Prof. Julian Porteous, Sydney

In his Apostolic Constitution on the 1983 Code of Canon Law the Holy Father made reference to the ecclesiology emerging from the Council, where the church is presented as the People of God (Lumen Gentium n.2). This ecclesiology, he says, presents the Church as a communion. All members of the Church share, "each in their own measure", in the threefold priestly, prophetic and kingly office of Christ (cf. Canon 204). On this basis the duties and rights of the lay members of the Church are specifically outlined as that of being engaged in the mission of the Church.

Canon Law establishes the essential equality of dignity among all members of the Church based on their rebirth in Christ. All share equally in the responsibility of furthering the spread of the Gospel and the building up of the church, whatever may be their state of life – lay, religious or clergy. As Canon 211 states:

All Christ’s faithful have the obligation and the right to strive so that the divine message of salvation may more and more reach all people at all times and in all places.

Lay members of the Church fulfill this role principally in the world. Gathering with the presbyters in the celebration of the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist, they are sent out into the secular sphere not just to live, but to influence the environment which they inhabit. The secular sphere of life is more than just an alien environment which is to be endured, rather it becomes the place for an engagement to improve the human quality of life and an opportunity to witness to Christian truth.

The Apostolic Exhortation, Christifideles Laici, refers to the Gospel images used by the Lord - those of salt, light and leaven - to express the way in which the lay persons can be positive influences in society in which they live. Thus, says the document, the world is "not only an anthropological and sociological reality", but "a theological and ecclesiological reality as well" (cf. n.15).

The Christian has not only the opportunity, but the responsibility of being an influence for good in shaping human society. Each lay person, as a citizen, has the right and duty to promote and defend moral truths concerning society, justice, and freedom. Each Christian should seek to foster a respect for human life, from its existence in the womb to its final journey to death, and the defend the dignity of each person.

A particular example of this is The Doctrinal Note on some questions regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life, issued by the Congregation for the Faith in 2002. This document presents in a clear manner the responsibility of those engaged in political life to bring the perspectives of Catholic belief, especially in moral matters, to the political debate. Engagement in the great moral debates of our time is a very important area of lay participation in the secular sphere, and it devolves especially on those who are in positions of influence or those possessing particular expertise.

There is one other area that also demands great attention. The Pope has recognized that the lay members of the Church play a vital role in the great challenge of our time. In Christifideles Laici, (n. 34) the Pope identifies the shift that has occurred across First World cultures whereby faith has been significantly eroded by secularism and he sees that this situation requires a fresh and vigorous re-evangelisation. He calls on the lay members of the Church to be at the heart of the response. He expresses it thus:

The lay members of the Church live in the world. This is their domain of life and activity. It naturally takes on a secular character. It is here that all the lay faithful fulfill their Christian vocation in the rich diversity of their situations and opportunities. Lumen Gentium (n. 38), quoting St John Chrysostom, expressed the role of the lay person in the world in these words, "Christians must be to the world what the soul is to be body"