

























250    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

 

 

 

P O S T S C R I P T  

 

 

 

Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: 

A Friend and Servant of God 
 

Leonard Oshiokhamele ANETEKHAI 
 

 

“Every high priest is chosen and appointed from 

among God’s people to act on their behalf in relation 

to God” (Cf. Hebrews. 5,1). 

 

 

Introduction 

The most exciting expression of the true nature of a priest is one that 

finds its true meaning in the phrase Servus Dei –  a Servant of God. 

This expression John E. Rotelle, in his foreword to the book, The 

True Priest: The Priesthood as Preached and Practiced by Saint 

Augustine, is summed up as ‘Service’. Herein, the Church Father, 

Augustine understood service as the “true meaning of ordination – 

service to God in transmitting the message of Jesus to humanity and 

service to the people of God in helping the power of God’s spirit to 

enter their lives.”1  

To this act of service and from a biblical understanding, 

Gerald O’ Collins, and Michael Keenan Jones express that Priests are 

chosen by God and not self-appointed. This thought finds its meaning 

in the Old Testament passages of Exodus 25–30, 39–40; Leviticus 8–

9; and Number 1–10, wherein YHWH elected priests (and Levites) to 

serve as His instruments for the benefit of the chosen people. In the 

New Testament, Jesus also received a divine mandate to serve as high 

priest of the new covenant. In the same vein, presenting Jesus as a 

role model, the letter to the Hebrews 4:1 affirms the human nature of 

a priest who is chosen from among human communities and placed at 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    251 

their service, and also seen as one representing Jesus Christ ‘who in 

every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin’. In both 

instances, the divine purpose of a priest, as a ‘friend and servant’ is to 

bring about the sanctification through divine worship and the 

proclamation of God’s word to His people.2  

To fulfil these above objectives, God calls and chooses priests 

from specific human and ecclesial contexts, and it is to this end that 

Pope John Paul II believes that a priest is chosen for the service of the 

Gospel message.3 It is to this act of service that this write-up 

discusses the priest as a friend and servant of God’s people. 

 

The Priest: Who is He? 

As expressed by Karl Rahner, a priest, as the name suggests – is an 

elder, a presbyter, in the community, for the community and from the 

community (cf. Acts 11, Rom 12, 8; Phil 1, 1; 2 Tim 1, 6ff). By and 

large, however, a priest in today’s world is not of the older generation 

in the sense of biological age and length of life; but his relationship of 

service to the community is of importance and essence to the 

priesthood, to which he is called.4  

His vocation in the thoughts of John Paul II is a mystery. A 

mystery, he termed ‘admirabile commercium’; a mystery of a 

wondrous exchange between God and man. So beautiful a mystery 

that, a man offers himself to Christ to be used as an instrument of 

salvation, offering himself as it were as another Christ. Without 

comprehending this mystery of ‘exchange,’ the human mind cannot 

appreciate how conceivably the word ‘Follow me’ can motivate a 

young man, to abandon earthly satisfaction for Christ sake, in the 

certitude that if he pursues this pathway, he will find utter personal 

happiness.5  

Consequently, to be a priest according to the teachings of 

Saint Paul, Matthew Levering writes that it demands above all to be a 

custodian of the mysteries of God. Saint Paul admonishes that God’s 

people should regard their priest, as servants of Christ and stewards of 

the mysteries of God through their words and deeds. It necessitates 

that as servants and stewards, priests are found trustworthy (cf. 1 Cor. 

4, l – 2). The concept of steward he holds, cannot be replaced by any 

other. It is deeply rooted in the Gospel, and it recalls the parable of 

the faithful and unfaithful steward, as explained in Luke 12, 41 – 48). 

Just like a steward, a priest is not the owner of the ‘field’, but the one 



252    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

to whom the owner entrusts his goods so that he will manage them 

justly and responsibly.6 

It is to this end that Yves Congar in affirming the mission and 

functionality of a priest believes in the word of Saint Vincent de Paul, 

that “the Priest is a man called by God to share in the priesthood of 

Jesus Christ in order to extend the redemptive mission of Jesus Christ 

in doing what Jesus Christ did, in the way in which he did it.”7   

Indeed, in the same way,  

“the priest receives from Christ the treasures of 

salvation, in order duly to distribute them among the 

people to whom he is sent. These treasures are those 

of faith. A priest is thus a man of the word of God, a 

man of the sacrament, a man of the ‘mystery of faith.’ 

Through faith, he draws near to the invisible treasures 

which constitute the inheritance of the world’s 

Redemption by the Son of God. No one may consider 

himself the ‘owner’ of these treasures; they are meant 

for us all. However, by reason of what Christ laid 

down, the priest has the task of administering them.”8  

 

He has the sole task of administering to God’s people the sacraments 

and the word, despite the many contradictions’ he faces in today’s 

world. These contradictions Pope John Paul II expresses as the: 

