DOCSLIB.ORG

Pastores Dabo Vobis to the Bishops, Clergy and Faithful on the Formation of Priests in the Circumstances of the Present Day

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Pastores Dabo Vobis to the Bishops, Clergy and Faithful on the Formation of Priests in the Circumstances of the Present Day POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION PASTORES DABO VOBIS TO THE BISHOPS, CLERGY AND FAITHFUL ON THE FORMATION OF PRIESTS IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE PRESENT DAY INTRODUCTION 1. "I will give you shepherds after my own heart" (Jer. 3:15). In these words from the prophet Jeremiah, God promises his people that he will never leave them without shepherds to gather them together and guide them: "I will set shepherds over them [my sheep] who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed (Jer. 23.4). The Church, the People of God, constantly experiences the reality of this prophetic message and continues joyfully to thank God for it. She knows that Jesus Christ himself is the living, supreme and definitive fulfillment of God's promise: "I am the good shepherd" (Jn. 10:11). He, "the great shepherd of the sheep" (Heb. 13:20), entrusted to the apostles and their successors the ministry of shepherding God's flock (cf. Jn. 21:15ff.; 1 Pt. 5:2). Without priests the Church would not be able to live that fundamental obedience which is at the very heart of her existence and her mission in history, an obedience in response to the command of Christ: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (Mt. 28:19) and "Do this in remembrance of me" (Lk. 22:19; cf. 1 Cor. 11.24), i.e:, an obedience to the command to announce the Gospel and to renew daily the sacrifice of the giving of his body and the shedding of his blood for the life of the world. By faith we know that the Lord's promise cannot fail. This very promise is the reason and force underlying the Church's rejoicing at the growth and increase of priestly vocations now taking place in some parts of the world. It is also the foundation and impulse for a renewed act of faith and fervent hope in the face of the grave shortage of priests which is being felt in other parts of the world. Everyone is called upon to share complete trust in the unbroken fulfillment of God's promise, which the synod fathers expressed in clear and forceful terms: "The synod, with complete trust in the promise of Christ who has said: 'Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age' (Mt. 28:20), and aware of the constant activity of the Holy Spirit in the Church, firmly believes that there will never be a complete lack of sacred ministers in the Church.... Even though in a number of regions there is a scarcity of clergy, the action of the Father, who raises up vocations, will nonetheless always be at work in the Church."(1) At the conclusion of the synod, I said that in the face of a crisis of priestly vocations "the first answer which the Church gives lies in a total act of faith in the Holy Spirit. We are deeply convinced that this trusting abandonment will not disappoint if we remain faithful to the graces we have received."(2) 2. To remain faithful to the grace received! This gift of God does not cancel human freedom; instead it gives rise to freedom, develops freedom and demands freedom. For this reason, the total trust in God's unconditional faithfulness to his promise is accompanied in the Church by the grave responsibility to cooperate in the action of God who calls, and to contribute toward creating and preserving the conditions in which the good seed, sown by God, can take root and bring forth abundant fruit. The Church must never cease to pray to the Lord of the harvest that he send laborers into his harvest, (cf. Mt. 9:38). She must propose clearly and courageously to each new generation the vocational call, help people to discern the authenticity of their call from God and to respond to it generously, and give particular care to the formation of candidates for the priesthood. The formation of future priests, both diocesan and religious, and lifelong assiduous care for their personal sanctification in the ministry and for the constant updating of their pastoral commitment is considered by the Church one of the most demanding and important tasks for the future of the evangelization of humanity. The Church's work of formation is a continuation in time of Christ's own work, which the evangelist Mark illustrates in these words: "And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he desired; and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach and have authority to cast out demons" (Mk. 3:13-15). It can be said that through her work of forming candidates to the priesthood and priests themselves, the Church throughout her history has continued to live this passage of the Gospel in various ways and with varying intensity. Today, however, the Church feels called to relive with a renewed commitment all that the Master did with his apostles - urged on as she is by the deep and rapid transformations in the societies and culture of our age; by the multiplicity and diversity of contexts in which she announces the Gospel and witnesses to it; by the promising number of priestly vocations being seen in some dioceses around the world; by the urgency of a new look at the contents and methods of priestly formation; by the concern of bishops and their communities about a persisting scarcity of clergy; and by the absolute necessity that the "new evangelization" have priests as its initial "new evangelizers." It is precisely in this cultural and historical context that the last ordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops took place. Dedicated to "the formation of priests in circumstances of the present day," its purpose was to put into practice the Council's teaching on this matter, making it more up - to - date and incisive in present circumstances, twenty - five years after the Council itself.