Lay Missionary Profile: Carol Lynn Restaine

Carol with young women of the youth group.

Carol Restaine is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania but has resided as a full-time missionary with the Missioners of Christ in Comayagua, Honduras for the past 9 years. She comes from a Catholic family of 5 children where she had the chance in her childhood to be exposed to the life and ministry of Mother Teresa. She made a promise to God that if it was His will, she would give the rest of her life to loving and serving Him in the “distressing disguise” of the poor and in the nations.

Directly following the death of her mother and father as a young woman, Carol left the Catholic Church and spent 10 years in evangelical churches. During this time, her heart to make a difference for those who were hurting grew. She began to take short-term mission trips to other countries in Africa and Central and South America. Her heart for the nations increased as did her desire to be a part of the healing and formation of a new generation of leaders who were radically committed to sharing the gospel. She studied social work and then began a master’s program in missiology/theology at Regent University in Virginia Beach.

During her time there, she knew that she was strongly being called back to the Catholic Church and was reconciled to the faith of her roots. She came home. This is also where she met the circle of young adult Catholics who alongside her formed the Missioners of Christ. The Missioners of Christ are a lay Association of the Christian Faithful committed to living in community, calling each other to live their Catholic faith radically and to grow in holiness through loving Jesus with that they are. Their primary apostolate is to prepare young and send young people to the mission field both short and long term. Carol was their first long-term international missionary and many others from the US, Europe, Honduras and other parts of Central and South America have joined her from 6 months to 6 years plus.

In the first several weeks of Carol’s service in Honduras she met Fr. Herald. They discovered that they had a similar desire to see young people come to saving knowledge of Christ and the riches found in His Church and began to work together on some common projects that eventually led to Fr. Herald inviting Carol and the Missioners to work alongside the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal in a very marginalized barrio in Comayagua. They have continued to serve together and ask God what He wills for their two communities in common as part of the Church’s missionary vocation.

The Missioners hope is to open houses such as the house they have established in Comayagua in other parts of the world wherever God may call and open the doors. They also want to be a part of mentoring and discipling potential missionaries who will staff these houses and train indigenous leaders in each place to establish permanent outreaches and programs of evangelization and discipleship.

Carol speaking at a public evangelization event.

Several Missioners have served on the short-term mission teams to the Sudan and currently Carol is serving for the third time here, this time for months. She will be working with the women, teenage girls, and children. Part of this trip for her is to begin to formally discern whether or not God may be asking her community to open a house of formation in Africa. She is grateful for the opportunity to grow alongside the Sudanese and offer to them a clear confirmation of the extraordinary call that He has for them emerging from their suffering and struggle. Carol is living in His will in her call to a consecrated missionary vocation and hopes to continue to multiply His message of love and salvation to others wherever He may send her and her community.

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