Proclamation
“The baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are consecrated as a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, that through all their Christian activities they may offer spiritual sacrifices and proclaim the wonderful deeds of him who has called them out of darkness into his marvelous light” (see 1 Pet. 2.4-10).
Our goal: To discern, develop, and disseminate the Council’s teaching in such a way that the People of God may realize more and more fully their universal vocation: a prophetic vocation to proclaim the mighty deeds of God in Jesus Christ, and a priestly and royal vocation to the holiness of life and service to the poor that are essential to credible proclamation.
“The bishops, inasmuch as they are the successors of the apostles, receive from the Lord the mission of teaching all peoples and of preaching the Gospel to every creature” (LG 24)… “So too the laity become powerful heralds of the faith in things hoped for (see Heb. 11.1) if they unhesitatingly join the profession of faith to the life of faith…the proclamation of Christ by word and the witness of their lives” (LG 35).
Our mode: To foster proclamation of the Gospel under the authoritative teaching of the bishops, the pastors of the Church, supported by and supporting the co-responsible initiatives of the laity, as envisioned by the Council.
“The Church has been sent to all ages and nations and, therefore, is not tied exclusively and indissolubly to any race or nation, to any one particular way of life, or to any set of customs, ancient or modern. The Church is faithful to her traditions and is at the same time conscious of her universal mission. She can, then, enter into communion with different forms of culture, thereby enriching both herself and the cultures themselves. The Good News of Christ continually renews the culture of fallen humanity” (GS 58).
A dominant theme: Inculturation.We emphasize the dialectic between “the earthly and the heavenly city” (GS 40) such that the proclamation of the Gospel is appropriately adapted to and expressed in the forms and languages of the various cultures in which it is welcomed, even as these cultures – all cultures — are at the same time purified and transformed.