Every year, the Holy Father assigns for each month a specific prayer intention related to either evangelization or a universal matter. The intention for this month of July is offered for Priests and their Pastoral Ministry. In particular, the Pope asks us to pray for priests who, in the course of their pastoral work, experience loneliness and fatigue; to pray that their intimacy with the Lord and friendship with their brother priests bring them comfort and aid.
Pope Francis, in his video message regarding this month’s intention, hints that he actually often thinks about the tiredness of priests who work on many different areas. He acknowledges that priests, with all their virtues and defects, need the support and prayers of their flock to be able to carry on, especially in times of weakness or in the face of difficulties.
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux: Mission to Pray for Priests
About 130 years ago, a young girl of humble heart had made it a fundamental part of her life mission to pray for priests. That gentle soul was none other than the Little Flower, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (born as Marie Françoise-Thérèse Martin, and also known as Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, O.C.D.), one of the Patronesses of this Website.
Throughout the world, this Saint is popularly known for her “Little Way” that she taught us in her autobiography, The Story of a Soul. But perhaps not many are familiar with the decisive moment in the life of St. Thérèse when she realized the necessity of praying for priests.
How did praying for priests as a vocation of Saint Thérèse come about?
A Pilgrimage to Rome
It all started in the year 1887. Fourteen year-old Thérèse was already with an ardent desire to enter the Carmelite Monastery at Lisieux. Their local bishop had reservation, however, at letting a girl as young enter the religious life. Providentially, he encouraged her to go on a pilgrimage to Rome organized by the Dioceses of Coutances and Bayeux. And so she did, together with almost two hundred pilgrims of whom seventy-three were priests.
Looking back on her life, Thérèse knew that the most important outcome of this pilgrimage was a deeper understanding of the Carmelite vocation of praying for the clergy, which came after a striking realization that priests could sin too.
Prior to the trip, Thérèse could not fully comprehend why Saint Teresa of Avila had directed the Carmelite nuns in a special mission to pray for priests. “Having never lived close to [priests], I was not able to understand the principle aim of the Reform of Carmel.” For one, she believed in the absolute holiness of priests back then. Even as a young girl, she would often think and pray for sinners, but never thought priests were among those who offended the Lord. She thought to herself, “To pray for sinners attracted me, but to pray for the souls of priests whom I believed to be as pure as crystal seemed puzzling to me.”
And then she came to experience the reality of the humanity of priests. Thérèse mused, “I lived in the company of many saintly priests for a month and I learned that, though their dignity raises them above the angels, they are nevertheless weak and fragile men.” Such discovery did not lead her to feel despair towards priesthood. It rather awakened in her the Carmelite spirit (my personal favorite Catholic spirituality) of an enduring fervor to pray for the priests. She quipped, “Ah! I understood my vocation in Italy.”
An apostle of the apostles
This was the mission Thérèse felt she was being called to. When she saw how priests, even those holy, showed extreme need for prayers, she wondered how much more in need those lukewarm priests were.
As they journeyed towards Rome, the clearer it became to her. The Little Saint said,
“This is the vocation of Carmel, because the only purpose of our prayers and our sacrifices is to be an apostle of the apostles, to pray for them [priests] while they evangelize souls by words and above all by example.”
Later in 1889, when she was sixteen, she further emphasized this in a letter to her sister Celine, “Oh, my Celine, we are living for the souls, we are apostles, let us save above all the souls of Priests. These souls should be more transparent than crystal. Alas, how many unworthy priests there are, how many priests who are not holy enough! We pray, we suffer for them and, on the last day, Jesus will be grateful…”
Here is the Prayer for Priests, written by Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, which we can recite always:
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My Reflection
1. I just got back from vacation. My family and I missed our beloved St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Quezon City very much. It had been a few months since we last went there, until we finally did last month, on the last Saturday, when we went to the 6 p.m. Anticipated Mass. It was a long blessed day.
Being back at St. Paul the Apostle Parish, we heard once again the Prayer for Priests by St. Thérèse of Lisieux. This was where I first heard this beautiful prayer. The Parish never misses to pray it before each Mass starts, whichever schedule it is, be it weekdays or weekends.
