











































The Changing Stages of Priestly Formation in Seminaries


Listen and Learn sessions  185

The Changing Stages of Priestly 
Formation in Seminaries
Kathy Harty, Research and Technology Librarian, Sacred Heart Seminary and 
School of Theology
Stephen Sweeney, Library Director, St. John Vianney Seminary

ABSTRACT The sixth edition of The Program for Priestly Formation (PPF6) 
is the governing document for Catholic seminary formation. This edition, 
based on the Ratio Fundamentalis (2016), is a major shift in how seminary 
formation is being conceived. Besides the PPF6 and the Ratio, Pope John Paul 
II’s influential post-synodal exhortation Pastores Dabo Vobis (I Will Give You 
Shepherds) is also examined. Focusing on the human aspects of formation, 
the PPF6 lays out a 7–10 year program of studies. While not downgrading 
the academic aspects of seminary education, the emphasis on forming a 
holistic, well-rounded priest configured to Christ is causing some upheaval 
in Catholic seminaries. This session examines the context of Catholic semi-
nary formation, explores the foundational documents governing seminary 
formation, and presents two case examples of the real-world application of 
that discernment. The seminaries highlighted are St. John Vianney Theologi-
cal Seminary in Denver and Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology 
in the Milwaukee area.

INTRODUCTION

This paper examines the context of Catholic seminary formation in 
light of the foundational documents that govern this process, The 
Program for Priestly Formation (PPF6) and the Ratio Fundamentalis 
(2016) and presents two case examples of the real-world application 
of that discernment. The seminaries highlighted are St. John Vian-
ney Theological Seminary in Denver and Sacred Heart Seminary and 
School of Theology in the Milwaukee area. Each of our seminary situ-
ations is a little different, and so let us begin by setting some context 
for each of our institutions. 



186  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

CONTEXT

Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology is run by the Priests 
of the Sacred Heart, also known as the SCJs or Dehonians, and is lo-
cated in a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We have about 30 spon-
sors, both diocesan and religious orders. The FTE for spring 2023 was 
108, and there are about 130 people enrolled. Residential students 
number around 20 and about 60 students are commuters from St. 
Francis de Sales Seminary, which is the diocesan seminary for Mil-
waukee and the provincial seminary for Wisconsin, with students 
from all five dioceses in the state. St. Francis students take the aca-
demic classes at Sacred Heart and receive their human, spiritual, 
and pastoral formation at St. Francis from their own formators. This 
is a very similar situation to the North American College in Rome, 
where the students take their academic classes at universities in the 
city and do the other aspects of their formation at the NAC. Seminar-
ians at Sacred Heart graduate with the MDiv degree.

We have an English and Cultural Studies program, which includes 
both English language studies and learning about North American 
culture. The students in this program tend to be priests already, many 
of whom are members of the Priests of the Sacred Heart. There are 
several seven-week sessions held throughout the year, and once 
they have completed their studies they return to their ministries 
throughout the world. We also offer a Master of Arts in Theology 
degree which has three pathways: traditional day classes; a cohort 
model meeting one night a week using a flipped classroom method 
and a monthly Apostolic Saturday; and an online degree offered to 
selected candidates in formation for the SCJs in India. For this pro-
gram, they study for the MDiv locally while also taking their MA 
courses with us, to prepare for possible further studies in Rome. The 
average age of all our students is 37; our residential seminarians are 
second-career, or “older” vocations, and the average age is 44. The 
St. Francis de Sales seminarians are closer to the traditional-aged 
seminary student at 31. 

There are three full-time librarians, all of whom have faculty 
status; one part-time circulation assistant; and one or two student 
shelvers during the course terms. There are around 85,000 physical 
volumes, a sizable collection of serials in both print and full-text, and 
we have been increasing our digital resources for databases, ebooks, 
and the like over the last five or so years. 



