Kate Soucheray, a columnist for The Catholic Spirit, first read about something known as the lay apostolate in her 27-year-old Vatican II document, held together by rubber bands.
Soucheray read the definition of “lay apostolate” to Rachael McCallum, producer of the “Practicing Catholic” show, for an episode set to air at 9 p.m. May 23 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM, saying, “’All activity of the mystical body of Christ is directed to the attainment of this goal, and the goal is spreading the Kingdom of Christ throughout the Earth.’”
Apostle in Greek, Soucheray said, means “One who is sent forth.” She explained that apostles are people who take what they’ve learned and go forth. The apostolate is the collective of all baptized Catholics. The Vatican-II definition of apostolate also states that the Christian vocation, by its nature, is a vocation to the apostolate.
“It’s all of us,” Soucheray said. “If you’re baptized as a Catholic, you gotta go. We have marching orders. I just looked up Pope Leo XIV. Is he asking us to be part of the lay apostolate? … Absolutely he is. He’s calling all of us because he’s calling for unity, unity in the world. He’s calling for peace, he’s calling for justice, which is righteousness.”
Once while working as a substitute teacher in a public school, Soucheray said, she left her crucifix necklace at home, not knowing the protocol at the school. When she saw an administrator wearing a cross, she asked if teachers were allowed to wear them. The administrator told Soucheray that they were allowed to wear them, but they couldn’t talk about it.
“I’m not going to need to talk about it,” Soucheray said. “The cross will do all the talking for me. … I notice everyone looks at it, everybody notices it. I don’t have to say a word. That’s a simple way to evangelize. And then we act the part of a Christian. We be a Christian in the world. Be kind. Notice when someone needs something and we step out of ourselves. Be virtuous, be prudent, have patience with people. Take that courageous step.”
To hear more from Soucheray about the lay apostolate, tune into “Practicing Catholic,” which repeats at 1 p.m. May 24 and 2 p.m. May 25.
Also on the program, Bishop Kevin Kenney discusses the unique role of Mary in our spiritual journey, and Rachel Hastreiter, a graduate of Trinity High School in Eagan, talks about the importance of transitions.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, “Practicing Catholic” can be heard after it has aired at archspm.org/faith-and-discipleship/practicing-catholic or choose a streaming platform at Spotify for Podcasters.
