Pope Francis that priestly formation does not aim to “form clones”

Pope Francis asked not to be afraid of the “diversity” of cultures of seminarians and called for priestly formation not to try to “form clones.”

“The seminary should not aim to form clones, who all think in the same way,” said the Pontiff during the audience he held this Saturday, January 25, with the rectors of the major and propaedeutic seminaries of France.

Major seminaries are the training centers for future priests from the age of 18, and propaedeutics refer to the year of introductory training before starting an academic program.

The Holy Father made a descriptive x-ray of the “different” profiles of priests who present themselves at the seminary today. And he explained: “Some are very young, others already have a long life experience; some have an ancient and mature faith, for others it is very recent; “They come from different social and family environments, from different cultures.”

Regarding this aspect, he also appreciated that today’s seminarians “have felt the call within the numerous spiritual movements that the Church knows today.”

In this sense, he assured that it is the grace of the sacrament that “takes root in everything that enriches the unique personality of each one.”

He also considered that, although it is not an “easy” task, it is necessary “to propose spiritual, intellectual and pastoral formation to such a diverse community.”

In any case, he called on the seminaries to respect the “personality” of the candidates for the priesthood to produce “fruits of different flavors, which the variety of the People of God needs.”

“Don’t be afraid of diversity! Education to welcome the other, as they are, will be the guarantee, for the future, of a fraternal and essentially united presbytery,” he stated.

The Holy Father also asked that the formators of the seminaries – which includes the entire educational community, that is, the bishop, priests, religious and teachers – have a “coherent testimony of Christian life.”

Likewise, Pope Francis insisted on the need to offer candidates for the priesthood a “unitary formation” that touches all dimensions of the person and is oriented towards the mission.

A space conducive to growth

Pope Francis also insisted on the importance of the seminary becoming a “propitious space for the growth of the future priest.”

For this, he said that the important thing is to “take care of the quality and authenticity of the human relationships that are experienced there, similar to those of a family, with traits of paternity and fraternity.”

“Only in this climate can mutual trust be established, essential for good discernment. The seminarian will then be able to be himself, without fear of being arbitrarily judged; be authentic in your relationships with others; collaborate fully in their own formation to discover, accompanied by the trainers, the will of the Lord for their life and respond freely,” he stated in his speech.

For this reason, he finally called to pay attention to “each person’s itinerary,” as well as “personal accompaniment.”