Laity Quotes

“[Martin] Luther, we grant, overcame bondage out of devotion by replacing it by bondage out of conviction. He shattered faith in authority because he restored the authority of faith. He turned priests into laymen because he turned laymen into priests. He freed man from outer religiosity because he made religiosity the inner man. He freed the body from chains because he enchained the heart.”
― Karl Marx, Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right

“A missionary church cannot rely on the professional ministry for the primary work of mission. The role of the laity is critical because it is the lay members of the church who have the greatest contact with those who are outside of the normal structures of church life. In such a situation the task of clergy is not so much to engage in mission themselves, as to support the laity in their mission.”
― Martin Robinson, The Faith of the Unbeliever

“One major teaching of the Protestants that we the Protestants of today must go back to is the fact that the European Protestants did not emphasize five fold ministry the way we do today. Today our teaching on the five fold ministry only tends to view only those called to the five fold ministry as those called to be ministers, while the rest of the congregation is just viewed as laity who just go to secular jobs.”
― Sunday Adelaja

“The typical clergy/laity system practiced among most churches is detrimental to believers. In this system only a professional class of people teaches and preaches, while the majority of the believers listen.”
― Henry Hon, ONE: Unfolding God's Eternal Purpose from House to House

“Most believers learn passively from clergy. However, no matter how good and uplifting this person's teaching, as long as the members are not actively ministering and speaking Christ themselves, growth lacks.”
― Henry Hon, ONE: Unfolding God's Eternal Purpose from House to House

“Those members who are more gifted have a job: to equip and encourage the less gifted believers to do the work of building up. Today's system of clergy and laity, where a few believers do all the teaching and preaching but the majority stay passive year after years has not (and does not) equip believers to do what the clergies are doing; therefore they cannot build up the body of Christ. What should happen is that after receiving the equipping from the more gifted ministers, all of those saints would go and preach the gospel, teach the truth, and meet in fellowship with all other believers themselves. This would directly build up the body of Christ.”
― Henry Hon, ONE: Unfolding God's Eternal Purpose from House to House

“Pope Paul VI, addressing the members of the Congress on the Apostolate of the Laity on October 15, 1967, wishing to summarize what lay spirituality must be, stated: 'It will suffice to tell you in a word: only your personal and profound union with Christ will assure the fruitfulness of your apostolate, whatever it might be.”
― Father Jean C. J. D'Elbée

“It is through the close interaction of the laity and the monks that the essence of Zen penetrates social life.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Keys: A Guide to Zen Practice