Lay Apostles and Catholic Action

THE confusion between two terms, the "lay
apostolate" and "Catholic Action", has been with us for many years and is now worrying the Vatican Council Fathers. Insofar as "Catholic Action", in some countries, is associated with the organisation of Catholic political parties and trade unions, it would probably be better to drop this label altogether from the Church's universal terminology.
It is true, of course, that some countries still need specifically Christian parties and unions to fight against specifically anti-Christian forces in the political and industrial fields, to rally rightminded men in the struggle to base the social order on Christian values, and to make it clear to the simple electorate whom they are voting for.
But this situation has never applied in Britain, and is applying less and less in Western Lurope. There is no reason today, for instance, why the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions should not absorb the parallel Catholic Federation, since the two bodies no longer represent the battle between an antiChristian socialism and Catholicism.
Moreover, even where Christian parties and unions are still needed, the emphasis should be on their "Christian" rather than on their "Catholic" character—at least where there is a fairly substantial hody of non-Catholic: Christians in the country who can work together with Catholics in social matters. As for Britain, it is of paramount importance that Catholics should not be regarded as forming exclusive pressure groups within the political or industrial sectors. The Church today speaks of embracing and penetrating the world. This cannot be done from the ghetto.
Surely the right perspective is as follows: by baptism and confirmation, every Catholic is called to be a lay apostle, charged with the duty of radiating the Christ-life into his own milieu by the simple process of living it in himself and in his family.
To be the "just man" of holy scripture and to rear a Christian family within secular society is to leaven the social mass, provided it overflows into the individual's active love towards his neighbours in his home district, his work, his play, his formal contribution to social welfare, his fearless stand for the truth and right principle in public and private life.
This basic form of the unorganised lay apostolate, therefore, is dynamic, and is not to be thought of as inferior, hut as the layman's share in the life of Christ the priest, the victim, and the martyr.
In this apostolate, the Catholic's activity in his political, trade union, or other social milieu is not subject to the bishops, save in the sense that we are always subject to them when they teach and interpret the moral law by virtue of their authority.
There is. however, a vital need for Catholics with the necessary aptitudes to organise themselves in groups to perform specialised work of an apostolic character. These groups will normally "commit" the Church and are rightly subject to the bishops' direction and guidance. They should call fully on the layman's expertise, with the priest-chaplain acting as a catalyst.
Some of them will be merely formative. assisting the layman to carry out his personal apostolate more efficiently (e.g. the Catholic Social Guild) but without dictating to him. Others will be devoted to social and charitable work (e.g. the St. Vincent de Paul Society).
Others again will perform a direct spiritual apostolate, proclaiming the word of God in public, organising campaigns to interest nonCatholics in the faith le.. the Evidence Guild and the Legion of Mary). Some groups will combine these various functions.
This "specialised" lay apostolate needs radical reformation. Most of our Catholic societies simply succeed in diffusing efforts that ought to be more centralised and concentrated. Many are plainly anachronistic and without appeal to the young.
We would suggest that they might well be replaced by national and diocesan Catholic Service Councils, with full time lay and clerical experts and nuns. with ecclesiastical advisers to link up with the bishops' policies; and each Council would run its own special departments for education, preaching and publication, the spiritual apostolate, adult formation centres, charity and welfare work.
There should be a high-powered organisation like this in every diocese with a first class shop window in prominently sited headquarters. All this would have the additional advantage of consolidating financial resources too.