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 1


FULL OF GOD, FULL OF JOY

I have been asked by a couple of dioceses to write an article

on priesthood in this Year for Priests, which I am honored
to do. One diocese in particular suggested that I write ten
steps toward priestly holiness. This sounded like an excellent
idea, especially since the Holy Father stressed that the year’s
goal is to “deepen the commitment of all priests to interior
renewal for the sake of a stronger and more incisive witness
to the Gospel” (Letter Proclaiming a Year for Priests). The
new patron saint of all priests, the Curé of Ars, said, “If you
want the whole diocese to be converted to God, then all of
the Cures must become holy” (Sacerdotii Nostri Primordia
102).
But one of the problems with the word “holiness” today,
I believe, is its frequent misinterpretation. In the modern
mind, holiness sometimes conjures up images of a dour,
joyless existence. And thus it would be easy, in a misguided
effort, to attempt to present a negative, dour countenance,
often with judgmental overtones. In response to this dis-
torted image, one might quote St. Teresa of Avila, “God
save us from these sour-faced saints.”
So then, if we priests intend to strive more diligently this
year to respond to the Holy Father’s initiative, and indeed
God’s call to be holy, what images might we use for our
time? To answer this question, I suggest we go back to a
basic understanding of what holiness is. It can be thought
of in many ways, but at root one could characterize holiness
2

as becoming more what God intended us to be: images of

God. We are to become more like God. In effect, we are to
be “full of God.”
And who is God? Dour, negative, judgmental, angry,
sad, miserable? Hardly. To be full of God is to be full of
love, joy, and peace. What are the fruits of the Spirit, in-
dicators of who God is? We find the answer in St. Paul’s
letter to the Galatians: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control” (5:22–23).
So, then, this is what we are striving for. We priests want
to be full of God’s Spirit, and we know this when we radi-
ate these nine fruits of the Spirit. All of these spiritual fruits
exist together as different manifestations of the one Divine
life. Nevertheless, in this Year for Priests, I propose that we
strive to become more like God, focusing particularly on
the Spirit’s fruit of Divine joy.
Thus, if we think of holiness as becoming increasingly full
of God and therefore his joy, I suggest the following ten
steps. These steps build upon each other and progressively
deepen our journey into God. . . .


1. CEASE ANY SERIOUS SIN.

This might sound a bit obvious, with no need of mention,

but my last seventeen years of working with priests sug-
gests that it needs to be said clearly and directly. I suggest
 3

that our Church leaders, bishops, vicars for clergy, rectors

of seminaries, and the like, ought to make it clear: priests
must eschew such sins. All of us priests must reject them in
ourselves and courageously challenge them in our brothers.
In such matters, silence is not fraternal charity.
Happily, the great majority of priests live exemplary lives.
Pope Benedict recognized this in his proclamation of the
Year for Priests: “I think of all those priests who quietly
present Christ’s words and actions each day to the faithful
and to the whole world, striving to be one with the Lord in
their thoughts and their will, their sentiments and their style
of life. How can I not pay tribute to their apostolic labours,
their tireless and hidden service, their universal charity?”
(Letter Proclaiming). So the Holy Father himself opened
his letter with words of praise and thanks to our faithful
priests of today. I echo these wonderful sentiments.
But he also felt it necessary to mention, “There are also,
sad to say, situations which can never be sufficiently de-
plored where the Church herself suffers as a consequence
of infidelity on the part of some of her ministers” (Letter
Proclaiming). The Holy Father did not shy away from such
difficult truths. It has been a significant part of my work
these past years to attend to such challenges. While these
are the exception, the consequent devastation and heart-
break make them particularly important to mention.
How has it come to this, that such a thing need be men-
tioned? There is, in our day and in many places, a declin-
ing sense of the spiritual. Focused on the many valid needs
of the present but accepting only what our senses tell us,
our society has little room for spiritual realities and spiritual
truths. In our day, God is not so much disbelieved by many
as ignored. And thus spiritual realities fade into obscurity.
4

