Madrid, Spain, Apr 15, 2008 / 10:00 am
The Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, said this week, “If there is a lack of priests in the Church, the Church dies, and if the Church is not present in the world, the world dies.”
The cardinal made his comments during the 45th Day of Prayer for Vocations in Spain. He noted that the Church “needs priests and religious,” because there are no “substitutes for the ministerial priesthood or formulas that can be considered as alternatives to the ministry of the consecration of bishops, priests and deacons.”
Likewise, he called on young people to “respond to the invitation and call of the Lord to follow him in the priesthood and religious life,” so that “the Church can continue fulfilling her mission as the Sacrament of Salvation.”
Cardinal Rouco noted that in encountering Christ, mankind has always found it difficult “to acknowledge Him and acknowledge what He offers,” and he stressed that man must realize that “there is no other Savior besides Him.”