Help Priests be Priests

Praised be Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!

It was a busy day for the Lord and his apostles: “People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat.” Even when they went off in a boat by themselves to a deserted place, people hastened on foot to that place. The sight of the vast crowd waiting for them on the shore must have exasperated the apostles, but it moved the Lord’s heart to pity “for they were like sheep without a shepherd.” What should have been taken as an opportunity for rest was spent by our Lord ministering to people: “he began to teach them many things.”

That pity which moved the heart of our Lord is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Jeremiah in the first reading: “You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared for them…I myself will gather the remnant of my flock from all the lands to which I have driven them and bring them back to their meadows; there they will increase and multiply.”

The Lord associates men to this task of ministering to his flock: “I will appoint shepherds for them who will shepherd them so that they need no longer fear and tremble; and none shall be missing.” The task of caring for the Lord’s flock is truly a huge task which demands immense personal sacrifices. In speaking to priests, the Holy Father said: “You must think above all, not so much of your own personal good, but of the service to the holy people of God, who need pastors who dedicate themselves to the beautiful service of the sanctification of the faithful…” (Benedict XVI to the Pontifical Spanish College of St. Joseph, May 10, 2012.)    

Knowing the human limitation of those whom he appointed as shepherds of his flock, the Lord tells his apostles: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” The rest which the Lord offers his disciples is none other than prayer which should be part of a priest’s daily schedule. “Remember that the priest renews his life and draws strength for his ministry from contemplation of the Divine Word and intense dialogue with the Lord. He is aware that he will be unable to take Christ to his brethren or to meet him in the poor and the sick, if he does not first discover him in fervent and constant prayer. It is necessary to nourish a personal relationship with the One whom he then proclaims, celebrates, and communicates. Herein lies the foundation of priestly spirituality, until one becomes a transparent sign and living witness of the Good Shepherd.”

If we want our priests to minister to us in the manner desired by our Lord, we must help them maintain the high standard of priestly spirituality. This we do providing them ample time to pray. The demands of pastoral life are already immense. The least we can do is not to tempt priests to spend the little time of their rest for “unpriestly” things. The little times of rest for a priest should be spent in prayer and study. It is not right to require of priests to live a secular lifestyle so that they can be like the rest of us. If we expect them to teach us well, give them time to study. If we expect them help us along the way of holiness, give them time to pray. In other words, help priests be priests. Help priests serve you well.

Jesus, I trust in you. O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

Pastoral Lessons from St. John Vianney

During the Year for Priests, the Church honored St. John Mary Vianney on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of his entrance to heaven. Having meditated on his life, I learned important lessons from him which, to my opinion, should once again be considered in present pastoral practice.

1. St. John Vianney's pastoral program consisted in: offering the Mass, hearing confessions, and teaching catechism. In our times when complicated pastoral programs seem to be fashionable - with the elaborate processes of planning and evaluations, the simplicity of St. John's pastoral program brings us to the essentials of pastoral ministry. In pastoral visits, the bishop is bound to be impressed with so many programs that would prove the pastoral capability of the parish priest. However, seldom does the bishop ask about how the parish priest offers the Mass, or how often does he hear confessions in a week, or if he himself teaches catechism. Blessed John Paul II wrote in Nove Millenio Ineunte: "all pastoral initiatives must be set in relation to holiness." (NMI, 30.)The primary objective of the curate is the care of souls. The objective of all pastoral programs is the holiness of the flock.

2. St. John Vianney's ministry in Ars teaches us the value of stability. He took care of one parish until the day of his death. I do not know where the bishops got the idea of changing the priests' assignments every so number of years. They say it is an exercise in detachment and so maybe it really is. But this destroys the essence of the pastorate. "I know my sheep and mine know me," said our Lord. The Lord knows each of us because he can read human hearts. But other pastors like ourselves can't read hearts. It takes time to know the flock...and by the time it happens, the term is almost over. Changing fathers every X number of years destroys the family. Maybe this works for bank managers who get transferred from one branch to another. But parish priests are not managers...they are pastors. I think the mind of the Church is reflected by the fact that bishops are not subject to a term of a determined number of years. We don't change popes after x number of years! We wait for them to die or to resign! There is value in stability because if it were not so, why would Benedictine monks regard this as a fourth vow? I do not question the transfer of priests when needed. But I question the necessity of transferring them after a set number of years.I learned from the late Cardinal Sin the valuable lesson on stability. He used to say: "You do not replace what is not broken."

3. The change in the parish of Ars was tremendous. From a spiritually indifferent community, with three taverns that provided constant entertainment, Ars became a holy parish. From afar, pilgrims came to assist at the Cure's Mass and to make their confessions to him. But more impressive than this is that the Cure became a saint because of this. His fastings and long nights in prayer transformed both the Cure himself and his parish. Although he always thought that the priesthood benefited others and not himself, it sanctified him. It made him a saint. What we need today are holy priests like St. John Vianney. Satan once appeared to him and said that if only there were 3 priests like John Vianney, his kingdom would immediately crumble!

Prayer for Priests

Prayer by the Laity to Obtain the Sanctification of Priests

O Jesus, eternal High Priest, Good Shepherd, Font of Life, who by a special favor of Thy most tender Heart hast given to us our priests in order to accomplish in us those holy ideals with which Thy grace inspires our hearts, let Thy mercy, we beseech Thee, come to the aid of our priests.

Grant them, O Jesus, lively faith in their works, unshakable hope in their trials and fervent charity in their intentions. May Thy word, radiant with eternal Wisdom, become through continual meditation, the never-failing nourishment of their interior life; may the examples of Thy life and Passion be renewed in their conduct and sufferings for our instruction and as a light and consolation in our sorrows.

Grant, O Lord, that our priests, free from all earthly attachments and solicitous for Thy glory alone, may persevere to their last breath in the fulfilment of duty and in purity of conscience. And when in death they deliver into your hands a task well done may they have in Thee, Lord Jesus, their Master on earth, the eternal reward of the crown of justice in the glory of the Saints. Amen.

Pope Pius XII

Pray for Holy Priests on the First Thursday of August, 2011, which is also the Feast of St. John Mary Vianney!