Ars, France, Sep 29, 2009 / 18:25 pm
In a video message to an international spiritual retreat for priests at the French shrine of Ars, Pope Benedict XVI said that priests’ work is irreplaceable and that the Church’s recognition for their “unreserved” commitment is “immense.”
The retreat, marking the 150th anniversary of the death of St. John Mary Vianney, is scheduled for September 27 through October 3. Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, Archbishop of Vienna, is the preacher of the retreat, whose theme is “The joy of being a priest, consecrated for the salvation of the world.”
In his video message to the priests, made public on Tuesday, Pope Benedict said that the priest is “called to serve human beings and to give them life in God… He is a man of the divine Word and of all things holy and, today more than ever, he must be a man of joy and hope. To those who cannot conceive that God is pure Love, he will affirm that life is worthy to be lived and that Christ gives it its full meaning because He loves all humankind.”
The Pope then turned to priests who serve a number of parishes, saying they commit themselves “unreservedly” and that the Church’s recognition for them is “immense.”