I can’t help but be so amazed with how lovely this prayer is, every time I hear it, and no matter how many times I have already heard it. First, you can intensely feel the holiness of the Little Flower with this prayer she composed. Another reason is that, to be honest, who remembers to pray for our priests? We already have enough of our own needs and wants as prayer petitions. Many of us are already praying as well for those who are close to us, the sick, and the poor. That’s why those who pray for the priests, it is truly kind of them to remember, because it ain’t easy to do so. I commend St. Paul the Apostle Parish for reminding us parishioners that we must always include the priests in our prayers.
2. With sincerity, I echo the request of Pope Francis and the mission of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. And with urgency, I ask you my dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ to pray this prayer for the priests in our parishes and all the rest of the clergy. I won’t give any more details, and can’t give names, but I have been sadly shocked with some priests I know about, and personally know, of how worldly these priests are. The shortest reason I can think of for their behavior is that they must be treating priesthood as a “career.” Apparently, they do not see it anymore as a Vocation. They seem to have ‘forgotten’ that priesthood has placed in them a permanent mark, for eternity, from this life up to the next.
3. Many Saints, especially Saint Bridget, had received visions of how priests who did not take seriously their sanctified Vocation, and used their position for worldliness and their personal benefits, were condemned to Hell. Their souls were tormented worse than others because they dishonored the mark of priesthood. In Saint Bridget’s visions, God and the Blessed Mother also expressed how deeply hurt and offended they were with their monstrosity. While they are still alive and have the time, they should be reminded of this. Unfortunately, some of them probably couldn’t, as they are too busy sharing their secular stuffs and selfies in the social media, to say the least.
If the shepherd is unholy, how can we expect the flock he leads to follow the path to holiness?
4. Thankfully, I also know about and personally know some very holy priests, who are true to their Vocation, and their vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in Roman Catholic priesthood. Let us also pray for them, for their strength, and for their protection.
5. In our present time, most of us do not have the means to embark on a holy journey. But we need not do so just to realize how much priests, whether diocesans, missionaries or monks, are in need of prayers amidst temptations and secularism. Deeply in our hearts, we can contemplate and pray for our priests just as we pray for our biological fathers.
6. Like He does with a real father, the Lord entrusts His priests with a weighty responsibility to instruct, nourish, correct, forgive, listen, challenge, and stand for his spiritual children. All of us are entrusted to the care of priests for our spiritual needs and nourishment through the Sacraments. It is through them that we hear the Gospel, and learn how to live and stay true to the dogmas and teachings of the Church. They also help us with proper counsel, inspiration, and consolation- inspiration in achieving true contrition and conversion, which is the start of holiness. It is also them who must correct the flock, with mercy and compassion, when they see a concern, and get them together when they see a division.
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Let us respond to the Holy Father’s intention for the month and pray together for our priests, knowing that St. Thérèse of Lisieux is in Heaven, interceding for all of Christ’s ordained successors, and for all of us faithful. And like the Little Flower, we must not lose faith, hope, and love for the Catholic Church in times of scandals, problems, and spiritual battles.
May the grace of God be with our priests for them to untiringly carry out their duties and responsibilities of being a “Father” of the flock they shepherd.
Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, have mercy on us!
Saint Joseph, pray for us!
Mama Mary, pray for us!
Amen.
She graduated cum laude from the University of Santo Tomas, the country's Pontifical and Catholic university, with an AB in Legal Management and minor units in Theology.
As an unmarried woman, prayer holds a central place in her daily life, with a focus on the Rosary and the Divine Office. Embodying her faith, she emphasizes the growth of her inner spiritual life, guided by the wisdom of Carmelite spirituality.
God manifested to her in a unique and radical manner, which made her know Who He truly is and led her to total surrender of her life to Him.
She has studied the Bible with her family, developing a particular fondness for the Old Testament.
Her adorable and intelligent toy poodle is a delightful companion in her daily life, bringing warmth and joy to her home.
Her hobbies include reading about everything, learning Japanese and German, listening to music and playing the flute.
In her leisure time, she enjoys gaming on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch OLED, Nintendo 3DS, iOS and OS, and collecting things related to PlayStation and Nintendo.
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Thank you for this inspiring post. I do pray for priests. They really need our prayers.
Hi Mary Kris thank you so much for sharing yourself and your God-given gifts to us, brothers and sisters in Christ! May the Lord continue to bless you abundantly so that you remain to be a constant blessing to all of us. Warmest regards!