A hermeneutic of (priestly) continuity

From the Vatican News Service:

VATICAN CITY, 12 MAR 2010 (VIS) - At midday today, the Holy Father received participants in a theological congress promoted by the Congregation for the Clergy, and which is being held on 11 and 12 March in the Pontifical Lateran University on the theme: "Faithfulness of Christ, faithfulness of Priests".

In a time such as our own, said the Pope, "it is important clearly to bear in mind the theological specificity of ordained ministry, in order not to surrender to the temptation of reducing it to predominant cultural models. In the context of widespread secularisation which progressively tends to exclude God from the public sphere and from the shared social conscience, the priest often appears 'removed' from common sense". Yet , the Pope went on, "it is important to avoid a dangerous reductionism which, over recent decades ... has presented the priest almost as a 'social worker', with the risk of betraying the very Priesthood of Christ.

"Just as the hermeneutic of continuity is revealing itself to be ever more important for an adequate understanding of the texts of Vatican Council II", he added, "in the same way we see the need for a hermeneutic we could describe as 'of priestly continuity', one which, starting from Jesus of Nazareth, Lord and Christ, and over the two thousand years of history, greatness, sanctity, culture and piety which the Priesthood has given the world, comes down to our own day".

Benedict XVI affirmed that "it is particularly important that the call to participate in the one Priesthood of Christ in ordained Ministry should flower from the 'charism of prophecy'. There is great need for priests who speak of God to the world and who present the world to God; men not subject to ephemeral cultural fashions, but capable of authentically living the freedom that only the certainty of belonging to God can give. ... And the prophecy most necessary today is that of faithfulness" which "leads us to live our priesthood in complete adherence to Christ and the Church".

Priests, the Holy Father continued, "must be careful to distance themselves from the predominant mentality which tends to associate the value of Ministry not with its being, but with its function". Our "ontological association with God", he said "is the right framework in which to understand and reaffirm, also in our own time, the value of celibacy which in the Latin Church is a charism imposed by Holy Orders, and is held in great esteem by the Oriental Churches. ... It is an expression of the gift of the self to God and to others".

"The vocation of priests is an exalted one, and remains a great mystery. ... Our limitations and weaknesses must induce us to live and safeguard this precious gift with great faith, a gift with which Christ configured us to Himself, making us participants in His mission of salvation. Indeed, the understanding of priestly ministry is linked to faith and requires, ever more strongly, a radical continuity between formation in seminaries and permanent formation".

The Holy Father concluded by telling his audience that "the men and women of our time ask us only to be priests to the full, nothing else. The lay faithful will be able to meet their human needs in many other people, but only in the priest will they find that Word of God which must always be on his lips, the Mercy of the Father abundantly and gratuitously distributed in the Sacrament of Penance, and the bread of new life".

H/T to Rich Leonardi.

Giving Vatican II an aggiornamento of its own

First, I ask that you read Vatican II's (short) decree on social communications, Inter mirifica.  Then realize how woefully out of date it is.  Time for some aggiornamento ("bringing up to date"), no?

Second, read Fr. Z's post on an article in The Catholic Herald about Pope Benedict, priests, and blogging.  (See also here.)

Third, read Pope Benedict's recent message for World Communication Day.

I'm not saying the Magisterium needs to expend time and resources and energy on some official document about clerical blogging — I think the Pope's recent comments suffice, really — but I am curious how many Catholics recognize this as an actual fruit of the Council, as a positive meeting point between the Church and the modern world.

The Church and Priestly Celibacy

God-willing, a great number of Anglicans will soon be entering into communion with the Catholic Church.  They will no longer be Anglicans, but Catholics.  This is not a "merger" or "union" of "churches", but rather the entrance of non-Catholic Christians into the Catholic Church en masse.

Some of these Anglicans are considered ordained ministers in the Anglican Communion.  While the Catholic Church does not recognize Anglican orders as valid, this does not mean that she will not discern whether those men who became Anglican deacons, priests, and bishops heard (and responded as best they knew how) a call from God to the vocation of ordained ministry.  Some of the Anglican clergy will indeed be ordained (not "re-ordained" or "conditionally ordained") as clergy of the Catholic Church.  Some of these men have wives and families.  Under the "pastoral provision", there is permission for married clergy of the Anglican communion (for example) to be received into the Catholic Church and ordained as priests; married men may not be bishops though, a discipline respected by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.  This means that married Anglican bishops will not receive episcopal ordination in the Catholic Church.

"But I thought priests couldn't marry!" you say.  And you are right:  priests cannot marry.  But that does not mean that married men cannot become priests.  This is the case in the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church (as well as the Orthodox Churches), but the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church has preferred a discipline of priestly celibacy:  only unmarried men are ordained to the priesthood.  In rare cases (such as under the "pastoral provision") are married men allowed to receive priestly ordination.

The next question, obviously, is "Why does the Latin Rite have this discipline?"  And that is answered for us by the Church herself.  First of all, I suggest you read what the Catechism of the Catholic Church has to say on the matter, since it is a distillation of everything else that follows:

All the ordained ministers of the Latin Church, with the exception of permanent deacons, are normally chosen from among men of faith who live a celibate life and who intend to remain celibate "for the sake of the kingdom of heaven." Called to consecrate themselves with undivided heart to the Lord and to "the affairs of the Lord," they give themselves entirely to God and to men. Celibacy is a sign of this new life to the service of which the Church's minister is consecrated; accepted with a joyous heart celibacy radiantly proclaims the Reign of God.

