Pope ordains 19 priests: “in the school of the Virgin Mary, always be men of prayer and service"

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VATICAN - On the Day of Prayer for Vocations, the Pope ordains 19 priests: "always be men of prayer and service, so that in faithfully exercising your ministry you may become holy priests according to God's heart"

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – On Sunday, May 3, the 4th Sunday of Easter, the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, the Holy Father Benedict XVI presided a Mass in the Vatican Basilica during which he ordained 19 priests for the Diocese of Rome. In the homily, the Pope made reference to the Word of God in proposing several reflections.
The First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:11-12), called to mind the singular "omonimia" between Peter and Jesus: "Peter, who received his new name from Jesus himself, here affirms that Jesus is "the rock," the Holy Father said. "In fact the true rock is Jesus. The only name that saves is His. The apostle, and therefore the priest, receives his own 'name,' his own identity, from that of Christ. Everything he does, he does in His name... The reference to what the Psalm says is essential: "The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone (Ps. 117 (118): 22). Jesus has been 'rejected,' but the Father has placed His chosen one as the foundation of the temple of the New Covenant. Thus, the apostle and the priest also come to experience the Cross, and it is only through it that they can become truly useful in the building-up of the Church. God takes pleasure in building His Church with people who, following Jesus, place all their confidence in God, like the same Psalm says."

The Holy Father then highlighted that "the disciple is destined to the same fate as his Master, which in the end is the fate inscribed in the will of God the Father...Jesus experienced the world's rejection of God, the lack of understanding, indifference, the disfiguring of God's face. Jesus has 'handed on the torch' to His disciples...Thus, the disciple, especially the apostle, experiences the same joy as Jesus in knowing the name and the face of the Father, and they share His pain in seeing that God is not known and that His love is not returned... This is true and we, the priests, know this from experience: 'the world', in John's use of the term, does not understand Christians, it does not understand the ministers of the Gospel. Partly this is because it does not, in fact, know God, and partly because it does not want to know Him. The world does not want to know God and listen to His ministers because this would lead it into crisis."

Continuing on with his homily, Benedict XVI explained that "this 'world,' "in its evangelical meaning, also threatens the Church, contaminating her members and even her ordained ministers. The 'world' is a mentality, a way of thinking and living that can even contaminate the Church, that actually does contaminate the Church, and hence requires constant vigilance and purification. ... We are 'in' the world, and we risk being 'of' the world and in fact, at times, we are. This is why, at the end, Jesus did not pray for the world but for His disciples, that the Father would protect them from the evil one and that they could be free and different from the world, in spite of their living in the world."

Lastly, in making reference to the Gospel of the Good Shepherd, where Jesus declares: "I give my life for the sheep." (cf Jn 10:15, 17, 18). "Becoming priests in the Church means entering into this self-donation of Christ, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders, and doing so with our entire being. Jesus gave His life for everyone, yet in particular He consecrated Himself for those whom the Father gave to Him to be consecrated in the truth - that is, in Him - and who hence could speak and act in His name, represent Him, extend His salvific actions by breaking the bread of life and remitting sins. This is how the Good Shepherd gave His life for the sheep, but He gave it and He gives it especially to those whom He has called "with special predilection" to follow Him on the path of pastoral service."

The final part of the Holy Father's homily was dedicated to a theme that he says he "carries deep in his heart: prayer and its relationship to sacrifice." After having recalled the particular vocation of priests to prayer - "we are called to 'abide' in Christ, and this is achieved especially through prayer" - the Holy Father mentioned how "our ministry is completely dependent on such 'abiding', which is the same as prayer and from which it draws its effectiveness." He later continued, saying: "The celebration of the Eucharist is the greatest and most exalted form of prayer and is the centre and source from which the other forms receive their 'lifeblood': the Liturgy of the Hours, Eucharistic adoration, 'lectio divina', the Holy Rosary and meditation...A priest who prays much and prays well is progressively expropriated of himself and becomes ever more united to Christ, the Good Shepherd and Servant of His brothers and sisters...In this manner, the very same life of Christ, Lamb and Shepherd, is communicated to the entire flock, through the consecrated ministers."

The Holy Father concluded his homily by praying for the future priests through the intercession of the Apostles Peter and Paul and Saint John Maria Vianney, the Cure of Ars, to whom the upcoming Year of the Priest will be dedicated, and the Most Holy Virgin Mary: "in the school of the Virgin Mary, always be men of prayer and service, so that in faithfully exercising your ministry you may become holy priests according to God's heart."

(SL) (Agenzia Fides 4/5/2009)

Links:
Complete text of the Holy Father's homily, in Italian
http://www.fides.org/ita/magistero/bxvi/omelia_030509.html