The Global Gift
As is obvious to everyone reading this newsletter, the priestly vocation crisis in Canada has been dire for the last two generations. Priestly vocations have plummeted, and every diocese and religious order has seen the hollowing out of our ranks. Steeply raising the retirement age of our active priests and merging parishes are only some of the drastic moves taken to keep the pastoral care of Canadian Catholics going.
Luckily, we have benefitted enormously from the influx of priests from many other countries. The source countries have changed but the Canadian Catholic Church has seen the face of the priesthood literally and irrevocably change in the last 50 years.
As we priests are pro-life leaders this means that a change in pro-life thinking must also take place.
Recently, I gave presentations to Oblate priests many of whom came from Poland and serve in our far north. One mentioned that he was a “foreign“ priest. “Father,” I replied, ”You have been here for 40 years. That is longer than most Canadians have been alive. You’re Canadian now, surely!” He answered, “No, I am still seen as foreign and you have to walk carefully in a different culture.”
Therefore, I speak of “Global” priests who are serving here and I want to point out how the movement needs to reach out to them and how we at Priests for Life Canada hope to facilitate that.
First, we need to see this as true service. This is missionary work and as a missionary country, we need to be aware of how big a sacrifice this is for these men. Diocesan priests are often fortunate enough to have family and relatives relatively close by. Such is certainly not the case for global priests. They are a world away from family and friends. Social media contacts can help but it is second best. Laity needs to reach out in an intentional way to provide webs of support to help to incorporate these priests in our broader but specific families.
Fellow priests also have to be more intentional. As priests we naturally form friendships often based on shared experiences from the same seminaries and histories within the diocese. It’s never easy to form friendships, especially as we age, but it is a spiritual, as well as, a utilitarian duty so as to build up fraternity. Language, age differences, cultural and ecclesiastical ranges, can be obstacles, but fraternity does not just happen. It comes from work and grace.
Pro-lifers need to see global priests as potential leaders who need education and empowerment. Not being from our country means that the byzantine politics on the federal and provincial levels can be daunting. It is hard enough for Canadians to understand how we got to where we are on abortion and mercy killing. Let’s co-ordinate how we inform them on the how and why!
We must also remember that being global priests can lead to a reluctance to engage in these contentious issues for fear of being seen as “know-nothings”, intruders on a national issue, or a cultural blunderer. Especially with cultural clues, these are hard to communicate. It takes skills training to navigate that minefield.
So I urge the local pro-life groups to reach out in a planned and consistent way to these global priests. On our part as I have mentioned before in these pages, Priests for Life Canada is seeking out priests from two groups (to begin with) – Nigerians and Filipinos from across Canada, so as to directly help with this process of fulfilling our mandate to inform and empower clergy. (This does not exclude any priest from any country from receiving our help.) The process has begun. It’s a slow process and this is a big and scattered country, but we are seeking these particular global priests so that they can take their place as pro-life leaders in our communities.
Do you fit in those categories, Father? Do the bishops have men they would suggest? Can you help in honing and particularizing our outreach? Can you lay people suggest some names for our outreach? Help us form these priest leaders. God has given us a gift. Let’s recognize it and work with them and build up this generation!
Fr. Tom Lynch (PFLC National President)