Cardinal rues about declining status of priests in Kerala

Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) President and Major Archbishop of Syro-Malabar Church, Cardinal Mar Varkey Vithayathil has aked the pastoral community to take an oath that they would not do anything to 'tarnish the brightness of priesthood' under any ircumstances.
   
Vithayathil, who is also Head of the over 6-million strong Syro-Malabar Church, in a letter issued to all priests under his jurisdiction on account of the 'Year of Priests' said it
was painful that the staus and recognition traditionally enjoyed by priests in the Church and of society was declining of late.
    
Pope Benedict XVI had declared the year commencing from June 19, 2009 (Sacred Heart's Feast) to the feast of June 2010, as the year of priests of the Universal Church. The objective of declaring a year for the priests was to renovate and purify' the life of priests the world over, the Cardinal said.
     
He attributed the decline to few priests' unexemplary attitude, their behaviour inconsistent with the priesthood and lack of spirituality.
    
The priestly life was fundamentally characteristic and adventurous call which demanded 'perfect dedication' and hence care should be taken to ensure that 'competition and calculations' of material benefits do not creep in the activities of the priests.
    
Out of a total of 12 Apostles of the Church, only Saint John had a natural death and all the rest courted martyrdom for following the path of Jesus Christ, Vithayathil reminded the priests.