Looking for two sides on this?

[Mrmawker]

What are some pros and cons of becoming a Catholic priest?

 

[sw85]

What are some pros and cons of becoming a Catholic priest?

Hmm. Well, I’m not one so I can’t say for sure, but here are some thoughts off the top of my head.

Pros:

*Job security. You’ll never be unemployed or starving! (barring persecution).
*Free education of an excellent sort.
*You will be ordained by a man who is successor to the apostles.
*The ability to confect the Eucharist and perform other sacraments has got to be pretty awesome.
*You get to touch lots and lots of lives and confer sacraments (baptism, absolution, confirmation, etc.) on many people.
*The sure knowledge that if you exercise your ministry well, you will be amply rewarded in Heaven.
*The priesthood is still a respected profession in much of the world.
*All the upsides of living a very public life.

Cons (of a sort):

*Loss of freedom. You can’t just pack up and jet off to the Caribbean any time you want. (On the upside, loss of uncertainty associated with freedom). This is probably worse for religious priests than for secular ones.
*The incredible responsibilities of ministry and the knowledge that, if you fail in your ministerial duties, your punishment will be raised exponentially in Hell.
*You may grow sick of working with people at a given parish, e.g., if they dislike your style or want you to do things their way (though most dioceses seem to rotate priests around). Conversely, you may grow to love your parish and sad to be removed from them.
*I am sure there is loneliness associated with priestly celibacy for at least some priests. (For myself, presiding over a marriage and knowing I will never know its joys would be nearly unbearable).
*All the downsides of living a very public life.

 

[SaintPatrick333]

*The incredible responsibilities of ministry and the knowledge that, if you fail in your ministerial duties, your punishment will be raised exponentially in Hell.

Are you saying if a Priest fails in the sense that they abuse their authority or purposely sin or fail in some way? Or are you suggesting that if they try their best but make honest mistakes and fail to live up to the standards of a Priest they will be punished in hell? The latter seems against Catholic teaching to me, which is why I presume you are referring to the former?

 

[sw85]

Are you saying if a Priest fails in the sense that they abuse their authority or purposely sin or fail in some way? Or are you suggesting that if they try their best but make honest mistakes and fail to live up to the standards of a Priest they will be punished in hell? The latter seems against Catholic teaching to me, which is why I presume you are referring to the former?

Sacraments of character (baptism, confirmation, and holy orders) leave an indelible mark on the soul. People who take those marks with them into Hell surely suffer the worse for it, as St. Leonard of Port Maurice tells us.