A "radical" priest?

[ozmatt]

I’m a little anxious…

See, I’m quite certain that my vocation is to consecrated religious life as either a priest or teaching brother. I love the Church and can’t wait to serve the Lord and His people!

But my views do not currently correlate 100% with the explicit teachings of the Church, or the beliefs held by some Catholics. These disagreements aren’t over major dogma, but generally over relatively minor things like SSA and evolution. I pray for the Lord’s grace that I might come to appreciate canon law and the Catechism, but sometimes I wonder if I’m just paying lip service and actually want to be a force of change in the Church.

think I’d be fairly radical: I don’t think the Church is perfect (despite being the closest thing to perfect on earth) and believe God has blessed me with the insights and talents to help Mother Church grow towards his desire for his Body on earth.

What do you guys think? Should I enter the seminary if I disagree on a few issues? Am I unfit to spread the Good News? Would God inspire a call in someone if that person desired change and growth for the Church?

 

[Leopard]

…These disagreements aren’t over major dogma, but generally over relatively minor things like SSA…

What do you mean? If you believe homosexual activity is not objectively gravely immoral this is not a minor thing. By all means, continue to discern your vocation, but be bluntly candid with your vocation director concerning any areas where you do not believe as the Church does.

 

[Petergee]

I’m sure priests and teaching brothers like all Catholics have doubts sometimes about some teachings. We need to pray “Lord I believe! Help my unbelief!” and to study and meditate on these matters with a mind open to Christ and His Church’s teachings.

This is not an impediment to being a priest or a teaching brother. However you need to realise that if you are preaching as a Catholic priest or teaching as a Catholic teacher (religious or lay) then everything you say must be in conformity with the Church’s doctrines, regardless of any private doubts you may have about some issues.

And no “dissent by omission” either. You must preach the whole truth and the whole Gospel, not deliberately omitting any major doctrine. (Like some priests who have managed to avoid mentioning contraception for 30 years.)

 

[Timmay]

Hey there,

My first piece of advice to you is to find a good spiritual director if you don’t already have one. Be totally honest with him on where you stand on your beliefs. Open your mind and your heart to what he has to say and work with him on your spiritual growth. Asking around on these forums is great, but it’s no substitute to a one-on-one with a good, solid priest who can get to know you and guide you much better than us. That being said…

My initial reaction is I’m curious as to what it is you say you disagree with. Without knowing more details about what that is and to what level you disagree, it’s hard to really point you in any direction. For example, you say evolution is one of the things you disagree with. However, the Church has no official stance on whether life evolved over time or was created in 6 days. And with SSA, you don’t really say what you disagree with.

I’m more concerned that you say you want to be a force of change in the Church. There are a number of different ways that can be taken… I’m always a little leary of someone stepping into an organization with the intent to change things. As a Priest, you’re stepping in to a 2,000 year old institution that spans the globe and has 1.2 billion members. There are some things that cannot change–doctrines and truths. There are some things that can and do change, but it happens slowly–theories, styles and practices. Yes, you’ll find many things throughout a career in ministry that need to be updated, but you find those as you go. To walk in with an immediate plan to make big changes, it’s almost as if you’re saying you know better than everyone else, and know better than the Church. That’s a dangerous mindset, and one that too many people, both conservative and liberal, fall into.

So, unfortunately I’m not much help at the moment. If you have any questions, though, feel free to post here or PM me.

Take care.

 

[Sheeniac]

think I’d be fairly radical: I don’t think the Church is perfect (despite being the closest thing to perfect on earth) and believe God has blessed me with the insights and talents to help Mother Church grow towards his desire for his Body on earth.

What do you guys think? Should I enter the seminary if I disagree on a few issues? Am I unfit to spread the Good News? Would God inspire a call in someone if that person desired change and growth for the Church?

Oh my… the priest is there to serve the Church and her people. Think of Christ washing the feet of his disciples. I would say that, based on your words, your motivations are not in tune with what most people expect.

What I want from the Church and Her priests is the continuity of preaching the Truth. As He grows in us, we die to ourselves. Do you see that in yourself?

 

[m134e5]

I’m a little anxious…

See, I’m quite certain that my vocation is to consecrated religious life as either a priest or teaching brother. I love the Church and can’t wait to serve the Lord and His people!

But my views do not currently correlate 100% with the explicit teachings of the Church, or the beliefs held by some Catholics. These disagreements aren’t over major dogma, but generally over relatively minor things like SSA and evolution. I pray for the Lord’s grace that I might come to appreciate canon law and the Catechism, but sometimes I wonder if I’m just paying lip service and actually want to be a force of change in the Church.

I don’t think there is anything definitive on evolution…

As for SSA (Same-Sex Attraction), I’m going to be blunt here- homosexual activity is a mortal sin. The gay culture is sick. It is full of narcissism, deceit, selfishness, jealousy, hatred, bitterness, lust, self-pity, and many other flaws- and it glorifies them to the maximum. I have watched married men leave their wives and children, and be welcomed into the gay world with open arms- “because they are finally embracing who they are”. I have seen their anger and bitterness- it runs very deep in their world. There are often very deep emotional wounds in homosexuals. Encouraging them to go further into the gay world only makes things worse- they mask their pain with drugs and sex and self-pity. Their ideals of masculinity and femininity are a detriment to society.

think I’d be fairly radical: I don’t think the Church is perfect (despite being the closest thing to perfect on earth) and believe God has blessed me with the insights and talents to help Mother Church grow towards his desire for his Body on earth.

What do you guys think? Should I enter the seminary if I disagree on a few issues?

Maybe…pray that God would guide you to the truth. Trust that the Church, with it’s 2000 years of knowledge, doesn’t hold onto doctrines out of mere stubbornness. Pray for wisdom and guidance.

Am I unfit to spread the Good News?

Not unfit…

Would God inspire a call in someone if that person desired change and growth for the Church?

If He did (and He likely would) I would expect he would also call them to humility and acceptance of the Church’s teachings.

There is an extreme shortage of faithful, humble, reverent, and pious priests who truly honor and cherish their bride- the Church. There is no shortage of priests who are anything but that.

 

[CatholicMC]

Be radical for Christ, not for culture.

 

[Pious_Mat]

Yours sound like the words of a young man, and from one young discerning man to another, let me say that there is no need to rush into your vocation. There’s lots of time to read, to learn, and to grow in faith. Also, embracing the Catholic faith as your own is kind of like a Marriage. You can’t marry a girl and refuse to acknowledge certain aspects of her, and certainly shouldn’t love her any less because of those. You accept the whole person, part and parcel. The same goes with the Church–when you accept the Church, you accept the whole thing. Now, there are some things I don’t understand about it, and I bet you too don’t comprehend everything. Neither does the Pope. Thankfully, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us.

Best advice (and I’m surprised no one has mentioned it yet) frequent Mass, frequent confession, and as much time before the blessed sacrament as possible. Read good Catholic writers like Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict), Scott Hahn, Benedict Groeschel, Tim Staples, etc. If you are looking for some good Catholic books, just check out the CA store–I’m sure that they must have some good books, and anything they have there is definitely a good source.