AM happy to
know that the committee on the ongoing
formation of the Archdiocese of Cebu is organizing a
conference on
priestly conduct as part of the celebration of 2018 as
the Year of the
Clergy and Consecrated Persons. I believe it is part of
an effort to
establish some code of ethics for priests.
This is a very
important aspect of priestly life and
ministry. Let us hope that a lot of good can be drawn
from this event
which will gather priests not only from Cebu but also
from the
neighboring provinces of Bohol, Leyte and Negros
Occidental. Let us
pray that we can see a tangible transformation in the
lives of priests
after this conference.
Some
preliminary or working paper has been circulated
around to prepare the participants. In it a lot of ideas
and
suggestions are already made, making an extensive
coverage of relevant
issues, and all a result of individual and collective
experiences,
study and consultation.
I find all
these proposed ideas wonderful and we just have
to pray that these points get really internalized and
assimilated
organically in the lives of priests. They should not just
be rules to
be followed, but rather a natural expression of how
priests ought to
behave, given their dignity.
We cannot deny
that priests play a very crucial role in
the Church, let alone, in the world. As sacramentally
configured to
Christ, head of the Church, they carry out the functions
of teaching,
sanctifying and governing the People of God in a leading
and directing
way.
If I may, my
two-cents’ worth of ideas and suggestions to
the working paper would be the following:
We have to
highlight the priority of a healthy spiritual
life before we talk about how priestly conduct should be.
And this
means that priests should always be aware of who they are
and what
they are supposed to do.
This also means
that they have to wage a daily spiritual
struggle because this will insure that their spiritual
life is vibrant
and healthy. Let’s remember that there will always be
challenges to
face, issues to resolve, enemies to contend with, etc.,
and we just
have to wage a constant battle to be consistent to our
identity and
dedication to our ministry.
Priests have to
realize that priesthood gives them a
permanent character in their life, such that their
priesthood is not
something that they can put on and take off in certain
moments. They
are priests all the time, and should be priests through
and through,
and not just priestly bureaucrats, actors, performers and
businessmen.
In this regard,
I would give due importance also to the
wearing of priestly attire all the time, except in those
moments where
prudence and common sense would dictate otherwise. This
may not be the
most important part of priestly dignity, but it somehow
properly
packages everything that a priest is. Sad to say, this
priestly attire
is not very much appreciated by many priests.
identifiable wherever they are. I am sure that people
would be happy
to see a priest in their midst. And the priestly attire
would also
help the priests themselves to be more consistent with
their true
identity and mission even while roaming around. It helps
as a kind of
protection against their weaknesses and the many
temptations around.
And given the
conditions in the Church and the world
today, priests should keep abreast with the rapid
developments taking
place, and know how to act with decorum at all times.
Priests should
be wary of being dragged to places where they should not
be or to ways
and lifestyles that are not proper to priestly dignity.
Priests should
only talk about God, about spiritual and
supernatural realities, about the redemption of man. They
should be
able to relate everything in this life to these ends, and
to avoid
getting entangled while evangelizing the worldly and
temporal affairs.
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