Listen and Learn sessions  187

Saint John Vianney Theological Seminary is a diocesan Seminary 
that operates under the auspice of the Archbishop of Denver and is 
located in Denver, Colorado. During the 2022–2023 academic year, 
the full-time enrollment was 108 seminarians studying for ordina-
tion to the priesthood and 35 men in permanent deacon formation. 
In the Priestly Formation Division, we are fully residential using the 
Parish House model, which means that 108 FTE means that there 
were 108 seminarians in formation. The Seminary served 14 send-
ing dioceses from around the world in addition to the Archdiocese of 
Denver. Seminarians from international sending dioceses came from 
Uganda, Vietnam, and the Kiribati Islands. In addition to the sending 
dioceses, seminarians also come from a handful of religious orders, 
including the Capuchin Franciscans, the Servants of Christ Jesus, the 
Disciples of the Heart of Jesus and Mary among others. The average 
seminarian at Saint John Vianney is between 20–30 years old.

Four staff comprise the library, totaling 3.5 FTE. One, the Direc-
tor, has faculty status. A Reference Librarian, a Cataloging Librar-
ian, and a part-time Circulation Assistant round out the four. During 
the academic year, the first-year seminarians spend three hours per 
week assigned to volunteer in the Library. There are 172,000 physi-
cal volumes, access to digital resources including JSTOR, EBSCO, the 
Library of Latin Texts and the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae among 
others. Current subscriptions total more than 100 print journals and 
newspapers.

SETTING THE STAGE/GOVERNING DOCUMENTS

The Ratio Fundamentalis (The Gift of the Priestly Vocation, December 
2016) is the document from the Dicastery for the Clergy which lays 
out formation for all Catholic seminaries worldwide. An important 
line from the Ratio Fundamentalis is “The fundamental idea is that 
Seminaries should form missionary disciples who are ‘in love’ with 
the Master, shepherds ‘with the smell of the sheep,’ who live in their 
midst to bring the mercy of God to them” (RF, 4). The central focus 
of the latest version of the Program of Priestly Formation draws its 
impetus from that portion of the Ratio, reflecting on the lived expe-
riences of seminaries and the Church in the United States in these 
opening decades of the twenty-first century.

The biggest change made in this international governing docu-
ment is adding the Propaedeutic stage prior to seminary forma-



188  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

tion. This stage places a greater emphasis on human and spiritual 
formation. Intellectual formation is still important, but it tended to 
overshadow other aspects of formation. In the propaedeutic stage, 
it is seen as less critical. This addition is in reaction to the worldwide 
scandals of abuse which came out in the early 2000s, seen as a result 
of improperly formed human beings.

One issue when interpreting these norms is the difference in at-
titude towards law. The American approach sees laws as a minimum 
for righteousness; if the document says “should,” we really have to 
try to meet that, almost on the level of a requirement. The European 
approach to such norms is more “Platonic” — they are an ideal for 
which to strive.

Another universally authoritative document to Seminary for-
mation is Pastores Dabo Vobis (I Will Give You Shepherds), the 1992 
post-synodal exhortation by Pope John Paul II. In 1990, the 8th Synod 
of Bishops occurred, with the theme “The Formation of Priests in 
Circumstances of the Present Day.” As is usual, the pope wrote up 
this post-synodal exhortation, laying out a program to address the 
discussions of the synod. This document introduced the concept of 
“pillars” of formation: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral.  It 
began the turn to an increased focus on the other parts of formation, 
in addition to the purely intellectual. These facets have always been 
a part of Catholic seminary formation, but the non-academic were 
given more emphasis, and the human and spiritual aspects were dis-
tinguished from each other. The image might be that of a four-legged 
stool or table, with the academic leg being very strong (because eas-
ily measurable), and the other legs little twigs. The synod itself, and 
possibly this document, may have been in answer to 1983–86 Vatican 
visitations of seminaries caused by earlier formation crises.

PROGRAM FOR PRIESTLY FORMATION, SIXTH EDITION 

The Program for Priestly Formation, sixth edition, is also known as 
the PPF6 or the PPF. It applies the international norms of the Ratio 
Fundamentalis to formation in the United States, as established by 
the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. It became effec-
tive in the fall of 2022, with an implementation date of August 2023. 
The PPF will be a “lived document” for the near future, as there have 
been rumors of another edition in a few years.



Listen and Learn sessions  189

The call to priesthood in this document is essentially communi-
tarian in nature. It is within the community of the family, parish, 
or ecclesial movement, or through interaction with an institute of 
consecrated life or society of apostolic life, that a vocation to priest-
hood is discovered. This vocation is discerned and nurtured within 
the seminary community. “This community leads the seminarian, 
through ordination, to become part of the ‘family’ of the presbyterate, 
at the service of a particular community” (Ratio Fundamentalis, 3).

