Posts Tagged ‘priesthood’

Speaking to the internet generation: tips from Cardinal Ravasi

Gustave Dore' Jesus walking on water

Priests have been urged to preach more forcefully using biblical imagery by Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, the head of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Speaking in Rome, he said the bible is full of strong images and symbols, yet we can become used to even the most fantastic stories – like the one pictured above – and priests need to respond accordingly. As the Cardinal put it:

“The advent of televised and computerised information requires us to be compelling and trenchant, to cut to the heart of the matter.”

The Telegraph goes on to report Ravasi’s comments about Twitter and using 140 characters to speak of God.

This challenge of speaking about Jesus to people today is not one faced only by priests, and we hope resources such as YouCat can help the Church to do so.

Of related interest:

SC69 Companion to Reading the Old Testament - Catholics have always treasured the Sacred Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments, but the Old Testament can appear difficult and troublesome. This introductory booklet tackles the problems facing readers.
SC70 Companion to Reading the New Testament – In this booklet Fr Adrian Graffy provides an introduction to all the books of the New Testament, and gives advice on both the liturgical reading and private reading of the Gospels, letters and other books.
Do783 Companion to the Book of Revelation - This booklet explains the tradition from which the book of Revelation developed and outlines the structure of the book and the meanings behind the numbers and images.
Monday, 07 November 2011 15:55

Benedict XVI: 60 years of service modelled on Saints Peter & Paul

DO846

Today, as well as celebrating SS. Peter and Paul, we are also celebrating the ordination of Pope Benedict XVI in 1951.

The man who became the successor of St Peter and has preached the faith joyfully, tirelessly and without compromise, as St Paul did, was ordained in Freising Cathedral by Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber of Munich.

The wonder of what happened that day is still with the Holy Father now when he says:

“This audacity of God who entrusts Himself to human beings – who, conscious of our weaknesses, nonetheless considers men capable of acting and being present in His stead – this audacity of God is the true grandeur concealed in the word ‘priesthood’”.

Pope Benedict has been a great example of what the priest is, according to Fr John Saward, who writes in the CTS booklet A Priest Forever:

“The priests of the New Law share in the priesthood of Christ through the sacramental character of Holy Order imprinted on their souls, more exactly on the faculty of the practical intellect, through the laying of the bishop’s hands and the prayer of consecration. It is indelible, because the priesthood of Christ is eternal and their souls are immortal.

“Ontologically, he is an alter Christus; he must now become an alter Christus morally and spiritually, a priest according to the Heart of Christ. The priest is configured to Christ as priest; he is called to configure himself to Christ as Victim, by uniting himself to Christ’s offering of Himself to the Father. He is an icon of the Good Shepherd; he must now imitate the Lamb of God. Jesus, whom we represent at the altar, must be present in our hearts by faith formed by charity; through prayer, we must come to know Him with that first-hand intimacy made possible in those who love God by the Holy Spirit’s Gift of Wisdom.”

In his willingness to serve and the humility which he has displayed throughout his ministry, before and after taking his seat in the chair of St Peter, have been a visible sign of Jesus’ love.

SS. Peter and Paul pray for us, and watch over the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI.

A Priest Forever is available from the CTS priced £1.95

Of related interest:

DO715 Holy Orders - In a time when there is so much confusion over the nature of the priesthood, this booklet delineates the Church’s teaching on the sacrament of Holy Orders and its grounding in scripture and tradition.
Do792 Priest’s Guide to Hearing Confessions – This new Guide is a very helpful attempt to create a modern equivalent of the classic manuals for confessors popular among priests in the past. It provides a valuable guide to best pastoral practice, with a wide range of sample problems and counsel.
DO821 Priesthood Today – Bishop Patrick O’Donoghue takes the opportunity of this ‘Year for Priests’ to re-examine the role of the priesthood today.
A giveaway to celebrate 60 years of Pope Benedict XVI’s priesthood

Today, as well as celebrating SS. Peter and Paul, we are also celebrating the ordination of Pope Benedict XVI in 1951.
The man who became the successor of St Peter and has preached the faith joyfully, tirelessly and without compromise, as St Paul did, was ordained in Freising Cathedral by Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber of Munich.
The wonder of what happened that day is still with the Holy Father now when he says:
“This audacity of God who entrusts Himself to human beings – who, conscious of our weaknesses, nonetheless considers men capable of acting and being present in His stead – this audacity of God is the true grandeur concealed in the word ‘priesthood’”.
Pope Benedict has been an example of what the priest is, according to Fr John Saward, who writes in …..
“The priests of the New Law share in the priesthood of Christ through the sacramental character of Holy Order imprinted on their souls, more exactly on the faculty of the practical intellect, through the laying of the bishop’s hands and the prayer of consecration. It is indelible, because the priesthood of Christ is eternal and their souls are immortal.

