Vatican: priesthood devalued?

Rome--In March Cardinal Ratzinger explained that last November's Instruction on the collaboration of the non-ordained faithful in the sacred ministry of priests was needed to avoid a "devaluation of the ordained ministry." In some parts of the world, the meaning of the sacrament of Holy Orders was being lost, and the growth of a parallel ministry by so-called "pastoral assistants" or "pastoral workers" was leading to confusion about the special identity of ordained priests. This might have led to a "clericalization of the laity" and a "Protestanization of the concepts of ministry and of the Church," he said.

The document specifies, the Cardinal said, the three types of services proper to the laity:

- making Christ present in the world through their activities in society;

- working in Catholic institutions and organizations;

- temporarily performing functions normally reserved to a priest "in special and serious circumstances," because of a lack of priests and deacons.

At their March, 1998, plenary meeting, Ontario's bishops also struggled to decide what are appropriate roles for lay ministers. Bishop Brendan O'Brien of Pembroke said their discussion was not prompted by the Vatican document but by the explosive growth of lay parish workers in Ontario. Bishop Eugene Laroque of Cornwall said, however, that there is growing concern in the Church over the erosion of Holy Orders and the subsequent rise of "a non-ordained parallel clergy." These are developments which Cardinal Ratzinger clearly wants to prevent.

Earlier in the same month (on March 4) the Osservatore Romano carried two articles stressing the work which the laity can do: their mission is to imbue the world with the Christian spirit, and they can make a contribution to private and public life which priests cannot do. Theirs is a noble role, but it is not the same role as that of the ordained clergy.

Other news

Rome, March 2 - In a message commemorating the 30th anniversary of Humanae vitae, Pope John Paul reaffirmed the illicit nature of contraception. He emphasized the "real and mutual communion of love and life," and urged an effort to spread knowledge of the natural method regulating fertility.

March 21 - At a conference in Worcester, Mass., on the theme "The Truth shall set you free: The Church's mission in higher education," Cardinal Pio Laghi, head of the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education, expressed regret that so many Catholic colleges in the U.S. are not following the norms set down in Ex Corde ecclesia. He focused on this apostolic constitution and especially on Veritatis splendor, a key document for higher education.

March 21 - Cardinal Laghi, speaking at the presentation of Vatican Norms for the Formation of Permanent Deacons, noted that women in the early Church referred to as deaconesses were blessed by Church leaders but not sacramentally ordained. The sacramental configuration to Christ, he said, has always been reserved to men.

The document sets out universal norms for permanent deacons, ascribing to them three essential norms: the proclamation of the Gospel; the service of the liturgy; and the administration of charitable works. It also stresses that these deacons should normally be married, saying that one of the greatest gifts they can bring to the Church is their witness of the beauty of marital fidelity and parenthood.

On January 15, the Osservatore Romano devoted two full pages to priestly celibacy; from his study of the early councils, theologian Stefan Heid has concluded that the Apostles clearly understood Jesus' call for celibacy among priests and believed they had to follow his example.

During a March 29th visit to a Roman parish, Jesus Adolescent, which includes a centre for troubled youth, the Holy Father delivered a plea to all Christians: "Do not abandon young people who are in trouble." Fifty years after this centre was founded, he said, there is no lack of young people in difficulty - "without work, without points of reference . . . with all the risks that come with a disoriented existence."

On March 12, John Paul called upon Catholics in the U.S. to avoid the Western tendency of reducing everything to political or social categories, and to honour the teachings of the Magisterium - especially the documents of Vatican II, with special attention to Lumen gentium and Gaudium et spes.

April 1, at this public audience, the Pope declared that Christian baptism has a meaning far superior to that of Jewish or pagan initiation rites, "because it immerses us in the Paschal mystery of Christ."

On April 22, at his weekly Wednesday audience, the Pope cautioned that attempts to predict the end of the world are "deceptive and erroneous." "Human history will come to an end," he said, "but Christ did not indicate any chronological framework."