Abp. Chaput: Priests Needed for the Ongoing Presence of Christ in the World

"No matter how many other things bear good fruit for the Gospel in our day, there is no ongoing presence of Jesus Christ in the world without the Church; there is no Church without the Eucharist; and there is no Eucharist without the priest.

"As a result, in every generation, we always need good priests: well-formed men of hope and courage; men who love Jesus Christ, love the Church and are eager to serve God’s people. And—equally important—we need a community of believers that will encourage these men, and support them as a family in their sacrifices."

~ Archbishop Charles Chaput; excerpt from here. ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Sr. Consolata Betrone: Entrusted by Jesus to Lead Priests Back to God

 "Jesus reveals to me the intimate sufferings of His Heart

caused by the faithlessness of souls consecrated to Him."

~ Sr. Consolata Betrone, Nov. 9, 1934 ~

"Humble and great, active and contemplative, serene and tormented, suffering and full of joy, Consolata led a linear life reconciling each differing thing in herself and unifying everything in the ardent love of God. Long and intensely tempted herself, she had a delicate understanding of sinners, especially for consecrated souls who had transgressed, and for their conversion she offered God all her suffering and pain and finished by offering life itself."

~ From Statement introducing the beatification process of Sr. Consolata Betrone ~

Consolata Betrone

(1903-1946)

The sacrifices and prayers of a spiritual mother for priests benefit especially those who have strayed or abandoned their vocations. Jesus has called countless women in his Church to this vocation of prayer, such as Sister Consolata Betrone, a Capuchin nun from Turin. Jesus said to her, “Your life-long task is for your brothers. Consolata, you too, shall be a good shepherdess and go in search of your brothers and bring them back to me.”

Consolata offered everything for “her brother” priests and others consecrated to God who were in spiritual need. While working in the kitchen, she prayed continuously in her heart, “Jesus, Mary, I love you, save souls!” She consciously made every little service and duty into a sacrifice. Jesus said in this regard, “Your duties may be insignificant, but because you bring them to me with such love, I give them immeasurable value and shower them on the discontented brothers as grace for conversion.”

Very grave and difficult cases were often entrusted to the prayers of the convent. Consolata would take the corresponding suffering upon herself. For weeks or months on end she sometimes endured dryness of spirit, abandonment, meaninglessness, inner darkness, loneliness, doubt, and the sinful state of the priests.

She once wrote to her spiritual director during these struggles, “How much the brothers cost me!” Yet Jesus made her a magnificent promise, “Consolata, it is not only one brother that you will lead back to God, but all of them. I promise you, you will give me the brothers, one after another.” And so it was! She brought back all of the priests entrusted to her to a fulfilling priesthood. There are recorded testimonies of many of these cases.  (Source)

One does not need to be a nun to offer every aspect of one’s life for the sanctification of God’s anointed ones. Anyone can pray and sacrifice for priests, which is why we began our prayer associations to allow those outside our cloister to join us in spirit before Our Lord in the Monstrance praying for His priests.

~ From previous post:   Invitation to Join the Handmaids of the Precious Blood in Strengthening Priests ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Invitation to Join the Handmaids of the Precious Blood in Strengthening Priests

“In strengthening the priest you strengthen the whole Church....

Strengthen the priest and you strengthen the whole foundation,

you strengthen everything in the Church.”

“He who would truly honor the priesthood must do so by helping priests.
I would rather have a hand in getting one priest back to the altar of God
than to write a thousand books on the priesthood,
or to preach a million sermons on the glory of the priesthood,
for neither the sermons nor the books
can hold Christ in their hands and offer Him to the Father.”

~ Fr. Gerald Fitzgerald, s.P.,  Founder Handmaids of the Precious Blood ~

From Handmaids of the Precious Blood:

Our spirit is that of unbounded love of Jesus Christ in His Priests. All that we do, in union with and in imitation of the Precious Blood, is directed so that priests be holy priests. We offer ourselves in immolation and reparation for all priests, particularly for those who have lost sight of their sublime calling, praying for the grace of their conversion. We sacrifice our lives completely for the souls of priests, mindful of the vast numbers of souls just one priest can influence in his lifetime.

About our External Prayer Apostolates:

Did you know that since we began the Lay Associates of the Priesthood, we have registered more than 29,500 people who have adopted a particular priest to pray for? But currently there are over 40,000 priests in the United States and we need more volunteers willing to pray for them. Any practicing Catholic can send us their mailing address and be assigned their own priest to pray for daily.

We Invite Everyone to Join us in Strengthening the Priest

One does not need to be a nun to offer every aspect of one’s life for the sanctification of God’s anointed ones. Anyone can pray and sacrifice for priests, which is why we began our prayer associations to allow those outside our cloister to join us in spirit before Our Lord in the Monstrance praying for His priests.

Lay Associates of the Priesthood

Lay Associates of the Priesthood spiritually adopt a priest to pray for anonymously by first name. The Association of lay men and women began in February of 1971 and it has since registered well over 29,500 members. There are no meetings, fees, or dues. Just daily prayer for a specific priest.

Confraternity of Mary, Mother of Priests

The Confraternity of Mary, Mother of Priests welcomes priests, religious, and deacons to also spiritually adopt their own priests. The Confraternity is structured similarly to the Lay Associates: no meetings, fees or dues. Just daily prayer for a specific priest.

Oblates of the Precious Blood

Begun under the guidance of the Servant of God Father John A. Hardon, S.J. on the Feast of Corpus Christi, June 21, 1981, the Oblates of the Precious Blood program was founded to allow priests, religious, deacons, and laity to more closely affiliate themselves with the mission and spirit of the Handmaids of the Precious Blood. Oblates of the Precious Blood bind themselves to our apostolate of prayer and sacrifice for priests by willingly committing themselves to lives completely dedicated to God, doing everything out of love for God and for the sanctification of priests. From their homes, their families, their work, their rectories, their dioceses, their missions, their hermitages, and their cloisters they reach out spiritually to priest souls in need, offering every joy and sorrow, all pain and suffering to God in love on behalf of priests. They dedicate themselves to learning the spirituality of our Founder, Father Gerald Fitzgerald, s.P. and give themselves in a lifelong resolution to live for God alone. Candidates undergo a formation period by correspondence conducted from our Motherhouse in New Mexico before making a private Solemn Resolution of Love. The Oblates are not a third order and members of third orders may apply for candidacy. World wide, there are at present over 420 Oblates of the Precious Blood.

~ For more information, go the the Handmaids of the Precious Blood website ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Catherine of Siena: Priests Are the Anointed of the Lord

"Take caution to see priests only as the dispensers of the Blood of the humble, Immaculate Lamb and overlook the faults you may see in them. A priest is a man and therefore fallible and capable of making mistakes, but this does not prevent him from being the Anointed of the Lord, marked forever with the indelible sign and having the power to consecrate the Body of Christ and administer the sacraments and to preach to the people in the name of God."

~ St. Catherine of Siena ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.