Vatican City, Feb 14, 2020 / 09:47 am
Laypeople have a mandate to spread the Gospel in their concrete circumstances through the witness of their lives, Pope Francis said in a message sent Friday to Catholics attending a congress on laity in Spain.
"The living Word of God needs to be preached with passion and joy through Christian witness, to be able to tear down even the highest walls that isolate and exclude," the pope wrote in the message, delivered Feb. 14.
"It is time for you, men and women engaged in the world of culture, politics, industry... that with their way of life are able to bring the novelty and joy of the Gospel wherever they are."
Francis encouraged lay people to live their vocation "immersed in the world" and "with God and with the Church" to listen to the people around them.