På det interessante nettstedet Papa Ratzinger Forum er det nå lagt ut en full engelsk oversettelse (fra italiensk) av pavens samtale med prester fra Albano bispedømme i Italia. På spørsmålet om de mange krevende oppgaven en prest har, svarte Benedikt slik:
I would say that the first requirement for all of us is to let the Lord take care of the part we cannot do. Today we heard in the Gospel the parable of the faithful servant (Mt 24.42-51). This servant, the Lord tells us, gives food to others at the appropriate time. He does not do everything all at once, because he is wise and prudent and knows how to distribute what is necessary at different times. He does so humbly, confident of his master’s trust.
So also we must do what we can to be wise and prudent and to have trust in the goodness of our Master, of the Lord, because ultimately, it is He who guides His Church. We assert ourselves with the small gifts we have and do what we can, above all, those duties that are always necessary: the Sacraments, announcing the Gospel, showing our charity and love.
As for the interior life that you referred to, it is necessary to our service as priests. The time which we reserve for prayer is not time taken away form our pastoral responsibilities but it is pastoral ‘work’ in itself to be able to pray for others.
In the Common for Pastors, we read that the Good Shepherd is characterized by ‘multum oravit pro fratribus,’ praying a lot for our brothers. This is what a pastor must be, a man of prayer who goes before the Lord to pray for others, doing so, as well, in place of others wh do not know how to pray or who do not wish to pray or who do not find the time to pray. What could be better evidence that a dialog with God is pastoral work!
Hele samtalen kan leses her – bla litt ned på siden.