The Priesthood Essay Research Paper PriesthoodFor my

The Priesthood Essay, Research Paper

Priesthood

For my project I chose to research the priesthood. In my paper I will tell you about priests, their daily routine, and provide an interview from a friend who is studying to be a priest.

There are several stages to becoming a priest. The first step is contact, which is when a man who is interested but is not quite sure that he should contact his pastor or the Vocations Director. A man would meet with someone and share his feelings and experiences in the community. The next step is becoming a candidate. This is a more formal stage and the man begins the process of interviews and meetings with people from the Vocations office. A person can be a candidate for one or two years in which they view what the priesthood is really like. The next step is becoming a Seminarian. This is when the candidate enters the Seminary. He is then sponsored by the diocese and begins his theological studies. Next the Seminarian becomes a transitional diaconate about one year before his ordination to the priesthood. At this time he makes promises of celibacy and obedience to his Bishop. Seminarians are also given courses on writing and giving homilies. They also write samples and receive feedback on them. Finally the last step is entering the priesthood. After a lot of prayer and hard work a man is recommended to the priesthood.

In preparing for the priesthood there are four main areas of study: the human, the spiritual, the ability to minister, and the academics. Spirituality is the study of prayer on an individual basis. The ability to minister is performed in supervised programs. While a man is at college he would take his ordinary courses plus his religious courses. After college he enters theology where he studies the scriptures, teachings of Church, and the skills needed to be a priest. A Seminarian should be an average to above average student who has the ability to pass his required classes. Seminarian life is not any harder than the life of an ordinary student. They have the added responsibility of becoming a man and bearer of Good News. If you attend college it takes those four years of college and four additional years of the seminary to become a priest. You could also begin the process of becoming a priest after obtaining a college degree. Then you would enter a two year Pre – Theology program then enter the four year theology program, which would be a total of six years in the Seminary. Seminarians also spend summers as interns in parishes. They also participate in summer programs to help them deepen their spiritual life.

Priests in the Catholic Church are members of the sacerdotal ministry. They are able to perform the sacraments, except for Holy Orders. Some qualities to look for in yourself if you want to become a priest are: you consider a personal relationship with God as an important and vital part of life; you have an ability and willingness to talk about your faith and experiences of God in your life; you have a desire to serve others and make a difference in other’s lives; you are willing to sacrifice personal or material gain for the service of the Gospel and the Church; you are someone that others can talk to; you enjoy life, people, and have a sense of humor; you have the ability to lead and work with people of all ages; you recognize the importance of the Church; you form and maintain healthy relationships with men and women; you feel good about yourself; have average intelligence, and have good physical, mental, and emotional health. The road to priesthood begins with God and his call. Priesthood is called a vocation because it is a call from God to serve the church and share our gifts and talents.

There are two different kinds of priests: a diocesan priest and a religious order priest. A religious order priest belongs to a community of men that take the vows of: poverty, chastity, and obedience. Poverty means that they do not own things individually, but as a group. Chastity means that they refrain from sexual activity and do not marry. Obedience means that they do what their supervisors ask of them. For religious order priests their vocation lies with the community and they usually specialize in education, tending to the sick, and the homeless. A diocesan priest belongs to a body of priests of a local diocese with a state or country and serves in his diocese under a bishop. Diocesan priests do not make any vows. They freely make promises of celibacy and obedience. They also receive personal salaries that enable them to pay for their expenses such as charities, vacations, clothing, and a car. He is sometimes called a secular priest. A diocesan priest can be a teacher, chaplain in hospitals, prisons, and campus ministry. Most diocesan priests are parish priests. It takes four years after college to become a diocesan priest.

Priests celebrate Mass on Sundays and during the week. They listen to confessions, anoint the sick, baptize, and perform funerals. They preach the Word of God at mass and in the classroom. They listen to people and try to promote charity and justice. There is no one special thing that a priest does. Their day is so varied and complex. Prayer plays a central role in the life of a priest. Prayer is communication with the Lord whom we love. Those priests that are truly happy are those that are faithful to prayer. Most priests spend two hours a day in prayer. Pra