Guide to Ongoing Formation for Priests

APPENDIX A: PROGRAM FOR NEWLY ORDAINED PRIESTS | 103

n. Proper use of media and engagement in social media for ministry

o. Chastity and celibacy as practically lived in priestly life

p. Effective engagement with children and teens in light of the Church’s sexual abuse crisis

q. Pastoral boundaries within the establishment of social friendships with parishioners

SPECIAL CONSIDERATION

256. Those charged with supervising programs for the recently ordained may wish to incorporate insights from the Congregation for the Clergy’s 2013 Directory for Ministry and the Life of Priests into the programming content. Ideally, the new priests should read this document at least once during the program. Presenters should be well aware of the document.

ORIENTATION FOR PASTORS AND MENTORS

257. As explained above, the pastor and mentor are key relationships in the first years of a new priest’s ministry. The diocese needs to offer orienta tion to those who exercise these roles so that their work is effective, consis tent, and integrated into the entire program of ongoing formation. In both cases, part of the orientation will lay out the program and its expectations. Pastors need to prioritize the new priest’s participation in the program, even if that means the new priest might be absent from parish ministry to attend the programs. Mentors likewise need to have a sense of the whole program and a willingness to commit to meeting with their mentees approx imately monthly (a minimum of ten meetings per year is recommended). As noted in part one of this appendix, the role of the pastor is supervisory, and his orientation needs to make the case for this approach. In the case of the mentor, the role is a matter of peer support. Mentors need guidance in avoiding the temptation to become an advocate for the mentee or an intermediary in ministerial disputes.

258. The pastor and the mentor are key monitors of engagement in the larger program. Their work will be assisted if the program provides rubrics