Studia Pastoralne
Rocznik Wydziału Teologicznego UŚ

THE PRESBYTERIAT IN SERVICE OF A COMMUNION IN LIGHT OF THE POST-COUNCIL TEACHINGS OF THE CHURCH.
Summary
Contemporary ecclesiology postulates: „the Church as communion might be more clearly understood and concretely incorporated into life” (The Final Report of the Extraordinary Synod). This idea should pervade all actions of presbyters and influence a new style of priesthood. This is confirmed both by post-council teaching of the Church and the teaching of the Church in Poland. It was particularly developed in a post-synodal exhortation Pastores Dabo Vobis (1992) in which John Paul II emphasised that „the ecclesiology of communion becomes decisive for understanding the identity of the priest, his essential dignity, and his vocation and mission”. Other documents of Magisterium Ecclesiae followed this direction. Three documents of the Congregation for the Clergy deserve special attention: Directory on the Ministry and Life of Priests (1994), a letter The Priest and the Third Christian Millennium, Teacher of the Word, Minister of the Sacraments and Leader of the Community (1999) and an instruction The Priest, Pastor and Leader of the Parish Community (2002). Among Polish documents there are two written by the Second Polish Plenary Synod that deserve special attention: Needs and Tasks of a New Evangelisation at the Break of the Second and the Third Christian Millennium and Priesthood and Consecrated Life as Community of Life and Ministry with Christ. The documents emphasise that a priest should always remember that he „sanctifies himself by his care for a community which had been entrusted to him. This care should be manifested in being with a community and in a community”. Therefore the synod suggests that „in nominating parish priests one should take into account not so much and not only seniority and achievements but practical pastoral skills, especially the ability of team-work and a social sensitivity”.

DER PASTORALE DIENST DER KIRCHE IN DER SCHULE

A PRIEST WITH THE SEAL OF HIS MINISTRY OF SERVICE.
Summary
The relation of the priest to Jesus Christ, and in him to his Church, is found in the very being of the priest by virtue of his sacramental consecration and in his ministry. The priest, who reflects his Lord, Jesus Christ is the servant of Christ present in the Church as mystery, communion and mission. Thus, by his very nature and sacramental mission, the priest appears in the structure of the Church as a sign of the absolute priority and gratuitousness of the grace given to the Church by the risen Christ. Through the ministerial priesthood the Church becomes aware in faith that her being comes not from herself but from the grace of Christ in the Holy Spirit. Each priest, whether diocesan or religious, is united to the other members of this presbyterate on the basis of the sacrament of holy orders and by particular bonds of apostolic charity, ministry and fraternity All priests in fact, whether diocesan or religious, share in the one priesthood of Christ the head and shepherd. Finally, because their role and task within the Church do not replace but promote the baptismal priesthood of the entire People of God, leading it to its full ecclesial realization, priests have a positive and helping relationship to the whole community. They have to recognize and uphold the dignity of the ecclesial community serving the sacraments and helping faithfully the given people.

DER CARITATIVE DIENST DER KIRCHE IN DER ZEIT DES PONTIFIKATS VON JOHANNES PAUL II
Das Pontifikat Johannes Paul II. war unter vielen Gesichtspunkten einzigartig und un-wiederholbar. Dieser Beitrag betrifft nur die wichtigsten Aspekte des karitativen Dienstes der Kirche im Zeitraum des Pontifikates Johannes Paul II. Die Sorge für die Armen hat eine tiefere Grundlage in der Bibel und auch in den Aussagen des Lehramtes der Kirche von heute. Man kann auch in den amtlichen Aussagen des Papstes Johannes Paul II. von einer Option für die Armen und Schwachen reden. Sehr interessant war in der Lehre dieses Paps-tes die enge Verbindung zwischen der Barmherzigkeit Gottes und der karitativen Tätigkeit der Kirche. Johannes Paul II hat erfolgreich die Theorie und Praxis der Caritas verbunden. Der Papst appellierte bei jeder Gelegenheit an die Staatsoberhäupter und internationalen Einrichtungen, aber auch an alle reichen Leute den armen Nationen, den Hungerleidenden und den Opfern von Naturkatastrophen zu helfen. Der Papst selbst versuchte eine konkrete, praktische Hilfe, vor allem durch den Päpstlichen Rat Cor Unum und durch die von ihm gegründeten Stiftungen: Für die Sahel-Staaten und Populorum progressio, zu leisten.

IL CARATTERE PROFETICO DEL SERVIZIO DELLA PAROLA DI GIOVANNI PAOLO II
Le radici del servizio della parola nella Chiesa affondano nella missione dei profeti. Il profeta per eccellenza è stato il Profeta di Nazaret - Gesù Cristo. Egli ha fatto la sua Chiesa partecipe della propria missione profetica: in questo modo, anche se il tempo dei profeti è ormai passato, la Chiesa conserva il carattere profetico e lo esprime attraverso la predicazi-one della parola di Dio. Il servizio della parola di Giovanni Paolo II ne è un esempio parti-colarmente eloquente. L'articolo rappresenta un tentativo di prospettare alcuni elementi di tale servizio del Pontefice in relazione all'attività dei profeti biblici. Similmente all'attività dei profeti, la predicazione di Wojtyła è accompagnata dalla profonda coscienza d'essere stato eletto e mandato per predicare la parola di Dio; dalla convinzione della forza della parola predicata e dalla coraggiosa testimonianza personale che attesta la veridicità della parola stessa. Nei discorsi di Giovanni Paolo II si possono trovare alcune forme linguistiche analoge alle forme contenute nei discorsi dei profeti della Bibbia, come oracoli, narrazioni, parenétiche, gesti simbolici. Anche alcuni accenti nel contenuto dei discorsi del Servo di Dio assomigliano alle parole dei profeti, come per esempio l'esortazione a scegliere Cristo senza compromessi, l'interpretazione delle esperienze umane alla luce della parola di Dio o un forte orientamento verso il futuro. Alla fine dell'articolo, l'autore suggerisce alcuni aspetti da approfondire e da completare nello studio del carattere profetico del servizio della parola di Giovanni Paolo II. Richiede un'analisi più ampia la dimensione profetica degli aspetti poetici nei discorsi del papa-poeta, che tradisce il senso della solitudine del Pontefice proveniente da scelte effettuate controcorrente che sono state spesso accompagnate da un atteggiamento di chi mette a rischio l'incolumità della propria vita. Rilevare il carattere profetico del così efficace servizio della parola di Giovanni Paolo II porta alla netta conclusione pastorale che, nelle discussioni sull'efficacia della predicazione, non bisogna dimenticare mai il carattere profetico che ne è la fonte.

MINISTRY OF THE WORD IN THE MEDIA ERA.
Summary
The author of the article deals with the issue of a relation of the Church’s ministry of the Word and abruptly developing mass media. His starting point is a positive impact of media on preaching, especially with respect to immense widening of the scope of its influence. The author encourages readers to use mass media in a broadly understood evangelisation. On the other hand he draws readers’ attention to a potential negative impact of mass media on preaching. Influence of mass media may reduce an awareness of divine dimension of preaching, contribute to vanishing of theological understanding of functions of preachers of the Word, adjusting the preached truth to media standards, domination of a picture over a word. Also, the author recognises a need of enhancing traditional aims of preaching by new ones, such as developing reflection skills, showing a difference between a real and virtual world, warning against ethical relativism, defying consumerism, increasing awareness of other people’s needs.

THE BISHOP’S MINISTRY AS OFFICIUM.
Summary
The word officium summarises a significant characteristic of Roman culture. It describes the Roman ideal of life as public service, i.e. a concern for salus rei publicae. Latin Christianity took over the word and its substance. The ministry of a bishop was described as exercising the officium already in the early ages. That is how Cyprian of Carthage understood the office of bishop, even though he did not use the word explicitly. Ambrose of Milan made the Roman officium a cornerstone of the formation of priests, which he described in his well-known work De officiis ministrorum. He himself exercised the office of the Bishop of Milan according to the best model of a Roman official. The tradition was further developed by Leo the Great, who pointed out that pax christiana was the fulfillment of what the Romans had expected of pax romana. Gregory the Great took over the legacy of his predecessors. However, to a greater extent than Ambrose or Leo, he perceived the tension between exercising the office accompanied by worldly cares and the spiritual dimension of bishop’s ministry. It may have been caused by the fact that, after a total disintegration of Roman administration, Gregory was forced to take on the responsibility of the perfect of Rome. His Regula pastoralis, however, provides a continuation of Ambrose’s ideas concerning the formation of clergy.

THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD AS IT CONCERNS THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE AND RECONCILIATION
Penitential preaching arises from the Scriptures and Tradition of the Church. The significant development of this form of word ministry took place in the Middle Ages, when preachers often spoke about sins and appealed for conversion, founding grounds of it in eschatology. Nowadays, it is advisable to speak often and more about the sacrament of penance and reconciliation - referring to revelation and anthropology. It is always necessary to remind believers about the essence and fatal effects of sin - either in a homily concerning the sacrament of penance, as well as in a penitential preaching in the whole; in the same way, it is always actual to stress the endless God's mercy, redemptive effects of divine grace - and to appeal to true conversion and compensation for the evil that has been done. There are many occasions for preaching about penance and reconciliation during the liturgical year, especially during Lent and at Easter time. such religious issues come from the Liturgy of the Word for Sundays and feast days and is an essence of liturgy of the Mass. All forms of cyclical ministry (such as various retreats, parish missions, days of meditation, the Paschal Triduum, along with examination of conscience) are also closely connected with the sacrament of penance and reconciliation. It is also obvious that the priest himself should be a man of penance, this would enable him to speak with convinction and testify to God's endless mercy. It is also advisable to do research on contemporary word ministry - paying special attention to its relation with the sacrament of penance and reconciliation. As a warning to Polish priests should be the currently wide-spread conviction in many western countries that confession is not necessary, resulting in people often going to Communion without the sacrament of penance.