Catholic laity are the ordinary members of the Catholic Church who are neither clergy nor recipients of Holy Orders or vowed to life in a religious order or congregation. Their mission, according to the Second Vatican Council, is to "sanctify the world".
The laity (individual laymen and women) form the vast majority of the estimated over one billion Catholics in the world.
The Catholic Church is served by the universal jurisdiction of the Holy See, headed by the Pope, and administered by the Roman Curia, while locally served by diocesan bishops. The Pope and the bishops in full communion with him are known collectively as the Catholic hierarchy, and are responsible for the supervision, management, and pastoral care of all members the Catholic Church, including clergy, religious, and laity."The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church", catholic-hierarchy.org, June 2012. But since the Second Vatican Council of Bishops (1962–1965) the laity have emerged as a greater source of leadership in various aspects of the church's life; and its teaching on their equal call to holiness has led to greater recognition of their role in the church.
The Roman Curia and the laity
The responsibilities of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, a dicastery of the Roman Curia based in Vatican City, were transferred to the newly established Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life as of 1 September 2016.
The council "...assists the Pope in all matters concerning the contribution the lay faithful make to the life and mission of the Church, whether as individuals or through the various forms of association that have arisen and constantly arise within the Church"."The Pontifical Council for the Laity" , Vatican.va, June 2012.
This dicastery emerged from the Decree on the Lay Apostolate of the Second Vatican Council, Apostolicam Actuositatem.Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity (Apostolicam Actuositatem), published on 18 November 1965, accessed on 6 May 2026 It was officially created by Pope Paul VI on 6 January 1967, with the motu proprio Catholicam Christi Ecclesiam."Catholicam Christi Ecclesiam", Vatican.va, June 2012.
Canonical rights of the laity
Within the Catholic Church, the rights of the Catholic laity in regards to the Church are found in the Code of Canon Law. A new Code of Canon Law was promulgated in 1983, to incorporate teachings from the Second Vatican Council. In particular, Canons 224-231 of the 1983 Code outline the general and specific canonical rights of lay persons in the Catholic Church."The Code of Canon Law" , Vatican.va, June 2012.
Lay ministries
Prior to 1972, no lay liturgical ministries existed, only the minor orders and major orders. The minor orders were, in effect, the lower orders of the clerical state and were reserved for those preparing for the priesthood: Acolyte, Exorcist, Lector or reader, and Ostiarius or porter.
As a result of the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, on 15 August 1972 Pope Paul VI issued the motu proprio Ministeria quaedam which suppressed the minor orders and replaced them with two ministries, those of lector and acolyte. A major difference was: "Ministries may be assigned to lay Christians; hence they are no longer to be considered as reserved to candidates for the sacrament of orders."
The following are requirements for admission to the ministries: the presentation of a petition that has been freely made out and signed by the aspirant to the Ordinary (the bishop and, in clerical institutes, the major superior) who has the right to accept the petition; a suitable age and special qualities to be determined by the conference of bishops; a firm will to give faithful service to God and to the Christian people. The ministries are conferred by the Ordinary through the liturgical rites De institutione lectoris and De institutione acolythi as revised by the Apostolic See.
An interval, determined by the Holy See or the conferences of bishops, shall be observed between the conferring of the ministries of reader and acolyte whenever more than one ministry is conferred on the same person."
It was originally the case that the instituted ministries of lector and acolyte were reserved to men. In 2021 Pope Francis issued the motu proprio “Spiritus Domini”, which changed canon 230 § 1 of the Code of Canon Law to allow both men and women to be instituted in these ministries.
In place of instituted ministries, there is widespread use of commissioned or temporarily designated readers, altar servers and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, which can be undertaken by both men and women.
Conditions for the extension of these roles can be found in The General Instruction of the Roman Missal. In relation to readers, Instruction #101 says: "In the absence of an instituted lector, other laypersons may be commissioned to proclaim the readings from Sacred Scripture. They should be truly suited to perform this function and should receive careful preparation, so that the faithful by listening to the readings from the sacred texts may develop in their hearts a warm and living love for Sacred Scripture." As regards altar servers and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, Instruction #100 says: "In the absence of an instituted acolyte, lay ministers may be deputed to serve at the altar and assist the priest and the deacon; they may carry the cross, the candles, the thurible, the bread, the wine, and the water, and they may also be deputed to distribute Holy Communion as extraordinary ministers."
An option to institute the other minor orders was retained in this document, in that a Bishops Conference may request permission from the Apostolic See "if they judge the establishment of such offices in their region to be necessary or very useful because of special reasons. To these belong, for example, the ministries of porter, exorcist, catechist, as well as others to be conferred on those who are dedicated to works of charity, where this ministry had not been assigned to deacons."
