Wiara człowieka świeckiego wcielona w rzeczywistość doczesną

Abstract

This paper deals with the issue of the faith of the lay, which finds it realization in daily reality and leads to the evangelical change of the world. The paper starts with the reference to the Church doctrine of the lay faithful, based on selected document of Vaticanum II and the teaching of the Blessed John Paul II. The paper also presents a wider cultural and spiritual background of contemporary reality of the life of the lay faithful. In the first section of the paper, the author defines precisely the Christian understanding of the lay faithful, pointing out that the lay Christian vocation is realized in the broadly understood world. The lay vocation is an autonomous Christian path, still being a sphere of God’s action and influence. The author proceeds to discuss the roots of lay spirituality and of the areas of the lay extensive evangelical engagement: family life, political involvement, socio-economic activities, research or charity. Next, the author presents how a lay person can lead his/her life in accord with the evangelical counsels, which help introduce harmony between the secular world and the radical Gospel. The relationship between the evangelical counsels and the commandments is also discussed. The last section of the paper is devoted to the unfavourable changes in contemporary postmodern culture, which have a negative impact on the spiritual life of the faithful.