Priests in the Catholic Church may be categorized as either diocesan or religious. Both types of priests have the same priesthood faculties, acquired through ordination by a bishop. Differences lie in their way of life, type of work, and the Church authority to which they are responsible. Diocesan priests commit their lives to serving the people of a diocese, a church administrative region, and generally work in parishes, schools, or other Catholic institutions as assigned by the bishop of their diocese. Diocesan priests take oaths of celibacy and obedience. Religious priests belong to a religious order, such as the Jesuits, Dominicans, or Franciscans. In addition to the vows taken by diocesan priests, religious priests take a vow of poverty.
Diocesan priests attend to the spiritual, pastoral, moral, and educational needs of the members of their church. A priestÕs day usually begins with morning meditation and mass and may end with an individual counseling session or an evening visit to a hospital or home. Many priests direct and serve on church committees, work in civic and charitable organizations, and assist in community projects. Some counsel parishioners preparing for marriage or the birth of a child.
Religious priests receive duty assignments from their superiors in their respective religious orders. Some religious priests specialize in teaching, whereas others serve as missionaries in foreign countries, where they may live under difficult and primitive conditions. Other religious priests live a communal life in monasteries, where they devote their lives to prayer, study, and assigned work.
Both religious and diocesan priests hold teaching and administrative posts in Catholic seminaries, colleges and universities, and high schools. Priests attached to religious orders staff many of the ChurchÕs institutions of higher education and many high schools, whereas diocesan priests usually are concerned with the parochial schools attached to parish churches and with diocesan high schools. Members of religious orders do much of the missionary work conducted by the Catholic Church in this country and abroad.
.The shortage of Roman Catholic priests is expected to continue, resulting in a very favorable job outlook through the year 2012. Many priests will be needed in the years ahead to provide for the spiritual, educational, and social needs of the increasing number of Catholics. In recent years, the number of ordained priests has been insufficient to fill the needs of newly established parishes and other Catholic institutions and to replace priests who retire, die, or leave the priesthood. This situation is likely to continue, as seminary enrollments remain below the levels needed to overcome the current shortfall of priests.
In response to the shortage of priests, permanent deacons and teams of clergy and laity increasingly are performing certain traditional functions within the Catholic Church. The number of ordained deacons has increased 30 percent over the past 20 years, and this trend should continue. Throughout most of the country, permanent deacons have been ordained to preach and perform liturgical functions, such as baptisms, marriages, and funerals, and to provide service to the community. Deacons are not authorized to celebrate Mass, nor are they allowed to administer the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Anointing of the Sick. Teams of clergy and laity undertake some liturgical and nonliturgical functions, such as hospital visits and religious teaching.
.Men exclusively are ordained as priests. Women may serve in church positions that do not require priestly ordination. Preparation for the priesthood generally requires 8 years of study beyond high school, usually including a college degree followed by 4 or more years of theology study at a seminary.
Preparatory study for the priesthood may begin in the first year of high school, at the college level, or in theological seminaries after college graduation. Seven high-school seminary programs—four free-standing high school seminaries and three programs within Catholic high schools—provided a college preparatory program in 2002. Programs emphasize and support religious formation in addition to a regular, college-preparatory curriculum. Latin may be required, and modern languages are encouraged. In Hispanic communities, knowledge of Spanish is mandatory.
Those who begin training for the priesthood in college do so in one of 39 priesthood formation programs offered either through Catholic colleges or universities or in freestanding college seminaries. Preparatory studies usually include training in philosophy, religious studies, and prayer.
Today, most candidates for the priesthood have a 4-year degree from an accredited college or university, then attend one of 46 theological seminaries (also called theologates) and earn either the Master of Divinity or the Master of Arts degree. Thirty-four theologates primarily train diocesan priests, whereas 12 theologates provide information mostly for priesthood candidates from religious orders. (Slight variations in training reflect the differences in their expected duties.) Theology coursework includes sacred scripture; dogmatic, moral, and pastoral theology; homiletics (art of preaching); church history; liturgy (sacraments); and canon (church) law. Fieldwork experience usually is required.
Young men are never denied entry into seminaries because of lack of funds. In seminaries for diocesan priests, scholarships or loans are available, and contributions of benefactors and the Catholic Church finance those in religious seminaries—who have taken a vow of poverty and are not expected to have personal resources.
Graduate work in theology beyond that required for ordination also is offered at a number of American Catholic universities or at ecclesiastical universities around the world, particularly in Rome. Also, many priests do graduate work in fields unrelated to theology. Priests are encouraged by the Catholic Church to continue their studies, at least informally, after ordination. In recent years, the Church has stressed continuing education for ordained priests in the social sciences, such as sociology and psychology.
A newly ordained diocesan priest usually works as an assistant pastor. Newly ordained priests of religious orders are assigned to the specialized duties for which they have been trained. Depending on the talents, interests, and experience of the individual, many opportunities for additional responsibility exist within the Church.
