|
Five American priests working in Rome for the Holy See have collaborated in the writing of this little book which is directed primarily to priests, but also has many things to say to the lay person in the pews. The book has five chapters based on the five seasons of the liturgical year -- Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and Ordinary Time. The spiritual and liturgical insights of each season are presented in a way that applies them to the life of the priest.
The first chapter deals with Advent and carries the title of "Expectant Desire." The author applies the idea of preparation for Christmas and waiting for the coming of Christ to the life of the priest. Mary with her "fiat" is the model of this expectant desire.
The Christmas season is approached from the point of view of "generosity" by Msgr. Charles M. Mangan. Here he speaks of God becoming Man in Jesus Christ as "generosity incarnate." Since the priest is chosen by God to be an alter Christus who should pattern his whole life on the life of Jesus, the priest, he says, should be an example of generosity in the way he serves God and cares for the faithful committed to him.
Msgr. John A. Abruzzese wrote the third chapter on Lent. Here of course the emphasis is on suffering and sharing in the cross of Christ, who was sent into this world by the Father to suffer and die for us in order to make reparation for our sins and to merit for us eternal life if we die in his grace. Christ is both Priest and Victim. The priest, who acts in persona Christi, is called to imitate both dimensions -- priest and victim. In recent years we have not heard much about Christ being a victim for our sins, although I remember that Bishop Fulton J. Sheen often spoke on that topic.
Easter is the season of joy and hope, so Msgr. Andrew R. Baker (not a relative) presents his essay in chapter four on the priest as the "Herald of Hope." Hope is a good four-leter word. The Christian and especially the priest should be a person of hope because he shares in the divine nature by reason of the sacraments he has received. Christ lives in him (see Gal. 2:20) -- the Christ who is glorified at the right hand of the Father and who, by rising from the dead, conquered Satan, sin and death. The priest knows that he shares now in eternal life and so he is a beacon of hope to both believers and unbelievers.
The fifth and last chapter deals with what is now called "Ordinary Time." The author is Msgr. Laurence J. Spiteri. The basic point he makes is that the priest should be a contemplative in action. Without a life of prayer, chastity, obedience and self-denial he will not be very effective in his daily ministry.
Basic characteristics of the Catholic priesthood run through all these essays: personal prayer, generosity, self-denial, chastity and especially the centrality of the Mass and devotion to our Blessed Mother.
The book is easy to read and most priests will find that it encourages them to be faithful in the daily task of being an ambassador for Christ and a beacon of hope. --Fr. Kenneth Baker, S.J. in the February 2010 issue of Homiletic & Pastoral Review
Seasons: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and Ordinary Time are the seasons of the Liturgical Year and of the spiritual life itself. These seasons of the Liturgical Year and of the spiritual life inspired the thoughtful meditations on the priesthood in "A Priest for All Liturgical Seasons: Changing Calendar, Unchanging Virtue." The meditations are by five American diocesan priests who are living and working in Rome for the Holy See: Fr. Anthony J. Figueiredo, STD, a priest of the Archdioceseof Newark; Monsignor Charles M. Mangan, JCL, a priest of the Diocese of Sioux Falls; Monsignor John A. Abruzzese, STD, a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston; Monsignor Andrew R. Baker, STD, a priest of the Diocese of Allentown; Monsignor Laurence J. Spiteri, JCD, PhD, a priest of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The meditations are offered for the profit of all the faithful, but especially for their brother priests and those aspiring to the priesthood. This little book took shape in Rome on Sunday, April 20, 2008, the day on which Pope Benedict XVI visited "Ground Zero" in Manhattan and celebrated Mass at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. It is dedicated to him in thanksgiving for his historical visit to the Church in the United States and the inspiration it provided. --Crux of the News, April 13, 2009
Top of Page |
Msgr. John A. Abruzzese, STD, a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston, is a senior official in the Synod of Bishops; Monsignor Andrew R. Baker, STD is a priest of the Diocese of Allentown and an official at the Congregation for Bishops; Father Anthony J. Figueiredo, STD, a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark, is associated with the Neocatechumenal Way and is an official in the Pontifical Council Cor Unum; Monsignor Charles M. Mangan, JCL, a priest of the Diocese of Sioux Falls, is an official at the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life; Monsignor Laurence J. Spiteri, JCD, PhD, a priest of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, is the official in charge of the legal office at the Vatican Apostolic Library and Judge in Court of Second Instance for the Diocese of Rome, the Lazio Region and the Naples and Sardinia Provinces.