“increasingly witnessing a powerful thirst for justice 

and peace; a more lively sense that humanity must 

care for creation and respect nature; a more open 

search for truth; a greater effort to safeguard human 

dignity; a growing commitment in many sectors of the 

world population to a more specific international 

solidarity and a new ordering of the world in freedom 

and justice. Parallel to the continued development of 

the potential offered by science and technology and 

the exchange of information and interaction of 

cultures, there is a new call for ethics, that is, a quest 

for meaning - and therefore for an objective standard 

of values which will delineate the possibilities and 

limits of progress.”9  

Within these contradictions, the yearning for God and a productive, 

meaningful bond with the priest is so intense and essential in today’s 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    253 

world that, where there is a lack of a sincere and resonant 

proclamation of the Gospel message, there is a growing spread of 

forms of religiosity without God and the proliferation of churches 

with few or no real disciples of Christ. For the priest and all God’s 

people, the upswing of these spectacles within given societies and 

nation is not only a ceaseless motive to scrutinise our consciences as 

to the sincerity of our witness to the Gospel message but concurrently 

as a sign of how deep and widespread is our Christian faith and search 

for God.10  

In all, though, the priest holds various meaning to different 

people, he is understood to be one who has no holiness of himself, but 

just a servant of God’s people who acts as a mediator between God 

and men. Through the gospel message and faithful lifestyle, he 

dialogues and brings succour to God’s people. He is a servant who 

brings the love and strength of God to those around him and those 

whom the gospel message brings closer to him. He is also a friend 

who warms the hearts of those in need, gives consolation to the 

broken-hearted, comforts the sick, walks even when it means 

sacrificing his comfort through the dark with those distressed and in 

difficult situations.  

 

The Priest As A Friend And Servant Of God’s People 

A priest is and can be called a friend because of his unique 

relationship with all God’s people. Without misplacing his priestly 

identity, he is called to be a friend not just of the rich alone, but also 

of the poor. His duty is that of service, and as expressed by Karl 

Rahner regarding Hebrews 5, 1, “he is ‘appointed on behalf of men’, 

and his whole being is pledged to the service of others. He does not 

exist for himself: he has a function which orientates him with his 

whole life, his talk, his action, his example, his sacrifice and 

suffering, to other human beings. He is an apostle - just that, sent to 

serve.”11  

As a friend, a priest must be a fellow bearer of suffering, Karl 

Rahner believes: 

“Though, it is difficult if as individual, we are 

vigorous, healthy, successful, enjoying life, and be 

patient with those who are suffering, whose lot is very 

different from ours, but it is difficult to avoid getting 

rid of these people quickly, regarding them simply as 



254    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

hysterical, stupid, naive or sentimental. Really to 

share the burden here, to listen, to get interested, to let 

people say the same things a thousand times, to put up 

with their whining, this is a great natural gift and at 

the same time a gift of grace. There must be someone 

in the world who takes all this on himself, patiently, 

while being hard with himself, at least in certain 

particular cases.”12  
 

This task belongs to the priest who is a friend and being a friend does 

not eliminate from the priest adversaries who look for at all cost to 

find fault in him. As conceived by St. John Chrysostom, “the priest 

must be armed with weapons of steel-intense earnestness and 

continuous sobriety of life-and he must keep watch in every direction, 

in case anyone should find a naked and unguarded spot and strike him 

a mortal blow. For everyone stands around him ready to wound him 

and strike him down, not only his enemies and foes but many of those 

who pretend to love him.”13 

As a servant of God’s people, everyone wants to judge the 

priest, not as human clothed in flesh, not as a human having same 

nature as everyone does, but as an angel, free from shortcoming and 

defects like others. However, if a priest fails to notice his 

imperfections, and works towards eliminating them as is likely for 

every human person on his journey through this earthly life, even the 

best of his homilies and his good deeds would be of no avail to enable 

him to escape the words of his faultfinders.14 

The strength of being a friend to all God’s people for a priest, 

even in demanding situations, is sustained by a Christ-like and a 

common love of neighbour. It is in a true and genuine sense a 

fulfilment of this Christian love of neighbour that a priest gets 

fulfilment, not just in his core priestly functions, but also in living out 

as an exemplary human person. For as human by nature, all God’s 

people are always essentially related to one another, and this nature 

develops and is communicated in unique ways according to the 

diverse strata of our human nature. All humans living within the same 

social environment through mutual understanding are related to one 

another via the exchange of objective intellectual goods and values, 

truth and goodness. Together with the priest, God’s people are 

ultimately related to each other as person to person and united with 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    255 

one another by the same Holy Spirit, who elevates, sanctifies and 

nurtures all humans into the life of one God’s people.15  

The above-mentioned demands of being a friend, that is, of 

relating with God’s people, sums up the church’s teaching on pastoral 

charity, which is a priest’s total gift of self to the Church in the 

footsteps of Christ. Christ who ‘loved the Church and gave himself up 

for her’ (Ephesians 5, 25). Relating to God’s people through pastoral 

charity is a virtue by which the priest imitates Christ in his self - 

giving and service. It is not just what he does, but his gift of self, 

which manifests Christ’s love for His people and determines his way 

of thinking and acting.16  

The Church Father, St. Augustine of Hippo in his Iohannis 

Evangelium Tractatus 123,5 understands this priestly pastoral charity 

which characterises the exercise of the priestly ministry as an ‘amoris 

officium’, and Pope John Paul II in elaborating this expressed that: 

“the priest, who welcomes the call to ministry, is in a position to 

make this a loving choice, as a result of which the Church and souls 

become his first interest, and with this concrete spirituality he 

becomes capable of loving the universal Church, and that part of it 

entrusted to him with the deep love of a husband for his wife.” The 

gift of self has no limits and is evidenced in the same apostolic and 

missionary zeal of Christ, the good shepherd.17  

It is in this apostolic and missionary zeal of Christ that 

Christian communities are created and in the words of Karl Rahner 

such communities are: 

