As Year for Priests nears close, pope says priests must be shepherds

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As Year for Priests nears close, pope says priests must be shepherds

Pope Benedict XVI acknowledges pilgrims during his general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican May 26. (CNS/Paul Haring)

By Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – As the Year for Priests draws to a close, Pope Benedict XVI said a priest’s foremost role is to be a shepherd to his flock, and he asked the faithful to support their priests in their task of bringing people closer to God.

At his regular weekly audience in St. Peter’s Square May 26, the pope said priests should follow Jesus, who he called the “supreme shepherd of souls,” in their mission to “take care of the people of God, be teachers of the faith, animating and sustaining the community of Christians.”

The pope quoted St. Augustine in pointing out that “it is a labor of love to graze the flocks of the Lord,” and that love should act as the “supreme guide in conduct for the ministers of God.”

By following this guide, the pope said, a priest should show “unconditional love, be full of joy and open to all; be attentive to those around him, gentle to children, to the weak and to the simple; and show the infinite mercy of God with encouraging words of hope.”

Because of the world wars and the rise of dictatorial leaders in Europe in the last century, the pope said, many people today still have a deep mistrust of authority of all types. The church, he said, is called to offer an authority based on service, “not in its own right but in the name of Jesus, who in the name of the Father received all authority in heaven and on earth.”

As Year for Priests nears close, pope says priests must be shepherds

catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1002185.htm
 
Soutane said:
As Year for Priests nears close, pope says priests must be shepherds

Pope Benedict XVI acknowledges pilgrims during his general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican May 26. (CNS/Paul Haring)

By Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – As the Year for Priests draws to a close, Pope Benedict XVI said a priest’s foremost role is to be a shepherd to his flock, and he asked the faithful to support their priests in their task of bringing people closer to God.

At his regular weekly audience in St. Peter’s Square May 26, the pope said priests should follow Jesus, who he called the “supreme shepherd of souls,” in their mission to “take care of the people of God, be teachers of the faith, animating and sustaining the community of Christians.”

The pope quoted St. Augustine in pointing out that “it is a labor of love to graze the flocks of the Lord,” and that love should act as the “supreme guide in conduct for the ministers of God.”

By following this guide, the pope said, a priest should show “unconditional love, be full of joy and open to all; be attentive to those around him, gentle to children, to the weak and to the simple; and show the infinite mercy of God with encouraging words of hope.”

Because of the world wars and the rise of dictatorial leaders in Europe in the last century, the pope said, many people today still have a deep mistrust of authority of all types. The church, he said, is called to offer an authority based on service, “not in its own right but in the name of Jesus, who in the name of the Father received all authority in heaven and on earth.”

As Year for Priests nears close, pope says priests must be shepherds

catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1002185.htm
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Very good article, and he’s so spot on with the urgent need for this to happen. We have too many that have forgotten it, have opted to simply be administrators and forgot their primary roll as Shepard. He will know his sheep by name, and they will know him, he will leave the flock to recover the one that stray’s. Our roll is to help support our priests, knowing they need us to be there for them, we also need them for us as well. We tend to have a very distant relationship with our priests these days, it’s a simple gesture at best to shake ones hand after church, but it never seems to go much farther then that at all. It wasn’t always that way, but seems it’s the norm now.
 
prodigalson12 said:
Very good article, and he’s so spot on with the urgent need for this to happen. We have too many that have forgotten it, have opted to simply be administrators and forgot their primary roll as Shepard. He will know his sheep by name, and they will know him, he will leave the flock to recover the one that stray’s. Our roll is to help support our priests, knowing they need us to be there for them, we also need them for us as well. We tend to have a very distant relationship with our priests these days, it’s a simple gesture at best to shake ones hand after church, but it never seems to go much farther then that at all. It wasn’t always that way, but seems it’s the norm now.
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A very good article indeed, and one that needs to be heard.

With regards to your last couple of sentences, it’s all too sadly evident. One has to be very careful about being around priests (especially if you happen to be female). There’s always someone in the parish who will either get jealous or start spreading gossip. Priests have to be on their guard and keep their distance, particularly in the light of the abuse scandals. It takes only one accusation to yank a priest out of a parish and to be forbidden to exercise his ministry.
 
Well–I can say my priest definetly does that! I would consider him my shepard. I have just come back to the Church–in a large part due to our priest! He has shown the love of Christ and has given me so much hope 👍 I’m so glad that he gets to be in Rome during the close of the year of the priests.:extrahappy:
 
A great message indeed - I’m blessed to have known many great shepherds of the Church!
 
This vigil Saturday or Sunday after mass let us tell our priests how grateful we are to them and tell them that we love them.
 
i think we need to take an inventory on this year for priests. do you know of any priest that have changed since this begun?
 
you or “it”?If that’s the way you feel then may I suggest Rosaries.Many,many,Rosaries.
 