The library is mentioned in paragraph 362 of the PPF6: “As an 
essential resource for seminarians’ life of study and reflection, the 
library collection of books and periodicals should be carefully main-
tained and appropriately expanded. Excellence in education at the 
graduate level demands access to a strong, professionally staffed li-
brary with print, nonprint, and electronic resources, as required by 
accrediting agencies.” (PPF6, 362)

The new Ratio has changed the vocabulary used to describe sem-
inary formation. (See table 1.) Previously, under the influence of 
Pastores Dabo Vobis, we used the term Levels of formation; so some-
one might be in a Pre-theology program, before entering Theology, 
whereas now they are in Stages of formation. To follow the previous 
example, the student would be in the Discipleship stage before en-
tering the Configuration stage. We will discuss these in more detail 
shortly.

LEVELS STAGES 

Pillars Dimensions (still Human, Spiritual, Intellectual, Pastoral)

Outcomes Benchmarks

TABLE 1 New Terminology

There is also the move from describing the various parts of for-
mation from pillars to dimensions. They remain the four aspects of 
human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral, but these are now seen 
as more integrative. The human and spiritual dimensions are al-
ways listed prior to the Intellectual. Finally, the Ratio and the PPF6 
move from an outcomes-based evaluative method to a benchmark 
method. This has the feel of going from a “scientific” or “objective” 
way of evaluating students to a more fluid or observational method.



190  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

FROM LEVELS TO STAGES

There are now four stages of formation for priesthood: Propaedeu-
tic, Discipleship, Configuration, and Vocational Synthesis. The Pro-
paedeutic stage is the new addition, and is envisioned as lasting at 
least one full year, and could be up to three years. The Discipleship 
stage was formerly known as Pre-theology, with an academic focus 
on philosophical studies, with a minimum of 2 years. The Configu-
ration stage coincides with the theological studies and should last 
about three and a half to four years. Finally, there is the Vocational 
Synthesis stage, which occurs after the seminarians receive diaconal 
ordination, lasts about six months, and occurs away from the semi-
nary. These stages add up to a seven- to ten-year program — longer 
than current formation.

A chart was created by two of the faculty members at Sacred Heart 
to help the seminary revise its program of studies to conform to the 
new PPF. (See chart 1.) It lays out the stages and highlights the bench-
marks for each dimension as listed in the document. 

CHART 1 Overview Chart of PPF6



Listen and Learn sessions  191

The Propaedeutic Stage
“The propaedeutic stage allows for flexibility in accord with the 
principles of the Ratio Fundamentalis, adapted to particular needs 
of seminarians and ecclesiastical entities” (RF, 131). 

This stage is a time to instill a sense of Catholic culture prior to 
seminary formation. “A significant imbalance is present between 
the lifestyle promoted by contemporary society and priestly for-
mation” (PPF6, 119) — perhaps an understatement. The goal at this 
stage is “an intense and profound vocational discernment” (PPF6, 
122), such that it “should conclude with the seminarian’s making a 
firm resolution to dedicate himself to the work of priestly formation 
or, alternatively, ‘to follow a different path in life’ as a faithful lay 
Catholic” (PPF6, 122).

Several models are suggested. Men with a college degree would 
have one year at this stage, with two or more years at the disciple-
ship stage. Those without an undergraduate degree could do a one-, 
two-, or even three-year propaedeutic stage, followed by two to four 
years at the discipleship level.

St. John Vianney in Denver seeks to lay the “basic groundwork” 
of vocational discernment and formation. This initial twelve-month 
period is structured to provide a “more intensive preparation” (PPF6, 
119). Though this new stage is now mandated to all seminaries, we 
are privileged to have done this for the last 23 years (previously 
known as the Spirituality Year). This dedicated period of time seeks 
to withdraw men from the world in order to deepen their interior 
life with Jesus Christ and prepare them for the years of formation to 
come. Two important milestones of the year are the poverty immer-
sion in January and the 30-day silent retreat that concludes the year 
in June. Men in the propaedeutic year at SJVTS reside in a separate 
community located in a separate building on the north side of the 
seminary campus.