Lay councils
Powers and influence of the laity
The 1983 Code of Canon Law does not permit the laity to have any kind of executive or juridical powers in Ecclesiastical affairs. This curtails the extent of influence the laity has over how the Church is governed on a day-to-day basis. However, lay experts and advisors were appointed to participate during the deliberations of the Second Vatican Council. After the Council members of the Laity were routinely appointed to sit on Commissions & Committees established at every level – Curial, Bishops Conference, Diocesan, Deanery, and Parish. Each parish is advised to have a parish council and a finance council of laypersons which are advisory to the pastor.
National Council for Lay Associations (England and Wales)
The National Council for Lay Associations (NCLA) was the idea of the late Monsignor Derek Worlock, who later became Archbishop of Liverpool, England. It became one of the Consultative Bodies of the Bishops' Conference in England and Wales and was formed from all the large Catholic lay organizations. The NCLA was initially called the National Lay Apostolic Group and was formed after the first World Congress for the Apostolate of the Laity held in Rome in October 1951. In 2003 the NCLA celebrated its 50th birthday with a Golden Jubilee Mass in Salford Cathedral. The NCLA today is a consultative body to the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales.
The following members form the association: Catholic Men's Society (CMS), Catholic Association Teachers, Schools and Colleges St Vincent de Paul (SVP) Union of Catholic Mothers (UCM) Catholic Women's League (CWC) Knights of St Columba (KSC) National Board of Catholic Women (NBCW) Ascent Movement National Justice and Peace Newman Association CAFOD Legion of Mary Catholic People's Weeks Catholic Medical Association Secular Franciscans. The NCLA is an active member of ELF (European Lay Forum).
The National Council of the Laity (Venezuela) The National Council of the Laity (Consejo Nacional de Laicos) in Venezuela routinely issued statements and press releases often criticising the policies of former President Hugo Chávez.
Uganda National Catholic Council of Lay Apostolate (UNCCLA) This is a body that brings together the Laity in the Catholic Church in Uganda who are estimated at 34.1 million in the country making it around 39.3% of the total population in 2014.
Under patronage of St. Charles Lwanga, Uganda National Catholic Council of Lay Apostolate (UNCCLA) is a body that brings together in a representative manner Lay Apostolate Associations and Movements, and Councils to foster a better organised and dynamic apostolate in Uganda while serving as a link, avenue and channel for information and communication between Lay Apostolate Associations and Movements, and Councils and between these and other official organs within the Church in Uganda and the Universal Church.
The Council of the Catholic Lay Apostolate Organizations of Korea The Council of the Catholic Lay Apostolate Organizations of Korea, formerly The Catholic Lay Apostolate Council of Korea, was renamed during the 2010 Autumn General Assembly of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea. This was ratified at the 44th Ordinary General Meeting of the Council which was held at the Catholic Center in Myeongdong, Seoul, on 19 February 2011.
Lay Congresses 1950s Pope Pius XII addressed an initial "convention of laymen representing all nations on the promotion of the apostolate" in October 1951, and a second, similar, convention was held in October 1957.
The National Pastoral Congress (England and Wales) Archbishop Derek Worlock, supported by the late Archbishop of Westminster Cardinal Basil Hume, convened the National Pastoral Congress in Liverpool, England, in 1980. The Congress consisted of some two thousand lay people. The Congress deliberated on issues that the gathering agreed were of particular concern to lay Catholics in England and Wales at that time. The results of these deliberations were drawn together in a document entitled "The Easter People". This document was very publicly rejected by Pope John Paul II when it was presented to him by Cardinal Hume and Archbishop Worlock in Rome, Italy, in 1980.Longley, C., Hume's mission impossible, The Tablet, published on 20 November 1999, archived on 13 October 2009, accessed on 13 May 2026 There has not been another National Pastoral Congress since this time in England and Wales.
Lay organizations
There are many thousands of Catholic lay organisations existing at a local, diocesan, national / bishops conference or international level. They cover the whole spectrum of Catholic lay life, from their faith and social action to the professions in which they work.
The majority have sought and been given backing by the appropriate ecclesiastical authority. However, others have invoked the right contained in Canon 215 to form a Catholic Association without ecclesiastical approval. In these circumstances the only prescription on them is that they cannot use the term "Catholic" in their name (Can. 216).
The Pontifical Council for the Laity is the body responsible for approving those Catholic Associations that exist at an international level..International Lay Associations
The structure of some Religious Orders allows for lay branches to be associated with them. These are sometimes referred to as Third Orders.
Some of the best known Catholic lay organizations are Knights of Columbus, Knights of Columba, Catenians, and Knights of Malta. There are also many lay Catholic guilds and associations representing a whole range of professions. These include the Catholic Police Guild, Holy Name Society (NYPD), the Association of Catholic Nurses, the Guild of Catholic Doctors, the Catholic Physicians Guild, the Catholic Association of Performing Arts (UK), and the Catholic Actors Guild of America.