"The priest needs helpmates in his work--souls who will pray and sacrifice for him and with him...when the press of the apostolate makes it impossible for him to pray as much or as well as he would like. Knowing the difficulties and dangers and weaknesses of priests, our Blessed Lord regularly calls women to the vocation of religious life as holocausts to help priests by their prayers and sacrifices."

--Fr. Paul Hinnebusch, O.P.,

 

On December 8, 2007, the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy released an awesome document named:

EUCHARISTIC ADORATION FOR THE SANCTIFICATION OF PRIESTS AND SPIRITUAL MATERNITY 

(available in full on www.clerus.org or click here to download PDF version of the Document)

Upon reading it some months ago, all of the Sisters were (and still are) ENTHUSED beyond words!  Keeping in mind this enthusiasm, I ask for your indulgence for the excessive amount of quotations used from the text.  It is so beautiful that I find it hard to refrain from simply quoting the entire 40 page document! 

So you may be wondering why we are so excited about it?  Read this quote taken from Cardinal Hummes' introduction, and I think you'll understand better: In order to continually maintain a greater awareness of the ontological link between the Eucharist and the Priesthood, and in order to recognize the special maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary for each Priest, it is our intention to bring about a connection between perpetual Eucharistic adoration for the sanctification of priests and the initiation of a commitment on the part of consecrated feminine souls —following the typology of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Eternal High Priest, and Helper in his work of Redemption—who might wish to spiritually adopt priests in order to help them with their self-offering, prayer, and penance. Adoration always involves an act of reparation for sins.

Further the Cardinal states:  "We intend in a very particular way to entrust all priests to Mary, the Mother of the High and Eternal Priest, bringing about in the Church a movement of prayer, placing 24 hour continuous Eucharistic adoration at the centre, so that a prayer of adoration, thanksgiving, praise, petition, and reparation, will be raised to God, incessantly and from every corner of the earth, with the primary intention of awakening a sufficient number of  holy vocations to the priestly state and, at the same time, spiritually uniting with a certain spiritual maternityat the level of the Mystical Bodyall those who have already been called to the ministerial priesthood and are ontologically conformed to the one High and Eternal Priest. This movement will offer better service to Christ and his brothers —those who are at once “inside” the Church and also “at the forefront” of the Church, standing in Christ’s stead and representing Him, as head, shepherd and spouse of the Church (cfr. Pastores Dabo Vobis 16).

Eucharistic Adoration, Thanksgiving, Reparation, Devotion to the Mother of God, Spiritual Maternity, prayers for the Priesthood!  Yes, put all of this together and you have the life of a Poor Clare of Perpetual Adoration as laid down by our Foundress Mother Marie of St. Clare on December 8, 1854. 

To conclude, I'd encourage all of you to download the document and read it.  I promise you will not be disappointed!  And this call to prayer for Priests and for Vocations is not only directed at women religious.  The following is stated in the document:  Independent of age or social status, any woman can become a mother for priests. This type of motherhood is not only for mothers of families, but is just as possible for an unmarried girl, a widow, or for someone who is ill. It is especially pertinent for missionaries and religious sisters who have given their lives entirely to God for the sanctification of others. John Paul II even thanked a child for her motherly help: “I also express my gratitude to Bl. Jacinta for the sacrifices and prayers offered for the Holy Father, whom she saw suffering greatly.” (13 May 2000)
 

 

Inspired to pray for Priests? 

Check out our Devotions Page to join us in some of our favorite prayers for Priests.

Are you a Priest looking for quiet place of prayer and retreat?  Consider coming to Our Lady of Solitude!

 

(The photo below features 2 of our Priest Friends from Toronto (Fr. Jim Bussanich and Fr. Mike Holmes).  For nearly 15 years, these two priests and several others ( our Canadian Connection) have been friends of our Community - supporting us through their prayers and  visits  and in turn being supported by our prayers and sacrifices. )

The Prefect for the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy, Cardinal Claudio Hummes, recently released a beautiful document on the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of the Clergy. In the document he stated that on the occasion of this special day of prayer, he wanted to "recall the priority of prayer over action since it is on prayer that the effectiveness of action depends."  Going on further, he stated quite implicitly that "the Church's mission largely depends on each person's personal relationship with the Lord Jesus and must therefore be nourished by prayer."  Pope Benedict XVI spoke similar words in Deus Caritas Est: "it is time to reaffirm the importance of prayer in the face of the activism and the growing secularism." 

 
 

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