Why do you think there is a shortage of good Priests?

General
1

Choose Up to 3:

  • A Lack of Faith among Young Men
  • The Priest Scandals have defiled the Vocation
  • The vow of celibacy.
  • Too many ‘Effeminate’ Priests
  • The Second Vatican Council
  • A lack of strong Catholic Families
  • Too many complaining/critical parishioners
  • Other

0 voters

2

Though I do think that Priestly celibacy is a reason, but I do not think changing this discipline will improve the morality among Catholic Priests. I work with a Pastor’s Wife and hear all about the struggles of being a Married Pastor with children. Pastor Tom works a full-time job in addition to Pastoring his small-town Church. Both of their Daughters attended Med-school, which is not cheap! Though his Wife tries to help lighten his load, it is a lot.

There is a reason why St. Paul says, “I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried woman or girl is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please her husband. I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord. . . So that he who marries his betrothed does well; and he who refrains from marriage will do better” (1 Cor. 7:32-35, 38).

We do need more courageous men, who are not afraid to follow Christ and stand up for the faith of the Apostles and the truth. Who shows mercy and protection over his children (the church). Who do not bend the knee to the state during times of fear and uncertainty. Who will serve the Lord and not be afraid. Who will love, even when he is spat upon for his vocation and for the sins of his brothers. I Pray for good men, not perfect men; may they hear God’s call to lead the Church back on a path of holiness and lead by example. I Pray for those who have answered God’s call and who are losing hope and morale; May God give them strength and direction.

I am not here to play the blame game as much as I am trying to figure out solutions to a problem. Our Church is under attack. Our Families are under attack. Our souls are under attack. It is times that we love our enemies, while not compromising on what is good, true, and beautiful (not the inversion of this that the depraved have embraced). It is time that we start doing what is truly right and just. It is time that we trust in the Lord.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk ; )

3

Jesus, in Matthew 9:12, makes the case for celibacy. Speaking as one who was assaulted while studying for the Priesthood, I can say that many good are pushed away for not complying with the corruption. The call it “thinking too independently”.

1 Like
4

Young men and boys like “cool things.”
That could be dinosaurs when you’re little, military jets, tanks, metal bands, a sports team, etc.
Cool things vary according to the time and place and the particular group of boys.
I’m Gen. X.
By the time I came around to religion class (first grade in 1972) all of the cool things had been stripped out of the faith by Vatican II.
In the old catechesis books, you can see all kinds of potential for “cool things.”
When we came around, all of it had been replaced by this bland, milquetoast Jesus who loves everyone all the time, never gets mad and who just suffers.
There’s nothing AT ALL cool about that.
Religion class at my Catholic school was an easy A.
The only reason that I’m still Catholic is my mom and that I love philosophy. I realized that there was more to the faith than the watered-down anodyne stuff I had been taught in religion class.
There were a couple of guys I knew who, in another place and time, might have become priests.
People were like, “What? Are you crazy?”
Vatican II wasn’t supposed to result in that but it’s execution resulted in that attitude.

1 Like
5

We are rejecting the direction of the Holy Spirit as God guides the church forward by choosing both men and women, married and single, divorced and remarried, gay and straight to minister as priests and bishops. There is no shortage of chaste women and men called by God. There is a shortage of trust in God and a strong belief that we know better than God. God can and does make all things new.

6

I disagree celibacy is a major factor. I’ve been celibate since 2007. I believe more it is the watering down if our faith. Look at the new Immaculata parish just opened up in Kanas. It is a SPPX, reverant holy beautiful!

1 Like
7

For when you truly love Jesus and believe , you do not want to sin and offend him

8

My church lost a wonderful Priest because he “told it like it is” rather than everything being happy. He enrolled us in the Scapular Confraternity and taught us about Divine Mercy Sunday.

Many of us miss him terribly.

1 Like
9

I was in Indiana for a Libertarian Convention and wanted to attend Mass while there. So, I googled nearby Catholic Churches and one had negative reviews. As I read through the comments, I quickly realized that this is the Church I should go to. The complaints were that this Priest was blunt (something that I think we need more of).

I used to attend a non-Denominational Church and the message became extremely fluffy. And as my faith matured, I desired more depth, beauty, and truth.

I think we need more Priests who are willing to say the hard things, but are also able to show mercy and compassion as well. It is tough to balance the two, but we have Christ as the perfect example of this. I Pray for your former Priest and for those who complained about him.

Lord, as you well know, we have different temperaments in the Church you founded through the Apostles. You confronted sinners with love and challenged them to grow in holiness. You do not ask us live on our own, but by grace, that only comes through The Son of God, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Thank you for Priests who are not afraid to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4; 1 Peter 3:15; Proverbs 15:1; James 3:17; Galatians 6:1; James 1:19-20)

If you read any of these, read, reflect, and Pray upon all of Ephesians 4.

10

I for one think Bishops share some blame. I my diocese the board that interviews men for the priesthood was very liberal and had too many women. I heard some men complain that in the interview if the man expressed his disapproval of homosexual acts, he was declared unfit for the priesthood. Also a bishops not backing up his priest whey they speak the truth. One priest had a homily against homosexual lifestyle and some complained to the bishop and the priest was sent packing to be “re-educated”.

1 Like