By Fr Joshan Rodrigues –
Every software company releases software updates periodically, which offer small, frequent improvements to the existing software program or app you are using. This is a way for software developers to fine-tune a product to make it the best it can be, and to ensure that the user is not hassled by software bugs, security issues or malfunctions. It’s like getting your car serviced regularly; it runs smoother and its life span is increased.
As we celebrate the Feast of St John Marie Vianney in the midst of the big “P” which has had a disruptive impact on the course of human history, we are called to reflect on the changing and evolving role of the priesthood in keeping the Church relevant and in sync with the signs of the times. While in peaceful times, the evolution is gradual and almost invisible to be perceptible, the paradigm shift brought about by the COVID-19 event means having to make a leap in our understanding of the priesthood and its place in the modern world.
The decrease in vocations to the priesthood, the priest sexual abuse scandals and the departing of the flock from the Church in large numbers in a number of countries has prompted the Vatican to hold a major symposium on the priesthood in February of 2022. The symposium, titled ‘Towards a Fundamental Theology of the Priesthood’, seeks to encourage an understanding of ministerial priesthood that is rooted in the priesthood of all believers conferred at Baptism, and getting away from the idea of ordained ministry as belonging to “ecclesiastical power.”
So what can the saintly Curé of Ars teach us about how the priesthood needs to be “updated” in response to the exigent challenges facing us today? I would like to mention three points – not exhaustive, but certainly significant.
Digital Don
An outstanding virtue of St John Marie Vianney that we often hear about is his refusal to succumb to the challenges and discouragements that he came face to face with, especially during the early years of his ministry. His single-minded devotion to God and to the Eucharist made him steadfast in the work of the Kingdom, especially in the indifferent town of Ars where he was appointed.
An area that challenges many priests and religious today is understanding the language of the digital world. The pandemic forced us to familiarise ourselves with new lingo such as streaming, upload speed, megabytes, rendering, live stream, ZOOM, etc. I must admit that being in the field of communications myself, I initially found preaching in front of a camera to be an intimidating and uncomfortable experience. Yet, harnessing the power of the digital medium to reach ‘souls’ is not optional any more. The internet is today rightly called the eighth continent or the “digital continent”. Parishes that were able to transition to digital services in the early days of the pandemic were better able to maintain and grow in “community spirit” even when the church building was closed.
Beginning from their days of formation, the clergy and religious will have to learn and embrace this “digital language” with enthusiasm and competency. Amid today’s cultural shifts, men and women of the cloth will have to understand the tectonic power that this medium holds for the work of evangelisation. The world of digital communication, with its almost limitless expressive capacity, makes us appreciate all the more St Paul’s exclamation: “Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel” (1 Cor 9:16).
Yet, as Pope Benedict XVI said in 2010, it is not media savvy-ness that the priest should strive for, but for a priestly heart – a closeness to Christ – when he engages with digital technologies. Our goal is not to earn “likes”, but “souls” for Christ. St John Marie Vianney’s devotion to the Eucharist and the richness of his interior life is the blueprint to follow for the ‘digital dons’ of the contemporary world.
Synodal Servants
‘Synodality’ has already become the defining buzzword of Pope Francis’ pontificate. Right from the time he assumed office, Pope Francis has pushed for a Church that “listens and walks in communion”—bishops, priests, religious and laity, all listening and learning from one another. A key element of this approach is the democratisation of decision-making in the Church. Pope Francis has walked the talk by appointing lay men and, even more, women to positions in the Roman Curia that were traditionally held by the clergy.
But Pope Francis wants this renewal to come from below, which is why every Synod held during his pontificate – on the Family (2014 & 2015), Youth (2018) and the Amazon (2019) – have begun with lengthy periods of consultation with ordinary Catholics in local churches. The next Synod on Synodality itself, which is slated for 2023, will be preceded by a year-long process of consultation at the grassroots that will begin from October this year.
‘Synodality’ is easy to express in theory, but difficult in practice. Synodality is not just a mechanism for efficient governance, but above all, a ‘mindset’ that those in authority in the Church must imbibe. This too must begin in the years of formation in religious houses and seminaries, listening and learning from lay experts in various walks of life, so that the priests and religious of tomorrow are more natural ‘listeners’ and understand the value of lay partnership as not merely ‘consultative’, but ‘collaborative decision-making’.
The model proposed for this is that of an “inverted pyramid” where those who exercise authority are called ‘ministers’, because, in the original meaning of the word, they are the least of all. While the seating at Church meetings may be circular, the decision-making is still largely pyramidal. The mutual give and take between the clergy and the laity is best espoused by St John Marie Vianney’s legendary words to a young shepherd boy when he was on his way to Ars, his new parish assignment, “Show me the way to Ars, and I will show you the way to heaven.” The priesthood is not lessened in any way by sharing power; on the contrary, the work of Christ is brought to greater fruition. As G.K. Chesterton once observed, “A man is taller when he bows.”
Cultural Crusader
One of the greatest tests of the priesthood today is the cataclysmic cultural shift of post-modern society. Breakdowns in family life, ruthless employment markets, widespread poverty and inequality, dilution of social norms in sexuality, conspicuous consumption, an indifference to religion and a relativistic morality are the banes of urban lifestyle today. But what can the village priest of Ars, far removed from the challenges of an urban environment, teach us about overcoming these odds?
Even though our crowded urban parishes are very unlike the rural France that St John Marie Vianney ministered in, yet the social-historical milieu that he lived in was very tumultuous. The French monarchy had been toppled with the beheading of the King and Queen. Religious congregations were expelled from France. Thousands of French lives were lost in Napoleon’s conquests. Even the Pope was kidnapped and brought to Paris. At least two Archbishops of Paris lost their lives during this time of upheaval. Vocations were few and rare. Even though he was far away from the centre of these events, St Vianney was not untouched by this social upheaval. He too had to face a relativistic culture burdened by a popular resentment to the Church that had, for far too long, come to be identified by its closeness to royalty.
How did the Curé of Ars challenge the culture? By staying steadfastly anchored to the Eucharistic Lord in the hours that he spent in front of the Blessed Sacrament and the reverential respect he showed for the celebration of the Mass. Though challenges have changed down the centuries, the heart of the priesthood has essentially remained the same since the Last Supper. The modern priest can be distracted by administrative duties, building maintenance, planning and executing celebratory events, and conforming to secular attitudes to please his flock, but St John Marie Vianney’s life shows us that the true essence of a priest is to be counter-cultural—being prophetically incorrect in favour of establishing a culture of Christ in the minds and hearts of his parishioners.
Being rooted to the Vine of Christ, being devoted to the celebration of the Eucharist and being robust in the spiritual life are at the heart of every successful priestly ministry. Being a successful priest in today’s times, and especially in a post-pandemic world, calls not for “savvy-ness” but “faithfulness”.
Fr Joshan Rodrigues is currently the Managing Editor of The Examiner, Catholic Newsweekly of the Archdiocese of Bombay. He is an alumnus of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome in Institutional and Social Communications. He has done brief stints with the DeSales Media Group in Brooklyn, New York and Communications Office of the Episcopal Conference of England and Wales, London. He frequently blogs on faith and culture in ‘Musings in Catholic Land’.