I recently learned of Dr. Maureen O'Brien's timely and important research project, and have her permission to put a call for interested persons here on the America magazine blog. Dr. O'Brien (Duquesne) is in the process of gathering together a group of Catholic lay ecclesial ministers for theological reflection and writing about their experience, and is currently inviting interested LEMs to contact her. She writes that "the goal is a published collection of essays that will allow LEMs to raise their theological voices regarding their own living realities, issues, and contributions" to Catholicism in the United States. If you are interested in this project, please contact Dr. O'Brien at the following email address: obrien@duq.edu

Furthering a theology of lay ecclesial ministry from the vantage of those who actually do the work sounds quite promising, and I hope many of the lay ministers who read this blog will consider contacting Dr. O'Brien to find out more about what is involved.

Tom Beaudoin

Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, United States