‘Priesthood not for cowards’

Seminarians who are losing heart and feeling discouraged in pursuing their vocation in the wake of the recent killings of priests were advised by a Catholic prelate to forget about priesthood.

Caloocan Bishop Pablo David, the Vice President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said this is because priesthood is no place for cowards.

“The priesthood is not for cowards; it is not for the fainthearted. Jesus would probably say to you if you complain about times of persecution or adversity, “I beg your pardon, I never promised you a rose garden,” he said in a Facebook post.

“If a priest is murdered because he defends human rights, like Fr. Tito Paez, or he speaks out for environmental protection, like Fr. Mark Ventura, or he protects victims of rape and defends the Catholic faith, like Fr. Richmond Nilo, and his death causes you discouragement instead of inspiration, then I advise you to forget about the priesthood and just leave the seminary as soon as you can,” added David.

David said Fathers Paez, Ventura and Nilo should be viewed not as victims, but rather as martyrs, who opted to choose the path of Jesus despite the dangers that come with it.

“Victims are those who have no choice about their fate; it was merely imposed on them,” he said.

“No, these priests made a choice; they opted to be ‘martyrs,’ meaning witnesses, from the start. They chose this path, the road less traveled by,” David added.