For the Renowal Theology of Sacramnetal Priesthood

The sacrament of priesthood within the whole space of the development of the Church and its presence in civilisation is one of the key issues. It proves its meaning as well as the necessity of undertaking an ongoing reflection in the context of challenges resulting from the civilisation development. Theology of priesthood is also an essential aspect that has a multi-dimension character and, as such, is a subject of various fields of theology as well as non-theological ones. A reflection upon its relation to a common priesthood of all the faithful, resulting from the sacrament of Baptism, comes into special importance nowadays. Present-day challenges resulting from the development of culture post-modernity require a clear and precise drawing of the essence of sacramental priesthood. The Sacrament of Orders which defines the character and charisma of the called one brings the inseparable sacramental bond with the Christ the Highest and the Only Patriarch. We can find a proper charismatic identity of priesthood in this relation. The other dimension of this charisma is the mission, in which a priest acts in persona Christi. The dual charismatic dimension makes a proper way of making out and understanding the identity of a priest. It means that a priest cannot be substituted in his vocation and the authority which he receives in The Sacrament of Holy Orders and the unity with his bishop. Properly understood and made out identity needs the competent preparation and formation of the candidates to the priesthood, those who have already received Orders and those who are responsible for it alike. All dimensions of formation must be properly integrated. The essential integrating element in the process of ongoing formation is specific priestly spirituality. It means that the fact who a priest is, and then what his mission is, results from the unity of a priest with Christ. The already mentioned civilisation challenges require permanent studies of the ways and methods of the formation. This way the process of formation defends itself from naturalistic or spiritualistic one-sidedness, which a present Pope Francis reminded of, when he said about two “subtle enemies of sanctity”, which are “a present-day Gnosticism” and “a present-day Pelagianism".

La formazione spirituale ignaziana al sacerdozio. Dal Collegio Romano all’Istituto di Spiritualità della Pontificia Università Gregoriana di Roma

"The Ignatian Spiritual Formation in The Priesthood. From the Roman College to the Institute of Spirituality of The Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome. The present study aims to analyze the importance of the spiritual formation of Seminarians and Priests in the present times. Assuming that the most delicate part of the formation concerns the work of the divine grace, the exhortations of the Pontiffs, from Leo XIII to Francis insist that the good dispositions of the Seminarians help them to find in their Formators the spirit, better understanding and all the help to reach the state of perfection, called priestly holiness. As one of the forms of the celebrations of the 60° anniversary of the Institute of Spirituality of the Pontifical Gregorian University, this paper also has the purpose of some genuine expressions of gratitude for the contributions of Fathers Herbert Alphonso and Maurizio Costa, two Jesuits who have been called to the Father’s House. Together with Father Franco Imoda, they were sensible toward the needs of the Church with great courage. As an answer to these expectations and on the explicit request from Congregation for the Catholic Education of the Holy See, Father Joseph Pittau S.I., the then Magnificent Rector of Pontifical Gregorian University, founded, the Interdisciplinary Center for the Formation of the Formators in Seminaries (CIFS = Centro Interdisciplinare per la Formazione dei Formatori nei Seminari) in May 1996. Our conclusions synthesize the results of the research, and place in prominence the mission of the Institute of Spirituality as an expression of its fidelity to the inheritance of the Roman College. Keywords: priestly spirituality, priestly and spiritual formation, formation of the formators, Ignatian pedagogy, prayer, theology, Roman College, the Ignatian vision of man, pastoral charity."