Forest of Peace

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Catholic Bishop Says “Amen” to Lay Ecclesial Ministry

Notre Dame, IN—Currently in the U.S., there are over 30,000 lay ecclesial ministers serv-
ing the Catholic Church, and another 16,000 studying in ministry formation programs –
nearly five times the number of men preparing for ordination to the priesthood.

A long-time advocate of and leading voice in lay ecclesial ministry, Bishop Matthew Clark
(Diocese of Rochester) will release Forward in Hope: Saying Amen to Lay Ecclesial Ministry on
November 22, 2009. Clark writes, “I offer in this book my personal thoughts on lay ecclesial
ministry and stories from my thirty years experience as bishop, forty-seven as a priest, and a
lifetime of being a Catholic because I believe we can build a better understanding and wise
embrace of lay ecclesial ministry.”

Forward in Hope
Saying Amen to Lay Ecclesial Ministry
By Bishop Matthew Clark
ISBN: 9781594711916 • 128 pages • $11.95
Available online at www.avemariapress.com,
www.amazon.com, or at your local bookstore
What do lay ministers actually do? According to the 2005 document from the U.S. Bishops
titled Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord: A Resource for Guiding the Development of Lay
Ecclesial Ministry, more than 40 percent are directors of religious education, one-fourth are
general pastoral associates, and others are youth ministers, music ministers, or are involved
in liturgical planning. The same document notes that two out of three U.S. parishes now
have paid lay ministers on staff.
Clark knows that the function and role of lay ecclesial ministers is still evolving, and is part
of an ongoing dialogue within the Church. In the introduction to Forward in Hope, Clark
writes, “The meaning, contexts, and distinctions of baptismal and ordained ministries, re-
quirements for formation and accountability, the acceptance of lay ecclesial ministers in the
life and mission of the Church, fair employment practices, just compensation, and matters
related to due process are but a few of the issues with which we Catholics now must grapple
as we seek to incorporate lay people working in professional Church ministries.”

Forward in Hope speaks to these issues, and many more, with the help of several other sea-
soned ministers including Patrick Fox, Charlotte Bruney, and Anne-Marie Brogan.

Matthew Clark is the bishop of Rochester, New York. He was born and raised in Waterford, New
York, entered seminary in Albany and was ordained to the priesthood in 1962. Following ordination
Clark served as a parish priest and then as Vice-chancellor in the Diocese of Albany. He studied at the
North American College in Rome, where he also served as spiritual director, and at Gregorian Univer-
sity, earning advanced degrees in theology and canon law. Ordained a bishop in May of 1979 by Pope
John Paul II, Matthew Clark was installed as eighth Bishop of Rochester in June of that year.