“Ontologically, he is an alter Christus; he must now become an alter Christus morally and spiritually, a priest according to the Heart of Christ. The priest is configured to Christ as priest; he is called to configure himself to Christ as Victim, by uniting himself to Christ’s offering of Himself to the Father. He is an icon of the Good Shepherd; he must now imitate the Lamb of God. Jesus, whom we represent at the altar, must be present in our hearts by faith formed by charity; through prayer, we must come to know Him with that first-hand intimacy made possible in those who love God by the Holy Spirit’s Gift of Wisdom.”

In his willingness to service and the humility which he has displayed throughout his ministry, before and after taking his seat in the chair of St Peter, have been a visible sign of Jesus’ love.

SS. Peter and Paul pray for us, and watch over the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI.

Wednesday, 29 June 2011 15:55

The Abuse Crisis in Ireland: The Holy Spirit & repentance are key to the Church’s recovery – Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor

EX39


One of the places to be hit hardest by the sex abuse crisis is Ireland, with 381 claims of sexual abuse made between 1914 and 1999. Now the first stage of a Vatican investigation into the problem in Ireland has been concluded, according to Vatican Radio.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor is one of six Catholic Church leaders appointed by Pope Benedict to lead an investigation into the causes of abuse within Ireland’s major dioceses and religious congregations. On Monday, the Vatican announced that this so-called “apostolic visitation” has concluded its first stage and that the initial reports have been submitted to Vatican officials.
He spoke to Vatican Radio, telling them that the Church in Ireland will be renewed if the right steps are taken:

“The Church is always being reformed and renewed and that will happen in Ireland too. The Church in Ireland needs our prayers, prayers for the gift of the Spirit, for a renewal of life, and for grace.”

You can listen to the interview here. In it, the former Archbishop of Westminster also points out the historic role that the Church has, and has had in the past, in caring for and educating children.
In the CTS report, The Catholic Church and the sex abuse crisis, Dr Pravin Thevathasan pays special attention to the problem in Ireland, explaining that two reports were released on this issue in 2009:

“The first of these was the Ryan Report which gives details of six decades of physical, sexual and psychological abuse perpetrated on children in Ireland’s residential institutions run by fifteen religious orders. The second report, the Murphy Report, is a government inquiry into abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin from 1975 to 2004.

“Once again we see two evils: the evil of sexual abuse and the evil of abusive priests being protected by the bishops.”

May we keep this nation – which, as the Cardinal points out, has done the Church so much good and given her so many missionaries – in our prayers at this difficult time.

The Catholic Church and the sex abuse crisis is available from the CTS priced £2.50

Of related interest:

Do839 Norms Concerning the Most Serious Crimes - The Norms of Canon Law dealing with crimes of sexual abuse of minors by members of the clergy have been published here in a comprehensive and updated form, in a document.
DO768 Safeguarding with Confidence – The Cumberlege Commission believes that much progress has been made since Lord Nolan reported, and that the Church is now a safer place; however, it states that there remains room for improvement, and this report makes a number of recommendations
DO821 Priesthood Today – Bishop Patrick O’Donoghue takes the opportunity of this ‘Year for Priests’ to re-examine the role of the priesthood today.
Wednesday, 08 June 2011 15:30

Sex abuse cover-up scandals have happened in various organisations, Dr Pravin Thevathasan

EX39

The author of the CTS report, The Catholic Church and the sex abuse crisis Dr Pravin Thevathasan, has been following the responses to the launch of his report on the blog, and wished to post the following on the subject of the cover-up of sex abuse, which – judging from your feedback – is one of the most upsetting aspects of this whole tragedy.

“Having read a number of comments on the abuse crisis, it is increasingly clear that those who have studied this matter seriously accept that only a small number of Catholic priests have been guilty of this crime. What concerns them most is the institutional cover-up.