“based on mutual exchange of saving, redeeming and 

deifying truth and on· mutual benevolence which can 

touch the salvation - that is, the deepest core - of the 

other person; and a community of in exchangeable 

individual persons. This is and remains obviously the 

supernatural foundation sustaining the priestly 

relationship to the other person. If it is true that the 

priest genuinely possesses and fulfils his priestly 

nature only when he believes, hopes, loves, is justified 

and holy, then his relationship to the other person 

must as such be sustained by that infused, divine 

virtue of supernatural love in the Holy Spirit which 

justifies man and places him in an intimate 

relationship to God himself and his neighbour. This 



256    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

neighbour is really and truly loved in and with God, 

for God’s sake and in the light of God, and can be 

loved deeply and intimately only through the 

supernatural deifying power of the Holy Spirit whom 

God has given to us in the supernatural life of 

grace.”18 
 

Within the people of God and the presbyterate, the priestly pastoral 

charity requires and demands in a particular and specific way that a 

priest relates with his fellow priests, united in and with his particular 

bishop, for it necessitates that a priest continuously work in the bond 

of communion with his bishop and with his brother priests, lest, his 

efforts of self-denial for the sake of the gospel be in vain.19  

This implies that “whenever a priest becomes unconscious 

through the vice of pride; that is failing to appreciate humility in his 

priestly vocation, this most radical relationship with Church authority, 

and  to his fellow-men which exists in God Himself […], he will also 

fail to come up to the requirements of his work as a priest. It follows 

likewise that all inner vitality, closeness, personal esteem for the other 

person must be included in the ‘heart to heart’ of Christian love of 

neighbour.”20  

To this love of neighbour which should emanate from that of 

loving Christ and His Church as a trademark of the priestly pastoral 

charity and true friendship with God’s people, Karl Rahner believes:  

“should be sustained by supernatural love and, up to a 

point, represents a quite specific fulfilment of this 

love. The priest in his mission formally and explicitly 

wills his neighbour’s salvation, his supernatural union 

with God, and thus expresses and makes official the 

inner core of love of neighbour, which is to love him 

in as much as God loves him. From this standpoint too 

we see how the merely authoritative, official, 

institutional factor not only does not define and cannot 

constitute by itself the relationship of the priest to 

men, but that this real, warm, vital, selfless, genuine 

love for the other person as such belongs to the 

priestly relationship to men.”21  
 

In his dealings, a priest must see things without prejudice and must 

love God’s people with a priestly spirit, and in labour and sacrifice 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    257 

fulfil his function within the totality of human life and human history 

as God’s sent. By so doing, he fulfils his priestly vocation of service 

and his proper destiny. For in loving others and showing such love in 

service, he finds Him, who has called him to embrace the priestly 

vocation.22  

A priest is not a mini-god and should not pretend to know all. 

As God’s servant “he need not feel threatened in his self-

consciousness, self-confidence and self-respect, if there are things in 

science which he does not understand, if he is not up to date in 

matters of art,”23 he must never fail to nurture God’s people through 

exemplary lifestyle. For this reason, which is “for the nurturing and 

constant growth of the People of God, Christ the Lord instituted in his 

Church a variety of ministries, which work for the good of the whole 

body. For those ministers, who are endowed with sacred power, serve 

their brethren, so that all who are of the People of God, and therefore 

enjoy a true Christian dignity, working toward a common goal freely 

and in an orderly way, may arrive at salvation.”24  Such is the life and 

task of a priest which makes him utterly and genuinely human, and 

through this task, he must be able to win souls for God. As an 

individual, a priest must try to be convincing when he comes up 

against the critical attitude of others. Small and insignificant, he can 

effectively win over the other only by displaying in the light of his 

Christian faith that it is worthwhile to be a Christian. In this status 

quo, he must be credible also as a human person.25  

To be human in a Christian way does not only entails 

conforming to the material world (Rom 12, 2) but also implies that 

those we encounter as Christians have the chance to realise that being 

a Christian is not something contrary to human feelings. In this sense, 

the priest of today must be truly human.26 Being human entail 

embracing all aspects of the priestly formation and as expressed in the 

words of Karl Rahner: 

“The priest of today must be somehow educated in a 

broader sense without on that account, pretending to 

be expert in everything. People expect the priest to be 

an educated man. Since we took our final 

examinations, studied philosophy and theology, we 

have acquired a certain amount of education, but it is 

not this that people expect of us today. Our education 

must be more human, and more generally must be 



258    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

linked with an interest in just those things which 

interest modern man. We do not need to know 

everything. We cannot be atomic physicists, 

psychologists, palaeontologists, sociologists, literary 

experts and politicians in our spare time. However, it 

would sometimes be more reasonable to read a 

newspaper or to settle down with a novel than to play 

cards. We must be genuine, educated human beings. 

This also means that our education must not be merely 

intellectual, but a personal formation of the whole 

man - including his emotions.”27  

 

As a friend and servant of God’s people, the priest must be a man of 

prayer and to a considerable extent, must be one who loves and is not 

self-seeking. However, without prejudice to the priestly official and 

mandatory powers, the priest of today, can exercise his calling only 

when his human nature is evident, and when he is humanly credible 

and brings his faith to bear in his daily activities of life. He must, 

therefore, been seen by others as a loving, a selfless and a good man. 

To these latter attributes and good qualities, no priest would want to 

be excluded, that is being a good man. However, the question today is 

how is the priestly life making an effect within the society? As a 

priest, one must continuously ask himself: Is my heart and love, really 

in the priestly work? If not, then even in the Sacred priesthood one 

can just be a ‘blaring gong or reverberating cymbal’ (cf. I Cor 13, 

1).28  

 

The Priest: His Relevance of Being a Friend and Servant in 

Modern Times 

In modern language, to be relevant as a friend and servant of God’s 

people, there are some principles that cannot be avoided which aid the 

priest to better understand his chosen vocation within the context of a 

changing society. This essay wishes to advance two basic principles 

which affect the fabric of our society (Nigeria) today, which arguably 

are pathways for personal growth and evangelical fidelity, not just 

those who have been in God’s service, but also as a guide for those in 

formation. 