(3) 3. Following the texts of the Second Vatican Council regarding the ministry of priests and their formation,(4) and with the intention of applying to various situations their rich and authoritative teaching, the Church has on various occasions dealt with the subject of the life, ministry and formation of priests She has done this in a more solemn way during the Synods of Bishops. Already in October 1967, the first general ordinary assembly of the synod devoted five general congregations to the subject of the renewal of seminaries. This work gave a decisive impulse to the formulation of the document of the Congregation for Catholic Education titled Fundamental Norms for Priestly Formation.(5) The second ordinary general assembly held in 1971 spent half its time on the ministerial priesthood. The fruit of the lengthy synodal discussion, incorporated and condensed in some "recommendations," which were submitted to my predecessor Pope Paul VI and read at the opening of the 1974 synod, referred principally to the teaching on the ministerial priesthood and to some aspects of priestly spirituality and ministry. On many other occasions the Church's magisterium has shown its concern for the life and ministry of priests. It may be said that in the years since the Council there has not been any subject treated by the magisterium which has not in some way, explicitly or implicitly, had to do with the presence of priests in the community as well as their role and the need for them in the life of the Church and the world. In recent years some have voiced a need to return to the theme of the priesthood, treating it from a relatively new point of view, one that was more adapted to present ecclesial and cultural circumstances. Attention has shifted from the question of the priest's identity to that connected with the process of formation for the priesthood and the quality of priestly life. The new generation of those called to the ministerial priesthood display different characteristics in comparison to those of their immediate predecessors. In addition, they live in a world which in many respects is new and undergoing rapid and continual evolution. All of this cannot be ignored when it comes to programming and carrying out the various phases of formation for those approaching the ministerial priesthood. Moreover, priests who have been actively involved in the ministry for a more or less lengthy period of time seem to be suffering today from an excessive loss of energy in their ever increasing pastoral activities. Likewise, faced with the difficulties of contemporary culture and society, they feel compelled to re - examine their way of life and their pastoral priorities, and they are more and more aware of their need for ongoing formation. The concern of the 1990 Synod of Bishops and its discussion focused on the increase of vocations to the priesthood and the formation of candidates in an attempt to help them come to know and follow Jesus - as they prepare to be ordained and to live the sacrament of holy orders, which configures them to Christ the head and shepherd, the servant and spouse of the Church. At the same time, the synod searched for forms of ongoing formation to provide realistic and effective means of support for priests in their spiritual life and ministry. This same synod also sought to answer a request which was made at the previous synod on the vocation and mission of the laity in the Church and in the world. Lay people themselves had asked that priests commit themselves to their formation so that they, the laity, could be suitably helped to fulfill their role in the ecclesial mission which is shared by all.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Seventh Pastoral Letter of Catholic
    SEVENTH Pastoral Letter PASTORAL LETTER TO PRIESTS “As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you.” (John 20:21) Feast of the Dormition, 15 August 2004 INTRODUCTION To our beloved sons and brothers, the priests, “Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Timothy 1: 2) We greet you with the salutation of the Apostle Paul to his disciple, Timothy, feeling with him that we always have need of the “mercy and peace of God,” just as we always have need of renewal in the understanding of our faith and priesthood, which binds us in a peculiar way to “God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” We renew our faith, so as to become ever more ready to accept our priesthood, and assume our mission in our society. The Rabweh Meeting We held our twelfth annual meeting at Rabweh (Lebanon), from 27 to 31 October 2002, welcomed by our brother H.B. Gregorios III, Patriarch of Antioch, of Alexandria and of Jerusalem for the Melkite Greek Catholics. We studied together the nature of the priesthood, its holiness and everything to do with our priests, confided to our care and dear to our heart. Following on from that meeting, we address this letter to you, dear priests, to express to all celibate and married clergy, our esteem and gratitude for your efforts to make the Word and Love of God present in our Churches and societies. Object of the letter “We thank God at every moment for you,” dear priests, who are working in the vineyard of the Lord in all our eparchies in the Middle East, in the countries of the Gulf and in the distant countries of emigration.
