Current society and priests: the challenges

This week I had the honor of being invited to the Breña Priestly Library of our city by the coordinator of its weekly circles, Juan Luis Selma, to speak to the priests present on the “Challenges of today’s society”. today. What do we expect from a priest? . I was introduced by Antonio Gil and the interview had the flavor of a meeting followed by an enriching debate. We live in a global world where neither the principles for a better world of Marcus Aurelius (strength, justice, temperance and wisdom), nor those of the founders of the European Union (Greco-Roman heritage, Christian humanism and Enlightenment) nor those of the Enlightenment John XXIII’s 1963 encyclical “Pacem “in terris” (truth, love, justice and freedom) appears today neither in school textbooks nor in political or media stories. I highlighted the ten major challenges facing our society today. First, post-truth or “emotional lying”, the fact that something seems true is more important than the truth itself. Second, relativism, as Benedict XVI emphasized: “It recognizes nothing as definitive and leaves only the self and its whims as the last measure.” Third, fake news, which circulates and imposes itself on social networks. Fourth, the manipulation of media information with half-truths and propaganda campaigns. Fifth, the “woque” culture which establishes itself as a single thought and emphasizes black identity politics, LGTBI, indigenism and gender ideology. Sixth, cancel culture, which disqualifies and cancels people who express opinions contrary to the principles of “woque”. Seventh, the “excessive worship” of the environment, pointing to human beings as guilty of everything. Eighth, bonism, according to which many problems can be solved by tolerance, even if this is impossible. Ninth, radical Islamism which threatens from distant deserts and hides in our modern cities under the protection of permissive laws or indolence. Tenth, in Spanish terms, the polarization to which we have returned, after the concord between the two Spains sealed by the Constitution, thanks to the implementation of the power of a partisan “official memory”. And in this complex world what is expected of him. a priest. In reality, what was always asked of him: to be a good man; knowing how to be, knowing how to speak, knowing how to listen and knowing how to transmit; comfort those who are suffering; witnessing the simplest things daily, “doing the ordinary in an extraordinary way”; commitment to Christian values ​​to build humanity, truth, love, justice and freedom; and realize the splendid horizon of the Church’s mission outlined by Vatican II, announce, celebrate and, under the responsibility of the laity, realize the Good News of Salvation.

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