Sacred Heart will begin this stage in the fall. Because of the type 
of relationship we have with St. Francis de Sales Seminary and ac-
creditation restrictions, there will be the same program at two loca-
tions. While academics is not to be primary at this stage, there will 
be 18 credits of academic work in order to fulfill visa requirements.  
The intent is to help students become used to a more intensive life of 
prayer and communal living. Our residential students will be living 
in a separate building on campus with their own formation faculty, 



192  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

with minimal interaction with the rest of the seminary community; 
a similar situation will obtain at St. Francis de Sales’ location.

Both libraries are adding to collections of “cultural” resources 
— more on literature, art, Catholic culture and their relationship to 
growth in spiritual life. While propaedeutic year seminarians have 
access to the library, we will also be in touch with the director of for-
mation to see in what other ways we can support this stage, perhaps 
by providing curated collections during the year.

The Discipleship Stage
Two years are the minimum time at this stage. From paragraph 132, 
this stage “…has at its core the goal of growing in an intimate relation-
ship with Jesus Christ through the life of meditation and contempla-
tion, as well as the training of one’s character in Christian virtue, so 
as to lay a solid foundation for future stages.” The study of philosophy 
occurs during this stage (PPF6, 132). Also: “The seminarian intensely 
discerns his vocation to the priesthood during the discipleship stage, 
and thus he can clearly articulate his call and his conviction to be a 
priest” (PPF6, 132).

At Saint John Vianney, the second stage of formation moves the 
men from the propaedeutic house to the two communities of the 
main seminary building. Here their formation passes through a pe-
riod of two to three years, seeking to provide a “systematic and rigor-
ous formation that has as its core the goal of growing in an intimate 
relationship with Jesus Christ (PPF6, 132).” This period builds on the 
foundation of the prior stage and is dedicated to the discernment and 
confirmation of the priesthood; one that culminates with the call to 
candidacy by the bishop. The central academic focus of this stage is 
philosophical studies. It contains a variety of theological, linguistic, 
and liberal arts courses. From a pastoral perspective, men engage 
apostolates that focus upon the corporal works of mercy. From a 
“civilian” educational perspective, the men complete this program 
with a BA in Philosophy from the University of Mary (Bismarck, 
North Dakota) and/or a BPhil from the Pontifical University of Saint 
Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

Sacred Heart offers two options for the Propaedeutic and Disciple-
ship stages. (See chart 2.) Besides the philosophy courses, seminarians 
study Catholic thought, culture and literature, languages, and history. 
There will also be a capstone project of some kind, allowing students 
to earn an MA in Catholic in Catholic Studies by the end of this stage.



Listen and Learn sessions  193

SAMPLE THREE-YEAR COURSE PLAN (PROPAEDEUTIC & DISCIPLESHIP STAGES)

Blue = Propaedeutic; Red = Discipleship; Italics = MA in Catholic Studies

PROPAEDEUTIC STAGE

FALL SPRING

Catholic Doctrine I (2 crs.) Catholic Doctrine II (2 crs.)

Catholic Spiritual Tradition & Priestly Identity I (2 crs.) Catholic Spiritual Tradition & Priestly Identity II (2 crs.)

Reading Sacred Scripture I (2 crs.) Reading Sacred Scripture II (2 crs.)

Catholic Heritage I: Sal Terrae (3 crs.) Catholic Heritage II: Sint Unum (3 crs.)

Total credits: 9 (max allowed by PPF6) Total credits: 9 (max allowed by PPF6)

DISCIPLESHIP STAGE (with Philosophy Concentration for M.Div./STB seminarians)

FALL SPRING

Ancient Philosophy (3 crs.) Medieval Philosophy (3 crs.)

Logic (3 crs.) Philosophical Anthropology (3 crs.)

Metaphysics (3 crs.) Introduction to Philosophical Ethics (3 crs.)

The Catholic Imagination (3 crs.) Catholic Literature (3 crs.)

Total credits: 12 (plus language or other) Total credits: 12 (plus language or other)

FALL SPRING

Modern Philosophy (3 crs.) Contemporary Philosophy (3 crs.)