In the Eastern Churches a different discipline has been in force for many centuries: while bishops are chosen solely from among celibates, married men can be ordained as deacons and priests. This practice has long been considered legitimate; these priests exercise a fruitful ministry within their communities. Moreover, priestly celibacy is held in great honor in the Eastern Churches and many priests have freely chosen it for the sake of the Kingdom of God. In the East as in the West a man who has already received the sacrament of Holy Orders can no longer marry. (CCC 1579-1580)

With that out of the way, let us look at some recent Church documents which address the issue of a celibacy in the priesthood.  Let us use Vatican II's documents as our starting point, since many people suspect that Vatican II somehow changed the Church's view of priestly celibacy.  Three documents mention clerical celibacy specifically.  First, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church:

Likewise, the holiness of the Church is fostered in a special way by the observance of the counsels proposed in the Gospel by Our Lord to His disciples. An eminent position among these is held by virginity or the celibate state. This is a precious gift of divine grace given by the Father to certain souls, whereby they may devote themselves to God alone the more easily, due to an undivided heart. This perfect continency, out of desire for the kingdom of heaven, has always been held in particular honor in the Church. The reason for this was and is that perfect continency for the love of God is an incentive to charity, and is certainly a particular source of spiritual fecundity in the world. (Lumen Gentium 42)

Second, the Decree on Priestly Training:

Students who follow the venerable tradition of celibacy according to the holy and fixed laws of their own rite are to be educated to this state with great care. For renouncing thereby the companionship of marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven (cf. Matt. 19:12), they embrace the Lord with an undivided love altogether befitting the new covenant, bear witness to the resurrection of the world to come (cf. Luke 20:36), and obtain a most suitable aid for the continual exercise of that perfect charity whereby they can become all things to all men in their priestly ministry. Let them deeply realize how gratefully that state ought to be received, not, indeed, only as commanded by ecclesiastical law, but as a precious gift of God for which they should humbly pray. Through the inspiration and help of the grace of the Holy Spirit let them freely and generously hasten to respond to this gift.

Students ought rightly to acknowledge the duties and dignity of Christian matrimony, which is a sign of the love between Christ and the Church. Let them recognize, however, the surpassing excellence of virginity consecrated to Christ, so that with a maturely deliberate and generous choice they may consecrate themselves to the Lord by a complete gift of body and soul.

They are to be warned of the dangers that threaten their chastity especially in present-day society. Aided by suitable safeguards, both divine and human, let them learn to integrate their renunciation of marriage in such a way that they may suffer in their lives and work not only no harm from celibacy but rather acquire a deeper mastery of soul and body and a fuller maturity, and more perfectly receive the blessedness spoken of in the Gospel. (Optatam Totius 10)

And third, the Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests:

Perfect and perpetual continence for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven, commended by Christ the Lord and through the course of time as well as in our own days freely accepted and observed in a praiseworthy manner by many of the faithful, is held by the Church to be of great value in a special manner for the priestly life. It is at the same time a sign and a stimulus for pastoral charity and a special source of spiritual fecundity in the world. Indeed, it is not demanded by the very nature of the priesthood, as is apparent from the practice of the early Church and from the traditions of the Eastern Churches where, besides those who with all the bishops, by a gift of grace, choose to observe celibacy, there are also married priests of highest merit. ...

Indeed, celibacy has a many-faceted suitability for the priesthood. For the whole priestly mission is dedicated to the service of a new humanity which Christ, the victor over death, has aroused through his Spirit in the world and which has its origin "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man but of God" (Jn 1:13). Through virginity, then, or celibacy observed for the Kingdom of Heaven, priests are consecrated to Christ by a new and exceptional reason. They adhere to him more easily with an undivided heart, they dedicate themselves more freely in him and through him to the service of God and men, and they more expeditiously minister to his Kingdom and the work of heavenly regeneration, and thus they are apt to accept, in a broad sense, paternity in Christ. In this way they profess themselves before men as willing to be dedicated to the office committed to them-namely, to commit themselves faithfully to one man and to show themselves as a chaste virgin for Christ and thus to evoke the mysterious marriage established by Christ, and fully to be manifested in the future, in which the Church has Christ as her only Spouse. They give, moreover, a living sign of the world to come, by a faith and charity already made present, in which the children of the resurrection neither marry nor take wives.

For these reasons, based on the mystery of Christ and his mission, celibacy, which first was recommended to priests, later in the Latin Church was imposed upon all who were to be promoted to sacred orders. ... Insofar as perfect continence is thought by many men to be impossible in our times, to that extent priests should all the more humbly and steadfastly pray with the Church for that grace of fidelity, which is never denied those who seek it, and use all the supernatural and natural aids available. They should especially seek, lest they omit them, the ascetical norms which have been proved by the experience of the Church and which are scarcely less necessary in the contemporary world. This holy synod asks not only priests but all the faithful that they might receive this precious gift of priestly celibacy in their hearts and ask of God that he will always bestow this gift upon his Church. (Presbyterorum Ordinis 16)

