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The splendor of the priesthood

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky ( bio - articles - email ) | Oct 14, 2024

The dialog between the rich young man and Jesus provides a template for men called to the priesthood, for those in charge of their formation, and for every priest (cf. Mk. 10:17-31). In the light of the institution of the priesthood at the Last Supper, the rich young man could have been a candidate for Holy Orders.

On his knees, the young man asks Jesus, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Piety and a man’s desire for salvation offer persuasive evidence of his call to the priesthood.

Jesus asks, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.” Jesus reminds the young man that God is the source of all virtue, and His commandments show us the way. “You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” The Ten Commandments form the foundation of every vocation to the priesthood.

The young man replies, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” The young man lives uprightly, and Jesus looks at him with love. Love fulfills the Commandments. Jesus elicits a generous spirit: “Go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, the young man was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

The rich young man did not violate the commandments. He didn’t fall from God’s favor. But, like Peter, he feared the sacrificial love necessary to fulfill his calling to the priesthood. Say what you will about the rich young man, but he walked away before he committed to ordination promises.

The priesthood is not a human agenda. The priesthood is a divine calling and a supernatural gift validated by the Church. Men responding to God’s call to the priesthood must strive to understand the sacrifices of the call.

During John XXIII’s pontificate, the Vatican enumerated several reasons priests leave the priesthood (cf. Careful Selection and Training of Candidates for the States of Perfection and Sacred Orders, Sacred Congregation for Religious, 1961). The Congregation noted that some men entered into the priesthood without an adequate understanding of a divine vocation. They may have viewed the priesthood as a happy solution to a dysfunctional family life. Family members may have pressured them. Some religious superiors and spiritual guides may have also applied undue pressure and manipulative persuasion.

Church authorities may have been more interested in increasing the number of candidates rather than the quality of religious devotion, orthodoxy, and piety. The man who left the priesthood may have accepted ordination despite harboring internal fears about his lack of credentials for worldly success. The priesthood became a lesser evil in his career options.

A candidate for the priesthood may have had insufficient knowledge of clerical obligations, especially celibacy. Celibacy does not merely mean “I don’t marry.” A man denies himself the great good of matrimony for the sake of the Kingdom and resolves to live a chaste life. Chastity is integral to celibacy. He understands he is a friend of Jesus, and in Jesus, the Church is his spouse.

Sometimes, the 1961 Vatican study continues, a man has trouble with chastity because of bad habits contracted in his youth. Often, these habits are corrected, especially with the graces of the confessional. But if not eradicated, failures in chastity undermine a man’s priesthood. (Alas, all too frequently, failures in chastity include those many pathological inclinations that the culture and too many in the hierarchy today consider normal.

Young men should strive to live chastely in their youth and protect themselves from an impure and immodest culture. They must also recognize and appreciate the splendor of holy matrimony. A worthy candidate is not excessively emotionally attached to his opinions and does not suffer from anxious ambivalence or pathological scrupulosity. He forthrightly faces up to matters of importance.

After ordination, a priest may neglect his inner spiritual life and lose his religious spirit. In the Book of Revelation, God warns the Church in Ephesus—and His priests:

I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear evil men but have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and found them to be false; I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen, repent…. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place…. (Rev. 2:)

A priest may remain faithful to the Church, orthodox in teaching, but cold in devotion to the Lord.

A priest must love the Scriptures, pray, grow in love for his people, cultivate a zeal for souls—and, although we cannot find it in any Vatican document, show up for work and stop complaining.

The 1961 pathology report coincides with the calling of the rich young man. A candidate for the priesthood must exhibit upright morality, generosity, and freedom to make the irretrievable commitment to Jesus in Holy Orders.

After Jesus explains how the Commandments conclude with generosity and the rich young man abandons the call to the priesthood, Peter says, “We have left everything and followed you.” (Mk.10:28) We know Peter’s exalted status. We know his cowardice and reparative love. So the response of Jesus consoles every priest in his weakness:

Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. (Mk. 10: 29-30)

Fr. Jerry Pokorsky is a priest of the Diocese of Arlington who has also served as a financial administrator in the Diocese of Lincoln. Trained in business and accounting, he also holds a Master of Divinity and a Master’s in moral theology. Father Pokorsky co-founded both CREDO and Adoremus, two organizations deeply engaged in authentic liturgical renewal. He writes regularly for a number of Catholic websites and magazines. See full bio.

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  • Posted by: winnie - Oct. 15, 2024 10:21 AM ET USA

    Thank you for this reflection, Father!