MANILA, Philippines – Echoing Pope Francis who slams “excessive clericalism,” Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas challenged his flock to tend more to the needs of the poor, not priests, as Catholics mark the Year of the Laity.

“There is a remarkable interest among our lay faithful to be ministers at the altar but there is a high degree of hesitation to speak about the Catholic faith as catechists or work among the poor members of the parish as social action ministers. There is a bit of glamour and prestige at being seen at the altar,” Villegas told his archdiocese in a letter dated January 1.

Villegas, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), however said lay people “are primarily called for social engagement outside the church building.”

“Our laity is staying too long inside the church doing work inside the church presuming that God is pleased. This must be corrected. There must be more laity working for God in society than at the altar,” Villegas said in the letter titled, “Wake Up, Catholic Laity!”

The Church, Villegas explained, needs “to bring the laity out of the situation of passivity; at the same time, it is imperative that our priests be more open and willing to share church responsibilities with the laity.”

He said his archdiocese needs “a fresh sense of co-responsibility in the Church.” The priests and the laity should also “work together with mutual respect and fraternal charity.”

“The priest serves the laity; it is not the other way around,” he added.

The Catholic Church celebrates the Year of the Laity to prepare for 2021, the 500th anniversary of Christianity’s arrival in the Philippines. Villegas, a protégé of the late Jaime Cardinal Sin, launched the yearlong event with a call to end corruption practices. (READ: New CBCP head: ‘Politics is business’)

Family is key

Villegas outlined 3 “fruits” he prays for in 2014:

• “More catechists and more social action ministers than liturgical lay ministers”

• “The rosary is prayed at home in more families with the parents and children praying together”

• “Every year, there is at least one young man who will enter the seminary and answer the call to be a priest”

Villegas stressed the family’s role in achieving these goals.

“A parish without family prayer at home is sick,” he said. “The best contribution we can make for society is indeed prayer but prayer must be brought out of church premises and brought at home, at work, in the plaza, in the streets, in the market and grocery stores; indeed everywhere.”

Villegas made this call after Francis, in his first apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), called for the formation of the laity and the “evangelization of professional and intellectual life.”

Villegas quoted the portion of the document that tackled the laity.

Francis vs ‘excessive clericalism’

In Evangelii Gaudium, Francis wrote: “Lay people are, put simply, the vast majority of the people of God. The minority – ordained ministers – are at their service.”

“We can count on many lay persons, although still not nearly enough, who have a deeply-rooted sense of community and great fidelity to the tasks of charity, catechesis, and the celebration of the faith,” he said.

Unfortunately, the Pope said, there is a lack in “clear awareness” of the laity’s responsibilities.

“In some cases, it is because lay persons have not been given the formation needed to take on important responsibilities. In others, it is because in their particular churches room has not been made for them to speak and to act, due to an excessive clericalism which keeps them away from decision-making,” Francis said.

“Even if many are now involved in the lay ministries, this involvement is not reflected in a greater penetration of Christian values in the social, political, and economic sectors. It often remains tied to tasks within the Church, without a real commitment to applying the Gospel to the transformation of society,” he added. 

Francis is tapping the laity in line with his thrust against a self-centered Catholic Church. This entails going out of the parish to preach “to the outskirts.” – Rappler.com