Recently, a group of disgruntled parishioners physically locked their priest out of the parish. One parishioner claims the priest needs to be "...more social, more friendly – basically what a priest is supposed to be." She says "He's not just here to give Mass. He's here to serve the community." So, if "Fr. Bob" isn't being "social" or "friendly" enough to please his parishioners the solution is to lock him out of the church physically (and Christ with him) - even though this means no sacraments for the parishioners? Is this not childish, disrespectful, and self-destructive? Doesn't it also show a serious misunderstanding of the role of a priest?
Parishioners who want a self-affirming, social-working, friendly priest should wake up and face the facts:
(1) A good priest should be willing to shed his blood for his flock - maybe spend his entire life in a "dry martyrdom" for those under his charge. He is supposed to admonish them and correct them, not necessarily be "social" & "friendly" to them. As St. Paul instructs in 1 Tim. 5:20: "Reprimand publicly those who do sin, so that the rest also will be afraid."
(2) Should a priest become too "friendly" with parishioners, he might find it hard to condemn their sins, offer correction, etc. Obviously, this would ill serve the parishioners. "Beseech, accuse, correct, rebuke and fear not: for ill-judged silence leaves in their error those who could be taught, and this is most harmful both to them and to you who should have dispelled the error." (Pope Pius VI, "Inscrutabile", 1775 A.D.)
(3) Priests are authority figures - fathers. As such, part of their job is to discipline and correct. They merit respect and lawful obedience. They are not supposed to act like "buddies" to the laity, especially given the fact that so many of today's laity choose to continue in sin. "Of a truth, he who to please men would gloss over their evil inclinations or be indulgent about their incorrect ways of thinking or acting, thereby prejudicing Christian teaching and integrity of morals, would be betraying his ministry." (Pope Pius XII, "Menti Nostrae", 1950 A.D.)
(4) A priest cannot be overly concerned with public opinion: "If a parish priest doesn't want to be damned, and if there is any loose living in his parish, he must spurn the very thought of public opinion and the fear of being despised or hated by his parishioners. Even if he were certain of being lynched when he came down from the pulpit, that must not stop him from speaking out against it." (St. John Vianney)
(5) A priest's role is not primarily to serve the "social" needs of his flock. Rather, "A priest has two acts: one is the principal, namely to consecrate the body of Christ; the other is secondary, namely to prepare God's people for the reception of this sacrament" (St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church and "greatest theologian in the history of the Church")
(6) A priest is supposed to lead and protect his flock in the midst of great spiritual dangers - not be the flock's "buddy": "These, then, are the duties of a shepherd: to place himself as leader at the head of his flock, to provide proper food for it, to ward off dangers, to guard against insidious foes, to defend it against violence: in a word to rule and govern it." (Pope Leo XIII, "Satis Cognitum", 1896 A.D.)
(7) The principal act of the priest IS to say Mass: "[T]he principal act of a priest is to consecrate the Body and Blood of Christ" (St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church and "greatest theologian in the history of the Church") As Pope John Paul II has said, "The Eucharist is the principal and central raison d'etre of the sacrament of the priesthood"
(8) It is wrong to place priests on the same level as laity or to want them to act as if they were just like laity. Priests have a high dignity that should be respected. "Let them, however, have it always present to their minds that the priest even in the midst of his people must preserve intact his august character as a minister of God, being as he is placed at the head of his brethren. Any manner whatever, in which he employs himself among the people, to the loss of the sacerdotal dignity, or with danger to the ecclesiastical duties and discipline, can only be warmly reproved." (Pope Leo XIII, "Fin Dal Principio", 1902 A.D.)
(9) Many canonized religious would not be considered "social" or "friendly" by today's worldly standards. Rather, they were holy. Oftentimes social "niceties" and "friendless" can endanger holiness. People preoccupied with being "social" and "friendly" will most likely overlook (or even validate) sin because they don't want to appear "unfriendly". As Catholics, we are primarily called to holiness, not friendliness. In fact, we are sometimes called to act in ways that would not be considered friendly at all by worldly standards. [related user-submitted article here]
A priest's job is to teach, consecrate, and help save souls - not be a "friendly" social worker. Sometimes his duties must necessarily feel unpleasant for those under his charge - kind of like a doctor who must implement a painful procedure to save his patient's life. Catholics should thank the good priests who risk being thought of as "not social" or "unfriendly" in order to help them secure a blessed eternity.
"With all your soul, fear God, revere his priests. With all your strength, love your Creator, forsake not his ministers." (Sirach 7:29-30)
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