The first principle is that the kingdom of God must be the 

focus of the gospel message – Christ who has called us centred his 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    259 

mission on the proclamation of the kingdom of God (cf. Mk 1, 14 –

15), making, therefore, the Gospel message free for all God’s people, 

by giving himself even to the poor of the poorest. This implies for the 

priest that, the focus of the universal purpose of the kingdom of God 

carries along with it a moral implication that enables not just to give 

oneself in charity to others as stated above, but to be responsive in 

attitude to the plight and situation of God’s people. This 

responsiveness demands a change of personal lifestyle, a change in 

the extravagance of material possession.  

To bring this to light, focusing on the gospel message requires 

that a priest eschew the many forms of prosperity gospel messages 

that characterise the Church today all in the name of fame and money. 

Such a prosperity message, which is a ‘brainwashing’ of God’s 

people who are supposed to be served, is spiritual enslavement for 

material gains and does not dignify the human person. 

Being a friend and servant of God’s people calls priest today 

(and priest to be) to renounce the appearance and the reality of wealth 

and to uplift the spiritual life of God’s people through the gospel 

message and not to make them more miserable in their endless effort 

to seek and find God. Hence, as Pope John Paul II puts it, “the 

kingdom which Jesus inaugurates is the kingdom of God. Jesus 

himself reveals who this God is, the One whom he addresses by the 

intimate term ‘Abba,’ Father (cf. Mk 14, 36). God, as revealed above 

all in the parables (cf. Lk 15, 3– 2; Mt 20, 1–16), is sensitive to the 

needs and sufferings of every human being: He is a Father filled with 

love and compassion, who grants forgiveness and freely bestows the 

favours asked of him.”29 To this gospel message, a priest is called to 

be faithful. 

The second perspective is the use of authority and power and 

seeking of notable titles like Jesus warns in Matthew 23: 7 of the 

scribes and Pharisees, who love to be greeted with respect in the 

marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others. This principle 

requires the radical message of equality among the people of God and 

being God’s people manifest a principle of life, solidarity, dignity and 

love for people especially parishioners who must be treasured and 

respected as made in the image and likeness of God. What this 

implies is that the Church to which a priest shares a part is a 

community of brothers and sisters, where no one can raise himself or 

herself above others, whether by sort of sacred authority, or teaching 



260    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

or administration. It goes further to explain Jesus message in John 13, 

12–1, when he washed his disciples’ feet, telling them that no-one 

should dominate others because the only person who has and shows 

real authority is the one who serves others. 

As regards the use of authority and power Machteld Reynart 

expressing the thought of Herman Steinkamp in his book Die Sanft 

Macht der Hirten – The Soft Power of a Shepherd holds that within 

individuals and communities, “power is always present but often 

hidden. Power can take, for example, the form of loving care and 

service, of self-giving and self-sacrifice, of social support or well-

intended guidance.”30 Such power Michel Foucault calls pastoral 

power. For him, it is a “power that fully penetrates and shapes the life 

of an individual subtly. Foucault viewed it as a new form of power in 

modern society that no longer can be understood as a hierarchical 

form of power, characterised by a direct exercise of power by 

authorities, or described in terms of sovereignty. Foucault used the 

image of the ‘shepherd/pastor’ as a model for this form of power.”31  

In defining a true shepherd which a priest in nature should be 

and the pastoral powers he commands, Machteld Reynaert with 

reference to Michel Foucault writes that: 

 

“a shepherd is a person who gathers, guides and leads 

the herd and who assures the herd’s well-being, even 

if this drives him or her to extremes. The shepherd is 

responsible for and has to focus on the entire ‘herd,’ 

but this is only possible when no ‘sheep’ escape. 

Everything that the shepherd does has to be done both 

for the benefit of the herd and each sheep. The 

shepherd has to assure both the general well-being of 

the herd and the individual salvation of each sheep.”32 
 

It is to this end of being a good shepherd and pastor, that the priest 

must know the people in all their various classes, the rich and poor 

alike; he must know the world of the past and today, but, what is 

more, he must pattern his life on the new emphasis in the image of his 

vocation as a priest, a minister of service to God and the people of 

God.33 

 

 

 



Tu es Sacerdos in Aeternum – The Priest: A Friend and….    261 

Conclusion 

The priest is a gift from God’s people to God’s people and “without 

priests the Church would not be able to live that fundamental 

obedience which is at the very heart of her existence and her mission 

in history, an obedience in response to the command of Christ: ‘Go 

therefore and make disciples of all nations’ (Mt. 28,19) and ‘Do this 

in remembrance of me’ (Lk. 22,19; cf. 1 Cor. 11,24), i.e.: an 

obedience to the command to announce the Gospel and to renew daily 

the sacrifice of the giving of his body and the shedding of his blood 

for the life of the world.”34  

Conclusively, if one takes a closer look at what modern-day 

Christian expect from their priests, all we see, in the end, is that they 

have but one high expectation: they are thirsting for Christ above 

everything else. Their economic, social, and political needs are all 

summed up in their spiritual needs. From every and in every priest, 

God’s people ask for Christ and have the right to receive Christ, 

primarily through the proclamation of God’s word.35  

In all, a priest must not try to connect others to God and be 

left out of God’s connection. He must, therefore, develop and 

continue to develop his human personality and priestly qualities to be 

a fit instrument for the tasks of today, and at the same time he must 

manifest a sense of community, and nothing on his parts must matter 

more to the people of God he is called to lead than the priest’s 

personal and living relationship with the Master who has 

commissioned him.36 

 

 

Endnotes 
                                                           
1 Michele Cardinal Pellegrino, The True Priest: The Priesthood as Preached and 

Practiced by Saint Augustine, (New York: Augustinian Press, 1988), p. 7 
2 Cf. Gerald O’ Collins, SJ and Michael Keenan Jones, Jesus Our Priest: A 

Christian Approah to the Priesthood of Christ, (New York: Oxford University 

Press, 2010), p. 7. 
3 Cf. Pastores Dabo Vobis, n, 5. 
4 Cf.  Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood (New York: Herder and 

Herder, 1973), p. 106. 
5 Cf. Matthew Levering (ed), On the Priesthood, Classic and Contemporary 

Texts, (USA.: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2003), p. 134. 
6 Cf. ibid., p. 133. 



