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CONTINUING
EDUCATION FOR NEWLY ORDAINED PRIESTS
In
order to accompany the young priests in this first delicate phase of their life
and ministry, it is very opportune, and perhaps even absolutely necessary
nowadays, to create a suitable support structure, with appropriate guides and
teachers. - PDV 76. [1] PERSONAL ISSUES 1. EXPECTATIONS Different
expectations in priests: identifying themselves from their role and being above
the people or from being oneself and with the people. "Concelebration
is a struggle: to be with my brother priests or with the people?" 2. APPROPRIATE LIFESTYLE Finding an
appropriate lifestyle, including quality time for personal growth and for
constant monitoring of expected goals. 3. MOVEMENTS IN ONE’S LIFE Facing
questions of survival and insecurity. "Who am I now?" "People
look up to me." "So alone!" "How close do I get to
people?" 4. CONFLICT RESOLUTION Develop
reconciling skills where incompatibility or individualism prevents
collaboration, wasting energy and producing sterile results. 5. SPIRITUAL DIRECTION Discovering the
need for spiritual direction and companioning in personal issues, to negotiate
emerging and developing situations, and to recognise realistically the movements
of God in one’s life. [2] PASTORAL NEEDS 1. GUIDELINES A
new priest needs guidelines from the seminary formation staff, and from his
bishop and presbyterate: setting clear goals for his ministry of word,
sacraments, and community: What hours does he work? Provision for appraisal. 2. CHOICES Ability to work with
ambiguities and know how to make choices. "The seminary did not equip me to
discern priorities and to make choices." 3. PEER SUPPORT Need for ways of
finding peer support and opportunities to participate in regular gatherings of
young priests to reflect on priesthood, models of ministry, church, and the
future. Busyness and costs can discourage many. Such sharing gives energy. 4. PERSONAL MENTOR* Need for someone,
other than the Parish Priest, not to tell a new priest what to do but to help
him find the value of what he does: enable him to see when he is an asset and
not a liability in his ministry, by swapping notes to see what he might have
done better or more appropriately in a given situation. 5. COPING WITH FEWER PRIESTS Coping
with fewer priests and busyness: Work more or work less? Need to inspire people
to do much of the work: "prophets need to do less work". Need to
define goals and work out priorities. Balance "hands on" and
"hands off" times? Time for oneself without feeling guilty: to absorb
learning in "hands on time". "No Mass today, Father?" Work
as "presbyters" and not as "managers." [3] KEY DECISIONS 1. FIRST
APPOINTMENT A new priest needs to have time being a priest before becoming a
PP. Importance of one’s first Parish Priest being able to recognise the gifts
a new priest brings. Importance of the new priest feeling compatible with his PP
and being able to recognise in him a role model to shape his future ministry. 2. TYPE OF PARISH The newly ordained
need a context of collaborative ministry in their first parish. A parish that is
broadly understood as space for collaborative ministry: planning and deciding
together, working with and not simply for the people. 3. FUNDING Who pays for what?
Retreats? Seminars? Sabbaticals? Funding in different dioceses varies greatly.
Taken for granted that dioceses fund seminarians - but surprising reluctance in
some to fund ongoing education for priests. CONSULTATION PROCESS Consultants
were chosen from a variety of places either because of their recognised
experience with the newly ordained or because they were themselves recently
ordained. The group met twice in Canberra for a day, in July and again in August
1997. After the meetings the material discussed was processed, returned to
consultants for comment, and then processed again for further comment. It was
finally drawn up in this form for presentation to the Bishops, Diocesan
Directors, Provincials of Clerical Religious Orders, and Seminary Formation
Staff to use in any way they might find helpful. CONSULTATION
MEMBERS Fr Paul Clark, Wilcannia-Forbes (Bourke NSW) Fr Brian Delaney, Adelaide (St Mary’s SA) Fr Danny Meagher, Sydney (Mt Prichard NSW) Fr Matthew O’Hagan, Sandhurst (Wodonga, VIC) Fr John Rate, msc (Kippax, ACT) Fr John Sullivan, Sydney (Mosman NSW) Fr John Reilly, sj (Executive Officer) * Appendix:
A description of "Mentoring", courtesy of the Australian Province of
the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. 25 May 1998.
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