What Is the Mission of the Church?
A Guide for Catholics

Fr. Roger P. Schroeder, a member of the Society of the Divine Word, has authored a new book entitled, What Is the Mission of the Church? A Guide for Catholics.

In this compact volume, Fr. Schroeder, the Bishop Francis X. Ford, MM, Chair of Catholic Mission Studies at Catholic Theological Union, offers an overview of the history, theology and scriptural foundations of mission. Written for the everyday Catholic, the book illuminates the meaning and essence of mission in today’s world and the positive impact that Vatican II had on understanding the centrality of mission, evangelization and outreach for the practice of the Catholic faith.

Michael Montoya, executive director of the United States Catholic Mission Association, writes, “Finally, a book about mission that can be used by the people in the pews and that mission practitioners, executives and scholars alike will find valuable.”

A Divine Word Missionary since 1972, Fr. Schroeder worked in Papua New Guinea as part of his missionary education for two years, was ordained in 1979, and returned to Papua New Guinea for an additional four years. He has taught at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago since 1990, the same year he received his doctorate in missiology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

Fr. Schroeder has co-edited two books with Rev. Stephen Bevans, SVD, and together they wrote Constants in Context: A Mission Theology for Today (Orbis, 2004) which has been translated into several languages and was cited as the preeminent textbook for graduate courses in mission studies. His speaking engagements include presentations in Australia, China, the Philippines, Jamaica, Vietnam and throughout the United States.