Thursday, January 4, 2007

Pray for priests

Let us begin the New Year with special prayers for all of our priests, especially those who have fallen in any way and those who are no longer in the active ministry, for whatever reason. They remain our brothers, our fathers. Let us also pray for those who may have contributed to the departure of an ordained man from his ministry. It is not for us to judge or condemn, but neither is it for us to celebrate such situations. Here is a prayer to Saint Joseph from Don Marco. Share

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Elena, are you referring to those who have hurt many innocents because of abomniable behaviors? I pray for them but it is hard to think of such abusers as my "brothers."

elena maria vidal said...

Wordsmith, we must be in constant prayer and reparation over those extreme cases, those abominations, which have so wounded the Body of Christ. Judgment belongs to the Lord and to Him alone.

However, I was also thinking of the "milder" scandals, such as a priest leaving the ministry because he has found True Love and wants to get married. Such defections from the pastoral service, even when legitimized by canon law, are often a source of confusion, shock, and disillusionment to the faithful. Many lay people are not "sophisticated" enough to shrug away their feelings of betrayal and should not be censured for having strong reactions. Prayer is the best remedy.