For example, there are many, even some believers, who

do not acknowledge the existence of a “hell.” However,
when we lose this truth, we also lose an awareness of the
devastation of sin and what its real consequences are. If we
had but an inkling of this devastation, we would flee it with
horror. Hell is real and it shows us what life becomes when
we cut ourselves off from God. If we lose an awareness of
the possibility of hell, we lose an awareness of the power of
human freedom and choice.
When priests fall into double lives, inured in serious sin,
they increasingly cut themselves off from God. They be-
come miserable, and they begin to descend into “hell.” I
have seen this firsthand in my work, and I urge all of us to
review our lives and see if there are parts of our lives which
are damaging our relationship to God. Sexual affairs, abus-
ing young people, addiction to drugs or alcohol, Internet
pornography, stealing Church monies, and the like become
deadly to the human spirit. Sin destroys our journey into
God and thus our journey into joy. Contrary to the de-
monic message of our time, it is sin that makes us miserable
and joyless.
For the very few who find themselves in such circumstanc-
es, I urge you to contact your own bishop for assistance. It
has been my experience that our bishops are wonderfully
solicitous of their priests, particularly when they voluntarily
come seeking help. It is never too late, and there is no sin
that cannot be overcome by God’s grace with human co-
operation. And if the sanctity of a single priest like the Curé
of Ars can be a wonderful leaven to an entire diocese, the
malfeasance of a single priest can be a serious detriment to
an entire diocese as well.
 5

When we have rid ourselves of serious sin, we are ready to

begin the journey into God.


2. RENEW THE SACRAMENT OF
PENANCE IN OURSELVES AND IN
THOSE WE SERVE.

It is no secret to us priests that the confessional has be-

come underutilized in many areas of our Church. This is
obviously connected to the previously mentioned dismissal
of the full truth of sin and its consequent separation from
God, that is, hell. It appears that some of us priests are not
immune to this deprivation.
I am currently in the midst of conducting a large study
of the spiritual and psychological wellness of our priests.
To date, we have recorded the responses of 2,441 priests
(from twenty-two dioceses), who have completed an ex-
tensive survey. One of the questions asked how often the
priest himself receives the Sacrament of Penance. The re-
sults are important: 28.8% of the priest respondents said
they receive this sacrament at least monthly; 57.4% go at
least every three months; and 88.6% go at least yearly. Sad-
ly, 11.4% of the priests admitted to receiving the sacrament
“less than yearly.” For a priest whose life is intimately con-
nected to the sacraments, this suggests that the Holy Fa-
ther’s proclamation of a year of priestly renewal comes none
6

too soon. These results give statistical support to his Spirit-

filled initiative.
Closely connected to this renewal in the Holy Father’s
mind is a renewal of the sacrament of penance. He tells us,
“Priests ought never to be resigned to empty confession-
als or the apparent indifference of the faithful to this sacra-
ment. In France, at the time of the Curé of Ars, confession
was no more easy or frequent than in our own day” (Letter
Proclaiming). We might protest by saying that we are not as
holy as the Curé of Ars. This is true. However, God’s grace
is no less active in us, his priests, than in our priestly patron.
The first step toward a renewal of this sacrament begins
with our own re-discovery of its powerful grace. Personally,
I value receiving this grace at least monthly.
But more than simply going more often, we ought to de-
velop what the Holy Father calls “a ‘virtuous’ circle” (Let-
ter Proclaiming). In this case, our love of and our presence
to the eucharistic Christ leads us personally into the confes-
sional. This then leads us back to the Eucharist, with a re-
newed, grateful, and joyful heart.
This direct encounter with our merciful God, although
admittedly difficult when done with a rigorous honesty, in-
variably leads us one step further into God and thus into
his joy. The effects of sin impede God’s presence and his
joy. And when we discover the joy this sacrament brings for
ourselves, we will desire to share this graced encounter with
those whom we serve, just as God desires it for us.