Priesthood Sunday offers us an opportunity to pause and give thanks for the priests who have enriched our lives.
It also invites those of us who are priests to reflect with gratitude on the vocation we have received.
When I think about priesthood, I do not first think about programs, buildings or responsibilities. I think about people.
I think about the people who have invited me into the most sacred moments of their lives: the birth of a child, the celebration of a marriage, the illness of someone they love or the death of a family member. I think about those who have shared their questions, struggles and hopes with me. I think about the privilege of standing beside God’s people in moments of great joy and deep sorrow.
These experiences continually remind me that priesthood is not something we live alone. It is a vocation shaped through relationships—with God, with the communities we serve and with all those who walk beside us.
A Ministry of Presence
There are many responsibilities in priestly ministry: celebrating the Eucharist, preaching the Gospel, offering the Sacraments and helping communities grow in faith. Yet some of the most meaningful moments of priesthood are often the quietest.
Sometimes ministry means sitting beside a hospital bed when there are no words to take away the pain. Sometimes it means listening to someone who is searching for direction. Sometimes it means celebrating with a family, sharing a meal or simply being present when a person feels forgotten.
We may not always have the answers. Often, our greatest gift is our willingness to remain with people and remind them that God has not abandoned them.
For a Passionist priest, this ministry of presence is deeply connected to the Passion of Jesus. At the foot of the Cross, we encounter a God who enters fully into human suffering. Jesus does not turn away from pain. He shares it, carries it and transforms it through love.
Our calling is to keep alive that memory and to recognize Christ’s Passion continuing in the lives of people today. We are called to stand beside those who suffer, listen to their stories and help them discover that even in the darkest moments, hope is still possible.
A Vocation Shared with Others
Priesthood is a particular vocation, but it is not the only way God calls people to serve. Every baptized person has gifts to offer. Parents, teachers, caregivers, religious sisters and brothers, lay ministers, volunteers and countless others reveal God’s love through their lives.
The Church is strongest when we recognize that mission belongs to all of us.
Throughout my ministry, I have been strengthened by people whose faith, wisdom and compassion have taught me how to be a better priest. Their example has reminded me that ministry is never about one person. It is about a community listening together for the movement of the Holy Spirit and responding to the needs before us.
Priesthood Sunday, then, is not only a time to thank priests. It is also a time for priests to thank the people who support us, pray for us, serve beside us and call us to grow.
A Call Renewed Each Day
Like every vocation, priesthood includes moments of joy as well as moments of weariness and uncertainty. We do not live this calling perfectly. We depend upon God’s mercy and the prayers of the communities we serve.
Vocation is not simply a decision made once. It is a “yes” renewed each day: a willingness to listen again, to serve again and to trust that God can work through our strengths as well as our limitations.
As we celebrate Priesthood Sunday, I give thanks for the priests who have guided and encouraged me. I give thanks for my Passionist brothers and for the many laypeople, religious and friends who share in our mission. Most of all, I give thanks for the people who have allowed me to walk with them through the sacred moments of their lives.
Please continue to pray for priests. Pray that we may be faithful listeners, compassionate companions and humble servants. Pray also for those who may be discerning a call to priesthood or religious life, that they may have the courage to listen to where God is leading them.
May all of us, whatever our vocation, discover new ways to place our gifts at the service of others.
May the Passion of Jesus Christ be always in our hearts!
