Program of Priestly Formation 6th edition

INTELLECTUAL DIMENSION | 137

and norms for pastoral practice. The systematic study of the social encyc licals of the popes is especially recommended. 402 Of particular importance today is the need for awareness of the ecological crisis facing the world. Seminarians must be familiar with Church teaching on the subject and be encouraged to experience an ecological conversion, “whereby the effects of their encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in their relationship with the world around them. Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essen tial to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.” 403 Adequate instruction must be given in professional ethics appro priate to priesthood and priestly ministry. In the process of this instruc tion, “seminarians must receive a careful training in the administration of goods, to be carried out according to canonical norms, soberly, with detachment and moral transparency, along with the necessary skill.” 404 In historical studies, the core should include courses on the history of the Universal Church and the history of the Catholic Church in the United States, taught in a way that reflects the Church’s multicultural origins and ecumenical context. Among historical studies, the study of patristics and the lives of the saints are of special importance. In Canon Law, the core must include a general introduction to Canon Law and to the Canon Law of individual sacraments, including but not limited to the Sacrament of Matrimony. Additional courses in Canon Law, particularly on books II (“The People of God”), V (“The Temporal Goods of the Church”), and VI (“Penal Sanctions in the Church”) of the Code of Canon Law would assist seminarians in preparing for their pastoral ministry. There should also be a general introduction to the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches , with emphasis on title II (cc. 27-41) regarding Churches sui iuris and rites and on title XVI, chap. 7 (cc. 776-866) on marriage, especially the divergences between the Latin and Eastern Codes 336. 337. 338. 339.

402 See Congregation for Catholic Education, Guidelines for the Study and Teaching of the Church’s Social Doctrine in the Formation of Priests (1988), www.humandevelopment.va/content/dam/sviluppoumano/pub blicazioni-documenti/archivio/dottrina-sociale-della-chiesa/orientamenti/ODSI_ENG.pdf . See also Ratio Fundamentalis , no. 172. 403 Laudato Si’ , no. 217. See Ratio Fundamentalis , no. 172. 404 Ratio Fundamentalis , no. 180.