Father Tom on Year for Priests
17 November 2009
An article by Cheltenham’s Assistant Priest Father Tom Smith from the parish magazine ‘Caritas’.
If you don't mind me asking, what made you decide to be a priest? I don't want to appear to be rude but how old were you when you decided to become a priest? These are just two of the many questions asked by people of newly ordained or young priests. People of all walks of life are fascinated by the call of the Catholic priesthood and want to know what it is that makes a priest choose what may seem to many a bizarre way of life. Bizarre because, for many people in our society, the call of the celibate Catholic priest is surrounded by mystique and otherness. Why on earth would a young man with everything to live for want to choose a life where he cannot sleep with someone, let alone get married, and a life where he has to do as he is told. It can even be confusing for some Catholics, but viewed with a little faith the call is something which makes sense. With all these questions and the confusion which many people have about the priesthood it is a great blessing for the church that the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has inaugurated this year as the Year for Priests, running from the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus 2009 to the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus 2010.
In his letter to inaugurate the Year for Priests the Holy Father explains that he has chosen 2009 because it is the year the Church celebrates the 150th anniversary of the death of St John Mary Vianney, popularly known as the Curé of Ars. St John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests, is the only canonised parish priest in the Catholic Church. Really! There are countless priests who are saints, some of whom worked in parishes, but they have not been canonised just for their work in parishes. St John was sent to the parish of Ars in the Diocese of Lyons in France in the aftermath of the French Revolution, a time when religious practice was at a low ebb. His bishop said that there was little love of God in the parish and that he was sending Father John to rectify the situation. The Curé dedicated his life to renewing the parish. He spent long hours in the the church praying, he visited the sick regularly, as well as families. He organised missions and charitable works in the parish, cared for orphans, and established an institute, 'The Providence', of teachers. He founded confraternities and throughout enlisted lay persons to work alongside him. Perhaps most famously the Curé of Ars is renowned for his long hours in the confessional, spending up to 14 hours at a time administering the Sacrament to the many people who travelled from all over France. It is the shining example of priestly holiness witnessed to by St John Vianney that Pope Benedict is urging the church, and especially her priests, to examine. It appears that the Holy Father is seeking a renewal of the priesthood in the way of St John Vianney.
The way of St John Vianney is the way of discipleship of Christ. Pope Benedict says: “Just as Jesus called the twelve to be with him (Mk 3:14), and only later sent them forth to preach, so too in our days priests are called to assimilate that ‘new style of life’ which was inaugurated by the Lord Jesus and taken up by the apostles.” Pope Benedict called attention to the words of Pope John XXIII when he highlighted the place of the evangelical counsels; poverty, chastity and obedience, in the life of the Curé of Ars. It may be surprising to hear that secular priests do not take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, but make two promises; celibacy and obedience. Pope Benedict is not saying that this is wrong and that priests should live the vows of monks and nuns, but that each priest should voluntarily incorporate elements of these evangelical counsels into their lives. In this way the priest can bring the life of God to the people he serves.
Pope Benedict focuses particularly on the relationship between the Curé of Ars and the people he served. He sees this as a motivation for the pastoral initiative of the priest. The priest is there to be a shepherd to his people. There are countless instances where the Curé puts his priestly life at the service of his parish. His life is a living witness to pastoral solicitude. In the first paragraph of his letter the Holy Father quotes the Cure when he says: “The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus”, and again later on: “A good shepherd, a pastor after God's heart, is the greatest treasure which the good Lord can grant to a parish, and one of the most precious gifts of divine mercy.” Pope Benedict also acknowledges that priests do not always get it right, some acting deplorably, especially in relation to the sexual abuse of children. He says that these actions: “can never be sufficiently deplored”. Despite this, the Holy Father says that as a Church we need to have: “a joyful and renewed realisation of the greatness of God's gift embodied in the splendid example of generous pastors”. All priests have made a generous donation of their lives to God and thus to the people they serve. It may not always appear this way and there are popular stereotypes of the crabby old priest who resents the people bothering him. Hopefully there are not many priests like that around. The Year of the Priest presents us with an amazing opportunity to celebrate the gift of the priesthood, not just to show our particular priest that we are grateful for their ministry and offering, but the priesthood in general. It is for each one of us to have ideas about ways of celebrating and understanding more deeply the gift of the priesthood. If you have an idea of how to do this don't be shy, approach your priest, deacon or Parish Council with it and help make this year a real celebration of the priesthood. People of all walks of life are curious and fascinated about the priesthood. Let us not hide this profound gift of divine mercy under a bushel. The Holy Father has given us all, priests and lay faithful, the go-ahead to shout about the gift of the priesthood from the rooftops! Let us do that with pride this year.