Pope Pius XII wrote an encyclical in 1954 on the matter of consecrated virginity, in which he re-states the "doctrine of the excellence of virginity and of celibacy and of their superiority over the married state" because of the opinions of some in his day who "exalt marriage as to rank it ahead of virginity and thus depreciate chastity consecrated to God and clerical celibacy." (Sacra Virginitas 32, 8)

Fifty years ago (before Vatican II), Bl. Pope John XXIII wrote about St. John Vianney – recently brought to mind again by Pope Benedict XVI in this Year for Priests – and his model of chastity:

The ascetic way of life, by which priestly chastity is preserved, does not enclose the priest's soul within the sterile confines of his own interests, but rather it makes him more eager and ready to relieve the needs of his brethren. St. John Mary Vianney has this pertinent comment to make in this regard: "A soul adorned with the virtue of chastity cannot help loving others; for it has discovered the source and font of love—God." What great benefits are conferred on human society by men like this who are free of the cares of the world and totally dedicated to the divine ministry so that they can employ their lives, thoughts, powers in the interest of their brethren! How valuable to the Church are priests who are anxious to preserve perfect chastity!  (Sacerdotii Nostri Primordia 25)

Shortly after Vatican II, Pope Paul VI wrote an encyclical expressly on priestly celibacy.  First, he acknowledges that questions had been arising in his day about the discipline's purpose. (1-4)  Next he addresses the objections to this ancient discipline. (5-16)  Then he provides reasons for clerical celibacy (17-59), including an analysis of celibacy in the life of the Church (35-49) and a defense of celibacy as a human value which is not opposed to nature, but which is rather an effect of grace perfecting nature. (50-59)  Then the formation of priests with respect to celibacy is considered (60-99), addressing the priestly life (73-82), defections and dispensations from the law of celibacy (83-90), the fatherly role of the Bishop (91-95), and the role of the faithful. (96-97)

There is far too much material from his encyclical to cover in this post, but it is an excellent resource for the question of celibacy since it provides arguments against the discipline and then presents the Church's answers to those arguments. (Sacerdotalis Caelibatus)

Pope John Paul II, in a post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation, wrote about priestly celibacy in these words:

Referring to the evangelical counsels, the [Second Vatican] Council states that "preeminent among these counsels is that precious gift of divine grace given to some by the Father (cf. Mt. 19:11; 1 Cor. 7:7) in order more easily to devote themselves to God alone with an undivided heart (cf. 1 Cor. 7:32-34) in virginity or celibacy. This perfect continence for love of the kingdom of heaven has always been held in high esteem by the Church as a sign and stimulus of love, and as a singular source of spiritual fertility in the world." (Lumen Gentium 42) In virginity and celibacy, chastity retains its original meaning, that is, of human sexuality lived as a genuine sign of and precious service to the love of communion and gift of self to others. This meaning is fully found in virginity which makes evident, even in the renunciation of marriage, the "nuptial meaning" of the body through a communion and a personal gift to Jesus Christ and his Church which prefigures and anticipates the perfect and final communion and self-giving of the world to come: "In virginity or celibacy, the human being is awaiting, also in a bodily way, the eschatological marriage of Christ with the Church, giving himself or herself completely to the Church in the hope that Christ may give himself to the Church in the full truth of eternal life."

In this light one can more easily understand and appreciate the reasons behind the centuries-old choice which the Western Church has made and maintained - despite all the difficulties and objections raised down the centuries - of conferring the order of presbyter only on men who have given proof that they have been called by God to the gift of chastity in absolute and perpetual celibacy.

The synod fathers clearly and forcefully expressed their thought on this matter in an important proposal which deserves to be quoted here in full: "While in no way interfering with the discipline of the Oriental churches, the synod, in the conviction that perfect chastity in priestly celibacy is a charism, reminds priests that celibacy is a priceless gift of God for the Church and has a prophetic value for the world today. This synod strongly reaffirms what the Latin Church and some Oriental rites require that is, that the priesthood be conferred only on those men who have received from God the gift of the vocation to celibate chastity (without prejudice to the tradition of some Oriental churches and particular cases of married clergy who convert to Catholicism, which are admitted as exceptions in Pope Paul VI's encyclical on priestly celibacy, no. 42). The synod does not wish to leave any doubts in the mind of anyone regarding the Church's firm will to maintain the law that demands perpetual and freely chosen celibacy for present and future candidates for priestly ordination in the Latin rite. The synod would like to see celibacy presented and explained in the fullness of its biblical, theological and spiritual richness, as a precious gift given by God to his Church and as a sign of the kingdom which is not of this world - a sign of God's love for this world and of the undivided love of the priest for God and for God's people, with the result that celibacy is seen as a positive enrichment of the priesthood."

It is especially important that the priest understand the theological motivation of the Church's law on celibacy. Inasmuch as it is a law, it expresses the Church's will, even before the will of the subject expressed by his readiness. But the will of the Church finds its ultimate motivation in the link between celibacy and sacred ordination, which configures the priest to Jesus Christ the head and spouse of the Church. The Church, as the spouse of Jesus Christ, wishes to be loved by the priest in the total and exclusive manner in which Jesus Christ her head and spouse loved her. Priestly celibacy, then, is the gift of self in and with Christ to his Church and expresses the priest's service to the Church in and with the Lord.

