COMMENTARY: The failures of individual priests need not become a crisis of faith when our eyes remain fixed on Christ and the sacraments.
People will disappoint you, and priests are people. They are also in persona Christi — in the person of Christ — bringing us the sacraments and leading us to heaven. We hold them in high esteem, but when they fail, disappointment can threaten to seep into our very faith. If their example seems hypocritical, it can cause confusion, anger, cynicism or even apathy toward religion.
As members of their flock, we are affected by our shepherds. So, how can we believe in a Church when its leaders let us down?
Consider who a priest is. He is not his own. The priest belongs to the Church, ordained to serve God and the faithful through sacramental ministry. We pray for vocations and celebrate each new ordination as each man becomes Christ to us, giving his life to the Church. But do we pray for our priests daily?
There is fatigue from long days and nights spent bringing us the sacraments, counseling the downhearted, ministering to the sick and dying, managing a parish or mission, preaching the Gospel
