Weekly Letter from the Archbishop of Seville
Dear brothers and sisters:
On Saturday June 29, the Solemnity of the Apostles Peter and Paul, took place in our truly exceptional cathedral ceremony. The Lord gave me the joy of ordaining priests to six seminarians of our Metropolitan Seminary. Therefore, in this weekly letter I feel compelled to repeat with St. Paul: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the person of Christ with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places” (Eph 1.3 ). The mercy of God has shown us overwhelming to choose and consecrate deacons as priests Manuel Arroyo Romero, Elías Domínguez Teba, Marco Antonio Fernández Rodríguez, Martín González del Valle, Gumersindo Melo Gonzalez and Andrés Ramírez Cardenas. God our Lord has blessed them by giving them the priestly vocation and configuring them to Christ sacramentally priest, head and shepherd of the Church, a servant and server. Also has abundantly blessed our Archdiocese, which is enriched with the gift of his priesthood, by which we reach so many fundamental property of God. Through them, Christ Church held in his saving work fulfilling that promise comforting, “I will give you shepherds after my own heart” (1 Sam 2:35), culminating in all fullness in Jesus Christ, the only shepherd of our souls .
It is right, therefore, that the Archdiocese all thank God, author of all good. And along with praise and thanksgiving, our prayer to the Lord to be saints, men of prayer, love of Jesus Christ and his ministry, faithful pastors and delivered, never employed, who do not care about the sheep. Ask the Lord to never seek self-interest, personal gain, the desire for power or control over the Church sheep entrusted to them, that dedicated servers are always in the Lord’s vineyard, asking nothing in return, without professionalize gift they have received, sparing nothing, keeping nothing, dedicated to serve the Kingdom of God, without interest bastard, but by God Himself and love to men, without calculation, without measure, without barriers, without putting or require condition.
As of now, the Lord must be in an especially intense the lot of his inheritance (Ps 15.5-6) and its unique fullness. Therefore, we must ask the Lord to them that He is the only staff on which rest on the new journey just beginning, that deliver entirely to Jesus Christ and the Church their time, their talents, their energies, their emotions and their capacity to love. That Archbishop of Seville always see themselves as God’s gift, especially for the simplest, those dumped in the gutters of life, the weary and burdened, the sinners, the poor, the needy, children and youth. To be spent and worn in service to the Church and to find joy in ministry and joy redoubled to keep them the freshness and enthusiasm despite the difficulties and tiredness in the Lord always supported, central and heart of their lives. May Mary, the mother of Christ priest in a special mother of priests, always accompany them, confirm them in fidelity, bless his pastoral duties fertility and fill his ministry to the glory of God, sanctification and good of the Church .
The ordering of these six new priests will allow us to fill the gaps left by the retirement of some venerable priests who have far surpassed the canonical age. Nevertheless, and even with the relatively grown our Seminars students, allowing us to peer into the future with hope, the number of our priests is still short for the needs of the archdiocese, which has some poorly covered flanks . Therefore, allow me to re-emphasize the
need for all forward redoubled involve us in vocation: parents, educators, and especially the priests and seminarians themselves. I am convinced that vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life are the best barometer of the spiritual vitality of a parish, in the same way it is also true that where there is a holy priest, zealous, exemplary, faithful, this pastoral farming specific vocations still because God continues to call, but needs our cooperation to promote young people’s generosity.
Again commend prayer for vocations to the contemplative life of the Archdiocese, to Adoration Perpetual Adoration and San Onofre. I extend this invitation to all parishes and groups, associations and movements, not to mention the Brotherhoods. Let us pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into His harvest (Luke 10:2).
To all, my fraternal greeting and my blessing.