(ZENIT News / Vatican City, 26.06.2025).- On Thursday afternoon, June 26, Pope Leo XIV held a meeting — in the Conciliation Auditorium near Vatican City –, with hundreds of priests and some Bishops taking part in an International Meeting organized by the Dicastery for the Clergy on the theme “Happy Priests.”
Below is ZENIT’s translation of the Pontiff’s words.
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Let’s begin with the sign of the Cross, because we are all here because Christ, who died and resurrected, gave us life and called us to serve. In the Name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Peace be with you!
Dear brothers in the priesthood, dear formators, seminarians, vocational animators, friends of the Lord.
It is a great joy for me to be here with you today. In the midst of the Holy Year, together we wish to bear witness that it is possible to be happy priests, because Christ has called us, Christ has made us His friends (cf. John 15:15): it is a grace we wish to welcome with gratitude and responsibility.
I wish to thank Cardinal Lazzaro and all the collaborators of the Dicastery for the Clergy for their generous and competent service: a vast and valuable work, often carried out quietly and discreetly, and which bears fruits of communion, formation, and renewal.
With this moment of fraternal exchange, an international exchange, we can enhance the heritage of mature experiences, fostering creativity, co-responsibility, and communion in the Church, so that what is sown with dedication and generosity in so many communities may become light and encouragement for all.
Jesus’ words, «I have called you friends» (John 15:15), are not just an affectionate declaration toward the disciples, but a true key to understanding the priestly ministry. The priest, in fact, is a friend of the Lord, called to live with Him in a personal and confidential relationship, nourished by the Word, the celebration of the Sacraments, and daily prayer. This friendship with Christ is the spiritual foundation of the ordained ministry, the meaning of our celibacy, and the energy of ecclesial service to which we dedicate our lives. It sustains us in times of trial and allows us to renew each day the «yes» pronounced at the beginning of our vocation.
In particular, dear brothers, I would like to draw three implications from this key word for formation for the priestly ministry.
First of all, formation is a path of relationship. Becoming friends of Christ means being formed in relationship, not just in skills. Priestly formation, therefore, cannot be reduced to the acquisition of notions, but is a journey of familiarity with the Lord that involves the whole person: the heart, intelligence, freedom, and molding in the image of the Good Shepherd. Only those who live in friendship with Christ and are imbued with His Spirit can proclaim with authenticity, console with compassion, and guide with wisdom. This requires deep listening, meditation, and a rich and orderly interior life.
[2]Secondly, fraternity is an essential style of priestly life. Becoming friends of Christ implies living as brothers among priests and among Bishops, not as competitors or individualists. Formation must, therefore, help build solid bonds in the presbytery as an expression of a synodal Church, in which we grow together by sharing the hardships and joys of ministry. Indeed, how could we ministers be builders of living communities if an effective and sincere fraternity did not reign among us above all?
Furthermore, forming priests who are friends of Christ means forming men capable of loving, listening, praying, and serving together. For this reason, great care must be taken in the preparation of formators, because the effectiveness of their work depends above all on the example of life and the communion between them. The very institution of seminaries reminds us that the formation of future ordained ministers cannot be carried out in isolation, but requires the participation of all the friends of the Lord who live as missionary disciples at the service of the People of God.
[3]In this regard, I would also like to say a few words about vocations. Despite the signs of crisis that are affecting the life and mission of priests, God continues to call us to remain faithful to His promises. There needs to be adequate spaces in which to hear His voice. Therefore, environments and forms of youth ministry imbued with the Gospel are important, where vocations to total self-giving can manifest themselves and mature. Have the courage to make strong and liberating proposals! Looking at the young people who in our time say their generous «here I am» to the Lord, we all feel the need to renew our «yes,» to rediscover the beauty of being missionary disciples in following Christ, the Good Shepherd.
Dear brothers, we celebrate this meeting on the eve of the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus: it is from this «burning bush» that our vocation is born; it is from this source of grace that we wish to allow ourselves to be transformed.
Pope Francis’s Encyclical Dilexit Nos, if a precious gift for the entire Church, is especially so for us priests. It challenges us forcefully: it asks us to safeguard together mysticism and social commitment, contemplation and action, silence and proclamation. Our time challenges us: many seem to have distanced themselves from the faith, but deep down in many people, especially young people, there is a thirst for the infinite and for salvation. Many experience an absence of God, but every human being is made for Him, and the Father’s plan is to make Christ the heart of the world.
For this reason, we want to recover the missionary impulse together. A mission that proposes the Gospel of Jesus with courage and love. Through our spiritual action, it is the Lord himself who cares for His flock, gathers the scattered, bends over the wounded, and sustains the discouraged. By imitating the Master’s example, we grow in faith and thus become credible witnesses of the vocation we have received. When one believes, it shows: the minister’s happiness reflects his encounter with Christ, who sustains him in the mission and service.
Dear brothers in the priesthood, thank you for coming from afar! Thank you to each one of you for your daily dedication, especially in places of formation, on the existential peripheries, and in difficult, sometimes dangerous places. As we remember the priests who have given their lives, even to the point of blood, we renew today our willingness to live without reserve an apostolate of compassion and joy.
Thank you for what you are! Because you remind everyone that it is
beautiful to be priests, and that every call from the Lord is above all a call to His joy. We are not perfect, but we are friends of Christ, brothers among ourselves, and children of his tender Mother Mary, and this is enough for us.
Let us turn to the Lord Jesus, to His merciful Heart, which burns with love for every person. Let us ask Him for the grace to be missionary disciples and pastors according to His will: seeking the lost, serving the poor, humbly guiding those entrusted to us. May His Heart inspire our plans, transform our hearts, and renew us in the mission. I bless you with affection and pray for all of you.
To conclude, we propose a moment of prayer. A very brief moment, but what I have said before in my words, is very important!
I want to emphasize the importance of the priest’s spiritual life. Often, when we need help, seek a good «companion,» a spiritual director, a good confessor. No one here is alone. And even if you are working in the most distant mission, you are never alone! Try to live what Pope Francis so often called «closeness»: closeness to the Lord, closeness to your Bishop or Religious Superior, and closeness also to one another, because you must truly be friends, brothers; live this beautiful experience of walking together, knowing that we are called to be disciples of the Lord. We have a great mission, and together we can carry it out. Let us always count on God’s grace, on my closeness, and together we can truly be this voice in the world. Thank you!
So, let us pray together: Our Father . . .
And to Mary, our Mother, let us say: Hail Mary . . .
[Blessing]Congratulations to all! May God bless you always!
Translation of the Italian original into Spanish by ZENITs Editorial Director and, into English, by Virginia M. Forrester.
