Thursday 30 April 2015

Christopher Seiler: Non sibi arroget minister plus quam quod ut minister (Sermo 266, 2): St. Augustine’s Imperative for Ministerial Humility

In his letters to priests and bishops, Augustine is often found exhorting them to humility. Their fruitfulness as ministers is not contingent primarily on their own goodness and power, but on the one whose vicar they are. Nevertheless, the minister must exercise his freedom in seeking after virtue if he is to effectively fulfill his role as a true instrument of the Gospel. For the Bishop of Hippo, each alter Christus has to find the right relationship between humble receptivity and zealous activity in order to faithfully carry out his sacred ministry.

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