Thinking about becoming a Priest

saintsaltynuts wrote: »

The world needs priest's my friend.I wish you the very best if its what you want to do.

I agree.

Consider the lifestyle St. Augustine had before he became a Priest, then a Saint.

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02084a.htm

aviteire wrote: »

Thank you for your kind responces.

Can someone explain the dicerment (I think that's how it is spelled?) to me ?
How can I seek god's advice on this matter ? Are there prayer's I should do on a daily basis. I dont pray at the moment.

I would recommend this book: The Priest is Not His Own

This book gives a good insight into the meaning and purpose of the priesthood. You could also read this: Come & See

I would also recommend regular Mass and Eucharistic Adoration, and a daily Rosary.

You ought to find a good, solid priest to be your spiritual advisor and confessor.

It is not always easy to find a good priest, but you want one who believes and teaches what the Church teaches, who prays, and whose life bears good spiritual fruit. In finding a good priest, bear the following in mind:

Asking Blunt Questions

One quick test to sort out the good from the bad (of those who meet the basic qualifications described above) is to ask some blunt questions. There are many questions that could be asked, but if anyone cannot answer an unqualified “Yes” to at least the following questions, then he or she probably will not be able to lead you very far into a life of purity and holiness.

Personal Criteria

• Do you pray the Rosary every day?

(How can anyone whose life is not grounded in devotional prayer and dedication to the Blessed Virgin teach you to pray constantly, and in humility?)

• Are you a non-smoker?

(Anyone addicted to any substance “loves” the addiction more than he loves God, so how can this person teach you to love God as Christ commanded us: You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind? Remember, any addiction can be cured, if a person loves God more than he loves the addiction.)

• In the absence of any severe, untreatable medical disability, are you at or below the ideal weight for a person of your height?

(How can anyone guilty of the sin of gluttony teach you to deny yourself?)


Theological Criteria

• Do you believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist?

• Do you believe that the only path to the glory of the resurrection is through the suffering of the cross?

• Do you believe that Christ will come in glory to judge the living and the dead, rewarding the pure of heart with a place in heaven, making the imperfectly purified pay for their sins in purgatory, while the unrepentant depart to hell?

• Do you believe that abortion is a sin?

• Do you believe that any sexual activity outside a valid marriage between a man and a woman, such as fornication, or a gay or lesbian or bisexual lifestyle, is a sin?

• Do you believe that remarriage after a divorce (in the absence of an annulment) is a sin?

• Do you believe that the use of contraception is a sin, as an act in itself and also as an act of disobedience to the Magisterium of the Church?

Finally, you might check out the website Word on Fire - see the link in my signature below. You can also watch EWTN.

Related link: For Your Vocation: Discerning Men

I’m a layperson, but from my point of view, here’s what I think :



Firstly it’s fantastic that you feel you might have a vocation for the Church.
The Irish Catholic Priesthood is a very noble and learned vocation.
If you’re ever in doubt of that, just study the lives of the Irish saints and scholars.
Secondly you don’t have to rush into this in September, take as long as you need to decide.

I don’t go to mass very often (Just out of laziness)

This is a little bit worrying.

You may have a lot of studying and thinking to do before you can fully consider a vocation.

If you truly understood The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, you would wish to attend Mass as often as possible.

The understanding of these pictures is really important !

http://wheat4paradise.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/most-holy-sacrifice-of-the-mass1.jpg

http://wheat4paradise.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/holy-communion-50pct.jpg

Mass has two main parts : Liturgy (meaning celebration) of the Word, and Liturgy of the Eucharist.

For each Mass we hear with devotion, Our Lord sends a saint to comfort us at death. (revelation of Christ to St. Gertrude the great).

Padre Pio, the stigmatic priest, said, the world could exist more easily without the sun than without the Mass.

The Cure'd' Ars, St. Jean Vianney said, if we knew the value of the Mass we would die of joy.