    [Show full text]
  • Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
    CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH LETTER “IUVENESCIT ECCLESIA” to the Bishops of the Catholic Church Regarding the Relationship Between Hierarchical and Charismatic Gifts in the Life and the Mission of the Church Introduction The gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Church in mission 1. The Church rejuvenates in the power of the Gospel and the Spirit continually renews her, builds her up, and guides her “with hierarchical and charismatic gifts”.[1] The Second Vatican Council has repeatedly highlighted the marvelous work of the Holy Spirit that sanctifies the People of God, guides it, adorns it with virtue, and enrichens it with special graces for her edification. As the Fathers love to show, the action of the divine Paraclete in the Church is multiform. John Chrysostom writes: “What gifts that work for our salvation are not given freely by the Holy Spirit? Through Him we are freed from slavery and called to liberty; we are led to adoption as children and, one might say, formed anew, after having laid down the heavy and hateful burden of our sins. Through the Holy Spirit we see assemblies of priests and we possess ranks of doctors; from this source spring forth gifts of revelation, healing graces, and all of the other charisms that adorn the Church of God”.[2] Thanks to the Church’s life itself, to the numerous Magisterial interventions, and to theological research, happily the awareness has grown of the multiform action of the Holy Spirit in the Church, thus arousing a particular attentiveness to the charismatic gifts by which at all times the People of God are enriched in order to carry out their mission.
    [Show full text]
  • Saint John Paul II
    CELEBRATING THE CENTENARY OF THE BIRTH OF Saint John Paul II Pope John Paul II gestures to the crowd during World Youth Day in Denver in 1993. (CNS photo) Produced by Office of Communications May 2020 On April 2, 2020 we commemorated the 15th Anniversary of St. John Paul II’s death and on May 18, 2020, we celebrate the Centenary of his birth. Many of us have special personal We remember his social justice memories of the impact of St. John encyclicals Laborem exercens (1981), Paul II’s ecclesial missionary mysticism Sollicitudo rei socialis (1987) and which was forged in the constant Centesimus annus (1991) that explored crises he faced throughout his life. the rich history and contemporary He planted the Cross of Jesus Christ relevance of Catholic social justice at the heart of every personal and teaching. world crisis he faced. During these We remember his emphasis on the days of COVID-19, we call on his relationship between objective truth powerful intercession. and history. He saw first hand in Nazism We vividly recall his visits to Poland, and Stalinism the bitter and tragic BISHOP visits during which millions of Poles JOHN O. BARRES consequences in history of warped joined in chants of “we want God,” is the fifth bishop of the culture of death philosophies. visits that set in motion the 1989 Catholic Diocese of Rockville In contrast, he asked us to be collapse of the Berlin Wall and a Centre. Follow him on witnesses to the Splendor of Truth, fundamental change in the world. Twitter, @BishopBarres a Truth that, if followed and lived We remember too, his canonization courageously, could lead the world of Saint Faustina, the spreading of global devotion to bright new horizons of charity, holiness and to the Divine Mercy and the establishment of mission.
    [Show full text]
  • Priestly Formation According to Pastores Dabo Vobis* 1
    305 ❚Special Issues❚ □ Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts Priestly Formation According to Pastores Dabo Vobis* 1 Fr. Thomas Cheruparambil 〔St. Joseph Pontifical Seminary, India〕 Introduction 1. Historical Antecedents of Pastores Dabo Vobis 2. The 1990 Synod of Bishops: Some Particulars 3. Highlights on the Priestly Formation in Pastores Dabo Vobis 4. Biblical Foundation of Priesthood 5. Priestly Vocation and the Challenges of Priestly Formation 6. Human Formation 7. Spiritual Formation 8. Intellectual Formation 9. Pastoral Formation 10. Agents of Priestly Formation 11. Ongoing Formation of Priests Conclusion Introduction Jesus the high priest began his public ministry with the following proclamation: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed *1이 글은 2015년 ‘재단법인 신학과사상’의 연구비 지원을 받아 연구·작성된 논문임. 306 Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Lk 4:18, 19). Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit before his public ministry. All Christian faithful, irrespective of their sate of vocation are called to attain perfection and sanctity. As there are different kinds of vocations, the way to Christian perfection also differs. Every vocation and ministry is specific in its nature. Accordingly, one may speak about the specificity of priestly ministry and formation. In this connection, one may ask: what is the specific nature of priestly formation keeping in mind the specific nature of priestly ministry? There may be different views and opinions about priestly formation.
