2017 USCCB Convocation Participants Guidebook and Journal | Page 17

Who’s Who
Leadership in the Church can take various forms and can serve
a variety of ministries. It can be formally recognized or can be
more “emerging.” As a response to the Lord’s call, it can come
through many avenues, for example, by an ordination, by an
appointment or authorization (as in the case for many lay eccle-
sial ministers), or by awareness of a gift or charism received. At its
most fundamental level, leadership in the Church is service, and
it is meant to advance her mission of evangelization and to serve
the vocation and mission of the laity, who are particularly respon-
s ible for transforming the world by bearing witness to the Gospel
of Jesus Christ in it.
The Convocation is a time for participants to reflect on the
context in which the Catholic Church in the United States finds
herself today and how we might meet today’s challenges as a
diverse community of missionary disciples. Most leaders—lay,
consecrated, and ordained—will come to the Convocation with
other members of their local community. There will be opportu-
nities for groups to gather for reflection and discussion. Leaders
will be expected to grow in relationship with their own team and
to develop relationships with the rich diversity of leaders from
other parts of the country.
The Convocation is also an opportunity for leaders to encoun-
ter ministries and apostolates they may be unfamiliar with. The
Church is involved in a wide variety of work: education, healthcare,
spirituality, refugee resettlement, sheltering the homeless, pastoral
ministry, ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, advocacy for the
unborn, the immigrant, and the poor, and much more. It is easy for
us to become so focused on our own area of expertise or ministry
that we have little time to meet or collaborate with those involved
in other areas. The Convocation can be that time.
The Convocation will bring together only some of the many
Catholic leaders across the country. Others will engage the
Convocation through social media or television. However, all
participants will have the responsibility to bring back and share
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