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On the Vocation and the Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World
John Paul II, Pope
196 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1989
11 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
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Pope John Paul II
1,046 books636 followersSaint Pope John Paul II (Latin: Ioannes Paulus II), born Karol Józef Wojtyła was elected Pope at the Conclave of 16 October 1978, and he took the name of John Paul II. On 22 October, the Lord's Day, he solemnly inaugurated his Petrine ministry as the 263rd successor to the Apostle. His pontificate, one of the longest in the history of the Church, lasted nearly 27 years.
Driven by his pastoral solicitude for all Churches and by a sense of openness and charity to the entire human race, John Paul II exercised the Petrine ministry with a tireless missionary spirit, dedicating it all his energy. He made 104 pastoral visits outside Italy and 146 within Italy. As bishop of Rome he visited 317 of the city's 333 parishes.
He had more meetings than any of his predecessors with the People of God and the leaders of Nations. More than 17,600,000 pilgrims participated in the General Audiences held on Wednesdays (more than 1160), not counting other special audiences and religious ceremonies [more than 8 million pilgrims during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 alone], and the millions of faithful he met during pastoral visits in Italy and throughout the world. We must also remember the numerous government personalities he encountered during 38 official visits, 738 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State, and 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers.
His love for young people brought him to establish the World Youth Days. The 19 WYDs celebrated during his pontificate brought together millions of young people from all over the world. At the same time his care for the family was expressed in the World Meetings of Families, which he initiated in 1994. John Paul II successfully encouraged dialogue with the Jews and with the representatives of other religions, whom he several times invited to prayer meetings for peace, especially in Assisi.
Under his guidance the Church prepared herself for the third millennium and celebrated the Great Jubilee of the year 2000 in accordance with the instructions given in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio adveniente. The Church then faced the new epoch, receiving his instructions in the Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio ineunte, in which he indicated to the faithful their future path.
With the Year of the Redemption, the Marian Year and the Year of the Eucharist, he promoted the spiritual renewal of the Church. He gave an extraordinary impetus to Canonizations and Beatifications, focusing on countless examples of holiness as an incentive for the people of our time. He celebrated 147 beatification ceremonies during which he proclaimed 1,338 Blesseds; and 51 canonizations for a total of 482 saints. He made Thérèse of the Child Jesus a Doctor of the Church.
He considerably expanded the College of Cardinals, creating 231 Cardinals (plus one in pectore) in 9 consistories. He also called six full meetings of the College of Cardinals. His most important Documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions, 45 Apostolic Letters. He promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the light of Tradition as authoritatively interpreted by the Second Vatican Council. He also reformed the Eastern and Western Codes of Canon Law, created new Institutions and reorganized the Roman Curia.
In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on 2 April 2005 at 9.37 p.m., while Saturday was drawing to a close and the Lord's Day was already beginning, the Octave of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, the Church's beloved Pastor, John Paul II, departed this world for the Father. On April 1, 2011, he was raised to the glory of the altars and on April 27, 2014 canonized.
Driven by his pastoral solicitude for all Churches and by a sense of openness and charity to the entire human race, John Paul II exercised the Petrine ministry with a tireless missionary spirit, dedicating it all his energy. He made 104 pastoral visits outside Italy and 146 within Italy. As bishop of Rome he visited 317 of the city's 333 parishes.
He had more meetings than any of his predecessors with the People of God and the leaders of Nations. More than 17,600,000 pilgrims participated in the General Audiences held on Wednesdays (more than 1160), not counting other special audiences and religious ceremonies [more than 8 million pilgrims during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 alone], and the millions of faithful he met during pastoral visits in Italy and throughout the world. We must also remember the numerous government personalities he encountered during 38 official visits, 738 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State, and 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers.
His love for young people brought him to establish the World Youth Days. The 19 WYDs celebrated during his pontificate brought together millions of young people from all over the world. At the same time his care for the family was expressed in the World Meetings of Families, which he initiated in 1994. John Paul II successfully encouraged dialogue with the Jews and with the representatives of other religions, whom he several times invited to prayer meetings for peace, especially in Assisi.
Under his guidance the Church prepared herself for the third millennium and celebrated the Great Jubilee of the year 2000 in accordance with the instructions given in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio adveniente. The Church then faced the new epoch, receiving his instructions in the Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio ineunte, in which he indicated to the faithful their future path.
With the Year of the Redemption, the Marian Year and the Year of the Eucharist, he promoted the spiritual renewal of the Church. He gave an extraordinary impetus to Canonizations and Beatifications, focusing on countless examples of holiness as an incentive for the people of our time. He celebrated 147 beatification ceremonies during which he proclaimed 1,338 Blesseds; and 51 canonizations for a total of 482 saints. He made Thérèse of the Child Jesus a Doctor of the Church.
He considerably expanded the College of Cardinals, creating 231 Cardinals (plus one in pectore) in 9 consistories. He also called six full meetings of the College of Cardinals. His most important Documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions, 45 Apostolic Letters. He promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the light of Tradition as authoritatively interpreted by the Second Vatican Council. He also reformed the Eastern and Western Codes of Canon Law, created new Institutions and reorganized the Roman Curia.
In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on 2 April 2005 at 9.37 p.m., while Saturday was drawing to a close and the Lord's Day was already beginning, the Octave of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, the Church's beloved Pastor, John Paul II, departed this world for the Father. On April 1, 2011, he was raised to the glory of the altars and on April 27, 2014 canonized.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
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November 11, 2021What an excellent papal document!
