Guide to Ongoing Formation for Priests (Ascension)

GOFP 51

Guide to Ongoing Formation for Priests

clericalism fosters division within the Church and further isolates priests from the very people who should be among the primary supporters of their vocation. 51 Finally, many priests unfortunately face these struggles apart from any awareness of the supernatural. The Lord permits us to encounter setbacks, weaknesses, even persecution, but he never asks us to shoulder more than he gives us the grace to bear. Seeing things, including struggles, from a supernatural point of view offers a perspective that brings confidence, peace, and even joy in the midst of difficulties. When a priest is overwhelmed by obstacles in his life and ministry, it may be that he has forgotten in whom his strength rests. 39 “If the priest does not count on the primacy of grace,” the 2013 DMLP observes, “he will not be able to respond to the challenges of his times, and any pastoral program is destined to failure, no matter how elaborate it may be.” 40 Recovering an abiding sense of supernatural joy and trust, then, will be among our first priorities in confronting the challenges we face. Within the Church 52 Other difficulties confronting the priest emerge from the situation of the Church in many parts of the United States today. In many parts of the country, for instance, an understandable sense of demoralization has been caused by certain trends in the Church. These include a steep decline in Mass attendance, the widespread closing of parishes and schools, and a general sense of decline. Priests are not alone in lamenting these trends, of course, but we are often affected in a deeper and more personal way. At the same time, the Church is growing in other areas of the country. The priests in those areas can

39 “The LORD is my shepherd; / there is nothing I lack” (Ps 23:1). “I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me” (Phil 4:13). 40 DMLP, introduction to chap. 2.

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