Ronald D. Witherup - Ministerial Priesthood in the Third Millennium: Faithfulness of Christ, Faithfulness of Priests

Ministerial Priesthood
in the Third Millennium

Ministerial Priesthood
in the Third Millennium

Faithfulness of Christ,
Faithfulness of Priests

Cover design by Ann Blattner.

Excerpts from the English translation of Rite of Baptism for Children 1969, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. (ICEL); excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal 1973, ICEL; excerpt from the English translation of Rite of Penance 1974, ICEL. All rights reserved.

Excerpts from the English translation of The Ordination of Deacons, Priests, and Bishops 1975, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. (ICEL); excerpt from the English translation of Rites of Ordination of a Bishop, of Priests, and of Deacons 2000, 2002, ICEL. All rights reserved.

2009 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, microfiche, mechanical recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permission of Liturgical Press, Saint Johns Abbey, PO Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7500. Printed in the United States of America.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ministerial priesthood in the third millennium : faithfulness of Christ, faithfulness of priests / Ronald D. Witherup [et al.].
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8146-3326-7 ISBN 978-0-8146-3901-6 (e-book)
1. Pastoral theology Catholic ChurchCongresses.2. Catholic ChurchClergyCongresses.3. PriesthoodCatholic Church Congresses.4. PriestsCongresses.I. Witherup, Ronald D., 1950

BX1913.M553 2009

253.088282dc22

2009042370

Contents

Contributors

Monsignor Kevin Irwin is a priest of the Archdiocese of New York who is dean of the School of Theology and Religious Studies at The Catholic University of America. He received his master!s degree from the University of Notre Dame and his doctorate of theology from Pontificio Istituto Liturgico, Collegio Sant Anselmo, Rome. He holds the Walter J. Schmitz Chair of Liturgical Studies and has authored fourteen books on liturgy and sacraments. In addition to his academic work Monsignor Irwin regularly celebrates Mass and preaches at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC during the week.

Monsignor Paul G. McPartlan is a priest of the Archdiocese of Westminster (UK) and Carl J. Peter Professor of Systematic Theology and Ecumenism at The Catholic University of America. He was born in Newcastle upon Tyne and graduated from Cambridge in mathematics in 1978. Having studied philosophy and theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, he was ordained a priest by Cardinal Basil Hume in 1984. He gained his doctorate from Oxford and then served for four years in a London parish. After holding a postdoctoral research fellowship at St. Edmunds College, Cambridge, from 19931995, he was appointed to the faculty of Heythrop College in the University of London where he taught systematic theology for ten years before coming to CUA in 2005. He is a member of the International Theological Commission and a member also of the international commissions for theological dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, and the Roman Catholic Church and the World Methodist Council, respectively.

Very Rev. Lawrence B. Terrien, SS, is a former superior general of the Society of St. Sulpice and the first American to be elected to that position. He is an alumnus of Theological College and served as rector of the seminary from 1986 to 1992. He has a doctorate of sacred theology from the Catholic University of Leuven. Father Terrien has served as associate professor of systematic theology, academic dean, and vice-rector at St. Patricks Seminary in Menlo Park, CA. He has also been dean of the ecclesiastical faculty of theology at Saint Marys Seminary & University in Baltimore. He is presently professor of systematic theology at Saint Marys Seminary & University.

Rev. Michael Witczak is an assistant professor of liturgical studies at The Catholic University of America and specializes in the history and theology of eucharistic celebration, sacramental liturgy, history of liturgy, and liturgical celebration of the saints. He previously served as a professor of liturgical studies, vice-rector, and then rector of Saint Francis Seminary in Saint Francis, WI. He is a priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and for many years wrote a column for priests in the archdiocesan quarterly liturgy newsletter. He holds a doctorate in sacred liturgy from the Pontifical Liturgical Institute in Rome. Father Witczak is a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy, Societas Liturgica, the Catholic Theological Society of America, the Society for Catholic Liturgy, the Henry Bradshaw Society for the editing of rare liturgical texts, and the Alcuin Club. He was awarded the Archbishops Vatican II Award for Service in Liturgy in 2001 and the Salesianum Alumni Association Sal Terrae Award for Service to the Church in 2007.

Very Rev. Ronald D. Witherup, SS, is superior general of the Society of St. Sulpice, known as the Sulpicians, an order of diocesan priests dedicated to initial and ongoing formation of priests. Father Witherup previously served eleven years as provincial of the Sulpicians U.S. Province. A former academic dean and professor of Sacred Scripture at St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, CA, he holds a doctorate in biblical studies from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, VA. He is a frequent retreat master for priests and deacons, and he often lectures on biblical and theological topics. Among his many publications are: 101 Questions & Answers on Paul (Paulist, 2003), Scripture: Dei Verbum (Paulist, 2006), St. Paul: Called to Conversion (St. Anthony Messenger, 2007), and Stations of the Cross According to Saint Paul (Paulist, 2008). He produced a set of CDs for the Year of Paul, titled Saint Paul: His Life, Faith and Writings (NowYouKnowMedia, 2008), and he coedited the recent book, The Four Gospels: Catholic Personal Study Edition (Liturgical Press, 2009).