through witness, worship, and service that the Church continually expresses and receives its identity as the Body of Christ.
The baptized are called to share in the Church’s mission through mutual service (diakonia), through a life of worship (leitourgia/koinonia), and through witness (marturia) to the Gospel by holiness of life. These are the hallmarks of Christian living. The manner and degree of engagement in this common call differ, depending on the gifts and ministries given by the Spirit: "And the gifts are given so that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers" (Ephesians 4: 11).
Most lay persons are called to transform the world by living out their baptismal vocation, being and becoming the Body of Christ in the world, advancing the Kingdom of God amidst the pressing demands of marriage, family, school and workplace.
The baptized also witness to the light and love of Christ through all forms of prophetic utterance, through teaching, through the ministry of catechesis, through theological reflection by which they seek to probe the riches of the Word and the Christian tradition, and through participation in the Church’s evangelical mission, sometimes being sent from home and country as heralds and servants of the Good News in other lands.
The baptized worship God in Spirit and in Truth through full, conscious and active participation in the Sunday liturgy, through the proclamation of the Word in word and in deed, through the liturgical ministries of lector, musician or eucharistic minister, through the many other ministries which serve to animate the community gathered for prayer.
The baptized serve God through administration, feeding the hungry, caring for the needs of the sick, working for justice, washing the feet of the homeless, safeguarding and protecting the rights of the last, the littlest, and the least, giving the Body and Blood of Christ to those gathered at the Table of the Lord, and bringing this Holy Communion to those who are sick at home or in hospital. In all these ways and more, the gifts of the Christian people for witness, worship, and service are being shared for the greater glory of God in a community of faith, hope, and love whose members together become a living doxology—alive for the praise and glory of God the Father, through Christ the Word, in the creative and bonding Spirit of Love through which the world is transformed.
—Cardinal Roger Mahony and the Priests of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles
As I Have Done for You, A Pastoral Letter on Ministry