Things I loved:
-The repetition of the vine metaphor throughout. The phrase "You go into the vineyard too", is very powerful, at least to me right now. :)
-The acknowledgement of the temptation to keep secular & spiritual life seperate
-The re-emphasis that the ministerial priesthood is different from the calling of each of the faithful to be priest, prophet and king, while emphasizing the p, p, &k vocation as really important as well!
-The reiteration that women cannot be priests, while emphasizing the dignity and special calling of women, especially contrary to the de-dignifying of women in today's culture.
-The parts about the old, the young, and the sick, and them all STILL being called to go out into the vineyard.
-The parts about the things that our culture is doing wrong, especially apropos of life, and our calling to fix those things.
-The part at the end about formation and how that's ongoing in everyone, and is both the right and responsibility of everyone, as well.
-The part where it says that while the priests must support the faithful, the faithful must support their priests as well. <3
-And, of course, JPII being JPII, the way it ends with a prayer to Mary. :)
Things I loved:
-The repetition of the vine metaphor throughout. The phrase "You go into the vineyard too", is very powerful, at least to me right now. :)
-The acknowledgement of the temptation to keep secular & spiritual life seperate
-The re-emphasis that the ministerial priesthood is different from the calling of each of the faithful to be priest, prophet and king, while emphasizing the p, p, &k vocation as really important as well!
-The reiteration that women cannot be priests, while emphasizing the dignity and special calling of women, especially contrary to the de-dignifying of women in today's culture.
-The parts about the old, the young, and the sick, and them all STILL being called to go out into the vineyard.
-The parts about the things that our culture is doing wrong, especially apropos of life, and our calling to fix those things.
-The part at the end about formation and how that's ongoing in everyone, and is both the right and responsibility of everyone, as well.
-The part where it says that while the priests must support the faithful, the faithful must support their priests as well. <3
-And, of course, JPII being JPII, the way it ends with a prayer to Mary. :)
June 2, 2013
A must read for every Catholic! We all have a mission and work to do! JP II does it again, explaining the role of lay people in Church as members of ONE body.
March 25, 2024
Un excelente documento para conocer la visión de la Iglesia respecto a la participación de los laicos en el mundo y la Iglesia, un poco denso por momentos.
August 26, 2021
The phrase that stood out to me was "ecclesial consciousness." And I thought Pope John Paul II did a great job here in lovingly expounding what it meant. A Christian should always find it impossible to live outside the context of a Biblically faithful Church life. The Christian individual is first and foremost a member of the Body of Christ, which includes all who have been born again by being born into that Body of like-hearted believers.
February 27, 2024
Wow. Just wow. Why haven’t I started reading encyclicals earlier. Such basic but beautiful teachings of the church and a beautiful road map of what we are called to as lay people of the Catholic Church. Will absolutely be taking this to heart and out on mission.
December 5, 2017
nice story
February 6, 2021
Magnificent document.
June 14, 2021
Mostly skimmed — felt like a combo of other similar things I’ve read about this.
December 30, 2024
one of the works Archbishop Chaput, OFM Cap references often in his four books.
January 7, 2023
No es la primera obra de San Juan Pablo II que leo, por tanto, hay ciertas cosas que me las podría esperar.
Este libro ya no es compatible con la realidad social e histórica de la Iglesia Católica actual. Deja al laico, grueso del rebaño, a un lado. Somos, al parecer, distintos a los demás religiosos. Si se ha leído Antiquum Ministerium, de SS Francisco, se podrá ver claramente la diferencia.
La redacción, como dije con Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, esperaba más calidad y claridad a la hora de explicarse y exponer sus ideas. Es muy tedioso, sin embargo, es uno de sus textos pontificios esenciales para acercarse a la figura de San Juan Pablo II y a la Iglesia de los años 80.
Este libro ya no es compatible con la realidad social e histórica de la Iglesia Católica actual. Deja al laico, grueso del rebaño, a un lado. Somos, al parecer, distintos a los demás religiosos. Si se ha leído Antiquum Ministerium, de SS Francisco, se podrá ver claramente la diferencia.
La redacción, como dije con Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, esperaba más calidad y claridad a la hora de explicarse y exponer sus ideas. Es muy tedioso, sin embargo, es uno de sus textos pontificios esenciales para acercarse a la figura de San Juan Pablo II y a la Iglesia de los años 80.
Read
February 15, 2014Without question, Christifideles Laici is a good Church document. However, due to my high expectations and reasonably sound pre-existing understanding of the vocation of the laity, it did not inspire me. I imagine that it was a more groundbreaking exhortation when it was written, shortly after the 1987 synod from which the title draws its name.
February 8, 2023
Si "quieres ser" (spoiler: si eres bautizado, ya eres) laico, léete esta exhortación.
Aunque te la recomiendo más si no la has leído, pero ya estás metido en este mundo que se conoce como ✨apostolado✨ (mucho mejor si puedes hacer una especie de 'lectura conjunta' con tus hermanos de comunidad/equipo de trabajo pastoral).
Aunque te la recomiendo más si no la has leído, pero ya estás metido en este mundo que se conoce como ✨apostolado✨ (mucho mejor si puedes hacer una especie de 'lectura conjunta' con tus hermanos de comunidad/equipo de trabajo pastoral).
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews