Pope reflects on New Generation, Priesthood...

In speaking about the establishment of a "year of the priesthood," Pope Benedict XVI spoke about the proper understanding of Vatican II as not being "a rupture with the past" and the centrality of an understanding of the unique role of the ministerial priesthood and its centrality in the Church. The text can be found HERE.

My point of reflection on this topic: One point the Holy Father makes concerns the dearth of priests available for ministry. This is something we are all familiar with. It seems that, by and large, the past twenty years has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of priests, but not a corresponding decrease in the expectation on the part of the faithful in the amount of ministry they receive. Father serves two, three, or more parishes as the pastor, but oftentimes the expectation is that the number of services provided will remain the same. The end result: father is burned-out after a few years, and the people by-and-large don't feel the sting of the decreased number of priests. While one response has been to "substitute" lay ministers in the effort to provide the same number of pastoral services (e.g. the so-called "canon 517 §2 pastoral minister"), the end result is a blurring of the proper lines between ordained and non-ordained ministry, with the result that ordained ministry is de-valued. The Holy Father seems to suggest that a decrease in the proliferation of lay ministers in roles more proper for the ordained (for example: pastoral leadership of a parish) would lead to a heightened appreciation for the ministerial priesthood, and an increased sense of haste on their parts to promote the priesthood and religious life within their own families. Interesting...

(you knew I would notice it: check out the fiddleback...)