    [Show full text]
  • Program of Priestly Formation
    Program of Priestly Formation The document Program of Priestly Formation (fifth edition) was developed by the Committee on Priestly Formation of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). It was approved by the full body of bishops at its June 2005 General Meeting, received the subsequent approbatio of the Holy See, and has been authorized for publication by the undersigned. Msgr. David J. Malloy, STD General Secretary, USCCB In 2001 the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (USCC) became the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Scripture texts used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, copyright © 1991, 1986, and 1970 by the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, DC 20017 and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All rights reserved. Excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, copyright © 2000, Libreria Editrice Vaticana-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. Used with permission. All rights reserved. Excerpts from Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, New Revised Edition, edited by Austin Flannery, OP, copyright © 1996, Costello Publishing Company, Inc., Northport, N.Y. are used with permission of the publisher, all rights reserved. No part of these excerpts may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, pho- tocopying, recording, or otherwise—without express written permission of Costello
    [Show full text]
  • The Holy See
    The Holy See ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS JOHN PAUL II TO THE BISHOPS OF THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF INDONESIA ON THEIR "AD LIMINA" VISIT Friday, 13 September 1996 Dear Brother Bishops, With heartfelt joy I welcome you—the second group of Bishops from Indonesia—who have come on your ad Limina visit to re-affirm your faith at the tombs of the Princes of the Apostles, Peter and Paul. I thank God for "the joy and comfort of your love" (Philem. 1:7) and for the bonds of our fraternal communion in the College of Bishops. The pastoral ministry entrusted to the Bishop of Rome is a divine gift which belongs to the full expression of the life of every particular Church. That ministry to the universal Church makes me a servant of her unity in the truth, a service rooted in God's mercy, to be carried out in communion with my Brother Bishops (cf. John Paul II, Ut Unum Sint, 88-96). Similarly, in your own Dioceses you are servants and ministers of ecclesial truth and unity. In the love of the Lord Jesus I wish to encourage you to fulfil that task with all the responsibility and authority which comes to you from your episcopal consecration—an authority which the Gospel distinguishes from worldly power (cf. Mt. 20:25; Mk. 10:42)—so that the People of God in Indonesia may be ever more one body, one spirit in Christ. 2. Your quinquennial reports confirm that we must thank God for the rich harvest of vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life which many of your Churches are experiencing.
