Vatican issues new guidelines for priestly formation
(Vatican Radio) The Vatican’s Congregation for the
Clergy has issued an updated instrument for the formation of priests.
The document, entitled Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis or
‘The Gift of Priestly Vocation’, was promulgated on the Solemnity of the
Immaculate Conception, 8 Dec and published in the Osservatore Romano.
“The gift of the priestly vocation, placed by God in the
hearts of some men, obliges the Church to propose to them a serious journey of
formation,” the opening line of the document reads.
In an interview with the Osservatore Romano, Cardinal
Beniamino Stella, Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, says the updated Ratio
Fundamentalis is meant to provide guidelines for the formation of
priests, which “needed to be revamped, renewed, and restored to the centre”.
Click here to read the full interview.
Updated norms
The last Ratio was published in 1970 and
updated in 1985. Cardinal Stella said the new norms seek to take into account
the rapid evolution in “historical, socio-cultural, and ecclesiastical
contexts”.
He said inspiration was drawn from Pope Francis’ teachings
and spirituality, especially regarding “temptations tied to money, to the
authoritarian exercise of power, to rigid legalism, and to vainglory”.
Innovation and continuity
Cardinal Stella said the guidelines take up “the content,
methods and orientation produced up to this day in the field of formation”,
while at the same time building on the “existing patrimony” of the Church.
He said that “in the life of the Church innovations are
never separate from Tradition, but, on the contrary, integrate it, and enhance
it”.
The document, he said, draws on Pastores dabo vobis from
1992 to promote an “integral formation”, that is, “the ability to unite, in a
balanced way, the human, as well as the spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral
dimensions, through a gradual instructional personalised course”.
One important innovation is the introduction of a
“propaedeutic period upon entrance to the Seminary”.
The Ratio Fundamentalis proposes the
propaedeutic stage of formation be “not less than one year or more than two”
and is meant to validate the vocation of candidates.
The document also emphasizes the need for dioceses and
religious orders to guard against admitting potential sex abusers to the
priesthood.
“The greatest attention must be given to the theme of the
protection of minors and vulnerable adults,” it says, “being vigilant lest
those who seek admission to a seminary or a house of formation, or who are
already petitioning to receive Holy Orders, have not been involved in any way
with any crime or problematic behavior in this area.”
Ratio Fundamentalis restates the language of the
Catechism of the Catholic Church on the ordination of persons with homosexual
tendencies.
“The Church, while profoundly respecting the persons in
question, cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practice
homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the
so-called ‘gay culture’. Such persons, in fact, find themselves in a situation
that gravely hinders them from relating correctly to men and women. One must in
no way overlook the negative consequences that can derive from the ordination
of persons with deep-seated homosexual tendencies.” (cf. Ratio Fundamentalis
199; CCC nn. 2357-2358).
Cardinal Stella said the guidelines have added three stages
to priestly formation: “the “stage of discipleship,” “configuration stage,” and
“pastoral stage,” to each of which corresponds an itinerary and a formative
content, orientated toward an assimilation with the image of the Good
Shepherd.”
In brief, he said, “to be a good priest, in addition to
having passed all the exams, a demonstrated human, spiritual and pastoral
maturation is necessary”.
Humanity, spirituality, discernment
Cardinal Stella told the Osservatore Romano the three
keywords he would choose to describe the document are: ‘humanity, spirituality,
and discernment.’
He recalled Pope Francis’ recent address to the Society of
Jesus: “I am noticing,” he said “the lack of discernment in the formation of
priests. We are risking, in fact, becoming accustomed to ‘black and white’ and
to that which is legal. We are quite closed, by and large, to discernment. One
thing is clear, today in a certain quantity of Seminaries, a rigidity has been
re- established which is not related to situational discernment.”
Word for priests
The Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy concluded
with a word for priests.
He said, “To each one of them I would like to say above all:
do not become discouraged! The Lord never offers less than his promises, and if
you have called upon him, he will make his light shine upon you, whether you
live in darkness, aridity, fatigue or a moment of pastoral failure. I would
like to recommend to priests that they not let the healthy disquiet, which
maintains their progress on the right path, be extinguished!”
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