An apostolate is a Christian organization "directed to serving and evangelizing the world", most often associated with the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

or the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. In more general usage, an apostolate is an association of persons dedicated to the propagation of a religion or a doctrine. The word apostolate comes from the Greek word ''apostello'', which means to "send forth" or "to dispatch". The Christian origin of the word comes from the twelve ''apostles'' who were selected by Christ; they had a "special vocation, a formal appointment of the Lord to a determined office, with connected authority and duties". An apostolate can be a Christian organization made up of the laity or of a specific Christian religious order.

Apostolate as ministry

Within

Anglican theology Anglican doctrine (also called Episcopal doctrine in some countries) is the body of Christian teachings used to guide the religious and moral practices of Anglicans. Approach to doctrine Anglicanism does not possess an agreed-upon confessi ...

and Catholic theology, "ministry" pertains to the administration of a sacrament; or the celebration of liturgy and all that pertains to the liturgical functioning of the Church; as such it is specific to those with Holy Orders. Laity have a different role, namely, to spread the truth of Christianity in the world through whatever means they can — this is properly called an apostolate. An example of a Catholic apostolate is

Catholic Answers Catholic Answers is a Catholic advocacy group based in El Cajon, California. It describes itself as the largest lay-run apostolate of Catholic apologetics and evangelization in the United States. It publishes ''Catholic Answers Magazine'', a b ...

, run by laity whose mission is to spread the Gospel of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

and Catholicism in the world. Similarly, an example of an Anglican apostolate is The Saint Martin Apostolate of Prayer, whose aim is the "sanctification of all priests through the continual offering of prayers on their behalf by the faithful."

References

Catholic theology and doctrine

Apostolate as ministry

See also

Further reading

References