For an adequate priestly spiritual life, celibacy ought not to be considered and lived as an isolated or purely negative element, but as one aspect of the positive, specific and characteristic approach to being a priest. Leaving father and mother, the priest follows Jesus the good shepherd in an apostolic communion, in the service of the People of God. Celibacy, then, is to be welcomed and continually renewed with a free and loving decision as a priceless gift from God, as an "incentive to pastoral charity " as a singular sharing in God's fatherhood and in the fruitfulness of the Church, and as a witness to the world of the eschatological kingdom. ... (Pastores Dabo Vobis 29)

And more recently, Pope Benedict XVI wrote about priestly celibacy in his post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Eucharist; he echoes Popes John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul II, as well as the Second Vatican Council:

The Synod Fathers wished to emphasize that the ministerial priesthood, through ordination, calls for complete configuration to Christ. While respecting the different practice and tradition of the Eastern Churches, there is a need to reaffirm the profound meaning of priestly celibacy, which is rightly considered a priceless treasure, and is also confirmed by the Eastern practice of choosing Bishops only from the ranks of the celibate. These Churches also greatly esteem the decision of many priests to embrace celibacy. This choice on the part of the priest expresses in a special way the dedication which conforms him to Christ and his exclusive offering of himself for the Kingdom of God. The fact that Christ himself, the eternal priest, lived his mission even to the sacrifice of the Cross in the state of virginity constitutes the sure point of reference for understanding the meaning of the tradition of the Latin Church. It is not sufficient to understand priestly celibacy in purely functional terms. Celibacy is really a special way of conforming oneself to Christ's own way of life. This choice has first and foremost a nuptial meaning; it is a profound identification with the heart of Christ the Bridegroom who gives his life for his Bride. In continuity with the great ecclesial tradition, with the Second Vatican Council and with my predecessors in the papacy, I reaffirm the beauty and the importance of a priestly life lived in celibacy as a sign expressing total and exclusive devotion to Christ, to the Church and to the Kingdom of God, and I therefore confirm that it remains obligatory in the Latin tradition. Priestly celibacy lived with maturity, joy and dedication is an immense blessing for the Church and for society itself. (Sacramentum Caritatis 24)

I hope these excerpts have helped you understand why the Catholic Church values celibacy in her priests.  I urge you to read Sacra Virginitas and Sacerdotalis Caelibatus.

Bl. John XXIII on St. John Vianney

Fifty years ago, Pope John XXIII wrote an encyclical about St. John Vianney.  Back in June, Pope Benedict XVI began the Year for Priests and drew attention to this priest-saint, whom he named the patron saint of all priests.

Bl. Pope John XXIII's encyclical was Sacerdotii Nostri Primordia, and I recommend it if you'd like a papal "biography" of St. John Vianney and an explanation of why he is such a model for priests.

May God Who has begun this good work in you...

... now bring it to fulfillment. (cf. Phil. 1:6)

This is the absolutely stunning New York City ordination video from Grassroots Films.

"As we praise God that these five men
– Anthony, Christopher, Vincent, Jacob, and Louis –

have so generously accepted the invitation from Jesus himself
to serve him and his Church as priests;

that their ordination is God's doing, not ours;
that this is a pure gift from God, not an earned trophy;

that His call trumps our curriculum vitae;
that His grace lifts up our nature. ...

You will have the very character of Christ, the High Priest,

the Good Shepherd, branded on your hearts as your very identity. ...

May God who has begun this good work in you now bring it to fulfillment."

— Archbishop Timothy Dolan

Vatican II and the Church that Jesus Founded: The Ministerial Priesthood

What did Vatican II teach about the Church which Jesus Christ founded? This series is meant to show what elements of the Church Vatican II teaches as being ordained by God rather than invented by man. This installment looks at the ministerial priesthood.


The office of Bishop was ordained by God
"For the nurturing and constant growth of the People of God, Christ the Lord instituted in His Church a variety of ministries, which work for the good of the whole body. For those ministers, who are endowed with sacred power, serve their brethren, so that all who are of the People of God, and therefore enjoy a true Christian dignity, working toward a common goal freely and in an orderly way, may arrive at salvation. This Sacred Council, following closely in the footsteps of the First Vatican Council, with that Council teaches and declares that Jesus Christ, the eternal Shepherd, established His holy Church, having sent forth the apostles as He Himself had been sent by the Father; and He willed that their successors, namely the bishops, should be shepherds in His Church even to the consummation of the world." (Lumen Gentium 18)

"Christ, whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world, has through His apostles, made their successors, the bishops, partakers of His consecration and His mission. They have legitimately handed on to different individuals in the Church various degrees of participation in this ministry. Thus the divinely established ecclesiastical ministry is exercised on different levels by those who from antiquity have been called bishops, priests and deacons." (Lumen Gentium 28)

"Since the apostolic office of bishops was instituted by Christ the Lord and pursues a spiritual and supernatural purpose, this sacred ecumenical synod declares that the right of nominating and appointing bishops belongs properly, peculiarly, and per se exclusively to the competent ecclesiastical authority." (Christus Dominus 20)


The office of Priest was ordained by God
"Thus the divinely established ecclesiastical ministry is exercised on different levels by those who from antiquity have been called bishops, priests and deacons." (Lumen Gentium 28)

