Becoming a Priest

[brycehecht]

I have a question. I am seriously considering becoming a priest. By becoming a priest, are you essentially becoming a selfless person, serving others? When you become a priest does your whole life center around serving God’s people and putting their needs before your own?

 

[bzkoss236]

I have a question. I am seriously considering becoming a priest. By becoming a priest, are you essentially becoming a selfless person, serving others? When you become a priest does your whole life center around serving God’s people and putting their needs before your own?

This happens when you get married too.

 

[triumphguy]

I have a question. I am seriously considering becoming a priest. By becoming a priest, are you essentially becoming a selfless person, serving others? When you become a priest does your whole life center around serving God’s people and putting their needs before your own?

Nope. Not really…

Only if you are serious about your vocation.

 

[Venite_Adoremus_1]

Christ doesn’t just choose moral heroes to be His priests; He chooses ordinary people.

If you have a genuine desire to serve Him, He will give you the rest in time.

But if He isn’t calling you, you should be selfless anyways.

 

[Ohana]

Christ doesn’t just choose moral heroes to be His priests; He chooses ordinary people.

If you have a genuine desire to serve Him, He will give you the rest in time.

But if He isn’t calling you, you should be selfless anyways.

 

[curlycool89]

I have a question. I am seriously considering becoming a priest. By becoming a priest, are you essentially becoming a selfless person, serving others? When you become a priest does your whole life center around serving God’s people and putting their needs before your own?

Yes.

“Needs of others before your own” is a little nuanced. The Church does not ask Her priests to work all the time and abandon sleeping. The Church allows Her priests days off to rest (often Monday) and vacation time every year.

Yes, we need good holy priests who are willing to put their all in, but we also need priests who are not going to crash and burn a few years after being ordained. A good life balance (including physical and mental health) is needed in order to best serve the people of God. So in order to best serve the people, sometimes that does mean needing to take care of yourself and saying “no” to something else you could be doing. That was the advice of a bishop to us at one of our retreats last year, being a priest does mean you have to learn to say “No” sometimes.

The other thing, as Venite_Adoremus pointed out, is that priests are really being asked to do the same thing as everyone else, just on a different scale and different scope. Being a follower of Christ means you should be trying to be selfless and serve others anyways. Priests (and religious) do it on a bigger level because that is what their life is dedicated to and because they don’t have others that must be attended to (spouse and kids for example).

 

[Attempto]

Of course, my brother, that’s the whole point of priesthood - to serve others and glorify God

In Christo,
frater Attempto

 

[esmac]

Read Blessed Fulton Sheen’s book The Priest is Not His Own

ignatius.com/Products/PNHO-P/the-priest-is-not-his-own.aspx