.Young men interested in entering the priesthood should seek the guidance and counsel of their parish priests and diocesan vocational office. For information regarding the different religious orders and the diocesan priesthood, as well as a list of the seminaries that prepare students for the priesthood, contact the diocesan director of vocations through the office of the local pastor or bishop.
Individuals seeking additional information about careers in the Catholic Ministry should contact their local diocese.
For information on training programs for the Catholic ministry, contact:
Some priests are involved in nonliturgical concerns such as human rights and social welfare. Many priests direct and serve on church committees, work in civic and charitable organizations, and assist in community projects. The two main classifications of priests diocesan (secular) and religious have the same powers, acquired through ordination by a bishop. The differences lie in their way of life, their type of work, and the church authority to whom they are immediately subject. Both religious and diocesan priests hold teaching and administrative posts in Catholic seminaries, colleges and universities, and high schools.
Summary of: http://www.edonline.com/collegecompass/oohb0077.htm
In recent weeks, unconfirmed reports from Rome have quoted informed sources as saying the Vatican is considering barring from admission to seminaries men with a homosexual orientation. Still, the sex abuse crisis has provoked more and more debate about priests who are gay. Sipe estimates that 30 percent of the priesthood is homosexually oriented. I mean, gay people are persecuted in this society. I know that some of them would.
Summary of: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week613/cover.html
FULL MISSION STATEMENT The SNAP Viewpoint SNAP weighs in -- reaching out, speaking up, seeking justice, prevention and accountability. SNAP PRESS RELEASES Giving voice to victims' views and hopes. SNAP STATEMENTS Weighing in on the discussion, from the rights of victims to the future of the church. Find out what is being done in his diocese to stop clergy abuse. These elected officials have the power to decide who gets prosecuted and who does not.
Summary of: http://www.snapnetwork.org/
Buetow presents a thought a day for the Easter season, providing the reader with some spiritually advantageous deliberations for each day of this very special time of the year. Daily Reflections for Ordinary Time This three-volume work, Day by Ordinary Day by Fr. Boyer, focuses on the Sundays and Weekdays of Ordinary Time and provides plenty of food for meditation, prayer and homily preparation. Sacred Heart Devotion. A Trilogy on the Liturgy Three volumes covering everything you ever wanted to know about the official prayer of the Catholic Church, Liturgy for the People of God treats in Vol.
Summary of: http://www.albahouse.org/books4.htm
The details of this consecration are included in this file. It gives an overview of the issues and interventions at the synod on religious life held during October, 1994. This essay discusses the difficulties encountered by the priest in his struggle for holiness and suggests means for overcoming the obstacles. This file contains a challenge to take a quiz about deacons and their role. William Coulson discusses his role in the destruction of Catholic religious orders.
Summary of: http://www.catholic-pages.com/dir/priesthood.asp
Fortin General Resources CATHOLIC INFORMATION NETWORK (CIN) - the primary Catholic website for information and resources. John Giel '78 Fr. A full three year cycle is gathered together in which a theme is presented that is particular to the given Sunday or Feast-Day and then is related to each each of the three readings. Prepared by Larry Broding and posted several days in advance. Roman Variant of the RCL.
Summary of: http://www.catholic-jhb.org.za/Resources/parish.htm
Never in any way shape or form was it meant to describe any particular religion on the planet with the statement above. It will be the individual who will attach those millions of human emotions to their situation and claim it is completely directed at them. Every religion on the planet will demand submission in its own form of advertising. Beautiful glorious, white clouded, pain free, Zen, with the human being told by another human that everything is perfectly wonderful and a nurturing universe awaits the individual for all eternity. (Now that is awesome "creativeÓ).
Summary of: http://www.adrants.com/2005/05/catholic-church-recruits-priests-with.php
BRAXTON BISHOP OF BELLEVILLE March 15, 2005 The Vatican announced today that Pope John Paul II has appointed The Most Reverend Edward K. Braxton, Bishop of Lake Charles, Louisiana, as the eighth Bishop of Belleville, Illinois. Bishop Braxton served as Pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Oak Park , Ill. David Tracy, Langdon Gilkey and Mercia Eliade at the Divinity School of the University of Chicago .
Summary of: http://www.diobelle.org/
A large portion of the public has accepted that women should be given the same career opportunities that men have long enjoyed. These groups interpret Bible passages as requiring women and men to follow defined, sexually determined roles. In religion institutions women are not to be placed in a position of authority over men. As gender discrimination becomes as abhorrent to the public as racism, these denominations may well be under increased pressure to conform to the non-sexist secular standard. Whenever religious institutions are perceived by the general public as operating to a lower ethical standard than the rest of society, religious conversion becomes more difficult to achieve.
Summary of: http://www.religioustolerance.org/femclrgy.htm
The shortage of Roman Catholic priests is expected to continue, resulting in a very favorable outlook. Differences lie in their way of life, type of work, and the Church authority to which they are responsible. Diocesan priests take oaths of celibacy and obedience. Religious priests belong to a religious order, such as the Jesuits, Dominicans, or Franciscans. Many priests direct and serve on church committees, work in civic and charitable organizations, and assist in community projects.
Summary of: http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos063.htm