Pope reflects on sacrament of Holy Orders at General Audience
(Vatican Radio) Greeting thousands of people gathered for his General Audience on
Wednesday, Pope Francis spoke about the sacrament of Holy Orders, praying that the
Lord may provide holy, generous and merciful pastors for his Church. Philippa
Hitchen reports:
Listen:
Speaking to
pilgrims and visitors huddled under umbrellas in a grey, wet St Peter’s Square, the
Pope continued his reflections on the different sacraments, turning his attention
this week to Holy Orders. Building on the sacraments of Christian initiation – Baptism,
Confirmation and Eucharist – Pope Francis said Matrimony and Holy Orders correspond
to two specific vocations or ways of building up Christ’s Church.
Speaking
of the three grades of bishop, priest and deacon, the Pope said those who are consecrated
for this pastoral service continue the actions of the true Pastor and Teacher who
is Christ himself. Reflecting on the necessary characteristics of those ordained to
this ministry, the Pope said those called to lead a community must always be at the
service of their people. A second distinguishing feature, he said, is that they must
always be filled with a passion for the Church and love for their community, their
family, without succumbing to the temptation of considering it as a personal possession.
Pope Francis reminded all those in ordained ministry that they must always
nurture themselves through prayer, daily celebration of the Eucharist and regular
Confession. . Without this, he said, ministers end up by losing sight of the true
meaning of their service and of the joy which comes from profound communion with the
Lord. Finally the Pope urged his listeners to pray for all ministers of the Church,
especially those who are in difficulty or seeking to rediscover the value and freshness
of their priestly vocation.
Please find below the full text of the Pope’s words
in English read by an assistant at the audience:
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
in our catechesis on the sacraments, we now turn to the sacrament of Holy Orders.
Building on the vocation received in the sacraments of Christian initiation – Baptism,
Confirmation and the Eucharist – the sacraments of Holy Orders and Matrimony correspond
to two specific vocations and are two ways of following Christ and building up his
Church. Holy Orders, in its three grades of bishop, priest and deacon, is the sacrament
of pastoral ministry. Jesus entrusted his Apostles with the care of his flock and
in every age the ordained make present in the Christian community the one Shepherd
who is Christ. Following the Lord’s own example, they lead the community as its servants.
Theirs must be lives of passionate love for the Church for whose purification and
holiness the Lord gave himself completely, and they must constantly renew the grace
and joy of their ordination through prayer, penance, and daily celebration of the
Eucharist. Today, let us pray for all the Church’s ministers, especially those most
in need of our prayers, and ask the Lord always to grant his Church holy, generous
and merciful pastors after his own heart.
I greet all the English-speaking
pilgrims present at today’s Audience, including those from the United Kingdom, England,
Australia, Denmark, Malta, China, Japan and the United States. Upon you and your families
I invoke joy and peace in Christ our Lord.