Diocesan priests gather for spring convocation

Intermountain Catholic

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The Most Rev. William Justice, Auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco, was the keynote speaker at the annual spring convocation. IC photo/Marie Mischel

SALT LAKE CITY — Continuing priestly formation was the topic of the May 3 spring convocation for Diocese of Salt Lake City priests.

"It’s an ongoing theme, and something I think that we, as brother priests, need to look at together and continue to look at," said the Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City. He added that the priests already have begun to take these steps.

In his keynote presentation, the Most Rev. William Justice, Auxiliary Bishop for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, spoke of the four primary pillars of priestly formation: spiritual, human, intellectual and pastoral.

"Each is needed to safely hold up the presbyterate," said Bishop Justice, who has had extensive pastoral experience in his 27 years as a priest. Currently he is vicar for clergy for the San Francisco archdiocese.

Acknowledging the challenge of finding time for prayer, Bishop Justice said priests nevertheless need to continue to deepen their spiritual lives. They also must take care of themselves, with proper exercise and developing friendships, especially with other priests who can relate to the stresses of priestly life, he said.

The current priest shortage means that priests are coming from other dioceses in the United States and throughout the world, and the local priests must welcome them as brothers, he said.

"We need to take care of ourselves so we can be a healthy presbyterate," Bishop Justice said. "Without a sense of community it can begin to crack."

Learning more about today’s world and how things are done in other parishes, and listening to others’ ideas allows priests to be the pastor or associate of a parish rather than the monarch, he said.

Above all, priests should listen, he said. "We are called to hear the Word of God and to put it into practice. That’s the challenge.... In today’s world, I think, it’s very difficult to be a priest. It’s exciting, because we’re obviously in a world of change. You’re lucky. In Utah, religion is still thought to be important."

By comparison, Marin County in the San Francisco area is one of the most unchurched areas of the U.S., he said.

Another difficulty is that the faith seems not to have been transmitted to younger generations, Bishop Justice said.

To address these and other challenges, "we need to work together... To respond to Jesus as he asked Peter, ‘Do you love me?’ ‘Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.’ ‘Well, feed my sheep.’ How do we know what to feed? Listen. Be it done to us according to your Word."

As a presbyterate, with all the many different gifts that they have, they are to go forward with Christ, listening and serving, he said.