The cover-up is indeed reprehensible and has been condemned as such by Pope Benedict.

However, is the Catholic Church alone guilty of this? According to an article in The Guardian (29 April 2010): ‘The Boy Scouts of America has been accused of covering up decades of child abuse in order to protect their reputation of what is now a billion dollar organization.’

Phil Lawler writes at www.catholicculture.org that ‘Schools, police departments, families, media outlets, non-profit associations not to mention other religious denominations (have been) all guilty of cover-up.’ Ought all these institutions ‘examine the past, apologize, and take steps to guarantee that similar offenses will bring prompt redress in the future?’

In The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins writes: ‘All of the three boarding schools I attended employed teachers whose affection for small boys overstepped the bounds of propriety.’ Dawkins does not suggest that they were forced out and handed over to the police for any criminal behaviour.
Other vulnerable groups have been subjected to a variety of types of abuse. People with learning disabilities were abused in institutions for decades, leading to the Ely Hospital inquiry (1968-9), the Longcare inquiry (1998) and the recent Cornwall inquiry.

Cover-up scandals have taken place in a variety of different institutions and they all require to be condemned.”

Dr Pravin Thevathasan

The report is available from CTS priced £2.50

Of related interest:

Do839 Norms Concerning the Most Serious Crimes - The Norms of Canon Law dealing with crimes of sexual abuse of minors by members of the clergy have been published here in a comprehensive and updated form, in a document.
DO768 Safeguarding with Confidence – The Cumberlege Commission believes that much progress has been made since Lord Nolan reported, and that the Church is now a safer place; however, it states that there remains room for improvement, and this report makes a number of recommendations
DO821 Priesthood Today – Bishop Patrick O’Donoghue takes the opportunity of this ‘Year for Priests’ to re-examine the role of the priesthood today.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011 15:30

Who & what is a priest?

DO846

This week, we want to give you a look at some of the new material being produced by CTS. This material includes; a report on aids, an investigation into science and religion, a look at the Doctors of the Church and much more. To begin we want to look at a new booklet that reflects on the priesthood: A Priest Forever by Fr John Saward.

The new text, jointly published with The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, aims to reiterate and reinvestigate what the priest is, and what he is called to be in an age of change across the world and within Christian churches.

The text is in fact subtitled, “Continuity in an age of change” and to understand this possibility is its clear aim, as its author states eloquently in the introduction.

“In what follows, I shall speak, first, of the being of the priest, what he is forever by the indelible character of Holy Order, and then of the sanctity of the priest, what he is called to become through correspondence with the specific grace of Holy Order. This booklet’s object is simply and faithfully to expound the nature of the ministerial priesthood, and the motives for priestly sanctity rooted in that nature, according to the teaching of the Church.

My approach in writing is the same as Father Vincent McNabb’s attitude to preaching: “I have devoted my life [he once said] to the preaching of platitudes; it is one of the satisfactions of my life. I like the old things – sun and moon, fresh air, bread and butter, work, friendship, avoiding the occasions of sin. Sometimes the devil would say to me, ‘Now, Father Vincent, people don’t like those sorts of things, give them something modern.’ My Guardian Angel says, ‘It isn’t your duty to be modern. You must give something true.’” Please God, with the help of my own guardian angel, I shall give you something true in this meditation on the priesthood.”

The booklet also offers a reflection on the priesthood of Christ and the importance of the Virgin Mary, as mother of priests.

A Priest Forever is available from the CTS priced £1.95

Fr John Saward is priest in charge of the parish of SS. Gregory and Augustine, Oxford, a Fellow of Blackfriars Hall, the author of eight books, and the translator of several others, including The Spirit of the Liturgy by Joseph Ratzinger.

Of related interest:

DO715 Holy Orders - In a time when there is so much confusion over the nature of the priesthood, this booklet delineates the Church’s teaching on the sacrament of Holy Orders and its grounding in scripture and tradition.
Do792 Priest’s Guide to Hearing Confessions – This new Guide is a very helpful attempt to create a modern equivalent of the classic manuals for confessors popular among priests in the past. It provides a valuable guide to best pastoral practice, with a wide range of sample problems and counsel.
DO821 Priesthood Today – Bishop Patrick O’Donoghue takes the opportunity of this ‘Year for Priests’ to re-examine the role of the priesthood today.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011 10:06
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