On the Year of the Priesthood
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI has proclaimed a Jubilee Year of the Priesthood on the 150th Anniversary of the Birth of St. John Mary Vianney (The Cure of Ars) and invited all people of Good Will to pray for the continuing conversion of priests. The Year of the Priesthood began on the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, June 19, 2009 and it will end on the same feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 2010.
The Pontiff also elevated St. John Vianney as the Patron Saint of All Priests in the Universal Church. Before his elevation, St. John Vianney was the patron Saint of parish priests.
It is very important to pray for your brother priests. St. John Vianney constantly reminded us of the supreme importance of the priesthood in the Church and the importance to pray for our priests. Priests are the bridges between Heaven and Earth. Priests are the Images of Christ. And even in our frail humanity, when we are weak we can still show forth the image of the Cross to those around us.
Pope Benedict reflected on the words of St. John Vianney in his letter to priests.
“The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus”, the saintly Curé of Ars would often say. This touching expression makes us reflect, first of all, with heartfelt gratitude on the immense gift which priests represent, not only for the Church, but also for humanity itself. I think of all those priests who quietly present Christ’s words and actions each day to the faithful and to the whole world, striving to be one with the Lord in their thoughts and their will, their sentiments and their style of life. How can I not pay tribute to their apostolic labours, their tireless and hidden service, their universal charity? And how can I not praise the courageous fidelity of so many priests who, even amid difficulties and incomprehension, remain faithful to their vocation as “friends of Christ”, whom he has called by name, chosen and sent?”
Yet the expression of Saint John Mary also makes us think of Christ’s pierced Heart and the crown of thorns which surrounds it. I am also led to think, therefore, of the countless situations of suffering endured by many priests, either because they themselves share in the manifold human experience of pain or because they encounter misunderstanding from the very persons to whom they minister. How can we not also think of all those priests who are offended in their dignity, obstructed in their mission and persecuted, even at times to offering the supreme testimony of their own blood?
“O, how great is the priest! … If he realized what he is, he would die… God obeys him: he utters a few words and the Lord descends from heaven at his voice, to be contained within a small host…”. Explaining to his parishioners the importance of the sacraments, he would say: “Without the Sacrament of Holy Orders, we would not have the Lord. Who put him there in that tabernacle? The priest. Who welcomed your soul at the beginning of your life? The priest. Who feeds your soul and gives it strength for its journey? The priest. Who will prepare it to appear before God, bathing it one last time in the blood of Jesus Christ? The priest, always the priest. And if this soul should happen to die [as a result of sin], who will raise it up, who will restore its calm and peace? Again, the priest… After God, the priest is everything! … Only in heaven will he fully realize what he is”. These words, welling up from the priestly heart of the holy pastor, might sound excessive. Yet they reveal the high esteem in which he held the sacrament of the priesthood. He seemed overwhelmed by a boundless sense of responsibility: “Were we to fully realize what a priest is on earth, we would die: not of fright, but of love… Without the priest, the passion and death of our Lord would be of no avail. It is the priest who continues the work of redemption on earth… What use would be a house filled with gold, were there no one to open its door? The priest holds the key to the treasures of heaven: it is he who opens the door: he is the steward of the good Lord; the administrator of his goods … Leave a parish for twenty years without a priest, and they will end by worshiping the beasts there … The priest is not a priest for himself, he is a priest for you”. (Pope Benedict XVI, Letter to Priests 2009)
The Holy Father wants all Bishops, Priests, Deacons and the Faithful to join him in prayer for all priests. Our Parish of St. Helen of the Cross will promote the year of the priesthood in various ways.
With the help of some donors we will Bless and Enthrone a Statue of St. John Mary Vianney for public veneration. I invite all the faithful of St. Helen of the Cross to join us in making this Year a Prayerful Year of Priesthood. Please pray for all the priests who have served Eloy in the past, especially Fr. Martin Martinez (1998-1994), Fr. Mathew Asemangema (2004-2005) and Fr. Walter Balduck (2007) and Fr. Madhu Geroge, who so graciously have served our parish in recent past and continue serving the Church in various ways.
Please pray also for me, your pastor. Christ is counting on me to bring His Word to you. May I follow the steps of previous pastors and let myself be enthralled by Christ, our High Priest. In this way, I pray I too may be a good herald of hope, reconciliation and peace to those entrusted to my care.
May our prayers this year plant the seed in the life of those young people who will follow on the footsteps of Christ and become priests of the Church in the future.
With Prayers and best wishes, I am
Sincerely yours,
Fr. Juan Carlos Aguirre
Pastor
For more information on prayerful activities planned during the Year of the Priesthood, please visit our website at www.sthelenchurch.com or my personal blog at www.elpadrejc.org.