"The same Lord, however, has established ministers among his faithful to unite them together in one body in which, 'not all the members have the same function'. ... Christ, through the apostles themselves, made their successors, the bishops, sharers in his consecration and mission. The office of their ministry has been handed down, in a lesser degree indeed, to the priests. Established in the order of the priesthood they can be co-workers of the episcopal order for the proper fulfillment of the apostolic mission entrusted to priests by Christ." (Presbyterorum Ordinis 2)

"God, who alone is holy and who alone bestows holiness, willed to take as his companions and helpers men who would humbly dedicate themselves to the work of sanctification. Hence, through the ministry of the bishop, God consecrates priests, that being made sharers by special title in the priesthood of Christ, they might act as his ministers in performing sacred functions." (Presbyterorum Ordinis 5)


The office of Deacon was ordained by God
"For the nurturing and constant growth of the People of God, Christ the Lord instituted in His Church a variety of ministries, which work for the good of the whole body. For those ministers, who are endowed with sacred power, serve their brethren, so that all who are of the People of God, and therefore enjoy a true Christian dignity, working toward a common goal freely and in an orderly way, may arrive at salvation." (Lumen Gentium 18)

"Thus the divinely established ecclesiastical ministry is exercised on different levels by those who from antiquity have been called bishops, priests and deacons." (Lumen Gentium 28)


Men are called to the Priesthood by God
"The effective union of the whole people of God in fostering vocations is the proper response to the action of Divine Providence which confers the fitting gifts on those men divinely chosen to participate in the hierarchical priesthood of Christ and helps them by His grace." (Optatam Totius 2)

Reading List for the Year for Priests

My suggestion is to start at the bottom of this list and work your way up.

Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus - Year for Priests

God shows His love for us through the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The Vatican has assembled homilies, letters, and addresses of Pope Benedict XVI to and about priests. Lots of reading!

Update (June 20th): More web sites:

Annus Sacerdotalis (English)
WorldPriest
Catholic University of America's Year for Priests web site

The Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Baptismal Priesthood

Pope Pius XI wrote an encyclical on reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus entitled Miserentissimus Redemptor ("[Our] Most Merciful Redeemer") back in 1928. In the middle of this encyclical, His Holiness wrote about the participation of the Church in the holy sacrifice of the Eucharist in the Mass. He spoke of both the ministerial priesthood and the baptismal priesthood!

9. But no created power was sufficient to expiate the sins of men, if the Son of God had not assumed man's nature in order to redeem it. This, indeed, the Savior of men Himself declared by the mouth of the sacred Psalmist: "Sacrifice and oblation thou wouldest not: but a body thou hast fitted to me: Holocausts for sin did not please thee: then said I: Behold I come" (Heb 10:5-7). And in very deed, "Surely He hath borne our infirmities, and carried our sorrows... He was wounded for our iniquities (Isa 53:4-5), and He His own self bore our sins in His body upon the tree... (1 Pet 2:24), "Blotting out the handwriting of the decree that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken the same out of the way, fastening it to the cross..." (Col 2:14) "that we being dead to sins, should live to justice" (1 Pet 2:24).

Yet, though the copious redemption of Christ has abundantly forgiven us all offenses (Cf. Col 2:13), nevertheless, because of that wondrous divine dispensation whereby those things that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ are to be filled up in our flesh for His body which is the Church (Cf. Col 1:24), to the praises and satisfactions, "which Christ in the name of sinners rendered unto God" we can also add our praises and satisfactions, and indeed it behoves us so to do. But we must ever remember that the whole virtue of the expiation depends on the one bloody sacrifice of Christ, which without intermission of time is renewed on our altars in an unbloody manner, "For the victim is one and the same, the same now offering by the ministry of priests, who then offered Himself on the cross, the manner alone of offering being different" (Council of Trent, Session XXIII, Chapter 2).

Wherefore with this most august Eucharistic Sacrifice there ought to be joined an oblation both of the ministers and of all the faithful, so that they also may "present themselves living sacrifices, holy, pleasing unto God" (Rom 12:1). Nay more, St. Cyprian does not hesitate to affirm that "the Lord's sacrifice is not celebrated with legitimate sanctification, unless our oblation and sacrifice correspond to His passion" (Ephesians 63). For this reason, the Apostle admonishes us that "bearing about in our body the mortification of Jesus" (2 Cor 4:10), and buried together with Christ, and planted together in the likeness of His death (Cf. Rom 6:4-5), we must not only crucify our flesh with the vices and concupiscences (Cf. Gal 5:24), "flying the corruption of that concupiscence which is in the world" (2 Pet 1:4), but "that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodies" (2 Cor 4:10) and being made partakers of His eternal priesthood we are to offer up "gifts and sacrifices for sins" (Heb 5:1).

Nor do those only enjoy a participation in this mystic priesthood and in the office of satisfying and sacrificing, whom our Pontiff Christ Jesus uses as His ministers to offer up the clean oblation to God's Name in every place from the rising of the sun to the going down (Mal 1:11), but the whole Christian people rightly called by the Prince of the Apostles "a chosen generation, a kingly priesthood" (1 Pet 2:9), ought to offer for sins both for itself and for all mankind (Cf. Heb 5:3), in much the same manner as every priest and pontiff "taken from among men, is ordained for men in the things that appertain to God" (Heb 5:1).

June 19 - Year for Priests

Starting on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (June 19), the Church will celebrate a "Year for Priests". This year will be devoted to the promotion of priestly vocations, prayer for those who are either already priests or are in seminary (through the intercession of St. John Vianney, the Universal Patron of Priests), and holding special events (whether liturgies, retreats, conferences, etc.) for the education, edification, and sanctification of all God's people (especially through their priests).

