Vatican City – “So often, when we need help, seek a good ‘accompanier’, a spiritual director, a good confessor. No one here is alone. And even if you are working in the most distant mission, you are never alone!” These were the words of Pope Leo XIV, visibly moved, as he addressed the priests and bishops gathered in the Auditorium della Conciliazionethis afternoon.
A climate of joy and fraternity preceded the Pope’s arrival, and when Leo XIV entered the auditorium, he was welcomed with long applause by the clergy present. The Pontiff was speaking at the International Meeting of Joyful Priests – “I have called you friends” (John 15:15), promoted by the Dicastery for the Clergy.
Always smiling and approachable, with his gentle manner, Leo XIV began the encounter with simplicity: “Let us begin with the Sign of the Cross, because we are all here because Christ, who died and rose again, has given us life and has called us to serve. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Peace be with you!”
Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-sik, Prefect of the Dicastery, introduced the Pope’s address with heartfelt words: “We are here because we know that a happy priest is the best proclamation of the Gospel. Thank you, Holy Father, for pointing us to friendship with Christ as the source of our joy and fidelity.”
Friendship with Christ as the key to Ministry
In his speech, Leo XIV reaffirmed a central point: it is possible to be happy as a priest. A happiness that is not the result of human strategies, but springs from a living relationship with the Lord: “Christ has called us, Christ has made us His friends: it is a grace we must welcome with gratitude and responsibility.” His words recalled the meditation offered by Monsignor Mario Enrico Delpini to seminarians in the Basilica of Sant’Andrea della Valle. The Pope emphasized that this friendship is the foundation of ordained ministry, the meaning of celibacy, and the strength that sustains ecclesial service.
Three Pillars of Priestly Formation
At the heart of his address, Leo XIV outlined three concrete implications for formation to the priesthood:
Relational formation: not merely transmission of knowledge, but familiarity with the Lord, shaping the heart, mind, and freedom.
Presbyteral fraternity: priests are called to live as brothers, not as loners or rivals. The presbyterate must be a true community.
Friendship and love as a way of life: forming men capable of listening, prayer, and service, through communal formation that involves the whole People of God.
“Formation must then become the place where not only content is learned, but above all, relationships,” said the Holy Father, highlighting how essential it is that the presbyterate be an environment of authentic human bonds. “A synodal Church grows only where priests learn to share joys and burdens, walking together as brothers. But how can we build living communities if there is no sincere and effective fraternity among us?” he asked with striking clarity.
The Pope thus touched on one of the most challenging aspects of the priestly ministry: the difficulty of living presbyteral fraternity. It is not an abstract ideal but a real wound that affects many lives. Leo XIV stated it plainly: “Becoming friends of Christ means living as brothers among priests and bishops, not as competitors or individualists.”
The root of many divisions, the Pope implied, lies in a subtly widespread but dangerous attitude: the idea that another’s success is a defeat for me. A poison that paralyzes communion and corrodes trust. Everything becomes criticism, judgment, and a desire to diminish others. And this mindset — as he recently told seminarians — stems from a deeper evil, which today manifests with new force: narcissism. “Today, especially in a social and cultural context marked by conflict and narcissism, we must learn to love like Jesus,” he had said.
Narcissism is perhaps the most insidious temptation of our time: it turns vocation into self-affirmation, mission into competition, fraternity into fruitless comparison. That is why formation must go deeper than just transmitting pastoral tools: it must help future priests to de-center themselves, to make room for the other, for brothers, and for Christ. Only in this way, the Pope implied, can we build a presbyterate that is truly a sign of a Church journeying together.
Vocations, Mission, and Hope
Leo XIV did not omit a realistic and hopeful reflection on vocations: “Despite the signs of crisis affecting the lives and mission of priests, God continues to call and remains faithful to His promises. We must create the right spaces to hear His voice. That is why we need Gospel-filled youth ministry environments where vocations can emerge and mature. Be bold in making strong and liberating proposals! Looking at the young people of today who generously say their ‘Here I am’ to the Lord, we all feel the need to renew our own ‘yes’, to rediscover the beauty of being missionary disciples following Christ, the Good Shepherd.”
The Pope concluded his message with a reflection on the Church’s mission in the world: “Through our pastoral action, it is the Lord Himself who cares for His flock. When one believes, it shows: the joy of the minister reflects his encounter with Christ.”
Spontaneous Dialogue: The Pope Among His Priests
At the end of his speech, a monsignor asked to embrace the Pope. Leo XIV responded with humor: “If it’s one for all! Because otherwise, the others will want one too! Do you agree?” And the crowd replied in chorus: “Yes!” “Then, one for all!” the Pope said with a smile.
He then asked — in various languages — which continents the bishops, priests, and seminarians present came from: “How many are from Latin America? … from Africa? … from Asia? … from Europe? … from the United States?” — receiving a burst of raised hands and enthusiastic replies. A simple but eloquent gesture: the Pope wants to know his priests, to look them in the eye, to know where they come from.
Even in this brief final moment, Leo XIV’s disarming spontaneity and genuine humility came through clearly — traits that do not distance him but draw him closer to those who listen to him. The Pope appeared attentive, engaged, genuinely interested in the lives, struggles, and joys of the priests and bishops present. Shortly before the final prayer, he left one last thought, simple but profound, as if wanting to leave a lasting mark on each heart. “How important is the spiritual life of the priest!” he said, visibly moved. “Seek a good accompanier, a confessor, because no one is alone, not even in the furthest mission. Live that ‘closeness’ that Pope Francis reminded us of: closeness to the Lord, to your bishop, and among yourselves. We are friends, we are brothers.”
These words did not feel like generic advice, but something born of personal memory, from lived experience. The Pope seemed clearly touched, letting slip the emotion of someone who remembers the years spent in the peripheries, serving the portion of the Church entrusted to him — far from the spotlight, but never far from God. It was the voice of a shepherd who knows what it means to walk with his fellow priests, to share the solitude of the mission, to carry in his heart the burden and beauty of being a father. And today, with a fraternal voice, he wanted to tell all those present: you are not alone.
Words and gestures that never appear staged or artificial. They are authentic expressions, consistently ignored or downplayed by the Vatican media, who often present them — when they do — in cold, detached, almost embarrassed tones. Yet, at the end of the meeting, many priests and bishops expressed disappointment. Not only because of the presence of Salvatore Cernuzio, whose conduct has been exposed by Silere non possum and is increasingly resented, but especially because — as more than one pointed out — “he never highlights the Pope’s gestures, as if trying to flatten his profile and neutralize his closeness.”
An Italian bishop stated bluntly: “We are very happy with how Leo XIV is, and how he shows us his affection. You can tell he’s not doing it for the cameras. In fact! What strikes me most about him is that — fortunately — he doesn't care what those professional disinformers say.”
It is in this gap between reality and its portrayal — or omission — that many perceive the signs of a Vatican communication apparatus that has become increasingly self-referential, and ever less capable of telling the truth. In essence, many are now calling for a new era, with all the consequences that implies.
A Moment of Living Church
After the Our Father and Hail Mary, Leo XIV imparted his blessing, leaving a powerful message: “We are not perfect, but we are friends of Christ. That is enough for us. We have a great mission: together, we can truly be a voice in the world.”
A message that is simple, but capable of overturning the dominant narrative. In a time when the priestly ministry is constantly under attack, targeted by a culture that for years has painted priests as the problem or the root of all evil, Leo XIV has chosen another path. He has chosen to look his brothers in the eye, reminding them that joy is possible, if it springs from friendship with Christ. A message as simple as it is revolutionary.
d.R.P.
Silere non possum