    [Show full text]
  • “Redemptoris Mater” Seminaries by Lorenzo Rossetti
    The identity and significance of the “Redemptoris Mater” seminaries by Lorenzo Rossetti Starting with some brief and meaningful descriptions of the Redemptoris Mater seminaries, and moving towards his personal experience, the author, a professor of theology, draws an “identikit” of the seminaries, to underline their possible significance for the Church of our time. “The diocesan and missionary “Redemptoris Mater” seminaries are erected by the diocesan Bishops, in agreement with the international Responsible Team of the Way and are governed by the current norms for the formation and incardination of diocesan clerics and according to their own statutes, in fulfillment of the Ratio fundamentalis institutionis sacerdotalis. In them, the candidates for the priesthood find, in their participation in the Neocatechumenal Way, a specific and basic element of their formative iter and, at the same time, are prepared for a ‘genuine presbyteral choice of service to the entire people of God in the fraternal communion of the presbyterate’ (Statutes of the Neocatechumenal Way, art. 18, §3). “The Redemptoris Mater seminaries are not the seminaries of the Neocatechumenal Way but, as the statutes and the rule of life specify, are true diocesan seminaries dependent on the Bishop. The students of these institutes receive the same philosophical and theological formation as the other seminarians of the diocese. They could spend a pastoral year in the parishes as deacons and often times two years in the diocese as presbyters, before the Bishop can send them for mission. But if the Bishop has an urgent need in some particularly difficult zone of his own diocese, he can make use of them since they have been ordained without any conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • The Holy See
    The Holy See ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS JOHN PAUL II TO THE BISHOPS OF THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF INDIA ON THEIR "AD LIMINA" VISIT Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo Monday, 28 August 1995 Dear Brother Bishops, 1. I n the love of our Lord Jesus Christ I welcome you – the Pastors of the Ecclesiastical Provinces of Bhopal, Calcutta, Cuttack–Bhubaneswar, Delhi and Ranchi. Your visit "ad Limina Apostolorum" expresses the profound communion of charity and peace which links the particular Churches in India to this Apostolic See, hallowed by the martyrdom of Sts Peter and Paul. My recent Encyclical Letter "Ut Unum Sint" describes the mission of the Successor of Peter within the Episcopal College as that of a "sentinel" who confirms his brother Bishops so that "the true voice of Christ the Shepherd may be heard in all the particular Churches" (John Paul II, Ut Unum Sint, 94) I therefore thank the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for giving us this occasion to experience our "partnership in the Gospel" (Phil. 1:5), in order to draw strength and encouragement from one another according to "the immeasurable riches of his grace" (Eph. 2:7). 2. From her birth in the Upper Room at Pentecost, the Church is the visible sign and effective instrument of the communion of God with humanity. As Pastors of God’s Church in India you are called to perpetuate in your local Communities the grace of Pentecost and to foster from generation to generation the fidelity to the Gospel, the fraternal life and ardent prayer which characterized the Apostolic community (cf.
    [Show full text]
  • “ Falling in Love – Staying in Love”: the Theology of Vocation
    The Spirituality of the Vocation to Priesthood During his first visit to Germany on the occasion of the 2005 World Youth Day in Cologne, Pope Benedict made a point of inserting a meeting with seminarians into his programme “so that the vocational dimension would truly emerge in all of its importance". The gift of ministerial priesthood has, at its heart, the mystery of a vocation. Countless numbers of priests such as saints Vincent de Paul and John Vianney of Ars as well as Pope John Paul II have borne eloquent witness to this mystery and gift.1 It is good, therefore, as Pope Benedict indicates, to highlight its importance and attend to its spirituality.2 If we take spirituality in the broad sense of living the Gospel from a particular angle, I intend to propose a spirituality of the vocation to ministerial priesthood as follows. Firstly, it is necessary to give due consideration to the nature of the Christian vocation in general, dwelling briefly on the First Testament, then reflecting on what vocation meant in Jesus' own life and, more specifically, outlining some aspects of the spirituality of vocation as it emerges in Jesus' calling of disciples. At that point it will be necessary to recognise and focus on the heart of the spirituality of all vocations: Jesus' death and resurrection that opens up the way of communion as typical of the Christian and so too priestly vocation. Mary will be proposed as a model of the spirituality of the royal priesthood onto which is engrafted the ministerial priesthood. Focusing then more directly on the vocation to ministerial priesthood I will propose a number of contours of this vocation's spirituality.3 A Vocation - Something Beautiful In his first message for the day of Vocations (April 2006), Pope Benedict rekindles wonder at the marvellous fact of being chosen by God before the creation of the world (cf.