The USCCB has a web site specifically for this Year for Priests. There are indulgences associated with this year which you should strongly consider making use of.

Prayer and Congratulations

Please pray for (and congratulate) my brother, Fr. Charlie, who will be celebrating the 17th anniversary of his ordination this Saturday. He's a wonderful priest, a great pastor (as far as I know), an excellent preacher, and a decent older brother. ;)

Thanks be to God!

Statement from Fr. Cutié's (former) Archbishop

Here is a strong pastoral statement from Archbishop Favalora of Miami, Florida.

STATEMENT
from John C. Favalora, Archbishop of Miami, about
Father Alberto Cutié's separation from the Roman Catholic Church.

Miami • May 28, 2009

I am genuinely disappointed by the announcement made earlier this afternoon by Father Alberto Cutié that he is joining the Episcopal Church.

According to our canon law, with this very act Father Cutié is separating himself from the communion of the Roman Catholic Church (c. 1364, §1) by professing erroneous faith and morals, and refusing submission to the Holy Father (canon 751). He also is irregular for the exercise of sacred orders as a priest (canons 1041 and 1044, §1) and no longer has the faculties of the Archdiocese of Miami to celebrate the sacraments; nor may he preach or teach on Catholic faith and morals (cannon 1336, §1). His actions could lead to his dismissal from the clerical state.

This means that Father Cutié is removing himself from full communion with the Catholic Church and thereby forfeiting his rights as a cleric. Roman Catholics should not request the sacraments from Father Cuité. Any sacramental actions he attempts to perform would be illicit. Any Mass he says would be valid but illicit, meaning it does not meet a Catholic’s obligation. Father Cutié cannot validly officiate at marriages of Roman Catholics in the Archdiocese of Miami or anywhere.

Father Cutié is still bound by his promise to live a celibate life, which he freely embraced at ordination. Only the Holy Father can release him from that obligation.

To the Catholic faithful of Saint Francis de Sales Parish, Radio Paz and the entire Archdiocese of Miami, I again say that Father Cutié’s actions cannot be justified, despite his good works as a priest (statement of May 5, 2009). This is all the more true in light of today’s announcement. Father Cutié may have abandoned the Catholic Church; he may have abandoned you. But I tell you that the Catholic Church will never abandon you; the Archdiocese of Miami is here for you.

Father Cutié’s actions have caused grave scandal within the Catholic Church, harmed the Archdiocese of Miami − especially our priests – and led to division within the ecumenical community and the community at large. Today’s announcement only deepens those wounds.

When Father Cutié met with me on May 5th, he requested and I granted a leave of absence from the exercise of the priesthood. Because of this, he could no longer be the administrator of St Francis de Sales Parish or the General Director of Radio Paz. For the good of the Church and to avoid the media frenzy, I chose not to impose publicly an ecclesiastical penalty, although his admitted actions clearly warranted it. Since that meeting, I have not heard from Father Cutié nor has he requested to meet with me. He has never told me that he was considering joining the Episcopal Church.

I must also express my sincere disappointment with how Bishop Leo Frade of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida has handled this situation. Bishop Frade has never spoken to me about his position on this delicate matter or what actions he was contemplating. I have only heard from him through the local media. This truly is a serious setback for ecumenical relations and cooperation between us. The Archdiocese of Miami has never made a public display when for doctrinal reasons Episcopal priests have joined the Catholic Church and sought ordination. In fact, to do so would violate the principles of the Catholic Church governing ecumenical relations. I regret that Bishop Frade has not afforded me or the Catholic community the same courtesy and respect.

In my nearly 50 years as a priest, I have often preached on Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son – which really should be called the parable of the Forgiving Father (Luke 15, 11-32). Perhaps the story told by the Lord so long ago is applicable to our discussions this afternoon.

A father had two sons. One of them took his inheritance early and left home, spending his money wantonly. The father waited patiently for the return of his prodigal son, who after he had seen the error of his ways, repented and returned home. Upon his return, the father lovingly embraced him and called him his son. I pray that Father Cutié will “come to his senses” (Luke 15, 17) and return home. The Catholic Church seeks the conversion and salvation of sinners, not their condemnation. The same is my attitude toward Father Cutié.

We must not forget, however, that there were two sons in the Lord’s story. The other son, who never left home, was angry that his erring brother was welcomed home by the father. To all faithful Catholics, I say what the father said to this second son: “You are with me always and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice. This brother of yours was dead and has come back to life. He was lost, and is found” (Luke 15, 31-32).

In this beautiful parable Jesus teaches us that God is a loving and forgiving Father. Each of us has experienced that love, each of us needs that forgiveness; for we are all sinners. If our brother comes home, let us celebrate with the Father.

In conclusion, I commend and salute the priests of the Archdiocese of Miami and all priests who faithfully live and fulfill their promise of celibacy. By their fidelity to their promise they reflect more clearly to the world the Christ whose total gift of himself to the Father was pure and chaste love for his brothers and sisters. In our times so pre-occupied with sex, the gift of celibacy is all the more a sign of the Kingdom of Heaven where, as scripture says, there will be “no marrying or giving in marriage” (Matthew 22, 30). I encourage all Catholics to pray for and support our dedicated priests.

