To Be Redemptorist: The Emerging Vocation of the Lay Missionary of the Most Holy Redeemer Within the Redemptorist Family

Abstract

“Lay Missionaries of the Most Holy Redeemer (LMMHR) are those lay people engaged in the closest form of partnership in mission with Redemptorists. The category of LMMHR was created by the 1991 General Chapter of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. My dissertation addresses the question, ‘What is the vocation of the Lay Missionary of the Most Holy Redeemer within the Redemptorist family?’ I enter into exploration of this question first through a review of documents of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer and the Roman Catholic Church. Next, I propose a theology of partnership in mission rooted in Scripture and Redemptorist history. The project portion of this work takes the form of a series of ethnographic interviews with LMMHRs. This is followed by the presentation and analysis of the results. One outcome is that unclear expectations of LMMHR and Redemptorist members resulted in a number of problems and difficulties in shared life and mission. More significantly, emerging from the analysis is a clear need for effective formation in and for partnership. Therefore, in the final chapter, I develop a model for a formation process for Lay Missionaries of the Most Holy Redeemer, and also for professed Redemptorists. This model is based on the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, adapting the catechumenal model for formation in this specific context.