persona Christi, “in the person of
Christ.” No one can be a good priest
without realizing the centrality of
the Mass to our faith and celebrating
its sacred mysteries with care and
thoughtfulness. I find it humbling
and awe-inspiring to preside at the
Eucharist.
When he celebrates the Eucharist, a priest must be prepared to
give homilies rooted in wisdom and
inspiration in a manner that is most
him. The good priest realizes these
few minutes can be so very important in the life of a congregation.
They cannot be taken for granted.
To be a good priest you must make
an effort to be a good homilist. This
comes from the fruit of prayer—both
him a good priest and bishop.
Personal prayer always informs
and enriches public prayer, and
vice versa. For a diocesan priest,
the ancient regimen of psalms and
prayers in the Liturgy of Hours is
primarily a private prayer. For priests
who belong to a religious order, it is
a prayer prayed with members of his
community. The Liturgy of Hours is
the prayer of the church, a linchpin
to other public prayers and liturgies,
and it is essential for priests in developing a deeper relationship with
God.
The most common and impor-
tant prayer in the life of a priest is
the Eucharist. It is here that the
priest stands most noticeably in
COUR TES Y OF THE CONVENTUAL FRANCISCAN FRIARS
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Assumption Abbey
RR 5 Box 1065
Ava, MO 65698
417-638-5110
avavocations@hughes.net
www.assumptionabbey.org
A praying community in the
Ozark foothills of Missouri
Cistercian Monks