Father Tom Smith
An article by Cheltenham’s Assistant Priest Father Tom Smith from the parish magazine ‘Caritas’.
If you don't mind me asking, what made you decide to be a priest? I don't want to appear to be rude but how old were you when you decided to become a priest? These are just two of the many questions asked by people of newly ordained or young priests. People of all walks of life are fascinated by the call of the Catholic priesthood and want to know what it is that makes a priest choose what may seem to many a bizarre way of life. Bizarre because, for many people in our society, the call of the celibate Catholic priest is surrounded by mystique and otherness. Why on earth would a young man with everything to live for want to choose a life where he cannot sleep with someone, let alone get married, and a life where he has to do as he is told. It can even be confusing for some Catholics, but viewed with a little faith the call is something which makes sense. With all these questions and the confusion which many people have about the priesthood it is a great blessing for the church that the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has inaugurated this year as the Year for Priests, running from the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus 2009 to the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus 2010.
In his letter to inaugurate the Year for Priests the Holy Father explains that he has chosen 2009 because it is the year the Church celebrates the 150th anniversary of the death of St John Mary Vianney, popularly known as the Curé of Ars. St John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests, is the only canonised parish priest in the Catholic Church. Really! There are countless priests who are saints, some of whom worked in parishes, but they have not been canonised just for their work in parishes. St John was sent to the parish of Ars in the Diocese of Lyons in France in the aftermath of the French Revolution, a time when religious practice was at a low ebb. His bishop said that there was little love of God in the parish and that he was sending Father John to rectify the situation. The Curé dedicated his life to renewing the parish. He spent long hours in the the church praying, he visited the sick regularly, as well as families. He organised missions and charitable works in the parish, cared for orphans, and established an institute, 'The Providence', of teachers. He founded confraternities and throughout enlisted lay persons to work alongside him. Perhaps most famously the Curé of Ars is renowned for his long hours in the confessional, spending up to 14 hours at a time administering the Sacrament to the many people who travelled from all over France. It is the shining example of priestly holiness witnessed to by St John Vianney that Pope Benedict is urging the church, and especially her priests, to examine. It appears that the Holy Father is seeking a renewal of the priesthood in the way of St John Vianney.
The way of St John Vianney is the way of discipleship of Christ. Pope Benedict says: “Just as Jesus called the twelve to be with him (Mk 3:14), and only later sent them forth to preach, so too in our days priests are called to assimilate that ‘new style of life’ which was inaugurated by the Lord Jesus and taken up by the apostles.” Pope Benedict called attention to the words of Pope John XXIII when he highlighted the place of the evangelical counsels; poverty, chastity and obedience, in the life of the Curé of Ars. It may be surprising to hear that secular priests do not take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, but make two promises; celibacy and obedience. Pope Benedict is not saying that this is wrong and that priests should live the vows of monks and nuns, but that each priest should voluntarily incorporate elements of these evangelical counsels into their lives. In this way the priest can bring the life of God to the people he serves.
Pope Benedict focuses particularly on the relationship between the Curé of Ars and the people he served. He sees this as a motivation for the pastoral initiative of the priest. The priest is there to be a shepherd to his people. There are countless instances where the Curé puts his priestly life at the service of his parish. His life is a living witness to pastoral solicitude. In the first paragraph of his letter the Holy Father quotes the Cure when he says: “The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus”, and again later on: “A good shepherd, a pastor after God's heart, is the greatest treasure which the good Lord can grant to a parish, and one of the most precious gifts of divine mercy.” Pope Benedict also acknowledges that priests do not always get it right, some acting deplorably, especially in relation to the sexual abuse of children. He says that these actions: “can never be sufficiently deplored”. Despite this, the Holy Father says that as a Church we need to have: “a joyful and renewed realisation of the greatness of God's gift embodied in the splendid example of generous pastors”. All priests have made a generous donation of their lives to God and thus to the people they serve. It may not always appear this way and there are popular stereotypes of the crabby old priest who resents the people bothering him. Hopefully there are not many priests like that around. The Year of the Priest presents us with an amazing opportunity to celebrate the gift of the priesthood, not just to show our particular priest that we are grateful for their ministry and offering, but the priesthood in general. It is for each one of us to have ideas about ways of celebrating and understanding more deeply the gift of the priesthood. If you have an idea of how to do this don't be shy, approach your priest, deacon or Parish Council with it and help make this year a real celebration of the priesthood. People of all walks of life are curious and fascinated about the priesthood. Let us not hide this profound gift of divine mercy under a bushel. The Holy Father has given us all, priests and lay faithful, the go-ahead to shout about the gift of the priesthood from the rooftops! Let us do that with pride this year.
Father Tom Smith
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