262    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

                                                                                                                                  
7 Yves Congar, “Le sacerdoce du Nouveau Testament: Mission et culte” cited in 

Guy Mansini, OSB, and Lawrence J. Welch, The Decree on the Ministry and 

Life of Priests, Prebyterorum Ordinis, in Matthew L. Lamb an Matthew 

Levering (eds), Vatican II, Renewal within Tradition (New York: Oxford 

University Press, 2008), p. 208. 
8 Matthew Levering (ed), On the Priesthood, Classic and Contemporary Texts, 

pp. 133 – 134. 
9 Pastores Dabo Vobis, n, 6. 
10 Cf. ibid. 
11 Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood, p. 137. 
12 Ibid. 
13 Matthew Levering (ed), On the Priesthood, Classic and Contemporary Texts, 

p. 32. 
14 Cf. ibid. 
15 Cf. Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood, p. 137. 
16 Cf. Pastores Dabo Vobis, n, 23. 
17 Ibid. 
18 Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood, pp. 138 – 139.) 
19 Cf. Pastores Dabo Vobis, n, 23. 
20 Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood, p. 139. 
21 Ibid. 
22 Cf. ibid., p. 146. 
23 Ibid., p. 142. 
24 Lumen Gentium, n. 18. 
25 Cf. Edward Quinn (ed), Karl Rahner, The Priesthood, p. 150. 
26 Cf. ibid., p. 151. 
27 Ibid., pp. 151 – 152.  
28 Cf. ibid., pp. 156 – 157.  
29 Redemptoris Missio, n. 13. 
30 Machteld Reynaert, A Web of Power: Toward a Greater Awareness of the 

Complexity of Power, in: Annemie Dillen (ed), Soft Shepherd or Almighty 

Pastor? Power and Pastoral Care, (Eugene, Oregen: Pickwick Publications, 

2014), pp. 8 – 9. 
31 Ibid., p. 9. 
32 Ibid. 
33 Cf. Angelo Fernandes, Vatican two Revisited (India: Gujarat Sahitya Prakash, 

1997), p. 79. 
34 Pastores Dabo Vobis, n, 1. 
35 Cf. Matthew Levering (ed), On the Priesthood, Classic and Contemporary 

Texts, p. 139. 
36 Cf. Angelo Fernandes, Vatican two Revisited, p. 79. 



Index    263 

 

 

INDEX 

 

A 

Abortion, 62 

Abrogated, 184 

Abuses, 135, 138 

Accountability, 223, 225, 227, 233 

Acquisition, 15, 184, 221 

Admirable, 197, 211 

Adolescent, 145, 147 

Advancement, 53, 88, 160 

Advent, 51, 121 

Affirmative, 135 

Affirming, 43, 49, 74, 252 

Agenda, 3, 79, 80 

Agent, 1, 14, 15, 30, 31, 142, 197, 

198 

Ailments, 87 

Alignment, 141, 239 

Amorphous, 78 

Anchored, 100, 181 

Ancient, 37, 49, 91, 151, 181, 234 

Annihilation, 84 

Anointing, 60, 241 

Anthropology, 69, 82, 108, 135, 

136, 145-147 

Anti-colonialism, 71 

Anti-structure, 71 

Apostasy, 62 

Apostolate, xv, 63, 129, 176, 205, 

209, 210, 243 

Applications, 50, 167, 209 

Apprenticeship, 206, 208 

Aristotle, 29, 39, 40, 43 

Aspiration, 189 

Assembly, 62, 63, 69, 97, 115, 119, 

122, 124, 128, 130, 131, 161, 

210 

Assimilate, 163 

Astronomy, 37, 42, 51 

Attitude, 10, 24, 27, 28, 59, 62, 

110, 141, 184, 187, 188, 209, 

220, 257, 259 

Auditoriums, 72, 79 

Authentic, 58, 60, 70, 72, 89, 147, 

154, 155, 162, 163, 178, 190, 

205, 209, 241 

Axiom, 101, 104, 106 

 

B 

Baptism, 60, 103, 104, 151, 158 

Benefit, 60, 61, 64, 155, 157, 168, 

188, 260 

Bishop, 41, 54, 55, 58, 65, 150, 

151, 178, 186, 197, 200, 202, 

218, 223-228, 233, 242-245, 

256 

 

