Outer sloppiness
Many times, I have heard priests complaining about the state in which their parish house has been left to them. But without engaging in criticism, I want to reflect on the fact that when there is inner emptiness, outer sloppiness can arise. Let us look at some points of this priestly carelessness:
1. The parish house: When one approaches pastoral ministry with an accelerated perspective and uncontrolled activism without grounding oneself in prayer, one can find satisfaction in doing, but fear in being. The priest may fear his moments of solitude that he has while spending time at home. He may not want to look at his parish house, or he may feel uncomfortable being there. In many, phobia may even appear. The parish house will be neglected, and the priest becomes an itinerant of homes. This is not only about considering fraternity towards the future priests who will live there, but also, it speaks of an internal struggle that makes that person feel uncomfortable in his home. It’s possible he may even feel that his parish house is not a real home. That is why the process that the priest must go through involves converting his parish house into his home; and that takes time.
Returning to the issue of inner emptiness… this act of staying away from home speaks of internal struggles. This is similar to what happens to the husband or wife who does not want to return home. Because they want to avoid conflicts with their spouse, they look for more work in order to have excuses to stay away. In the case of the priest, it means moving away not only from his home, but also from his priestly axis, from his space. It is important to work on your personal space and place: the place where you rest and pray; the place where you can think and plan; the place where you can simply entertain yourself and be at ease, just being you.
2. His character and habits: There are many elements that one can bring from one’s family, as well as aspects that have not been worked on in the seminary. The human dimension is an essential part of priestly formation. This also implies looking at your life history and knowing whether or not you have adopted good habits. When the priest neglects his way of speaking, dressing, and even his time for sports or exercise, there are repercussions on his health and his psyche. We tend to let ourselves go! Eating anything, dressing carelessly, and even resting badly. When you no longer spend time on yourself, it is very difficult to regain those aspects, because you get used to it and develop bad habits. When you make time to exercise, and when you dress well for certain occasions, this can lead to personal growth. Letting yourself go is a consequence of carelessness or lack of interest. In this respect, many have even ideologized it, talking about “living like the poor”. However, by getting to know poor people, I have understood that it does not mean being neglectful. To be well dressed means to be dressed appropriately for the occasion, and to have a good home does not depend on social class, but on social and priestly dignity.
3. Time for oneself: When there is inner emptiness, the priest puts to one side his time for himself. He often seeks to compensate with time for others and for everyone else. When you leave aside the time for yourself, and you no longer have the space to be yourself, you can fall into a life of “performance”, which can bring on spiritual and human laziness.
It is important to take care of your human dimension that leads you to take care of the priestly space and the parish house. Human work is very important because it is what allows you to grow spiritually and pastorally. Taking care of the priest’s time for himself and his living space contributes to fraternity and to your priestly identity.
Pray for us!
Something good is on the way.