Epistemology (3 crs.) Natural Theology (3 crs.)

Catholic Thought & Culture (3 crs.) Catholic Studies Capstone Seminar (4 crs.)

History of Church Universal I (3 crs.) History of Church Universal II (3 crs.)

Total credits: 12 (plus SS510, language, or other) Total credits: 13 (plus DT511, language, or other)

SAMPLE TWO-YEAR COURSE PLAN (DISCIPLESHIP STAGE ONLY)

Red = Discipleship; Italics = MA in Catholic Studies

DISCIPLESHIP STAGE (with Theology & Tradition Concentration for individualized ordination track)

FALL SPRING

Catholic Doctrine I (2 crs.) Catholic Doctrine II (2 crs.)

Catholic Spiritual Tradition & Priestly Identity I (2 crs.) Catholic Spiritual Tradition & Priestly Identity II (2 crs.)

Reading Sacred Scripture I (2 crs.) Reading Sacred Scripture II (2 crs.)

Ancient Philosophy (3 crs.) Medieval Philosophy (3 crs.)

The Catholic Imagination (3 crs.) Catholic Literature (3 crs.)

Cath. Stud. Elective (or Catholic Heritage I) (3 crs.) Cath. Stud. Elective (or Catholic Heritage II) (3 crs.)

Total credits: 15 Total credits: 15



194  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

FALL SPRING

Modern Philosophy (3 crs.) Contemporary Philosophy (3 crs.)

Epistemology (3 crs.) Philosophical Anthropology (3 crs.)

Metaphysics (3 crs.) Catholic Studies Capstone Seminar (4 crs.)

Catholic Thought & Culture (3 crs.) History of Church Universal II (3 crs.)

History of Church Universal I (3 crs.) Scriptural Foundations (3 crs.)

Total credits: 15 Total credits: 16

Proposal Draft, used with permission. Created by the Academic Advisory Board at Sacred Heart Seminary and 
School of Theology.

CHART 2 MA in Catholic Studies Proposal (Sacred Heart)

Configuration Stage
“In the configuration stage, the seminarian models his life on the 
self-donation of Jesus Christ, Shepherd and Servant, as he prepares 
more immediately for Holy Orders. … Formation in priestly spiri-
tuality involves a heartfelt dedication to his ecclesiastical entity in 
loving obedience” (PPF6, 135).

The Configuration stage is envisioned to last three and a half in-
stead of four years. According to paragraph 136: “The configuration 
stage … challenges him to acquire a proper priestly spirituality; ...a 
greater awareness and personal assumption of priestly identity as 
he conforms himself to the sentiments and attitudes of the Son, un-
derstood as self-offering for the pastoral care of the sheep.” (PPF6, 
136) During this stage, seminarians receive the minor orders of Lec-
tor and Acolyte, as well as participate in active service to the poor.

At St. John Vianney, the third and most substantial stage of semi-
nary formation seeks to aid the man “to model his life on the self-
donation of Jesus Christ … as he prepares more immediately for Holy 
Orders” (PPF6, 135). Throughout these years, seminarians move off-
campus to what are known as “Parish Houses.” The basic idea be-
hind this is to provide a deeper formative experience by living in a 
“family-style” community. Furthermore, the proximity to parish life 
affords a deeper immersion in the pastorate, as the men of this stage 
now focus their pastoral ministry in the context of the parish itself. 
The principal course of study in this stage is theology, though it like-
wise contains languages, history, law, and a variety of practicums. 
This stage, lasting three and a half years, concludes with the elec-
tion and ordination of the seminarian to the transitional diaconate.



Listen and Learn sessions  195

At Sacred Heart, our situation is somewhat different due to the 
relationship with St. Francis de Sales Seminary. At St. Francis, semi-
narians are assigned to a “teaching parish” for their entire time in 
seminary, while still living at St. Francis. However, Sacred Heart’s 
residential seminarians have a different type of formation. We have 
developed “affinity groups” for non-intellectual formation in keeping 
with our mission of specialized formation. Depending on the needs 
of sponsors and students, they may be grouped by diocese, or type 
of expected ministry (rural, urban, etc.). 