C 

Caution, 27, 135 

Celestial, 41  

Centrality,  x, 74, 110, 122, 188, 

192 

Charity, 59, 102, 162, 177, 191, 

192, 207, 208, 220, 224, 228, 

243, 255, 256, 259 

Chastity, 27, 141 

Child molester, 63 

Christianity, xi, xiii, 6, 35, 36, 44, 

49, 67-70, 73, 74, 79, 80, 82, 

88, 89, 93, 96, 98, 112, 153 

Clergy, 22, 42, 121, 128, 129, 131, 

140, 142, 150, 151, 181, 187, 

194, 212, 213, 232, 233, 243 

Clericalism, 172, 192, 220 

Combat, 91, 157 



264    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

Commission,  xiii, 76, 129, 151, 

226 

Commitment, 58, 68, 70, 151, 200, 

202, 205, 218, 239, 252 

Complacent, 74, 197 

Concrete, 30, 122, 131, 141, 144, 

146, 148, 149, 192, 202, 209, 

255 

Conflict, 31, 36, 87, 164, 177, 246 

Constitution, 96, 107, 111, 112, 

114, 169, 242 

Contemporary, 1, 8, 16, 17, 20, 21, 

23, 31, 36, 50, 68, 75, 80, 94, 

111, 113, 118, 121, 134, 168, 

170-172, 174, 178, 182, 184, 

188, 190, 193, 221, 261, 262 

Context, 7, 14, 16, 18, 71, 103, 176, 

178 

Contrary, 5, 10, 11, 103, 109, 128, 

217, 257 

Conviction, 41, 72, 108, 110, 127 

Cosmology, 37, 38, 50 

Creator, 37, 40, 47, 50, 88 

Curriculum, 32, 77, 129, 146, 174, 

184 

Cybercrime, 155, 157, 169 

 

D 

Darkness, 4, 85, 102, 197 

Deacons, 54, 57, 137, 138, 150, 

152, 202, 240, 244, 245 

Deceit, 59, 61 

Deficiencies, 138, 191 

Demonic, 80, 88 

Dialogue, 43, 74, 79, 82, 137, 147, 

151-153, 167, 176, 204, 218, 

229, 230, 242, 243 

Dimension, 49, 60, 84, 87, 101, 

188, 206, 209, 222, 230 

Diocese,  xii-xvi, 20, 55, 64, 65, 

100, 151, 195, 201, 206, 222, 

226, 227, 229, 231, 232, 243, 

244 

Discernment, 3, 53-57, 65, 66, 148, 

150, 169, 173, 175, 180, 187-

189, 191, 201, 203 

Discipleship, 96, 143, 186-189, 

192, 202, 215 

Disciplines, 36, 50, 107, 108, 146, 

147, 151, 238, 247 

Discoveries, 135, 136, 145, 146, 

148, 150, 192 

Distinction, 31, 71, 72, 98, 156, 

236, 238 

Diversity, 68, 74, 114, 241 

Docility, 55 

Dominican, 40, 41 

Dynamic, 84, 171, 216, 241 

 

E 

Ecclesiastical, 51, 58, 74, 105-108, 

112, 172, 175, 176, 179, 215, 

222, 244, 245 

Effective, 25, 122, 126, 146, 167, 

184, 193, 204, 230, 236-238, 

243, 246 

Embodied, 143, 145, 147, 148 

Embodiment, 145, 146 

Embracing, 137, 149, 257 

Emergence, 71, 72, 101, 111 

Emotions, 55, 63, 85, 145, 189, 258 

Encouragement, 54, 119, 123, 225 

Endeavour, 39, 41, 49, 55, 130 

Endowed, 23, 160, 202, 257 

Endowments, 31, 62 

Enlightenment, 3, 4, 6, 49, 56, 105 

Enriched, 36, 123 

Epistemology, vii, xiv, xvi 

Equipped, 79, 106, 108, 129, 174, 

185 

Era, 25, 44, 60, 62, 69, 118-120, 

142, 143, 169, 171 



Index    265 

Essential, viii, 30, 33, 56, 60, 77, 

78, 99, 110, 120, 141, 162, 

173, 180, 204, 246, 252 

Eternal, 28, 29, 46, 92, 93, 105, 

111, 116, 244 

Etymology, 26, 65, 84, 114, 115 

Evaluation, 8, 26, 57, 59, 61, 63, 

64, 184, 190, 201, 226 

Evangelical, xv, 68, 72, 73, 82, 

211, 258 

Evidence, 32, 36, 40, 60, 61, 64, 

135, 150, 236 

Evil, 30, 122, 143, 145, 154, 178, 

191 

Exhortation, 34, 62, 117, 120, 124, 

125, 138, 152, 169, 170, 206, 

216, 232, 243 

Existential, 117, 124, 142, 147, 

195, 211 

Exorcism, 103, 104 

Experiments, 42, 43, 45 

Expression, 30, 32, 40, 48, 142, 

164, 189, 211, 250 

Exsufflation, 103, 104 

 

F 

Facilitate, 12, 126, 184, 228 

Faith, 22-27, 31-36, 40, 44, 47, 50, 

51, 56, 57, 60, 61, 69, 74, 75, 

78, 84, 85, 89, 93-97, 99, 101, 

102, 104-106, 108, 110, 116, 

117, 119, 121, 122, 124, 128, 

130, 132, 133, 147, 158, 160, 

162, 181, 186, 191, 195, 201, 

206, 208, 210, 211, 216, 218, 

219, 244, 247, 252, 253, 257, 

258 

Faithful, 23, 37, 38, 60, 64, 113-

116, 121, 124, 126, 128, 151, 

158, 172, 173, 178, 187, 190, 

197, 200, 202, 203, 210, 220, 

242, 244, 245, 251, 253, 259 

Fluidity, 91, 136 

Formation, i, v, vii-xii, 1-3, 7-13, 

16, 18, 20-25, 28, 32, 33, 35, 

50, 53-59, 61, 62, 64, 65, 67, 

70, 84, 85, 91, 100, 101, 106-

110, 129, 130, 134, 138-143, 

146, 148, 149, 151, 154, 155, 

158-168, 170-232, 257, 258 

Fornication, 59, 62 

 

G 

General overseers, 69, 80 

Genuine love, 55, 256 

Globalization, 78, 211 

Grace, 23, 85, 102, 103, 111, 130, 

159, 180, 186, 187, 193, 208, 

212, 254, 256 

Greed, 59, 62 

 

