() is a post-synodal apostolic exhortation of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

, signed in Rome on December 30, 1988. It is summary of the teaching that arose from the 1987 synod of bishops on the vocation and mission of the

laity In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperson ...

in the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

and the world. The document's subtitle was: On the Vocation and the Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World. Its primary scriptural texts were the

parable of the workers in the vineyard __NOTOC__ The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard (also called the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard or the Parable of the Generous Employer) is a parable of Jesus which appears in chapter 20 of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testamen ...

(Matthew 20) and the story of the

True Vine The True Vine ( ''hē ampelos hē alēthinē'') is an allegory or parable given by Jesus in the New Testament. Found in John , it describes Jesus' disciples as branches of himself, who is described as the "true vine", and God the Father the "hus ...

and branches (John 15). In ''Christifideles laici'', John Paul summarized many of his still-developing ideas regarding new evangelization. The goal of the document is to indicate the role of lay participation in human society. "This Exhortation intends to stir and promote a deeper awareness among all the faithful of the gift and responsibility they share, both as a group and as individuals, in the communion and mission of the Church." ''Christifideles laici'' calls attention to the duty of lay Christians to make their daily conduct a shining and convincing testimony to the gospel (CL 34, 51).Dulles, Avery. Evangelization for the Third Millennium (Kindle Locations 756–758). Paulist Press. For coming generations, lay faithful must offer the valuable contribution of a systematic work in

catechesis Catechesis (; from Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of converts to Christianity, but as the ...

with parents being the primary catechists of their children. Service to human society finds its fulfilment through the creation and transmission of culture.CL 44

References

1988 documents 1988 in Christianity Apostolic exhortations Documents of Pope John Paul II {{RC-document-stub

See also

References