We need to get people excited about their faith – lay movements help do that. But what are they?
I dare you to try. If you can give a complete definition, I’ll give you a gold star. Even John Paul II struggled with this definition: “What is meant today by “movement”? The term is often used to refer to realities that differ among themselves, sometimes even by reason of their canonical structure.”[1]
Some might define a lay ecclesial movement in the Catholic Church by pointing to examples: Regnum Christi, Opus Dei, Neocatechumenal Way, Cursillo, Focolare, etc. Or they might point to the Directory of International Associations of the Faithful as a list of the big ones. Here’s a problem: of the 5 examples I listed at least 1 and maybe 2 aren’t movements: Opus Dei is a personal prelature not a movement, and the Neocatechumenal way argues that they are not a movement. They state: “According to its statutes, the Neocatechumenal Way is not a movement or an association, but an itinerary of Catholic formation.”[2]
However, there has been a decent amount of talk about movements and we need some working definition to begin with. We can’t talk about how movements involve young people in the Church, evangelize, or lead people in discipleship if we don’t know what they are.
Instead of beginning with a definition, let’s go through some characteristics and end with a definition based upon them all:
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To fill St Peter’s Square, we need thousands of lay people; us priests and religious alone can’t do it.
First, lay movements fall in the canonical category of associations of the faithful. Even if they involve other canonical structures like religious communities, the overall structure is an association.
- Second, they primarily involve lay people (not excluding religious or priests but having them in a minority). Some groups, such as the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church start as associations with all the other characteristics but have the formation of a religious community as the goal.
- Third, theyare united around some particularcharism, a particular way of life
- As a consequence of this, they each ask members some part of Christian life beyond the precepts of the Church.
- Fourth, they build up the Church. What they do helps the whole Church not just seeking their private good like a prayer group.
- Fifth, they are independent of diocesan and parish structure. They work within it but do not depend upon it. “Before [Pentecost 1998] they were the misfits of the Church. They weren’t religious orders. They weren’t parish organizations. They were lay-driven groups who helped in their parishes while also looking to leadership outside the diocese for direction and inspiration.”[3]
- Sixth, from the previous 5, they develop some new form of communion. “The newness that the ecclesial movements contribute to the Church is not so much new forms of mission or new forms of spirituality but new forms of communion.”[4]
- Finally there is a criterion I would not include but seems to be the criterion the Neocatechumenal way uses to say they aren’t a movement: self-identification. This means something can only be a movement if it says it’s a movement.
Neither the Vatican nor the USCCB has attempted a definition as far as I know. When searching for a definition for Wikipedia, the only official definition I found was from the CEI (Italian Bishops’ Conference) in 1993. The CEI says the following is applied loosely: “The name ‘movement’ is attributed to those aggregate realities in which the uniting element is not primarily institutional structure but a ‘vital’ adhesion to some strong ideas and a common spirit.”[5] I find that helpful but incomplete.
So given all that discussion, the closest thing I can find to a complete definition is: A lay ecclesial movement is an association of the faithful involving primarily lay people in a new form of communion around a particular charism to build up the Church asking certain commitments of Christian life from its members while separate from diocesan and parish structures.
(Note: this is based on part of a paper I wrote for my STL; when the paper got to long this discussion was radically shortened. That is why it has footnotes.)
[1] John Paul II, Message for the World Congress of Ecclesial Movements and New Communities, May 27, 1998, #4, http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/speeches/1998/may/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_19980527_movimenti.html.
[2] Junno Arocho Esteves, “Renewal in the Spirit, Neocatechumenal Way Leaders Meet with Pope” in ZENIT, Rome, December 05, 2014, http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/renewal-in-the-spirit-neocatechumenal-way-leaders-meet-with-pope.
[3] Tom Hoopes, “Groundswell: The Pope, the New Movements, and the Church” in Catholic Cuture, https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=6524.
[4] Owen Kearns LC and Patrick Langan LC, The Quest for the Core: of the Regnum Christi Charism, (CreateSpace, 2014) Kindle edition.
[5] “Le aggregazioni laicali nella Chiesa: nota pastorale della commissione episcopale per il laicato” in Notiziario della Conferenza Episcopale Italiana, Num. 4 April 29, 1993, page 88, http://www.chiesacattolica.it/cci_new/documenti_cei/2012-10/12-1047/Le.aggregazioni.laicali.nella.Chiesa.pdf. (Note: personal translation).
In other words, what Evangelicals call parachurch organisations.
The problem is, these movements seems to be going down the same route of these parachurch organisations, and turning toxic: elitist coteries that think they’re God’s gift to the Church and preferable to the messiness of parish life, creating a two-tier, ‘Pietist’, Christianity.
This is a danger they have but one they have to resist which many (not all) are resisting.
Yes. Although, from where I’m sitting (in England), movements themselves might be resisting at the top level, but sadly it seems not very many of its adherents are on the ‘shop floor’ away from ‘Head Office’.
As an ex-Evangelical who researched the links between neurosis and unhealthy religion, all the alarm bells are ringing. Many of the members of these ‘novums’ seem to be on the neurotic scale, and this is being exacerbated by membership rather than healed, just like in Evangelicalism in the 1980s.
In many ways, it seems parallel to the crisis of Evangelicalism in that period. There was an influx of too many (spiritually and emotionally) immature romantics who were zealous, but ill-formed, and so became very destructive, behaving like teenagers towards the mature Christians in their congregations, and have never grown up.
To me there is a sad correlation between the psychological profiles of this new breed of ‘orthodox’ Catholic, and the heterodox Catholics they denounce. Both are riddled with in/out, aut-aut thinking; homophily and groupthink; have inordinate attachments to manifestations (or ‘Form’) over substance, and self-deception with little capacity for self-criticism or evaluation. Occult, rather than cult. Gnosis rather than Nous.
I will admit I know the US and Latin-American situation in this regard better than the UK.
There are various NFP organizations that are lay organizations.
Although the average Catholic contracepts and hears practically nothing from the pulpit, these organizations continue to promote family life and build up the Church, with little to no support from most bishops (who seem to prefer to attend graduations at private “catholic” schools for upper middle class families who contracept with one or two children..)
Instead of complaining, do something about the situation.
I teach, CCD and my wife and I promote NFP, but we could do more on the latter.
Catholic lay-movement: (noun) a group of belligerent, repressed homosexuals screaming about things they don’t understand.
example: “Look at that Catholic lay-movement heading towards the gay pride parade. They sure do look like they’re salivating!”
Hi Fr. Matthew! Thanks for this article! We are compiling definitions of different forms of lay associations, and I am SO grateful for your definition of what a movement is. It is very complete. If we cite you, may we use it for our website? I work for an archdiocesan office.
I’m glad to offer this to any diocesan or parish website or publication so long as I get credit. We all want to build the Church.
father please help out more on that .im based in zambia, lusaka to be precise and i feel led to begin a lay apostolate dedicated to the youth. what now i need to know is how to go about it and what does the church require as regards the jurisdction.
Is it not time now, considering that there is a reduction in priests’ numbers that the laity in each parish take ownership of the celebration of Mass and the sacraments. Jesus was not a priest, and neither were the Apostles. Priesthood did not develop in the Church until the second and third century and the Eucgarist was celebrated in homes of the believers, not by priests. Is God telling us that priesthood and hierarchy elected by hierarchy is a thing of the past and that the leaders, not deacons should be selected by the faithful, be married and include men and women?