Most Reverend John C. Favalora
Archbishop of Miami

Bad reaction to Fr. Cutié's defection to the Episcopal communion

On the Catholic Answers Forum, there are some rather disgusting comments being made about Fr. Cutié's decision to leave the Catholic Church to join the Episcopal communion and marry his girlfriend.

• "It's sad that he lied and made the choices he did but I say good riddens."
• "Yeah yeah, whatever.....just go..."
• "Well, I hate to say it, but the Protestant churches have been our trash receptacle for 400 years now. I'm grateful that the Church can remain pure in its teachings, even when men who claim to be of God are incapable of remaining pure... It's a shame for the good and solid Christians in the Protestant churches, that they have to take our weakest members and we get their strongest as converts, but there it is."
• "Who else walked out on the Last Supper?....I am not impressed"
• "Well good ridden! The Church has purified itself of 1 less bad apple."

Typos aside, this sampling (which is NOT indicative of the whole response) is not concerned for his soul or his well-being. You'd think there wasn't a sin among these people!

This is an issue about more than just clerical celibacy. Obedience, celibacy, chastity, scandal... there's a lot going on here.

More about this morning.

Reading the Documents of Vatican II

I read the Decree on Priestly Formation (Optatam Totius) this afternoon. It's one of the shorter documents. I'll post some comments on it later (updating this post). It was a rather enlightening.

Year of the Priesthood

Grabbing the heel of the Year of St. Paul will be the Year of Priesthood, as called for by Pope Benedict XVI back in March. Here are some highlights from a letter from the Prefect for the Congregation for the Clergy, Cláudio Cardinal Hummes.

... with this special year it is intended “to encourage priests in this striving for spiritual perfection on which, above all, the effectiveness of their ministry depends”. For this reason it must be, in a very special way, a year of prayer by priests, with priests and for priests, a year for the renewal of the spirituality of the presbyterate and of each priest. The Eucharist is, in this perspective, at the heart of priestly spirituality. Thus Eucharistic adoration for the sanctification of priests and the spiritual motherhood of religious women, consecrated and lay women towards priests, as previously proposed some time ago by the Congregation for the Clergy, could be further developed and would certainly bear the fruit of sanctification.

...

May it be a year as well of religious and of public celebration which will bring the people – the local Catholic community – to pray, to reflect, to celebrate, and justly to give honour to their priests.

Read the whole thing!

From Pope John Paul II's last Holy Thursday letter

"Mysterium fidei!" Every time he proclaims these words after consecrating the bread and wine, the priest expresses his ever-renewed amazement at the extraordinary miracle worked at his hands. It is a miracle which only the eyes of faith can perceive. The natural elements do not lose their external characteristics, since the "species" remain those of bread and wine; but their "substance", through the power of Christ's word and the action of the Holy Spirit, is changed into the substance of the body and blood of Christ. On the altar, then, Christ crucified and risen is "truly, really and substantially" present in the fullness of his humanity and divinity. What an eminently sacred reality! That is why the Church treats this mystery with such great reverence, and takes such care to ensure the observance of the liturgical norms intended to safeguard the sanctity of so great a sacrament. (Letter to Priests for Holy Thursday 2005, 6)

Excellent video about the priesthood

This is a great video about the priesthood. This is the sort of message that needs to get out to the young men in the Church today!

Click here to view it.

Fr. Corapi on supporting the priesthood

I am listening (well, watching without watching) Fr. Corapi on EWTN this afternoon, and he had something to say about the great need the Church has to support her priests. He compares it to Exodus 17:8-13, in which Israel fought the Amalekites:

Then came Amalek and fought with Israel at Rephidim. And Moses said to Joshua, "Choose for us men, and go out, fight with Amalek; tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand." So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat upon it, and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

Our priests get tired! Our priests feel like quitting from time to time. They need our support, and they need to know they're getting it. Find a way to support your priests and the Church will prevail.

1967 Address of Paul VI to altar servers

Here is an address that Pope Paul VI gave in March of 1967 to a pilgrimage of (male) altar servers from across Europe to Rome. I just read it this evening, and I think it's rather timely and appropriate.

Dear sons, in your beautiful white albs you present us with a splendid sight that is a joy to our eyes and our heart. We are happy to address a few words to you, in response to the request expressed in your name by your friend and protector in Rome, the Cardinal Archpriest of St. Peters.

His words introducing you to us suggest the thought that the whiteness of your vestments is a reflection of the whiteness of your souls. Your contact with the altar sustains and develops in your souls faith, devotion, purity, and all the other virtues that are pleasing to God.

You will remember the young man in the gospel who had faithfully cultivated those same virtues since childhood. The evangelist tells us that Jesus looked up him with love: Iesus, intuitus eum, dilexit eum, "Looking on him, Jesus loved him." (Mark 10:21)

We believe that we see the Savior's look also resting upon each one of you with special favor. Are you not the ones who come so very near to him as you serve at the altar? Is it then surprising that his call to an even greater nearness to him should at some time -- as has just been said to us -- sound in the hearts of some of you?

Dear sons, the charge that we wish to commit to you consists in two points: be faithful to carry out in exemplary fashion the liturgical functions assigned to you; listen to the voice of Christ if he graciously calls you to follow him more closely.

