The Office of Priestly Life and Ministry, in collaboration with the Ministry of Christian Formation and the Ministry of Communications, should educate the faithful through appropriate means as to the value of priestly celibacy and the doctrinal reasons why ordination to the sacred priesthood is reserved to men. (S. 472)
Purpose The Ministry to Priests Office stresses the fundamental importance of support, ongoing education and formation in the life of the priest in a time of rapid change and transition within the life of the Church.
Ministry to Priests seeks to provide a holistic approach toward the challenge of ongoing formation and education for the priests in the Archdiocese of Miami. Retreat programs, days of prayer, counseling, educational events, sabbaticals, and other types of gatherings more social in nature describe the major thrust of the Ministry to Priests Office in the Archdiocese. Ministry to Priests encourages the priests to have a spiritual director and also encourages support groups.
The Director of Ministry to Priests seeks, with the ongoing assistance of the Ministry to Priests Advisory Board, to identify the current needs of the priests in the physical, psychological, intellectual and spiritual dimensions, so that programs and experiences can be created that will address those real needs. This needs assessment is updated periodically.
The priests are invited at any time to evaluate the programs provided by the Ministry to Priests Office. The Director of the Office also shares in the responsibility of the Personnel Board and the Presbyteral Council concerning placement and formulating policies that will support the efforts of ongoing education and formation of the priests.
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