On Monday 24 October Pope Francis received seminarians and priests in Rome, in the Paul VI Hall in the Vatican. The Pope spoke to them on many issues and encouraged them to be shepherds of mercy close to the people of God.
(Vatican News Network)Pope Francis received seminarians and priests in Rome on October 24 in the Paul VI hall in the Vatican. The Pope’s welcome took place in the form of an answer to questions from seminarians and priests.
Responding to specific acts of mercy, the Pope affirmed that it is necessary to learn a body language that expresses closeness and tenderness, which also applies to preaching. The Pope spoke of three languages that can show “the maturity of a man: the language of the intellect, the language of the heart and the language of the hands”. The Pope reminds seminarians and priests to learn to express themselves in these three languages: “I think about what I feel and do; I feel what I think and do; and I do what I feel and think”.
When asked how those who live in the priesthood can keep “the smell of the sheep”, the Pope replied that those who live in the priesthood, even when studying or working in the ecclesiastical administration, must “keep in touch with the people, with the people , with the Connections of the People of God. ”This is because it contains“ the ointment of the people of God ”: it is the flock that God has entrusted to us.
“If you stay away from the flock, you will become a theorist, a good theologian, a good philosopher, a church administrator who does everything very well”, but you will lose “the smell” The ability to taste the sheep. “Thus the Pope spoke once again of the four principles of “closeness” that he repeatedly reminded priests: closeness to God, closeness to the bishop, closeness to other priests and closeness to the people of God: “If you do not approach the people of God, you are not a good priest ».
“The priesthood is a sacred service to God, and the Eucharist is the highest service, a service to the community.” Those “priests who have risen high and have risen high”, their goal is to get themselves an errand. “A man who climbs high ends up against his original intention. He is not a servant. He seeks his own interests and does nothing for others,” the Pope said.
The importance of the spiritual guide was also emphasized in the talks between the Pope and the numerous seminarians and priests he had before him. The Pope said he preferred the term “spiritual companionship”. The “spiritual company” is not compulsory, but it facilitates the path of the spiritual life, and it is better to find a spiritual counselor other than one’s confessor. The Pope explained that the priest who listens to the interpretation and the spiritual companion are two different roles. “Go to the priest for forgiveness of your sins, so you are prepared for your sins; go to the spiritual master to tell him what is happening in your heart right now, your spiritual ups and downs. Change, joy, anger and it. state of your heart. ”The important thing is to have company, to recognize that you need company, to“ clear things up ”, to recognize that you need someone to help you understand your mental emotions.
The Pope encouraged the seminarians and priests present to be open to the doubts of scholars and the anxieties of the public and university students, to listen to them and to always remain positive, open and humble. “Being humble and having faith does not mean that there is an answer to everything”, the Pope urged to always maintain a dialogue with science. In other words: “I don’t know how to explain it to you, but you should go to the scientists and find people who could help you.”
In response to another question, the Pope described life as always in “continuous imbalance”. The Pope explained that life is going on in difficulty, that is: falling, then getting up and moving forward. The Pope encouraged us not to fear this persistent imbalance, but to discern the imbalance in daily life, because “in the imbalance there is the action of God, who invites us to do something and inspires the will to do good”. Once we “learn to live in imbalance”, we enter a “different equilibrium”, a “dynamic equilibrium” ruled by God.
The Pope also spoke about the dangers of the Internet in today’s social life and reminded seminarians and priests present to be wary of online pornography. He seduces many people, including monks. “He weakens the soul, from which the devil enters and weakens the priest’s heart”.
Later, responding to a Ukrainian priest, the Pope said that the Church suffers like a mother in the face of war, because war destroys the children of the Mother Church. The Pope said that the Church “must suffer, cry and pray, and must support those who have lost their homes, maimed and afflicted … The Church is the mother and her priority is to be close to those who suffer”.
Faced with the current situation, the Pope reminds Christians not to take sides. “We must defend our country”, he said, “but we must go further: a more universal love. The Mother Church must be close to all people, to all victims”.
Finally, the Pope said to the young Ukrainian priest: “You, your compatriots have suffered a lot and I know that I am close to you. But please pray for the aggressors, because they are victims like you. You cannot see the mutilations in their souls. But you must pray and ask God to make them come back for the better and to come in peace “.
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