In the book, “From the Depths of Our Hearts: Priesthood, Celibacy, and the Crisis of the Catholic Church” by Pope Benedict XVI and Robert Cardinal Sarah, the importance of prayer is highlighted.
“Dear priests, dear seminarians, let us not allow ourselves to get caught up in haste, activism, and the superficiality of a life that gives priority to social or ecological commitment, as though time dedicated to Christ in silence were lost time. It is precisely in prayer and adoration in front of the tabernacle that we find the indispensable support for our virginity and our priestly celibacy” (130).
The time a priest spends in prayer is the most important time in a priest’s life. Pope Benedict XVI considers it to be “truly a time of pastoral activity, authentic pastoral activity” (128).
“Being a friend of Jesus, being a priest, means being a man of prayer” (128).
“Build your existence on the firm framework of a plan of life. Ask the Lord constantly to unify your life. Work and prayer do not turn their backs on each other, far from it; they must support one another. If we are not interiorly in communion with God, we can give nothing to others. We must constantly rediscover that God is our priority” (133).
We must constantly rediscover the primacy of God. This happens in prayer. Without prayer, celibacy makes no sense.
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