ST. JOSEMARIA ON PRIESTHOOD
As we celebrate today, Mar. 28, the anniversary of the priestly ordination of St. Josemaria (1925), let us thank God for the gift of priesthood and pray for the holiness, apostolic zeal and fidelity of all priests. Let us also ask Our Lord to send us vocations to priesthood. Below you have some of St. Josemaria’s thoughts on priesthood:
A Priest – whoever he may be – is always another Christ.
The Way, 66
To love God and not venerate his Priests… is not possible.
The Way, 74
The Church needs priests, and always will. Ask the Blessed Trinity for them each day, through Holy Mary.
And pray that they may be cheerful, hard-working, effective; that they may be well trained: and that they may sacrifice themselves joyfully for their brothers, without feeling that they are victims.
The Forge, 910
A long time ago someone asked me, tactlessly, whether those of us whose career is the priesthood are able to retire when we get old. And since I gave him no answer, he persisted with his impertinent question.
Then an answer came to me which, I thought, put it in a nutshell. “The priesthood”, I told him, “is not a career: it is an apostolate.”
That’s how I feel about it. And I wanted to put it down in these notes so that – with God’s help – none of us may ever forget the difference.
The Forge, 582
People who say that we priests are lonely are either lying or have got it all wrong. We are far less lonely than anyone else, for we can count on the constant company of the Lord, with whom we should be conversing without interruption.
We are in love with Love, with the Author of Love!
The Forge, 38
How great is the value of piety in the Holy Liturgy!
I was not at all surprised when someone said to me a few days ago, talking about a model priest who had died recently: “What a saint he was!”
“Did you know him well?” I asked.
“No,” he said, “but I once saw him saying the Mass.”
The Forge, 645
I have been thinking of all the priests throughout the world. Help me to pray for the fruitfulness of their apostolates.
“My brother in the priesthood, please speak always about God and, when you really do belong to him, your conversations will never be monotonous.”
The Forge, 965
Cordially inviting you to visit and like our FB page in www.fb.com/CatholicsstrivingforHoliness or sign-up to our website, www.catholicsstrivingforholiness.org, so we can have a wider apostolic reach and thus help more people in their Christian life. Thanks! Fr. Rolly A., priest of Opus Dei.