A great doctor of the Church, St. Anselm, declares that a single Mass offered for oneself during life may be worth more than a thousand celebrated for the same intention after death. St. Leonard of Port Maurice supports this statement by saying that one Mass before death may be more profitable than many after it.

"The Holy Mass would be of greater profit if people had it offered in their lifetime, rather than having it celebrated for the relief of their souls after death." (Pope Benedict XV).

Once, St. Teresa was overwhelmed with God's Goodness and asked Our Lord, "How can I thank you?" Our Lord replied, "ATTEND ONE MASS".

http://www.jesus-passion.com/Eucharist.htm

• Learn everything you can about Mass and the Eucharist.
• The Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life”
• Understand and practice the 5 Precepts of the Church
• Understand and practice the main holy devotions. (Eucharistic Adoration and the Rosary especially)
• Understand and practice all the church’s teachings on morality ( sex before marriage etc.,) unless you can understand, accept and agree with all the Church’s traditional teachings (which remember, will never change with any current fashion) you will not be able to keep true to your vocation.
• Study all the standard atheist arguments and then the protestant arguments. They will test your faith at first sight, but rest assured they have all been successfully answered and refuted by Catholic theologians and apologists, and you will be able to also study their counter arguments.

The above will get you started on the spiritual side.

On the practical side, really ask yourself over and over, can you live the life of a Priest ?

First decide if you want to be a diocesan priest or a religious order priest.

Either way :

- Single for the rest of your life, and no Children to pass on your love and wisdom to ?
- Likely to be living on your own
- You will be “on duty” 24/7/365 for the rest of your life
- E.g. After a very trying day, just as you settle down on your own to watch your favourite sport on tv at 10pm on Saturday night. The phone rings for the eighth time that night, you’re exhausted, but you have to attend the sudden death of a young person.
- When you get there the scene is utter tragedy, you get asked many awkward questions such as “how can this be God’s plan Father ?”

- After spending many hours consoling and helping the family, you get home at 2am, and realise you still have yet to write the Sunday sermon for tomorrow morning, and that you forgot to order oil for the Chapel’s central heating, and get that blocked drain dealt with, or such like.

Also remember that for the rest of your life, you will be scrutinised and talked about by every member of your parish in minute detail. Parishioners often have no small talk other than “did you see Fr. Such and such the last day ?”. Every gesture you make, how you walk, talk, drive, what car you own, how you spend parish funds to the penny, every single word you say, will be under the parishioners microscope 365 days a year.

Remember your “salary” will be just enough to live on, at most 20k per year.
When you do go on “break” for a few days, you’ll be expected to lead a pilgrimage of old people to Lourdes or such like.

Just when you’ve settled into a parish and the people there have finally accepted you, your Bishop may move you to a new Parish you don’t want to go to, and you have to.

Repeat all of the above, year in, year out, for 50+ years ?

In other words, really really really think about the vows you will have to take
Chastity, Poverty, Obedience.

Ultimately remember a Priest is the servant of God and the laity.


Once you’ve thought about all of the above, talk to some younger (and older) priests, for further advice, and also vocation's directors.

I hope all of the above has not put you off, it’s not designed to, it’s just to help you decide.

God Bless you and I will say some Prayers for you.
May I ask that everyone else does so too.

Quo Vadis wrote: »

- Single for the rest of your life, and no Children to pass on your love and wisdom to ?
- Likely to be living on your own-

In the Catholic Church there are also many Married Priests. In the Roman Rite its traditional for Priests not to marry. But there is nothing stopping you becoming a priests in one of the other 24 rites in the Church (approved by Pope).

Personally if you REALLY want to follow Christ then being celibate and dedicating your life to serving Christ is a very full filling mission. Also as a celibate Catholic Priest you can choose to live in a community with other priests. (Opus Dei, Jesuits, Franciscans...) But most important even if you live physically on your own, you are with Christ.

aviteire wrote: »

I dont go to mass very often (Just out of laziness), but I feel like God is calling me to become a priest and teach the teaching's of christ to others.

