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The Priesthood Certainly "there is an essential
aspect of the priest that does not change: the priest of tomorrow, no
less than the priest of today, must resemble Christ. When Jesus lived
on this earth, he manifested in himself the definitive role of the priestly
establishing a ministerial priesthood with which the apostles were the
first to be invested. This priesthood is destined to last in endless
succession throughout history. In this sense the priest of the third
millennium will continue the work of the priests Consequently, the nature and mission of the ministerial
priesthood cannot be defined except through this multiple and rich interconnection
of relationships which arise from the Blessed Trinity and are prolonged
in the communion of the Church, as a sign and instrument of Christ,
of communion with God and of the unity of all humanity. In this context
the ecclesiology of communion becomes decisive for understanding the
identity of the priest, his essential dignity, and his vocation and
mission
The relation of the priest to Jesus Christ, and in him
to his Church, is found in the very being of the priest by virtue of
his sacramental consecration/anointing and in his activity, that is,
in his mission or ministry. In particular, "the priest minister
is the servant of Christ present in the Church as mystery, communion
and mission. In virtue of his participation in the 'anointing' and 'mission'
of Christ, the priest can continue Christ's prayer, word, sacrifice
and salvific action in the Church. In this way, t Pastoral charity, which has its specific source in the sacrament of holy orders, finds its full expression and its supreme nourishment in the Eucharist. As the Council states: "This pastoral charity flows mainly from the eucharistic sacrifice, which is thus the center and root of the whole priestly life. The priestly soul strives thereby to apply to itself the action which takes place on the altar of sacrifice." Indeed, the Eucharist re - presents, makes once again priest, the sacrifice of the cross, the full gift of Christ to the Church, the gift of his body given and his blood shed, as the supreme witness of the fact that he is head and shepherd, servant and spouse of the Church. Precisely because of this, the priest's pastoral charity not only flows from the Eucharist but finds in the celebration of the Eucharist its highest realization -- just as it is from the Eucharist that he receives the grace and obligation to give his whole life a "sacrificial" dimension. - 23 Pastores Dabo Vobis Therefore, an intimate bond exists between the priest's
spiritual life and the exercise of his ministry,(58) a bond which the
Council expresses in this fashion: "And so it is that they are
grounded in the life of the Spirit while they exercise the ministry
of the Spirit and of justice (cf. 2 Cor. 3:8-9), as long as they are
docile to Christ's Spirit, who gives them life and guidance. For by
their everyday sacred actions, as by the entire ministry which they
exercise in union with the bishop and their fellow priests, they are
being directed toward perfection of life. Priestly holiness itself contributes
very greatly to a fruitful fulfillment of the It thus follows that the spiritual life of the priest should be profoundly marked by a missionary zeal and dynamism. In the exercise of their ministry and the witness of their lives, priests have the duty to form the community entrusted to them as a truly missionary community. As I wrote in the encyclical Redemptoris Missio, "all priests must have the mind and heart of missionaries open to the needs of the Church and the world, with concern for those farthest away and especially for the non - Christian groups in their own area. They should have at heart, in their prayers and particularly at the eucharistic sacrifice, the concern of the whole Church for all of humanity." - 24 Pastores Dabo Vobis |
The Homily at the Ordination of a Priest - In the Catholic Faith what we pray is what we believe, therefore any liturgical text we can find our beliefs. Pastores Dabo Vobis - A Post-Synodal Exhortation on priesthood. Written by John Paul II, it articulates very beautiful points on the Holy Priesthood. Presbyterorum Ordinis - The Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests from the Second Vatican Council. Optatam Totius - The Decree on Priestly Training from the Second Vatican Council. Examination of the Candidate for the Order of Deacon - From the Rite Examination of the Candidate for the Order of Presbyterate - From the Rite Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis - Spiritual Formation in Seminaries - A beautiful document from the Congregation for Catholic Education on Spiritual Formation in Seminaries. It is a very good summery of the priestly spirituality. The Priest and the Third Christian Millennium: Teacher of the Word, Minister of the Sacraments and Leader of the Community The Directory on the Ministry and Life of Priests - from the Congregation for Clergy The sacrament of Holy Orders - By Jean Galot Ordinatio Sacerdotalis - On reserving priestly ordination to men alone Inter Insigniores - Declaration on the Question of Admission of Women to the Ministerial Priesthood Fishers of Men - A movie produced by grassroots films. Watch it now free. Provided by the USCCB website. Requires Windows Media Player. The Program of Priestly Formation - The instrument used in the United States to build and adapt formation programs. There is a lot of helpful information on the four levels of formation: human, spiritual, apostolic, and intellectual. (PDF - Requires Adobe Reader) From the USCCB Webpage
