Lay Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Catholic Church

Explore the theological case for qualified laity to preach the Word of God at the Eucharist.   Twenty-seven preachers and theologians from around the world met in St. Louis in March 2024 to ask if a synodal church in mission could make a theological case to commission a more extensive and diverse pool of qualified lay preachers and evangelists to preach the Word of God at the Eucharist. Lay Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Catholic Church exemplifies the recommendations proposed at the gathering to lend support and breathe life into the assembly’s experience of the homily at Mass.     In this collection, theologians and practitioners provide a synodal roadmap for eucharistic preaching that responds to the signs of the times. This symposium’s papers and conversations include the theological and ministerial possibilities for lay eucharistic preaching by amending canon 767 and extending installed ministries, such as lector, catechist, or a newly instituted ministry of lay preacher. Lay Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Catholic Church presents the St. Louis symposium’s talks and responses and includes papers by several participants to set the question in context. Contributors include:   Maxime Allard Kerstin-Marie Berretz Mary Erika N. Bolaños Wayne Cavalier Nathan P. Chase Elizabeth Anne Donnelly Sara Fairbanks Ann Garrido Edward P. Hahnenberg Gregory Heille Ruth Anne Henderson Layla A. Karst Martin Madar Maurice J. Nutt Barbara E. Reid Theresa Rickard Elissa Rinere Carolyn A. Wright Deborah Wilhelm

Table of Contents:
Contents Won’t You Be My Neighbor?   1      Sara Fairbanks A Synodal Path Forward   5      Gregory Heille Toward a Common Statement on Lay Preaching in the Eucharist   15      Ann Garrido Statement to the Synod on Synodality A Proposal for Lay Eucharistic Preaching to Further a Synodal Church in Mission   25 Theology of Ministry A Theology of Ministry for Lay Eucharistic Preaching   35      Edward P. Hahnenberg Lay Preaching as an Authentic Multiplication of Ministries   59      Nathan P. Chase Toward an Inclusive Model of Eucharistic Preaching in the Catholic Church   75      Mary Erika N. Bolaños  Synodal Church Eucharistic Preaching in a Synodal Church   85      Layla A. Karst A Word Emerging from the Whole Body of the Faithful   113      Martin Madar Lay Preaching in a Time of Liminality   119      Maurice J. Nutt Participant Essays New Testament Basis for Preaching   129      Barbara E. Reid God Save the People, for Thine They Are   137      Elissa Rinere It Is Happening Already: A Socio-Ecclesiological Approach to Lay Eucharistic Preaching   143      Maxime Allard Something Must Be Ventured 159      Ruth Anne Henderson Live and Proclaim the Word of God: Experiences in Lay Eucharistic Preaching from Germany   167      Kerstin-Marie Berretz Preacher as Midwife   173      Theresa Rickard Eucharistic Preachers Modeling a Generous God   179      Deborah Wilhelm Prophetic Protagonists Anointed by the Spirit   189      Wayne Cavalier  Setting the Question in a Dominican Context   197      Gregory Heille Catholic Women Preach: Raising Voices, Renewing the Church   205      Elizabeth A. Donnelly An Experience of Church   209      Carolyn A. Wright Appendix 1: The Code of Canon Law and Preaching   217 Appendix 2: Essays from Preaching and the Non-Ordained   221 Bibliography on Lay Preaching   227 Symposium Participants   239

About the Author :
Gregory Heille, OP, the convener of the lay eucharistic preaching symposium, directs the Doctor of Ministry in Preaching at Aquinas Institute of Theology, where he serves as professor of preaching and evangelization. Other books include The Preaching of Pope Francis: Missionary Discipleship and the Ministry of the Word (Liturgical Press) and Preaching Racial Justice (Orbis Books).

Review :
"While qualified lay people can currently preach in the Church, they are prohibited from offering the homily at Mass. Heille and his colleagues, in the spirit of the Synod on Synodality, authored this proposal on lay Eucharistic preaching. Informative and grounded in Church teaching, this treatise is an indispensable resource to those committed to understanding the canonical, theological, and pastoral considerations. In response to this proposal, the Vatican has acknowledged the issue and the need for deliberations. As the authors urge, the current gap should not be pitched as competition between laity and clergy. The treatises invite us, more importantly, to reflect on who we are as Church, how our baptism imparts responsibilities and charisms to all the faithful to proclaim the kingdom of God, and how we serve and help each other on this journey. Such reflections foster our imagination of the synodal Eucharistic pulpit as a community in a context of adaptation of the liturgy over time." Carolyn Woo, former president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services "Guided by Pope Francis’s vision of the future synodal Church, Dominican Gregory Heille has gathered a veritable symphony of expert voices on lay preaching. In this important and timely topic, these preachers and teachers leave no stone unturned for an interrogation of the present state of Christian proclamation, while constructing an artful path forward: from a theology of ministry for lay Eucharistic preaching, to a New Testament basis for such homiletics, towards an exploration of genuine, charismatic witness of the prophetic for the twenty-first century. Be ready to take a long awaited, deep breath into the labor of the Spirit! This text will set the gold standard on a long-awaited exploration of lay preaching for years to come." Guerric DeBona, OSB, Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology