Part of the mission of the Dominican Order was/is in mixing with people, who will see by our lives and work that there is something wonderful in the story of the Gospels.
Observing commuters rushing to and from work on a daily basis one is tempted to ask where do priests, sisters and brothers encounter people in their daily lives.
Mixing and engaging with people exclusively when talking about God and the Gospels can be a rarified experience.
When one thinks about it when exactly are priests engaged with the public? Do they meet them in the workplace as equals, do they travel with them on crowded trams, trains and buses, do they meet them cycling on cycle lanes.
Religious sisters are at the vanguard of being in the workplace, sharing the ups and downs of the people.
The idea of the working priest in France was potentially a possible way forward. Why did it fail? Then again, why is priesthood as we know it today failing in the western world? Yes, it is still in some aspects attracting ‘the converted’, it also is attracting zealots. Does priesthood today speak in any real way to the commuter class of society?
No comments:
Post a Comment