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Dear Priests!
1. In this Year of the Eucharist,
I particularly welcome our annual spiritual encounter for Holy Thursday, the day
when Christ's love was manifested "to the end" (cf. Jn 13:1), the day of the
Eucharist, the day of our priesthood.
My thoughts turn to you, dear
priests, as I spend this time recuperating in hospital, a patient alongside
other patients, uniting in the Eucharist my own sufferings with those of Christ.
In this spirit I want to reflect with you on some aspects of our priestly
spirituality.
I will take as my inspiration the
words of Eucharistic consecration, which we say every day in persona Christi in
order to make present on our altars the sacrifice made once and for all on
Calvary. These words provide us with illuminating insights for priestly
spirituality: if the whole Church draws life from the Eucharist, all the more
then must the life of a priest be "shaped" by the Eucharist. So for us, the
words of institution must be more than a formula of consecration: they must be a
"formula of life".
A life of profound "gratitude''
2. "Tibi gratias agens benedixit".
At every Mass we remember and relive the first sentiment
expressed by Jesus as he broke the bread: that of thanksgiving. Gratitude is the
disposition which lies at the root of the very word "Eucharist". This expression
of thanksgiving contains the whole Biblical spirituality of praise for the
mirabilia Dei. God loves us, he goes before us in his Providence, he accompanies
us with his continuous saving acts.
In the Eucharist Jesus thanks the
Father with us and for us. How could this thanksgiving of Jesus fail to shape
the life of a priest? He knows that he must cultivate a constant sense of
gratitude for the many gifts he has received in the course of his life: in
particular, for the gift of faith, which it is his task to proclaim, and for the
gift of the priesthood, which consecrates him totally to the service of the
Kingdom of God. We have our crosses to bear — and we are certainly not the only
ones! — but the gifts we have received are so great that we cannot fail to sing
from the depths of our hearts our own Magnificat.
A life that is "given''
3. "Accipite et manducate.
Accipite et bibite". Christ's self-giving, which has its origin in the
Trinitarian life of the God who is Love, reaches its culmination in the
sacrifice of the Cross, sacramentally anticipated in the Last Supper. It is
impossible to repeat the words of consecration without feeling oneself caught up
in this spiritual movement. In a certain sense, when he says the words: "take
and eat", the priest must learn to apply them also to himself, and to speak them
with truth and generosity. If he is able to offer himself as a gift, placing
himself at the disposal of the community and at the service of anyone in need,
his life takes on its true meaning.
This is exactly what Jesus
expected of his apostles, as the Evangelist John emphasizes in his account of
the washing of the feet. It is also what the People of God expect of a priest.
If we think about it more fully, the priest's promise of obedience, which he
made on the day of Ordination and is asked to renew at the Chrism Mass, is
illuminated by this relationship with the Eucharist. Obeying out of love,
sacrificing even a certain legitimate freedom when the authoritative discernment
of the Bishop so requires, the priest lives out in his own flesh that "take and
eat" with which Christ, in the Last Supper, gave himself to the Church.
A life that is "saved'' in
order to save
4. "Hoc est enim corpus meum quod
pro vobis tradetur." The body and the blood of Christ are given for the
salvation of man, of the whole man and of all men. This salvation is integral
and at the same time universal, because no one, unless he freely chooses, is
excluded from the saving power of Christ's blood: "qui pro vobis et pro multis
effundetur". It is a sacrifice offered for "many'', as the Biblical text says
(Mk 14:24; Mt 26:28; cf. Is 53:11-12); this typical Semitic expression refers to
the multitude who are saved by Christ, the one Redeemer, yet at the same time it
implies the totality of human beings to whom salvation is offered: the Lord's
blood is "shed for you and for all", as some translations legitimately make
explicit. Christ's flesh is truly given "for the life of the world" (Jn 6:51;
cf. 1 Jn 2:2).
Repeating Christ's venerable
words in the recollected silence of the liturgical assembly, we priests become
privileged heralds of this mystery of salvation. Yet unless we sense that we
ourselves are saved, how can we be convincing heralds? We are the first to be
touched inwardly by the grace which raises us from our frailty and makes us cry
"Abba, Father" with the confidence of God's children (cf. Gal 4:6; Rom 8:15).
This in turn commits us to advance along the path of perfection. Holiness, in
fact, is the full expression of salvation. Only if our lives manifest the fact
that we are saved do we become credible heralds of salvation. Moreover, a
constant awareness of Christ's will to offer salvation to all cannot fail to
inspire us with fresh missionary fervour, spurring each of us on to become "all
things to all men, in order to save at least some of them" (1 Cor 9:22).
A life that "remembers''
5. "Hoc facite in meam
commemorationem." These words of Jesus have been preserved for us not only by
Luke (22:19) but also by Paul (1 Cor 11:24). We should keep in mind that they
were spoken in the context of the Paschal meal, which for the Jews was indeed a
"memorial" (in Hebrew, zikkarôn). On that occasion the Israelites relived the
Exodus first and foremost, but also the other important events of their history:
the call of Abraham, the sacrifice of Isaac, the Covenant of Sinai, the many
acts of God in defence of his people. For Christians too, the Eucharist is a
"memorial", but of a unique kind: it not only commemorates, but sacramentally
makes present the death and resurrection of the Lord.
