Pope to priests: Your hands and lips become ‘the hands and lips of God’

September 30, 2009

In a video message to priests taking part in an international retreat in Ars this week, Pope Benedict encouraged priests to contemplate the grandeur of their vocation. “The priest is called to serve human beings and to give them life in God,” the Holy Father noted. “He is a man of the divine Word and of all things holy and, today more than ever, he must be a man of joy and hope. To those who cannot conceive that God is pure Love, he will affirm that life is worthy to be lived and that Christ gives it its full meaning because He loves all humankind.” Pope Benedict asked priests to reflect upon “the large number of Masses you celebrate or will celebrate, each time making Christ truly present at the altar. Think of the numerous absolutions you have given and will give, freeing sinners from their burdens. Thus you may perceive the infinite fruitfulness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Your hands and lips become, for a single instant, the hands and lips of God.”

 

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Further information:

• Priests Are Witnesses Of The Power Of God (VIS)
• Video Messaggio Del Santo Padre Ai Partecipanti Al Ritiro Sacerdotale Internazionale (Ars, 27 Settembre - 3 Ottobre 2009) (Holy See)
• Pope Benedict XVI Sends Message of Thanks to Priests at International Retreat in Ars (Vatican Radio)