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Time to care for our jaded priests

Here's an article sent to me from a brother priest. Given that I'm laid out again with a health issue while still trying to serve as pastor for three parishes it seemed to have some resonance for me today. I've decided to post it even though I expect my in-box to fill up with nasty comments accusing me of whining and feeling sorry for myself. (They usually follow any article which suggests that priests live anything other than the 'easy life'. You know...'the one day work-week with no heavy lifting' stereotype.) Yet as our numbers continue to fall the realities being faced by the Irish priests is something that we've been dealing with for almost 20 years here in Canada - so I know that the author is correct in his conclusions.

Hopefully though, they will make better use of the talents and skills presented to the Church by her faithful lay members than we have. We still have too many priests who are killing themselves with stress simply because they think that they are indispensible and close themselves off to the laity taking responsible for ministries that are well within their competence to accomplish.


Time to care for our jaded priests

Comments

  1. Psychologists and analysts claim that while some of our dreams illustrate through symbolic language (metaphors) specific problems in our life that may be preventing us from being ourselves fully or from accomplishing our sense of purpose. The good thing the experts say though is that if we examine the 'problem' presenting dream closely and in detail we will find that the solution is also there. I was reminded of that phenomenon when I read the following quote from the beautifully articulated essay above :
    "Some priests are at breaking-point simply keeping the show on the road and there is little or no thought about realistic reform of parish life. There is sometimes a culture in the Church that to admit one is struggling or one’s wellbeing is affected is to concede weakness." Therein lies the heart at the source of the anguish and imprisonment while it also illuminates the path to freedom, peace and love. Every individual human being by virtue of the fact that they are a human being is weak, even though for many, the weak one within has long since died. Powerful people need to be admired Weak people are vulnerable and they need to be loved but they are free and alive. Following Jesus Christ doesn't mean that we should follow the 'powerful' one so that we too will become more powerful. The message from Jesus that I sense is to " let the dead burry the dead" while the living must move forward following behind and alongside the Weak One so that we may gradually let go ever more fully of the superficial and constraining desire for admiration and power. The beatitudes are not merely words to comfort or console the "less fortunate." Jesus illustrated through the beatitudes that if we choose to live our lives based on the structure of 'this world' rather than give life and freedom to who we really are , we deny ourselves of the blessedness (fundamental happiness) of the Kingdom of God on this earth here and now...hidden in the flesh.

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