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28. The apostolate can attain its maximum effectiveness only through
a diversified and thorough formation. This is demanded not only by the
continuous spiritual and doctrinal progress of the lay person himself
but also by the accommodation of his activity to circumstances varying
according to the affairs, persons, and duties involved. This
formation for the apostolate should rest upon those bases which have
been stated and proclaimed by this most holy council in other
documents.[45] In addition to the formation which is common for all
Christians, many forms of the apostolate demand also a specific and
particular formation because of the variety of persons and
circumstances.
29. Since the laity share in their own way in the mission of the
Church, their apostolic formation is specially characterized by the
distinctively secular and particular quality of the lay state and by its
own form of the spiritual life.
The formation for the apostolate presupposes a certain human and
well-rounded formation adapted to the natural abilities and conditions
of each lay person. Well-informed about the modern world, the lay
person should be a member of his own community and adjusted to its
culture.
However, the lay person should learn especially how to perform the
mission of Christ and the Church by basing his life on belief in the
divine mystery of creation and redemption and by being sensitive to the
movement of the Holy Spirit who gives life to the people of God and
who urges all to love God the Father as well as the world and men in
Him. This formation should be deemed the basis and condition for
every successful apostolate.
In addition to spiritual formation, a solid doctrinal instruction in
theology, ethics, and philosophy adjusted to differences of age,
status, and natural talents, is required. The importance of general
culture along with practical and technical formation should also be kept
in mind.
To cultivate good human relations, truly human values must be
fostered, especially the art of living fraternally and cooperating with
others and of striking up friendly conversation with them.
Since formation for the apostolate cannot consist in merely theoretical
instruction, from the beginning of their formation the laity should
gradually and prudently learn how to view, judge and do all things in
the light of faith as well as to develop and improve themselves along
with others through doing, thereby entering into active service to the
Church.[46] This formation, always in need of improvement because
of the increasing maturity of the human person and the proliferation of
problems, requires an ever deeper knowledge and planned activity. In
the fulfillment of all the demands of formation, the unity and
integrity of the human person must be kept in mind at all times so that
his harmony and balance may be safeguarded and enhanced.
In this way the lay person engages himself wholly and actively in the
reality of the temporal order and effectively assumes his role in
conducting the affairs of this order. At the same time, as a living
member and witness of the Church, he renders the Church present and
active in the midst of temporal affairs.[47]
30. The training for the apostolate should start with the
children's earliest education. In a special way, however,
adolescents and young persons should be initiated into the apostolate
and imbued with its spirit. This formation must be perfected
throughout their whole life in keeping with the demands of new
responsibilities. It is evident, therefore, that those who have the
obligation to provide a Christian education also have the duty of
providing formation for the apostolate.
In the family parents have the task of training their children from
childhood on to recognize God's love for all men. By example
especially they should teach them little by little to be solicitous for
the material and spiritual needs of their neighbor. The whole family
in its common life, then, should be a sort of apprenticeship for the
apostolate. Children must be educated, too, in such fashion that
transcending the family circle, they may open their minds to both
ecclesiastical and temporal communities. They should be so involved in
the local community of the parish that they will acquire a consciousness
of being living and active members of the people of God. Priests
should focus their attention on the formation of the laity for the
apostolate in their catechetics, their ministry of the word, their
direction of souls, and in their other pastoral services.
Schools, colleges, and other Catholic educational institutions also
have the duty to develop a Catholic sense and apostolic activity in
young persons. If young people lack this formation either because they
do not attend these schools or because of any other reason, all the
more should parents, pastors of souls, and apostolic organizations
attend to it. Teachers and educators on the other hand, who carry on
a distinguished form of the apostolate of the laity by their vocation
and office, should be equipped with that learning and pedagogical skill
that are needed for imparting such education effectively.
Likewise, lay groups and associations dedicated to the apostolate or
other supernatural goals, should carefully and assiduously promote
formation for the apostolate in keeping with their purpose and
condition.[48] Frequently these groups are the ordinary vehicle for
harmonious formation for the apostolate inasmuch as they provide
doctrinal, spiritual, and practical formation. Their members meet in
small groups with their associates or friends, examine the methods and
results of their apostolic activity, and compare their daily way of
life with the Gospel.
Formation of this type must be so organized that it takes into account
the whole lay apostolate, which must be carried on not only among the
organized groups themselves but also in all circumstances throughout
one's whole life, especially one's professional and social life.
Indeed, everyone should diligently prepare himself for the
apostolate, this preparation being the more urgent in adulthood. For
the advance of age brings with it a more open mind, enabling each
person to detect more readily the talents with which God has enriched
his soul and to exercise more effectively those charisms which the Holy
Spirit has bestowed on him for the good of his brethren.
31. Various types of the apostolate demand also a specially suitable
formation.
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a) In regard to the apostolate for evangelizing and sanctifying men,
the laity must be specially formed to engage in conversation with
others, believers, or non-believers, in order to manifest Christ's
message to all men.[49]
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Since in our times, different forms of materialism are spread far and
wide even among Catholic, the laity should not only learn doctrine
more diligently, especially those main points which are the subjects of
controversy, but should also exhibit the witness of an evangelical life
in contrast to all forms of materialism.
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b) In regard to the Christian renewal of the temporal order, the
laity should be instructed in the true meaning and value of temporal
things, both in themselves and in relation to all the aims of the human
person. They should be trained in the right use of things and the
organization of institutions, attentive always to the common good in
line with the principles of the moral and social teaching of the
Church. Laymen should above all learn the principles and conclusions
of the social doctrine so as to become capable of working for the
development of this doctrine to the best of their ability and of rightly
applying these same principles and conclusions to individual
cases.[50]
c) Since the works of charity and mercy express the most striking
testimony of the Christian life, apostolic formation should lead also
to the performance of these works so that the faithful may learn from
childhood on to have compassion for their brethren and to be generous in
helping those in need.[51]
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32. There are many aids for lay persons devoted to the apostolate,
namely, study sessions, congresses, periods of recollection,
spiritual exercises, frequent meetings, conferences, books, and
periodicals directed toward the acquisition of a deeper knowledge of
sacred Scripture and Catholic doctrine, the nourishment.of spiritual
life, the discernment of world conditions, and the discovery and
development of suitable methods.[52]
These aids in formation take into consideration the various types of
the apostolate in the milieu where it is exercised.
For this purpose also centers or higher institutes have been erected,
and they have already proved highly successful.
The most holy council rejoices over projects of this kind which are
already flourishing in certain areas, and it desires that they may be
promoted also in other areas where they may be needed. Furthermore,
centers of documentation and study not only in theology but also in
anthropology, psychology, sociology, and methodology should be
established for all fields of the apostolate for the better development
of the natural capacities of the laity-men and women, young persons
and adults.
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