He might be! What makes you think so?

I think you should try to live a more pious lifestyle, first.
If you're still perving at girls, having sex or masturbating, or going out and getting drunk, chances are you're not ready just yet!

You should familiarise yourself with the gospel readings, pray daily, attend mass once a week and attend confession regularly.

As for how to pray.. google it! seriously, you'll get some good tips. It's not a case of "saying prayers" or repetition.

Regarding alex73's advice of joining an eastern rite church as a loophole to marriage. I think that's a topic for another thread but for the moment you should consider it a non-runner. However, if you're already married for several years and aged over 35 you can be become a permanent deacon. This is also an option for men aged over 25, although you cannot marry after being ordained.

You can also be closely involved with the church without being ordained. You can become a brother, a monk, or just a guy who helps out the church financially and by donating all your time to it.

aviteire wrote: »

Alot of your posts and message's has made me think twice about this priest thing!

Such unflinching faith! :P

I don't think Catholicism is necessarily all or nothing. You don't have to become a priest to take an interest in your religion.

I think you should attend mass weekly and start going to confession. Then volunteer to do readings or help set out the altar at your local church. Both of these jobs (lector and acolyte) used to be the minor orders, performed in preparation for becoming a priest but are now open to the laity. So it's a good chance for you to shine

Out of interest, what made you think "God is calling me to become a priest"?

Quo Vadis wrote: »

That's why it's called a vocation, it's not as simple as a mere job or career.
I'm glad you’re thinking carefully about it, we need 100 % fully committed for life quality 365/24/7 , not quantity.

Sadly, it is fairly common to think of it as a career, much like the police or nursing.

A mother told me about her own son, who she said 'Didn't not want to be a priest'... Apparently, when it was put to him, ''But mum, priest can't get married!''

We need priests who love Jesus Christ with a burning passion, not career priests who see it as a job. This is one of the reasons , just one, mind, for the retention of celibacy - it sorts the men from the boys. A real man is in a position to sacrifice his aspirations for marriage (which a good priestly candidate should feel as a real sacrifice), and become a spiritual father, as opposed to a merely earthly father, for the sake of the Church.

aviteire wrote: »

One of my main concern's is the truth about the roman catholic church.

Can I ask people what it is that make's them have faith in Jesus Christ and if the entire story is true ?

I have spent alot of time reading other forums on this site (athiest threads) Just to see there view point and I have to say the more I read, the more confused I become about the Jesus Christ story.

To answer's someones question above re: how do I know I have a calling ?
Well to answer that, I dont know how to answer. Just something nagging away at the back of my mind (NOT MY INNER VOICE).

I dont see the whole celibacy thing being a problem for me, I could live with that.

I can share with you some of my reasons to believe, in no particular order:

1. The historical evidence: Christ did exist.
2. The Church He established which persisted through time.
3. The strength of the Catholic Church, despite the sins of Her members, in teaching faith and morals against all odds over history, and standing up for the rights of all men, when whole countries, civilisations, and other religions collapsed around Her.
4. The witness of holiness of the saints.
5. The desire of the human heart for the infinite.
6. The reality of the Eucharist, including the Eucharistic miracles proving the reality.

What do Christians have, real Christians? Joy, hope, peace.

Take a look at the atheists. What do they have? Coldness, hardness of heart, cynicism, indifference, mocking scorn. Look at the poster children of atheism, and you will see many of them ended their lives in despair. Compare that to the glorious lives of the saints.

It should also be noted that a man may discern if he has a vocation, assisted by his spiritual director, but that a vocation is confirmed or rejected by the Church. That's how it is supposed to work, anyhow.

Unfortunately, many good men have been turned away from Maynooth by Modernist ideologues and have therefore sought priestly formation elsewhere.