    [Show full text]
  • Pastores Dabo Vobis to the Bishops, Clergy and Faithful on the Formation of Priests in the Circumstances of the Present Day Introduction
    The Holy See POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATIONPASTORES DABO VOBIS TO THE BISHOPS, CLERGY AND FAITHFUL ON THE FORMATION OF PRIESTS IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE PRESENT DAY INTRODUCTION 1. "I will give you shepherds after my own heart" (Jer. 3:15). In these words from the prophet Jeremiah, God promises his people that he will never leave them without shepherds to gather them together and guide them: "I will set shepherds over them [my sheep] who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed (Jer. 23.4). The Church, the People of God, constantly experiences the reality of this prophetic message and continues joyfully to thank God for it. She knows that Jesus Christ himself is the living, supreme and definitive fulfillment of God's promise: "I am the good shepherd" (Jn. 10:11). He, "the great shepherd of the sheep" (Heb. 13:20), entrusted to the apostles and their successors the ministry of shepherding God's flock (cf. Jn. 21:15ff.; 1 Pt. 5:2). Without priests the Church would not be able to live that fundamental obedience which is at the very heart of her existence and her mission in history, an obedience in response to the command of Christ: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (Mt. 28:19) and "Do this in remembrance of me" (Lk. 22:19; cf. 1 Cor. 11.24), i.e:, an obedience to the command to announce the Gospel and to renew daily the sacrifice of the giving of his body and the shedding of his blood for the life of the world.
    [Show full text]
  • Pope John Paul II
    Pope John Paul II This section entails the writings of Pope John Paul II starting with his Pontificate in October 16, 1978. In this section, one will find the Holy Father's Encyclicals, Apostolic Constitutions and Letters, exhortations and addresses published in different languages. John Paul II. Address to Presidents of Catholic Colleges and Universities (at Catholic University). (October 7, 1979): 163-167. -----. Address to the General Assembly of the United Nations, October 2, 1980, 16-30. -----. "Address to the Youth of Paris. (June 1, 1980)," L'Osservatore Romano (English Edition), (June 16, 1980): 13. -----. Affido a Te, O Maria. Ed. Sergio Trassati and Arturo Mari. Bergamo: Editrice Velar, 1982. -----. Africa: Apostolic Pilgrimage. Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1980. -----. Africa: Land of Promise, Land of Hope. Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1982. -----. Amantissima Providentia, Apostolic Letter, 1980. -----. The Apostles of the Slavs (Commemorating Sts. Cyril and Methodius): Fourth Encyclical Letter, June 2, 1985. Washington D. C.: Office for Publishing and Promotion Services. United States Catholic Conference, 1985. -----. Augustinum Hipponensem. August 28, 1986. Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1986. -----. "Behold Your Mother," Holy Thursday Letter of John Paul II, Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1988. -----. Brazil: Journey in the Light of the Eucharist. Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1980. -----. Il Buon Pastore: Scritti, Disorsi e Lettere Pastorali. Trans. Elzbieta Cywiak and Renzo Panzone. Rome Edizioni Logos, 1978. -----. Catechesi Tradendae, On Catechesis in Our Time. Boston: St. Paul Editions, 1979. -----. Centesimus Annus (Commemorating the Centenary of Rerum Novarum by Leo XIII): Ninth Encyclical Letter, May 1, 1991. Washington D. C.: Office for Publishing and Promotion Services, United States Catholic Conference, 1991.
    [Show full text]
  • The Catholic Voyage: African Journal of Consecrated Life Vol
    The Catholic Voyage: African Journal of Consecrated Life Vol. 12, 2016. ISSN: 2659-0301 (Online) 1597 6610 (Print) PRIESTS AND RELIGIOUS AS FRUITS OF THE FAMILY CLETUS NWAFOR, OP1 ABSTRACT After an attempt to articulate the fact that priests and religious are uniquely, fruits of the family in keeping with Divine Ordinance, the paper makes use of what is articulated to further show that the continuity of humanity and the church consists in the family. By way of conclusion and submission, it invites all men and women of goodwill to an ever proactive resurgence against the dictatorship of the “culture of death” which more than ever threatens our collective existence—to fight and rediscover the glory of humanity which consists in the family being a domestic church. INTRODUCTION Priests and religious are not necessary being which God is. They are biological fruits of the natural family ordained by God as comprising of father, mother and their children. The family traditionally understood as such is key to understanding the co- creative role of husband and wife in the entire scheme of creation insofar as it takes the husband and his wife to achieve the procreation reality for the continuity of humanity and the church in keeping with God’s ordinance.2 In this connection, priests and religious become an even more fruitful extension of this Divine ordinance by the very reality of their being set apart as special servants of God to gather the scattered children of God to that eternal kingdom, that one great family where God will be all in all.
    [Show full text]