Among the work for the upcoming year in faculty council meet-
ings will be another review of the curriculum. Sacred Heart currently 
requires 117 credit hours for the M.Div. We did a substantial review 
of scope, sequence, content, and essential course syllabi from 2012-
2016, and so we don’t anticipate as significant an overhaul this time 
around. Because the Configuration stage is seen as a three and a half- 
to four-year program, we may begin to use May sessions in order to 
complete all coursework.

Vocational Synthesis Stage
“The purpose of the vocational synthesis stage is to allow a deacon 
to enter into the life of a cleric, incorporating the entirety of the for-
mation he has received from the moment of Baptism until his recep-
tion of Holy Orders. …  The vocational synthesis stage is not a period 
of discernment for the priesthood. ... Therefore,... it is a preparation 
for the final judgment regarding the conferral of the Order of Priest-
hood…” (PPF6, 138).

This stage lasts approximately six months and begins with the dia-
conate ordination. Paragraph 137 of the PPF states: “Goal is to help 
the deacon make this essential transition before assuming the full 
responsibilities of priestly life…” This stage is distinct from a tradi-
tional pastoral year, but more like a mentorship period. It must take 
place outside the seminary building (RF, 75), from the time of leaving 
the seminary until priestly ordination (RF, 74). 

For Denver, the final stage of priestly formation begins after the 
man’s ordination to the diaconate. At this point, with his studies 
and seminary formation complete, he moves from the seminary 
and spends a final six months in preparation for the priesthood in a 
non-academic setting. Men from outside Denver will return to their 
home dioceses. While concluding their studies at SJV, resources such 
as spiritual direction and counseling will continue to be provided. In 



196  atLa 2023 ProCeedinGs

particular, we intend to offer a two-week intensive course covering 
a variety of priestly practicums and offering a canonical retreat be-
fore priestly ordination. As the diocese (and specifically the pastor) 
assumes the responsibility of formation in this stage, SJV likewise 
intends to offer support and a basic framework by which a true vo-
cational synthesis can occur. In the end, the key to the final stage is 
that by immersion in the pastorate, the man may begin to integrate 
the formation he has received and allow it to catalyze into a priestly 
gift of self. At SJVTS, the vocational synthesis stage will be introduced 
in the spring of 2027, as provided for by the new PPF.

For Sacred Heart, the question will be how to supervise and/or cer-
tify that students are ready for ordination after six months. They are 
no longer in the seminary setting, probably geographically distant, 
and the local diocese may not have the support structure in place for 
proper formation. Fortunately, there is some leeway for implement-
ing this stage. For the St. Francis students, this is less of an issue due 
to the nature of the Teaching Parish in their formation.

For both of our seminaries, this will be a year of adjustment, 
learning, and adaptation, and we look forward to seeing how this 
new edition of the Program of Priestly Formation will affect both the 
seminarians and the people whom they are ordained to serve. 

REFERENCES

Congregation for the Clergy. The Gift of the Priestly Vocation: 
Ratio Fundamentalis. Institutionis Sacerdotalis. Vatican City: 
l’Osservatore Romano, 2016. https://www.clerus.va/content/
dam/clerus/Ratio%20Fundamentalis/The%20Gift%20of%20
the%20Priestly%20Vocation.pdf 

John Paul II. 1992. I Will Give you Shepherds [Pastores Dabo Vobis. 
Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of John Paul II. To the 
Bishops, Clergy and Faithful on the Formation of Priests in the 
Circumstances of the Present Day. Boston, MA: St. Paul Books 
& Media. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_
exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_25031992_pastores-dabo-
vobis.html 

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. 2022. Program of 
Priestly Formation in the United States of America. 6th edition. 
Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

https://www.clerus.va/content/dam/clerus/Ratio%20Fundamentalis/The%20Gift%20of%20the%20Priestly%20Vocation.pdf
https://www.clerus.va/content/dam/clerus/Ratio%20Fundamentalis/The%20Gift%20of%20the%20Priestly%20Vocation.pdf
https://www.clerus.va/content/dam/clerus/Ratio%20Fundamentalis/The%20Gift%20of%20the%20Priestly%20Vocation.pdf
https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_25031992_pastores-dabo-vobis.html
https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_25031992_pastores-dabo-vobis.html
https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_25031992_pastores-dabo-vobis.html

