In today’s culture, the word Pharisee means a person who practices hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is a disease that is running rampant within some seminaries. I am speaking of some formators who think that they are the ideal of priesthood I am reminded of a priest, who was in the seminary where I study, that preached homilies that were as heavy as stones for those in the pews. He would preach that it is prudent to calm our anger, but would be a very angry, and even vengeful, person. To most of the seminarians, he was a fake. We equated him with the Pharisees, who spoke one way, and acted in another. He was a man, who made mistakes, but who refused to admit them. Many seminarians left because of him. They figured that if you have to be like that to be a priest, then, it was not worth it. With a true love for the priesthood and for Christ, some tried to be open and develop a relationship with him, only to encounter a barrier.
I believe that he had issues that he needed to work out. Because of this, he took out his anger on some of the seminarians whom he deemed were “unworthy” for the priesthood.
I pray for this priest, that he may be given the strength to look within himself and see how many people he hurt in his campaign to form seminarians in his “image and likeness.” I ask that the Lord bless him and protect him, and that he may illumine his path.
We who call ourselves “ministers,” who wish to serve God’s people and bring Christ to them, should really look at the way we treat others and should act like Christ. After all, you can’t give what you don’t have.
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