Pope says bishops should be evangelists and men of prayer, not CEOs
February 28, 2014 - Pope Francis said bishops should act not like ambitious corporate
executives, but humble evangelists and men of prayer, willing to sacrifice everything
for their flocks. "We don't need a manager, the CEO of a business, nor someone who
shares our pettiness or low aspirations," the Pope said on Thursday. "We need someone
who knows how to rise to the height from which God sees us, in order to guide us to
him." Pope Francis' words came in a speech to the Congregation for Bishops, the Vatican
body that advises him on the appointment of bishops around the world. He stressed
the importance of self-sacrifice in a bishop's ministry, which he described as a kind
of martyrdom. "The courage to die, the generosity to offer one's own life and exhaust
one's self for the flock are inscribed in the episcopate's DNA," he said. "The episcopate
is not for itself but for the church, for the flock, for others, above all for those
whom the world considers only worth throwing away." Pope Francis listed several desirable
virtues in potential bishops, including a "capacity for healthy, balanced relationships,"
"upright behaviour," "orthodoxy and fidelity" to church doctrine; and "transparency
and detachment in administrating the goods of the community."
The Pope laid
special emphasis on a bishop's ability to evangelize and pray. In preaching the Gospel,
bishops should be appealing rather than censorious, upholding church teaching "not
in order to measure how far the world falls short of the truth it contains, but to
fascinate the world, enchant it with the beauty of love, seduce it by offering the
freedom of the Gospel." "The church doesn't need apologists for their own causes,
nor crusaders for their own battles, but humble sowers who trust in the truth ...
bishops who know that even when night falls and the day's toil leaves them tired,
the seeds in the field will be sprouting." As models of prayer for bishops, Pope
Francis cited Abraham and Moses, who argued with God to dissuade him from destroying
their sinful people. "A man who lacks the courage to argue with God on behalf of
his people cannot be a bishop," the Pope said.
Quoting from an address he
gave to Vatican diplomats last June, Pope Francis said bishops should be "meek, patient
and merciful," embracing both spiritual and material poverty, and renouncing any ambition
for appointment to more important dioceses. The Pope voiced anew his concern about
bishops, "in this time of meetings and conventions," traveling too much to fulfil
their pastoral duties at home. He suggested the congregation study the latter-day
relevance of a decree by the 16th-century Council of Trent requiring bishops to live
in their dioceses.
Pope Francis also stressed that bishops should be suited
to the particular local needs of their dioceses. "There is no standard pastor for
all the churches," the Pope said. "Christ knows the singularity of the pastor every
church requires, able respond to its needs and help it realize its potential." "Where
can we find such men? It is not easy. Do they exist? How can we choose them?" Pope
Francis asked in closing. "I am sure they exist, because the Lord does not abandon
his church. Maybe it is we who do not spend long enough in the fields looking for
them." (Source: CNS)