Sunday June 28th. 2009

Year for Priests

he Year for Priests, which Pope Benedict has proclaimed, was

inaugurated in our diocese when Bishop Joseph gathered the priests of

the Lochaber deanery together in St. Mary’s, Fort William, on feast of the

Sacred heart, June 19th. to concelebrate mass. It was also appropriate that

the children of the deanery, who have already received the sacraments, or

The Year of Priesthood, also celebrates the 150^th anniversary of the death of the

saintly Curé of Ars, St. John Mary Vianney, who is the patron of all parish

He was appointed to the parish of Ars in the Rhone Valley, which had seriously

deteriorated spiritually over the years. By his personal holiness and his austerity

of life, he changed it. He spent long hours each day in the confessional, with

queues of penitents from very early morning until late at night. He was fortunate

if he got only a few hours sleep, which were often disturbed by the devil who was

angered by the many conversions he made. Among the penitents who made their

way to his confessional were kings, and queens, such was the attraction of his

The commemoration of Catholic priests, which our Holy Father wishes, is

significant in the life of the  Church. Without the service of current priests, and

the nurturing of future priests, the sacrament of Holy Eucharist would no longer

be possible. The most significant aspect of the year that celebrates the Catholic

priesthood is the fact that it is intertwined with the celebration of the Holy

Eucharist, for any appreciation of the priesthood must include the sacramental

responsibilities of all Catholic priest and bishops. Vocations in the Catholic

Church are now beginning to increase throughout the world, and the ministry of

The Holy Father encourages priests to strive for a greater spiritual perfection

on which the effectiveness of their ministry depends. For this reason it must be,

in a very special way, a year of prayer by priests, with priests and for priests; a

year for the renewal of the spirituality of the priesthood and of each priest. The

The Holy Father continues: “May it be a year, as well of religious and of public

celebration. which will bring the people – the local Catholic community – to

pray, to reflect, to celebrate, and justly to give honour to their priests. In the

ecclesiastic community a celebration is a very cordial event which expresses and

nourishes Christian joy, a joy which springs from the certainty that God loves us

and celebrates with us. May it therefore be an opportunity to develop the

communion and friendship between priests and the communities entrusted to their

“Perhaps this year of commemoration and celebration of the Priest is exactly the

stimulus package needed by the faithful and the clergy alike. With decreased

ranks, the priest shortage is indeed more acutely felt in more places than ever before. However, this is a great time to restore, and re-appreciate priestly

service for more than just its superficial and external appearances. The celebration of the priesthood is about the Holy Eucharist, the Real Presence of

Jesus Christ and the continuation of His Church in accomplishing the mandates given to the Apostles. With this in mind, it is really about time that all

Catholics begin to contemplate the role of our Catholic priests as essential to the temporal and spiritual success of our universal Catholic Church. If

indeed Catholics are called to, “Take this all of you and eat…Take this all of you and drink…” they need to appreciate deeply  and understand the

essential purposes of the Catholic priest as our spiritual intermediary to the Eternal Father.           >>>>>>