February 2022

THE POPE CALLS ON PRIESTS TO DREAM OF THE CHURCH OF TOMORROW

In what state of mind and with what aspiration should we commit ourselves to the priestly ministry? On Monday, February 7, the Pope suggested to the students of the Lombard Pontifical Seminary of St. Ambrose and St. Charles in Urbe, located in the heart of Rome, that they not lock themselves up in their sacristies or in "sterile dialectics," but rather take the Gospel to the world "that thirsts for Christ," as did an alumnus of their seminary, Pope Pius XI.

In memory of the 100th anniversary of the election of Pius XI this year, the Pope received the Lombard Seminary, where Achille Ratti was a student, at noon on Monday. Francis was inspired by the work of his predecessor to offer the priests who study there perspectives for their ministry, in the service of the Church and the Italian people.
Pius XI's first prophetic sign was that he chose not to introduce himself to the faithful inside the Vatican Basilica, but from the famous loggia overlooking St. Peter's Square. It would have taken forty minutes to open the balcony doors, the Pope said. They had been closed for years because the place had become a warehouse. Pius XI waited.

This gesture "is worth a thousand words," according to Francis. First of all, he reminds priests that they must be open, "widening the horizon of their pastoral work to the dimensions of the world, reaching out to every child whom God wants to embrace with his love. Francis implores them not to remain "barricaded in the sacristy," not to "cultivate small closed groups where we can cuddle and be quiet. A world is waiting for the Gospel.