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Theology e-magazine
Conference
r each es
you
the
latest
Page - 02
Introduction
Only if we
feel
ourselves to
be a part of
Christ, the
Church, and
the
Kingdom,
will we
journey well
through the
Seminary
Years - Pope
Francis
the human,
the spiritual,
intellectual,
pastoral dimensions,
through a gradual instructional personalised course.
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.
Page - 03
and black.
No! In life
shades of
gray
In life, not
everything
is black and
white, white
predominat
e. We must
then teach
how to
discern
within this
gray.
Pope
Francis
Humanity,
Spirituality,
Discernment.
Reminds seminarians that, the desire alone to become a priest is not
sufficient, and there does not exist a right to receive sacred ordination. It
belongs to the Church to discern the suitability of him who desires to enter
the seminary, to accompany him during his years of formation, and to call
him to holy orders if he is judged to possess the necessary qualities.
A) Humanity
Page - 04
being amiable,
genuine, loyal,
inwardly free,
emotionally stable,
able to be interested in peaceful interrelationships
to live the Gospel without rigidity.
B) Spirituality
Cardinal Stella says cultivating the spiritual
life with discipline can overcome a sacral or
bureaucratic vision of ministry and instead form
priests to be enthusiastic for the Gospel, capable
of thinking with the Church and being
C) Discernment
Drawing heavily on the words and thinking of Pope Francis, Cardinal Stella
says those who follow the way of the Gospel and immerse themselves into life of
the Spirit overcome the ideological approach of rigorists, discovering that the
processes and situations of life can not be classified by inflexible schemes or
abstract rules, but they need to listen, dialogue and interpret the movements of the
heart.
Discernment is needed even
The
document
has
many
One important innovation
Page - 05
the involvement of
seminary training.
women
in
is the introduction of a
propaedeutic period upon entrance
to the Seminary. It must be not
less than one year or more than
two and is meant to validate the
vocation of candidates.
pastoral stage,
to each of which corresponds an itinerary and a formative content, orientated
toward an assimilation with the image of the Good Shepherd.
Page - 06
4. Emphasizes the need for dioceses and religious orders to guard against
admitting potential sex abusers to the priesthood.
5. It adds that lessons on the protection of minors are to be included in
formation, including how to deal with exploitation and violence such as
trafficking of minors, child labor, and sexual abuse of minors or vulnerable
adults.
6. Seminars and courses on the protection of children and vulnerable adults
must be part of both seminary education and the continuing education of
priests.
7. The document also recommends that bishops responsible for seminaries be
in dialogue with the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors,
established by Pope Francis in 2013.
1. Clericalism
It says that seminarians should be educated so that they do not become prey
to 'clericalism', nor yield to the temptation of modelling their lives on the search
for popular consensus. This would inevitably lead them to fall short in exercising
their ministry as leaders of the community, leading them to think about the
Church as a merely human institution.
It reiterates that priestly
ordination, while making its
Page - 07
2. Homosexuality continues to
be a thorny issue
way
seminaries.
the
Catholic
It
quotes
Congregation
for
from
that
with
any
crime
or
problematic
or
support
the
so-called
culture'.
'gay
have taken up the study of the latest Vatican document on priestly formation.
It is our earnest desire that our seminarians study the updated version of the
document on priestly formation, college dean Fr Pratap Chandra Misal.
We have started to study the doc so that we
are able to appreciate the gift of our call to be
missionaries, and face the challenges and live
it in a worthy manner interiorizing its depth
with conviction.
said Bachan Singh, a 2nd year student of philosophy.
Conclusion
The purpose of releasing this issue is to understand the valuable information
about priestly formation and to appreciate, cherish the vocation. Seminary is an
educating community.
Seminaries are to be
facilitated with advanced
technological training, and
access to modern media