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who,
in the preceding millennia, have animated the life of the Church. In
the third millennium the priestly vocation will continue to be the call
to live the unique and permanent priesthood of Christ." It is equally
certain that the life and ministry of the priest must also "adapt
to every era and circumstance of life.... For our part we must therefore
seek to be as open as possible to light from on high from the Holy Spirit,
in order to discover the tendencies of contemporary society, recognize
the deepest spiritual needs, determine the most important concrete tasks
and the pastoral methods to adopt, and thus respond adequately to human
expectations." - 5 Pastores Dabo Vobis
among the People of God and in the world. Reference to the Church is
therefore necessary, even if not primary, in defining the identity of
the priest. As a mystery, the Church is essentially related to Jesus
Christ. She is his fullness, his body, his spouse. She is the "sign"
and living "memorial" of his permanent presence and activity
in our midst and on our behalf. The priest finds the full truth of his
identity in being a derivation, a specific participation in and continuation
of Christ himself, the one high priest of the new and eternal covenant.
The priest is a living and transparent image of Christ the priest. The
priesthood of Christ, the expression of his absolute "newness"
in salvation history, constitutes the one source and essential model
of the priesthood shared by all Christians and the priest in particular.
Reference to Christ is thus the absolutely necessary key for understanding
the reality of priesthood. - 12 Pastores Dabo Vobis 
Therefore,
priests are called to prolong the presence of Christ, the one high priest,
embodying his way of life and making him visible in the midst of the
flock entrusted to their care. We find this clearly and precisely stated
in the first letter of Peter: "I exhort the elders among you, as
a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ as well as
a partaker in the glory that is to be revealed. Tend the flock of God
that is your charge, not by constraint but willingly, not for shameful
gain but eagerly, not as domineering over those in your charge but being
examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd is manifested you
will obtain the unfading crown of glory" (1 Pt. 5:1-4). In the
Church and on behalf of the Church, priests are a sacramental representation
of Jesus Christ -- the head and shepherd -- authoritatively proclaiming
his word, repeating his acts of forgiveness and his offer of salvation
-- particularly in baptism, penance and the Eucharist, showing his loving
concern to the point of a total gift of self for the flock, which they
gather into unity and lead to the Father through Christ and in the Spirit.
In a word, priests exist and act in order to proclaim the Gospel to
the world and to build up the Church in the name and person of Christ
the head and shepherd. - 15 Pastores Dabo Vobis
he
priest is a servant of the Church as mystery because he actuates the
Church's sacramental signs of the presence of the risen Christ. He is
a servant of the Church as communion because -- in union with the bishop
and closely related to the presbyterate -- he builds up the unity of
the Church community in the harmony of diverse vocations, charisms and
services. Finally, the priest is a servant to the Church as mission
because he makes the community a herald and witness of the Gospel."
- 16 Pastores Dabo Vobis
priestly
ministry." "Live the mystery that has been placed in your
hands!" This is the invitation and admonition which the Church
addresses to the priest in the Rite of Ordination, when the offerings
of the holy people for the eucharistic sacrifice are placed in his hands.
The "mystery" of which the priest is a "steward"
(cf. 1 Cor. 4:1) is definitively Jesus Christ himself, who in the Spirit
is the source of holiness and the call to sanctification. This "mystery"
seeks expression in the priestly life. For this to be so, there is need
for great vigilance and lively awareness. Once again, the Rite of Ordination
introduces these words with this recommendation: "Beware of what
you will be doing." In the same way Paul had admonished Timothy,
"Do not neglect the gift you have" - 24 Pastores Dabo
Vobis