I told my the my old parish priest that I was homeless, he looked at me indifferently and went on his way, not a word about it. I told the Archbishop who happened to be attending mass at our parish that Sunday that I was thinking of joining the ranks of priesthood, same response there. This was not that long ago at all folks. I open up scripture to a random page right afterwards, it reference Jesus talking about the Good shepherd, Kind of God talking to me on it, don’t you think.

I feel our good Pope knows we have problems and is trying to address them, he’s spot on with that statement.
 
prodigalson12 said:
I told my the my old parish priest that I was homeless, he looked at me indifferently and went on his way, not a word about it. I told the Archbishop who happened to be attending mass at our parish that Sunday that I was thinking of joining the ranks of priesthood, same response there. This was not that long ago at all folks. I open up scripture to a random page right afterwards, it reference Jesus talking about the Good shepherd, Kind of God talking to me on it, don’t you think.

I feel our good Pope knows we have problems and is trying to address them, he’s spot on with that statement.
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I just wrote a long true story about my priest and it disappeared.Take heart there are wonderfukl priests in this world and not pharisees like the ones you described.I will pray for you brother.
 
Soutane said:
I just wrote a long true story about my priest and it disappeared.Take heart there are wonderfukl priests in this world and not pharisees like the ones you described.I will pray for you brother.
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I have fond memories of a very wonderful one, he had rough edges, but a very strong presence, his leadership made a huge impact on me since I was a small child. The auxillary biship that confirmed me, also a very good man, and a visiting priest when I was in Tacoma impressed me very well, felt like I was in the presence of an apostle.

You have to work within their TOS here, speaking badly about any priest, you tend to have your posts deleted or you get banned…So, I just speak of my experiences plainly and let the reader discern from there.
 
prodigalson12 said:
I told my the my old parish priest that I was homeless, he looked at me indifferently and went on his way, not a word about it. I told the Archbishop who happened to be attending mass at our parish that Sunday that I was thinking of joining the ranks of priesthood, same response there. This was not that long ago at all folks. I open up scripture to a random page right afterwards, it reference Jesus talking about the Good shepherd, Kind of God talking to me on it, don’t you think.

I feel our good Pope knows we have problems and is trying to address them, he’s spot on with that statement.
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Go to another parish-they don’t deserve you.Whatever you do for the" least of you, you do for me".
A little story-my parish priest was going to Toronto to visit friends,go to the museum,see a play etc.He parked his car in the underground parking space at city hall.Father was dressed in jeans and a tshirt.There was a poor man lying in the stairwell and as Father attempted to go around him the decrepit man said,“you’re a priest aren’t you”?Father looked like any other civilian.He realised at once that God was reminding him that he TRULY was a priest.He reached into his pocket and gave the man every cent he had-approximately $400.00 got back into his car and drove home 80 miles.Now that is a priest who illuminated the face of Christ to that man.How did he know that Father was a priest I’m convinced that the man was an angel sent by God to remind this Saintly priest that he truly acts in personae Christi.This priest would NEVER turn you away and there are hundreds of thousands just like him.God BLess You,Brother,I and my son will pray for you.
 
Soutane said:
Go to another parish-they don’t deserve you.Whatever you do for the" least of you, you do for me".
A little story-my parish priest was going to Toronto to visit friends,go to the museum,see a play etc.He parked his car in the underground parking space at city hall.Father was dressed in jeans and a tshirt.There was a poor man lying in the stairwell and as Father attempted to go around him the decrepit man said,“you’re a priest aren’t you”?Father looked like any other civilian.He realised at once that God was reminding him that he TRULY was a priest.He reached into his pocket and gave the man every cent he had-approximately $400.00 got back into his car and drove home 80 miles.Now that is a priest who illuminated the face of Christ to that man.How did he know that Father was a priest I’m convinced that the man was an angel sent by God to remind this Saintly priest that he truly acts in personae Christi.This priest would NEVER turn you away and there are hundreds of thousands just like him.God BLess You,Brother,I and my son will pray for you.
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One of the reasons I always keep an extra Miraculas Medal on hand, when I encounter beggars, I give them one and tell them to always keep it with them, I don’t explain to them what for, none have ever refused it, and it’s my way of picking out these lowly ones for our blessed Mother to help out, for they are truly the ones in most need of our help. I offer what I can, but often, that’s all that I have to offer, and feel it’s far better then any gold I can give them.

That story is truly inspiring of your’s, and yes, very spot on with the OP, our priests are supposed to be just like Christ himself, do their best to emulate him.

New parish, sadly wish was far better, it is, but not much along the priest element, yet our Father and his son are very, very much there, and I am at the parish now I belong for now. Some very amazing things have happened to reinforce this. I would have to go to another part of the country or world to find an exact fit to me, yet I guess, it’s not about that any more, I have to be the one that leads through example and speak out, even if it’s going against the grain, yet at the same time, I have a very good bible fellowship with them weekly, so it makes up for it big time!!!
 
Also, these priests that are either burnt out, going through the motions, or have some spritual growth that needs to be addressed, know full, well, being a priest automatically means being attacked on higher levels then us laymen experience, pray to strengthen them and for their protection, this is what I do and it’s all I can do at times.
 
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