H 

Harmony, 35, 144 

Hazardous, 166, 189 

Healings, 69, 80, 88 

Hereditary, 45, 179 

Hierarchical, 78, 260 

Holy eucharist, 60, 210 

Holy, 23, 37, 43, 55, 56, 59, 60, 62, 

66, 70, 81, 102, 103, 105, 114, 

117, 130, 151, 154, 167, 173, 

175, 186-188, 194, 197, 199, 

208, 210, 212, 215, 228, 231, 

255, 256 

Homiletics, 77, 113, 115, 120, 127, 

129 

Homily, 113-132, 194, 210, 233 

Homosexual, 59, 61, 62, 66, 135, 

150 

Honest, 108, 134, 135, 140, 147, 

150, 176, 189, 205, 206, 247 

Humankind, 35, 36 

Humiliation, 71, 75, 165 

 



266    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

I 

Illegal, 73, 157 

Immune, 4, 142 

Impediments, 61, 62 

Implication, 7, 9, 104, 163-166, 

259 

Impoverished, 76, 86 

Improvement, 131, 221, 226, 228, 

230 

Impulse, 82, 161, 174 

Incarnate, 159, 208 

Independent, xv, 15, 68, 69, 71, 76, 

81, 82 

Indigenous, 16, 71, 72, 76, 81, 82, 

88, 153 

Indispensable, 101, 129, 167, 179, 

187, 220, 231 

Influence, v, viii, 2, 6, 9-11, 40, 55, 

59, 60, 63, 94, 105, 127, 131, 

154, 164, 168, 177, 188, 203, 

236, 238 

Initiation, 61, 87, 112 

Innate, 30, 138 

Institutional, 191, 256 

Integration, 33, 100, 192, 196, 207, 

209, 211, 217, 230, 237, 247, 

248 

Integrity, 25, 96, 151, 155, 165, 

171, 173, 202 

Intellectual, 17, 24, 26, 29, 36, 47, 

57, 62, 79, 92, 101, 139, 140, 

149, 161, 162, 165, 175, 179, 

180, 184, 185, 188, 202, 204, 

206, 207, 209, 215-217, 219, 

221, 222, 225, 229, 231, 254, 

258 

Intelligence, 41, 63, 142, 159 

Intimate, 47, 208, 210, 212, 243, 

255, 259 

Invalid, 4, 145 

 

 

K 

Kerygmatic, 114, 116 

 

L 

Lacunae, 146, 220 

Leadership, 55, 57, 59, 60, 62, 65, 

79, 82, 138, 142, 188, 193, 

234-243, 245-249 

Linguistic, 139, 147 

Liturgical, 24, 59, 62, 63, 65, 94, 

100, 101, 103, 104, 106, 108, 

110-133, 185, 194, 209, 210, 

242, 245 

Liturgy, 63, 100-121, 123-128, 130, 

132, 133, 166, 177, 210, 227, 

242 

Lying, 59, 61, 87 

 

M 

Magisterium, 103, 120, 130, 131, 

161, 165 

Malicious, 63, 157 

Materialism, 53, 59, 62, 178 

Maxim, 101, 104-106, 110, 111 

Meditation, 121, 162, 209 

Metaphysical, 28, 92, 94, 95, 136, 

144 

Migrants, 72, 73 

Mission, 32, 57, 59, 60, 63, 64, 68, 

70-72, 81, 131, 158, 159, 174, 

182, 183, 185, 190, 191, 199, 

207, 211, 217, 219, 220, 242, 

252, 256, 259, 261, 262 

Modernity, 72, 82, 86, 89 

Modification, 104, 111 

Monastery, 44, 45 

Moral exhortation, 117, 125 

Morality, 36, 49, 50, 169, 177, 178 

Mutual, 12, 55, 76, 78, 106, 124, 

219, 239, 254, 255 



Index    267 

Mystery, 59, 74, 95, 106-109, 115-

117, 119, 121-124, 128, 131, 

133, 175, 199, 209, 251 

 

N 

Natural, 22, 30, 31, 37, 49-51, 56, 

58, 62, 70, 143, 144, 146, 147, 

174, 188, 196, 207, 208, 215, 

216, 240, 254 

Neglect, 107, 160 

Nonchalant, 59, 62 

Nurturing, 32, 59, 147, 196, 200, 

244, 257 

 

O 

Obligation, 54, 163, 199, 200, 210, 

211, 219, 227 

Observable, 45, 47, 57, 137 

Openness, 5, 9, 12, 13, 55, 61, 189, 

204 

Opine, 140, 147 

Oppression, 79, 150 

Orientation, 56, 84-86, 89, 90, 98, 

100, 108, 140, 149, 182, 190, 

191, 227 

Overarching, 30, 91 

 

