Friday 19 June 2009

The Voice of... Pope Benedict XIV

During these first months of the Holy Year for Priests, let us listen to the voice of the Popes on the Priesthood. On 3rd December, 1740, Pope Benedict XIV published his Encyclical Ubi Primum on the Priesthood.

"...Above all, see to it that the clergy excel in character and in zeal for divine worship and that ecclesiastical discipline is kept in good condition or restored where it has suffered. The example of dedicated clerics is the best inspiration for the faithful. Therefore, direct the keenness of your mind so that those men are chosen for the clergy from whom it can reasonably be expected that their lives will command respect from all who walk in the law of the Lord and who go from virtue to virtue. Their work will bring spiritual benefit to your churches. It is better to have a few ministers who are upright and effective, than many who labor in vain to build up the Church..."
Ubi Primum, No. 1.

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