Pope Francis to seminarians: being in relationship with the world

Last Monday Pope Francis spoke with seminarians and priests studying in Rome, answering 10 questions out of 205 proposals, which concerned faith, ranging from the spiritual direction of young priests to the relationship between science and faith with a first question regarding direction spiritual:

“Sometimes it is important to be accompanied by someone who knows my life, and who does not need to be a confessor; sometimes he goes, but the important thing is that they are two distinct roles. You go to the confessor because you forgive your sins and you go preparing yourself for sins. Go to the spiritual director to tell him the things that are happening in your heart, the spiritual motions, the joys, the angers and what is happening inside you.

If you relate only to the confessor and not to the spiritual director, you will not know how to grow, it will be something wrong. If you relate only to a spiritual director, a companion, and you don’t go to confess your sins, this is also wrong.

They are two different roles, and in the schools of spirituality, for example the Jesuit one, Saint Ignatius says that it is better to distinguish them, that one is the confessor and another the spiritual director. Sometimes it is the same but they are two different things, which perhaps one person does, but two different things ”.

The pope reiterated that spiritual direction is a ‘baptismal charism’: “Priests who do spiritual direction have the charisma not because they are priests, but because they are lay people, because they are baptized… It can be a priest, but it is not exclusively of priests.

And to be a spiritual director it takes a great anointing. For this reason, to your question, I would say: first of all, be sure that I must be accompanied, always. Because the person who is not accompanied in life generates ‘mushrooms’ in the soul, the mushrooms that then bother you. Illnesses, dirty loneliness, many bad things. I need to be accompanied. Clarify things “.

And also on the relationship between science and faith it was clear: “It is important not to deny the role of science, even of the science that goes on, science that does research, it is important, it is very important … We must give an answer to the height , worthy of man, and I think this is very important: looking with broad horizons …

We can answer most things because we know them. When university students come up with a doubt, I give you some advice: when they bring you a doubt from the university, for example, students (perhaps this is the sector of greatest work), if possible, answer with another doubt , and so you are attentive and the same gesture that he makes to you you do to him, so that he does not feel too sure …

The dialogue with science is always open. And to say: I don’t know how to explain it to you, but you have to go to these scientists, to these people who will perhaps help you. Escaping from the religion / science contrast, because this is a bad spirit, it is not the true spirit of human progress. Human progress will make science move forward and also keep faith ”.

A further question concerned formation in seminaries: “But life is a continuous imbalance, because life is walking and finding, finding difficulties, finding beautiful things that carry you forward and these always unbalance you …

But balance in life is also balance with the experience of forgiveness and mercy for sin. But thank God that we are sinners, dear, and thank God that we need to go every week or fortnight to the confessor to forgive us. And this is a big imbalance because it leads you to humility. The Christian life is a continuous walking, falling and getting up ”.

And he insisted on the formation of seminarians: “The formation of seminarians: seminarians must have a good spiritual formation. ‘I’m going to the seminary, I’m learning philosophy, theology…’. Yes, but the spirit, what is it? First of all, a good spiritual formation.

Even in the preparatory. The purpose of the propaedeutic today is this: to accustom the seminarian to spiritual discernment, spiritual formation, science, the sciences of the spirit. Second, a serious intellectual formation ”.

And he recounted his experience: “When I asked for information to promote someone to orders, both to the diaconate and to the presbyterate, when I was a Jesuit, I asked the coadjutor brothers, many but always the coadjutor brothers and the people of the parish; and the best information did not come to me from the professors: it was good, but the best came from the coadjutor brothers and from the women of the parishes.

It is curious: they have the nose… So, seminary formation has four things: spiritual formation must be serious, serious spiritual direction; serious intellectual training, not textbook; community formation among seminarians; and apostolic formation “.

And with regard to social media, he recounted his experience: “I believe that these things should be used, because it is a progress in science, they do a service to be able to progress in life … The only thing I was able to use is an Olivetti with the memory, one line only, which I bought when I was in Germany in an Angebot, 59 marks, nothing. And this helped me, and it stayed in Buenos Aires, I’ve used it until now. It is not my world. But you have to use them, you have to use them only for this, as the help to move forward, to communicate: this is fine ”.

And finally a question on the role of the Church in the conflict in Eastern Europe: “The Catholic Church, the Church, the holy mother Church, is mother, mother of all peoples. And a mother, when her children are in a quarrel, suffers. The Church must suffer in the face of wars, because wars are the destruction of her children.

As a mother suffers when children do not get along or quarrel and do not speak to each other (small domestic wars), the Church, the mother Church in the face of a war like this in your country, must suffer. She has to suffer, cry, pray. You have to assist people who have had bad consequences, who lose their homes or war wounds, deaths …

And then she is also a creative mother of peace: she tries to make peace in certain moments… In this case it is not very easy, but the open heart of Mother Church… You Christians do not take sides in this. It is true that there is one’s homeland, this is true, we must defend it. But to go further, beyond that: a more universal love. And Mother Church must be close to everyone, to all the victims ”.

(Photo: Vatican Media)