Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
‘Remember your roots’: Pope goes off-the-cuff to priests, religious

‘Remember your roots’: Pope goes off-the-cuff to priests, religious

Last updated on: July 8, 2015 at 5:14 pm by CNA Daily News

‘Remember your roots’: Pope goes off-the-cuff to priests, religious 2015-07-08T17:14:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Quito, Ecuador, Jul 8, 2015 / 11:14 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In his last encounter during his visit to Ecuador, Pope Francis on Wednesday warned priests and religious against career ambitions that lead to 'spiritual Alzheimer’s.'

“When a seminarian or priest thinks too much about his career, he starts to suffer from spiritual Alzheimer's and he loses his memory and forgets where he came from,” the Pope said. “Never forget where you came from; don’t forget your roots.”

Wednesday is the final day of Pope Francis' time in Ecuador, which is part of his ongoing July 5-13 visit to the continent of his birth. He will next travel to Bolivia, followed by Paraguay.

The Pope spoke off-the-cuff July 8 to a gathering of clergy, men and women religious, and seminarians at the shrine of Our Lady of Quinche, the patroness of Ecuador. The shrine, located fewer than 30 miles northeast of Quito, is home to a statue of Our Lady of the Presentation to which various apparitions and miracles have been attributed.

Arriving at the shrine, the pontiff venerated the statue of Our Lady of Quinche, and was greeted by Bishop Celmo Lazzari, Vicar Apostolic of San Miguel de Sucumbios, a missionary to Ecuador from Brazil. He also listened to testimonies from Father Silvino Mina, a representative of the Afro-Ecuadorian culture, and from Sister Marisol Sandoval, an Augustinian.

Setting aside his prepared remarks, the Pope then said that he was inspired by the location of the Marian Shrine and wished to speak from the heart.

Emphasizing that “everything is a free gift,” he pointed to the example of Mary.

“She was never a protagonist. All her life she was a disciple. Mary knew that everything she had was a freely given gift from God,” he said. “And God’s free gift is shown in you, religious men and women, and priests and seminarians.”

“We need to go back to that free gift of God,” he continued. “You paid no entry ticket to be who you are or to be where you are in the seminary or in religious life. You did nothing to deserve it.”

The Holy Father encouraged the clergy and religious to recognize that everything is a free gift from God and to “give back to the Lord.” He invited them to look at Christ each night before bed and thank him for the free gift of everything in their lives.

Even things that may be difficult, such as being sent to a new location as a priest or religious, is part of the freely given gift from God, he said.

“We are the objects of those freely given gifts and we are important only insofar as we never forget that,” he stressed, warning against those who say, “Oh look at this one, look at that one, look at this bishop or that one they’ve made a monsignor.”

“If we do that we slowly move further and further away from the example of Mary, the example of the gift.”

Pope Francis lamented situations when a priest or religious abandons the use of their native tongue – especially in Ecuador, where there are more than 20 indigenous languages spoken by the nation's diverse cultures.

“It's sad when priests or religious forget their local dialect, or don't want to speak them anymore – it means they've forgotten where they came from.”

In addition, he exhorted the crowd to remember that “yours is a life of service: God chose you to serve. Service is for others – not for me, my time, my things.”

He cautioned against a priest insisting his office close at a given time, or who complains about house blessings because he's tired; or saying there's a soap opera on TV – “I say this to the nuns,” he jested. These examples, he said, “are not service.”

“Service means doing what you have to do, even when you're tired. Even when people irritate you … service means dedicating ourselves to others.”

“Please, do not ask to be paid for having received grace,” the Pope added. “May our pastoral work be a free gift.”

He said a consecrated person who lives out their free gift, who is aware of their memory, can be recognized by their joy. “Joy is a gift of Jesus, which he gives us if we ask for it.”

“We have to pray that we never lose our memories, never forget, that we never feel we're more important than others.”

Americas

Previous Post

July 8, 2015

Ecuador is 'a Church on the move'

Next Post

July 8, 2015 Spanish court recognizes pharmacists' conscience rights

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

In Philippians, Paul mentions two women who need to be of the same mind. Who are they?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Mary and Martha Lydia and Chloe Euodia and Syntyche Phoebe and Priscilla