To be faithful: that is a whole program for life. As you know the word "faithfulness" includes the word "faith". To revivify that faith at the tombs of the Apostles is the reason you have come to Rome. In that faith St. Paul summarized his whole life as an apostle when he came to the end of his earthly life: fidem servavi, "I have kept the faith," he said to his disciple Timothy. (2 Timothy 4:7) I have been faithful to God, to Christ, to the Church. I have been faithful to my calling, to the ministry entrusted to me. May such a faithfulness be yours and may it be particularly true of those concerns involved in your functions as servers at the altar.

You might at times think that the liturgy is made up of a lot of minor details: posture, genuflections, bows, handling the censer, missal, cruets, etc. It is then that you must remember the words of Christ in the gospel: "He that is faithful in the smallest things is faithful also in the great." (Luke 16:10) Moreover, in the liturgy nothing is little, when we realize the greatness of the one to whom it is directed.

Therefore, dear sons, be outstanding in faithfulness toward carrying out your sacred functions. To that devote your attention, all your heart, and all your love.

Next, listen to the divine call. We will share with you one of our worries. In the face of the vastness of the task of evangelization that the modern world sets before us, we often put the question to ourself: How are we going to find enough priests, enough religious to meet this need? Does it not seem as though God is calling in vain -- that today's young people have no wish to hear him; that they no longer have the taste for God, the response to the ideal, the attraction toward sacrifice?

Dear sons, a good number of those older than you have resoundingly repudiated such fears. May it come true that a great many of you also will follow in their footsteps! Be on your guard against letting the voice that calls you go unheard and unanswered. Pray ardently that from among your ranks Christ may choose many to carry on his priesthood.

(Documents on the Liturgy 338, paragraphs 2919-2920)

Paul as explained by Peter

Fr. Peter Cameron, O.P., that is. Fr. Cameron, as you may know, is the editor of Magnificat, a monthly spiritual guide for Catholics. He came to my parish this evening to say Holy Mass for us (which I regrettably missed) and to give a presentation on how St. Paul learned to pray the Our Father. Being the guy I am, I took copious notes (3+ pages worth), and I'll provide them here in a couple days. For now, though, I just want to make a few comments:

While I missed Mass (I had a late dinner and was finishing a Jolly Rancher as I pulled into the parking lot, anyway), I arrived just in time for the Agnus Dei. After it was done, I entered the nave and knelt behind the last pew as he held aloft the Lamb of God. After he had consumed the Host, it was a blessing to see the reverence with which he collected the particles from the paten into the Chalice. Once the congregation arose to receive Communion, I arose and went downstairs (to the parish hall, where the presentation would be).

I love the witness which priests and religious give by their very attire. Wearing his white habit with deluxe over-sized Rosary ;) is like walking with a cross on one's back, hunched over not in shame but in humility, not in pride but boasting in our Lord. Branson, a candidate in the RCIA program (for whom I am sponsor) asked me about the enormous wooden Rosary around his waist. The answer I gave -- and if I'm wrong about this, someone, please correct me! -- was threefold. First, it is a visible sign to others of his faith. Second, it is a visible reminder to himself of his faith. Third, it is a more traditional and historical form of the Rosary, since the original prayer "beads" were actually knotted ropes of considerable size.

His presentation was phenomenal, and not only did I take notes on his content, I also have some points on his demeanor and candor. I'm giving a presentation this Advent on Eucharistic Adoration and its link to the Incarnation (and how Mary is our guide in Adoration... hmm, a magnificat link is there...), so knowing how to give a presentation from paper without sounding like I'm just reading an essay out loud is important. (If anyone reading has advice in this regard, I will be eternally grateful, God-willing.)

There were a few things he said -- so casually! -- that pass as something of a Shibboleth in my book. Once such thing was when he recalled the recent instruction from the Holy Father (by way of the CDWDS and the CDF) which directs us to refrain from pronouncing the tetragrammaton (YHWH, usually pronounced "Yahweh") in the liturgy. Although I've seen that instruction, and I know Bishop Serratelli has (and thus, I would hope, all the Bishops in the USCCB), I do not know how many priests have had this latest prudential decision of the Church passed on to them. It's refreshing to hear it.

My growing Scriptural awareness, my fledgling fascination with Latin, and my steady diet of Church documents came in handy. He asked a few questions throughout his talk, some of which I was able to answer. What is the etymology of "companion", he asked? Com = "with", panion > pan = "bread", said I. Is being Christian the result of an ethical choice, he asked? Prompting us to recall the first paragraph of the Holy Father's Deus Caritas est, I recalled that His Holiness wrote that being Christian is the result of an encounter with a Person, Jesus Christ. It's more than that, even: "Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction." And among others, when he asked about Jesus repeating someone's name ("Saul, Saul...", Acts 9), I proffered "Martha, Martha" (from Luke 10:38ff); he responded with an anecdote concerning the manner in which Jesus might have said that name once, and then a second time: "Martha..." -- no response -- "MARTHA!"

Finally, Fr. Cameron is very personable, not like a celebrity or performer, but in a genuine way which cannot be rehearsed -- at least, I haven't been able to rehearse it successfully -- and is most certainly the result of grace. I know some priests who have this personable quality about them -- and not sound biased, but my brother and my pastor are two of them -- and God is truly glorified by their conduct both within and without the liturgy.

Stay tuned for my notes on the presentation. Things fell so beautifully into place.