News: Among American Catholics a Major Shift in Ministry

“...emergence of a pivotal shift in the American Catholic Church, with the rapid development of laymen and laywomen, many of whom are married and raising children, as key players and ministers in parishes throughout the land.”

In recent weeks, the Conference of Catholic Bishops in the United States issued a document on lay ecclesial ministry. And, two national Catholic magazines, America and U.S.Catholic, published articles heralding the emergence of a pivotal shift in the American Catholic Church, with the rapid development of laymen and laywomen, many of whom are married and raising children, as key players and ministers in parishes throughout the land.

In previous years, ministry within the Church in America was almost solely in the hands of priests and women religious. Now, with these two groups in very short supply, there are more lay ministers in the Church’s parishes than there are clergy and religious. There are also other, and perhaps better, reasons for this development, but it is a major shift in Church personnel and operations. Lay ministers will not supplant the clergy, in the view of this writer, but their emergence is an event of major consequence. The Church in the United States will be changed dramatically by their new role.

The above is not so much a prediction as an observation. It is most difficult to avoid noticing this development and witnessing some of its initial consequences. The American bishops in their recent meeting acknowledged the fact, but expressed considerable wariness as to some of its consequences. And, well they might do so! The bishops have far less control over the lay ministers in the parishes of their dioceses than they do of the clergy. They are only in indirect contact with most of the personnel of these parishes. Only the pastor is in direct contact with them, and the relationship between pastor and lay minister, where it works satisfactorily, is more one of compatriots than of employer and employees.

The reports highlight the fact that lay ministers love what they do in the Church (and while most lay ministers are women, the proportion of men is increasing), but they are not so well pleased with the pay. That should not be surprising as the Church was previously operated by clergy and religious, groups for whom financial compensation was relatively unimportant if not suspect. Lay ministers, most of whom have families, must have adequate salaries.

The good news is that salaries are quickly improving. While they are considerably less than those paid by Protestant Churches in the United States, the gap is narrowing. Of course, if the Catholic Church in the United States wants to encourage lay ministry of a high quality it is going to have to pay for it. How it will do so will speak volumes about the future direction and nature of the Church here.