As the body of Christ, the church is the primary symbol of Christ s presence in the world. Christ through the Spirit calls all human beings into the kingdom of God. Consequently, the church draws people to hear the word of God, to pray for the salvation of the world, to offer praise and thanksgiving, to share in eucharistic fellowship, and to serve God in the world. To accomplish this mission, God calls all baptized persons to ministry. As persons made in the image of the Triune God, we answer the call in many and diverse ways at home and in families, at work and in the marketplace, at play and at rest, in world, nation, and local community, and in the assembly of believers.
Some ministries are formal and some informal, some official and some unofficial.
We minister as baptized persons and also, for a few, as ordained persons. Whatever we do in the name of Christ, we do as ministers of Christ and members of a royal priesthood. Some persons may wish assistance in discerning God s will. To help them determine a specific area of ministry, the church invites them to test the call in a prayerful and practical period of discernment. A person who senses a call to lay or ordained ministry, or whose community of faith senses such a call, may test the call in a period of discernment lasting at least six and no more than twelve months.