P 

Paradoxical, 145 

Paramount, 73, 115, 120, 173 

Parish, 24, 58, 63, 65, 121, 125-

128, 175, 176, 187, 192, 195-

198, 200-203, 205-213, 234, 

242-247, 249 

Parishioners, 127, 203, 210, 211, 

220, 231, 259 

Patriarchal, 6, 63, 147 

Pedagogical approach, 185, 186 

Penance, 60, 123 

Pentecostal, 68-75, 78, 80-83, 88-

91, 93-95, 97, 127, 130 

Pentecostalism, 67-75, 77-83, 88, 

90, 91, 97 

Perceive, 45, 71, 139, 166, 229, 

236 

Permanent, 58, 84, 165, 186, 216, 

219, 223, 224, 226, 232 

Persuasion, 72, 80, 114, 115 

Pertinent, 25, 107, 109, 160, 184, 

185, 190, 191, 211 

Plagiarism, 154, 166 

Pleasure, 125, 148, 152, 153 

Possibility, 17, 59, 137, 218 

Potential, 35, 156, 252 

Pragmatic, 70, 141, 144, 147, 148, 

153 

Prayerfulness, 55, 228 

Preserve, 60, 171, 180 

Prevents, 124, 128 

Previously, 79, 93, 143, 157 

Priest, viii, xii-xvi 

Priesthood, i, v, vii, x, 3, 16, 17, 22, 

23, 25, 33, 35, 45, 53-65, 100, 

109, 141, 143, 146, 148-150, 

155, 161-168, 171, 173, 175-

179, 181, 182, 184, 187, 189-

192, 194, 195, 197, 198, 200-

203, 206, 210-212, 214, 215, 

242-244, 250-252, 258, 261, 

262 

Priority, 200, 207 

Probability, 44, 45 

Proclamation, 59, 62, 70, 117, 122, 

124, 159, 160, 167, 210, 251, 

253, 259, 261 

Progressive, 69, 136, 148, 191, 202 

Pronouncement, 91, 154 

Prophetic, 116, 143 

Prosper, 102, 103 

Prosperity, 88, 97, 259 

Protestant, 114 

Prudent, 57, 63 

Psychedelic, 98 



268    Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age 

Psychic illness, 62 

Puberty, 145, 148 

 

R 

Racism, 70, 150 

Rationality, 91, 92, 95 

Raucousness, 69 

Reappraisal, 186 

Reconciliation, 227 

Recruitment, 58, 64, 108, 180 

Redeemer, 113 

Redundancy, 192 

Reflection, 26, 32, 37, 48, 59, 69, 

74, 100, 101, 103, 106, 109, 

110, 118, 130, 142, 171, 197, 

198 

Renaissance, 3, 41, 53 

Repercussions, 160, 215 

Responsibility, 54, 55, 78, 105, 

108, 121, 129, 146, 148, 150, 

159, 160, 168, 178, 199, 204, 

205, 218, 220, 224-228, 238, 

242, 243, 245-247 

Revamping, 138, 139 

Reverberate, 79 

Revivals, 69, 71, 79 

Ripple, 167 

 

S 

Sacraments, 24, 59, 61, 62, 114, 

117, 119, 120, 124, 130, 159, 

230, 252 

Sacred, 24, 36, 54, 57, 58, 60, 62, 

98, 102, 105, 107, 108, 111, 

113, 114, 116, 117, 120, 121, 

129, 131-133, 176, 197, 208, 

224, 231, 242, 257-259 

Sacrifice, 24, 58, 167, 173, 196, 

210, 253, 256, 260, 261 

Scandal, 63, 74, 138, 151, 165 

Scandalous, 166 

Scholastic, 70, 71 

Scripture, xiv, 25, 33, 82, 102, 107, 

110, 114-116, 118-121, 126, 

128, 129 

Sectarianism, 74 

Self-sufficiency, 191 

Sensitivity, 206, 229, 230 

Service, 25, 33, 50, 58, 60, 61, 65, 

151, 162, 169, 170, 186, 197, 

198, 206, 207, 216, 217, 226, 

228, 232, 243, 247, 250, 251, 

253, 255, 257, 258, 260 

Sexuality, 135-137, 139, 141-143, 

145-147, 230 

Shame, 96, 146 

Sincerity, 1, 55, 188, 253 

Solicitude, 209, 223, 224 

Solidarity, 144, 252, 259 

Specific, 5, 23, 25, 30, 67, 114, 

129, 147, 192, 203, 221, 226, 

230, 239, 244, 247, 251, 252, 

256 

Specificity, 70, 192 

Spectrum, 36, 84, 143, 149 

Spiritual training, 208 

Spirituality, 23, 71, 77, 80, 166, 

167, 185, 208, 209, 255 

Stealing, 59, 61, 64 

Sublime, 224, 246 

Success, 20, 88, 91, 140, 155, 156, 

204 

Sufficient, 17, 59, 61, 63, 121, 185, 

235 

Suicides, 87 

Suitability, 3, 54, 56, 57, 61, 63, 65 

Supernatural, 56, 58, 62, 144, 188, 

255, 256 

Supervision, 176, 206, 210, 226 

Sympathy, 59, 64 

 

T 

Tendencies, 59, 61, 62, 66, 178, 

192 



Index    269 

Testament, 37, 38, 50, 60, 92, 97, 

104, 109, 118, 119, 158, 198, 

206, 250, 262 

Theological, 37, 39, 44, 50, 61, 70, 

71, 73-76, 78, 80, 81, 92, 95-

97, 107, 111, 115, 116, 118, 

129, 132, 135, 141, 143-149, 

151, 167, 169, 170, 176, 181, 

184, 185, 187, 206, 213, 216 

Tongues, 74, 80, 82, 88 

Traditional christianity, 68, 79 

Transcendent, 48, 92 

Transparency, 150, 247 

 

U 

Ultimate, 31, 39, 62, 70, 82, 142 

Unilateral, 184, 187 

Union, 45, 67, 82, 166, 207, 208, 

256 

Unprecedented, 75, 181 

Utilize, 160, 224, 226 

 

V 

Vatican, 42, 96, 106, 109, 111, 114, 

121, 123, 129, 136, 138, 147, 

152, 153, 161, 169, 173, 175, 

180, 193, 194, 212, 213, 232, 

242, 262 

Vibrant, 71, 192, 244, 249 

Vigour, 120, 224 

 

W 

Welfare, 83, 144, 203, 218, 219, 

226, 243 

Wholeheartedly, 108, 121, 205 

Witness, 61, 78, 108, 119, 124, 

188, 216, 220, 237, 253 

 

X 

Xenophobia, 87, 150 

 


