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an ontological definition precludes the laity having any role in the internal mission of

the Church, or any share of its ‘sacra potestas’ (sacred power), and in this regard he
is critical of Vatican II for its silence on the matter (1995:10-12). Schillebeeckx

concurs maintaining that the Church continues to be experienced ‘from above to
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below’, comprehending itself principally in terms of its hierarchy (1985:205) . What is
certain however is that in Vatican II the laity become defined as the foremost agents
by which the secular order is sanctified (LG §31), and this has significant implications

for how the Church has come to understand ministry as we shall now examine.

iii) Expanding horizons within Church ministry

We have seen previously how post-modernism is marked by relativism and Osborne

suggests that this cultural philosophy has had a ‘subtle but strong influence’ on the
way ministry is understood. He argues that ‘ministry in all its forms is historical and
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temporal’ and is therefore ‘intrinsically changeable’ (2003:198-199) . Certainly
ministry has changed since Vatican II and in the light of the current ‘vocations crisis’ it
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is easy connect the rise in lay ministry with the shortage of priests . O’Meara argues
however that this is a false correlation as ministry can be seen to be both expanding
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and contracting within the Church today . Rather than perceiving lay ministry as
arising only from a point of ecclesial crisis, it should be understood more positively

as a Vatican II initiative that is sustained by ongoing biblical and theological reflection
(1999:12-19). This distinction is important in order to prevent the laity and the clergy

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becoming dichotomised , or the laity being perceived negatively for being too clerical
(CL §1,23). The expansion of lay ministry since the Council should not therefore be

comprehended as a power struggle between lay and clerical orders, but rather as a
fuller expression of a common ecclesial spirituality in which all ministry is rooted in

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Schillebeeckx goes further claiming within the post-conciliar Church there is an inherent “sickness in the
system”, and that the existing Church order has lost credibility as community (lay) concerns struggle to gain
priority over the concerns of ministry (clergy) (1985:257-258).
34 Osborne also suggests that multi-cultural Catholic perspectives will further challenge western theological
frameworks and conceptions of ministry (2003:201).
35
Schillebeeckx suggests that in the view of the ancient Church a shortage of priests is an ecclesiastical
impossibility. Conditions for entry to ministry have been made a priori to the need of the community and “there
remain more than enough men and women who in ecclesiological and ministerial terms possess the charisma” to
be ministers (1984:227).
36
O’Meara suggests that the fundamental dynamic for ministry is not decline but expansion (1999:259).
37 Zeni Fox makes this point citing the work of Congar: “There is too much emphasis on church ministry; the laity
are being clericalized” (2003:142).