www.byzcath.org Forums News & Events Church News Priest shortage..crisis of faith, not celibacy

Bob I would say go for it!

The ministry to priests is so very important. Just to be there is they need an ear works wonders. Your words are wonderful, those of a man with great peace. I am sure the work for so many who do not have the slightest idea of getting through the system is an excellent work, for them and God.

Maybe this is the time for you to speak with the priest closest to you and find if now is the time for your voacation. We have a friend who is now a priest, he is in his 70s, didn't enter until his 60s. The priest he was with so many years never had a someone enter the priesthood from his service to the Lord, so Fr. Dale said he was Fr. Pat's vocation. He must have been a brother for 40 some years by then. His last name is Labonte. He would never captilize the 'B.' I guess LaBonte means 'the good' and he always says no man is good but God. That speaks volumes about Fr. Dales service to the Lord. He would be out at 3 in the morning taking soup to homeless under the highways, always looking for blankets, you could never give him or Fr. Pat anything that they kept to themselves, they gave everything away. One day when we had stopped by the Holy Rosary, it is a very poor church in a project - the poorest in B'ham, they never had much, but had enough. Anyway, he was so excited because he found a bunch of fist sticks in the freezer and promptly proceeded to make soup from them. Needless to say you never left without having a bowl of soup.

Fr. Dale has narcalepsy(sp) isn't suppose to drive becasue he falls asleep behind the steering wheel. If you want to believe in angels, ride in a car with Fr. Dale. He will be driving down the highway sound asleep. Only by the grace of God, he was truly on fire for Jesus and loved Blessed Mother so much, always seeking the Holy Spirit to guide him along his work for the day.

Pani Rose

Just found this link, a program called "Fishers of Men."

Catholic Priest Recruitment Program Launched
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,172300,00.html

no, I don't think celibecy is the issue. I have a lot of friends whose sons are in their 20's and 30's who aren't married, and the don't have great paying jobs either.

Most priests don't encourage vocations and do even discourage vocations. So its really the Church's fault.

Mike,

If I am not mistaking your post, you are saying that you know priests that discourage young people from becoming priests?

In Christ,
Alice

Dear Alice,

Greetings. I wonder if Mike's reply is based upon preliminary screening occuring at the parish level by the priest, who may then possibly "discourage" a path to the diaconite in Christ. This would make sense to me, since the priest is the parishoner's spiritual guide, and confidant in the confessional. The priest may see character issues that could present complications later in life for the would be seminarian.

Just my thoughts, but I would like to have Mike C. present his sources for this information.

Your brother in Christ,

Michael

If it is difficult to get volunteers part-time for community service, how much more difficult must it be to get vocations to the priesthood?

There is a general decline in the willingness to serve one's fellow man regardless of religion. Service organizations connected to the church as well as unconnected to the church (the Knights of Columbus, local Women's Clubs, etc.) are ALL witnessing a decline in membership. The ME Generation attitude appears to be the culprit. After Hurricane Katrina, I shudder to think how our fragile national infrastructure can survive a larger catastrophy. Paid workers have never been enough in crises like that.

Small wonder that people dream of utopian communities where everyone practices the Faith. Supporting the religious life, regardless of vocations to the priesthood, might be a better place to start. A monastic revival would eventually have a trickle-down effect in our churches, IMHO.

I believe the Church is on the turn around. There are many young people, especially seminarians, who are tired of clergy who create their own disturbed view of Christianity. If many seminarians who I know, have a say in the future, the Church will definately turn back to the wayit should be.

God Bless

I was talking to several priests once, and one was encouraging me to enter the seminary to become a priest. He was saying we need young priests, we need new workers in the vineyard, etc. etc.

One of the other priests in the discussion said what for? There won't be a (Ukrainian) church in America in 20 years. What's the point. We are mortally wounded. There won't be any parishes to serve, etc. etc.

Just thought I'd share that. Take it for what it's worth.

-uc

I was wondering since the Byzantine rite has once again allowed married men to enter the priesthood have very many answered the call?

Fr. Andrew Greeley published a recent book on the subject of the Priest crisis. Most priests leave, he claims, primarily from a poor working climate, not initially for love. Most who do leave for marriage do so after already giving up.

Believe it or not, Catholic priests, albeit celibate ones, have an extremely high satisfaction rate for their job compared to other professions like physicians and lawyers. Protestant clergy, according to major research, has the lowest satisfaction rate. Biggest complaint? Spouses hate the pitiful pay rate.

Does this answere why some Latin dioceses have many seminarians even though mandatory celibacy is still the law? Comfortable and supportive work climate, orthodoxy, and no Lavender Mafia?

The future of the priesthood, it seems, is to permit married men to marry who have a spouse in the professional field and who is also independent of chancery cauffers. Financing may be the bottom line for candidacy.

Joe

UC,

I believe that is a common attitude among many Eastern Catholics. Can we turn that around? We're trying.

Dan L

Hmmm, where else can a man earn an undergraduate degree, then study four years+ for a graduate degree, and earn wages at or below poverty level?

Actually, the Church (the faithful, not just the hierarchy) needs to understand it needs to pay its full time clerics a wage commensurate with their education. Full time clerics earn even less than teachers with the same or less amount of education.

My attorney had served as the president of his synagagoue. The rabbi they hired had a compensation package over 190K/year. Included were wages, housing allowance, vehicle allowance, health benefits, retirement fund, etc. Now, money should not be a motivator for pursuing a vocation, but neither should it be an inhibitor.

What needs to happen? We parishioners need to understand our responsibilty as stewards and step out in faith and begin to tithe according to the level of our income. This too is a sign of a crisis of faith, or at the very least an ignorance of our responsibilty as stewards.

But priests I know seem to have more discretionary income than middle class family men; many of them are collectors of various things; antiquities, icons, rosaries, etc. I think when you factor in the car allowance [normal for diocesan priests I believe] free housing, the many gifts they receive from parishoners, both stipends and presents, they are living pretty well. Probably, from what I have seen [including some on-site experience living in a rectory when I was a seminarian] they are living too well and could use a little more of the spirit of holy poverty.
-Daniel

I think with married men the problem may well be that there is simply no provision for their spouses if anything happens to them. Several archdioceses have abandoned the concept of a rectory, and given their priests a housing allowance and a living wage. I know several priests who refused a rectory, preferring to buy their own home, so that in the event of their death, their families would not be uprooted.

Gaudior, contemplating this...

I do believe the east needs to be open to married priest in the US it was the tradition of the east until Latin Bishops repressed it. I think celebate priests have soem advatages and married have others, In the Latin Church celebacy is the rule and should remain so but in the east I think we should let the east be the east.