Jesus said: "Do this in memory of
me". The Eucharist does not simply commemorate a fact; it commemorates Him!
Through his daily repetition in persona Christi of the words of the "memorial",
the priest is invited to develop a "spirituality of remembrance". At a time when
rapid social and cultural changes are weakening the sense of tradition and
leading the younger generation especially to risk losing touch with their roots,
the priest is called to be, within the community entrusted to him, the man who
faithfully remembers the entire mystery of Christ: prefigured in the Old
Testament, fulfilled in the New, and understood ever more deeply, under the
guidance of the Spirit, as Jesus explicitly promised: "He will teach you all
things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" (Jn 14:26).
A "consecrated'' life
6. "Mysterium fidei!" Every time
he proclaims these words after consecrating the bread and wine, the priest
expresses his ever-renewed amazement at the extraordinary miracle worked at his
hands. It is a miracle which only the eyes of faith can perceive. The natural
elements do not lose their external characteristics, since the "species" remain
those of bread and wine; but their "substance", through the power of Christ's
word and the action of the Holy Spirit, is changed into the substance of the
body and blood of Christ. On the altar, then, Christ crucified and risen is
"truly, really and substantially" present in the fullness of his humanity and
divinity. What an eminently sacred reality! That is why the Church treats this
mystery with such great reverence, and takes such care to ensure the observance
of the liturgical norms intended to safeguard the sanctity of so great a
sacrament.
We priests are the celebrants,
but also the guardians of this most sacred mystery. It is our relationship to
the Eucharist that most clearly challenges us to lead a "sacred'' life. This
must shine forth from our whole way of being, but above all from the way we
celebrate. Let us sit at the school of the saints! The Year of the Eucharist
invites us to rediscover those saints who were vigorous proponents of
Eucharistic devotion (cf. Mane Nobiscum Domine, 31). Many beatified and
canonized priests have given exemplary testimony in this regard, enkindling
fervour among the faithful present at their celebrations of Mass. Many of them
were known for their prolonged Eucharistic adoration. To place ourselves before
Jesus in the Eucharist, to take advantage of our ``moments of solitude'' and to
fill them with this Presence, is to enliven our consecration by our personal
relationship with Christ, from whom our life derives its joy and its meaning.
A life centred on Christ
7. “Mortem tuam annuntiamus,
Domine, et tuam resurrectionem confitemur, donec venias.'' Every time we
celebrate the Eucharist, the remembrance of Christ in his Paschal Mystery leads
to the desire for a full and definitive encounter with Him. We live in
expectation of his coming! In priestly spirituality, this expectation must be
lived out through pastoral charity, which impels us to live in the midst of
God's People, so as to direct their path and to nourish their hope. This task
requires from the priest an interior attitude similar to that of the Apostle
Paul: "Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I
press on towards the goal'' (Phil 3:13-14). The priest is someone who, despite
the passing of years, continues to radiate youthfulness, spreading it almost
"contagiously" among those he meets along the way. His secret lies in his
``passion'' for Christ. As Saint Paul said: "For me, to live is Christ" (Phil
1:21).
Particularly in the context of
the new evangelization, the people have a right to turn to priests in the hope
of "seeing'' Christ in them (cf. Jn 12:21). The young feel the need for this
especially; Christ continues to call them, to make them his friends and to
challenge some to give themselves completely for the sake of the Kingdom.
Vocations will certainly not be lacking if our manner of life is truly priestly,
if we become more holy, more joyful, more impassioned in the exercise of our
ministry. A priest "won'' by Christ (cf. Phil 3:12) more easily "wins" others,
so that they too decide to set out on the same adventure.
A "Eucharistic'' life at the
school of Mary
8. The relationship between the
Blessed Virgin Mary and the Eucharist is a very close one, as I pointed out in
the Encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia (cf. Nos. 53-58). In its own sober
liturgical language, every Eucharistic Prayer brings this out. Thus in the Roman
Canon we say: "In union with the whole Church we honour Mary, the ever-virgin
Mother of Jesus Christ our Lord and God". In the other Eucharistic Prayers,
honour leads to petition, as for example in Prayer II: "Make us worthy to share
eternal life with Mary, the virgin Mother of God."
In recent years, I have warmly
recommended the contemplation of the face of Christ, especially in my Letters
Novo Millennio Ineunte (cf. Nos. 23ff.) and in Rosarium Virginis Mariae (cf.
Nos. 9ff.), and I have pointed to Mary as our great teacher. In the Encyclical
on the Eucharist I then spoke of her as the "Woman of the Eucharist" (cf. No.
53). Who more than Mary can help us taste the greatness of the Eucharistic
mystery? She more than anyone can teach us how to celebrate the sacred mysteries
with due fervour and to commune with her Son, hidden in the Eucharist. I pray to
her, then, for all of you, and I entrust to her especially the elderly, the
sick, and those in difficulty. This Easter, in the Year of the Eucharist, I
gladly repeat to each of you the gentle and consoling words of Jesus: "Behold
your Mother" (Jn 19:27).
With these sentiments, I send you
my heartfelt blessing, and I wish you the profound joy of Easter.
From Gemelli Hospital in Rome, on 13 March, the Fifth Sunday of Lent, in the
year 2005, the twenty-seventh of my Pontificate.
JOHN PAUL II |
