May Thy priests be faithful guardians of Thy Church

May Thy priests be faithful guardians of Thy Church, as John was of Mary, whom he received into his house. Taught by this loving Mother who suffered so much on Calvary, may they display a mother’s care and thoughtfulness towards Thy children. May they teach souls to enter into close union with Thee through Mary who, as the Gate of Heaven, is specially the guardian of the treasures of Thy Divine Heart.

-St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Today the Church celebrates the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which means it is also the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of the Clergy. St. Thérèse of Lisieux, who was proclaimed a Doctor of the Universal Church by Blessed John Paul II in 1997, prayed especially for priests during her brief time here on Earth. All members of the Church are encouraged to do the same—to pray especially for the sanctity of our priests, our shepherds in the faith.

In a letter to priests from the Congregation for the Clergy, Cardinal Mauro Piacenza stresses that priests must be “ministers of sanctification.” He writes:

This is our wonderful destiny: we cannot be sanctified without working on the holiness of our brothers, and we cannot work on the holiness of our brothers unless we have first worked on and continue to work on our own holiness.

We are greatly affected by the holiness of our priests—we go to them for the Sacraments, for guidance, and for help in times of need. Unfortunately, the faults of just one priest can drive people away from the Church and bring shame upon the entire priesthood. In his 2002 Letter to Priests, Blessed John Paul II addressed this issue in light of recent scandals amongst the clergy:

At this time too, as priests we are personally and profoundly afflicted by the sins of some of our brothers who have betrayed the grace of Ordination in succumbing even to the most grievous forms of the mysterium iniquitatis at work in the world. Grave scandal is caused, with the result that a dark shadow of suspicion is cast over all the other fine priests who perform their ministry with honesty and integrity and often with heroic self-sacrifice. As the Church shows her concern for the victims and strives to respond in truth and justice to each of these painful situations, all of us – conscious of human weakness, but trusting in the healing power of divine grace – are called to embrace the “mysterium Crucis” and to commit ourselves more fully to the search for holiness.

So let us pray for the holiness of all priests, especially those priests who are struggling. Pray for them as they prepare for the Year of Faith, and pray that they can carry the New Evangelization with them in their personal witness and in their parishes. Most importantly, thank your Parish priest today and encourage him on his path to Sainthood.