VATICAN: In his annual letter to the world’s priests, made public by the Vatican on March 18, Pope John Paul II says that every priest should “offer himself as a gift, placing himself at the disposal of the community and at the service of anyone in need�. Each year, the Pope sends a message to the priests of the world for Holy Thursday. This year, the Pontiff’s message draws special meaning from the fact that it was signed on March 13, during his stay in Gemelli Hospital. John Paul notes at the outset that he was praying for priests “as I spend this time recuperating in hospital, a patient alongside other patients, uniting in the Eucharist my own sufferings with those of Christ�. A priest of the Catholic Church should serve the community — especially during times of dramatic cultural change — as a source of stability and of hope, the Pope writes. The life of priestly ministry, the Holy Father says, must be centred around the Eucharist. He reminds priests that they are “celebrants, but also the guardians of this most sacred mystery�. The Pope remarks that young people, in particular, need the ministry of priests who devote themselves to the proclamation of the Gospel and the celebration of the sacraments. He adds that the example set by good priests should remedy the shortage of priestly vocations: “Vocations will certainly not be lacking if our manner of life is truly priestly, if we become more holy, more joyful, more impassioned in the exercise of our ministry.� At a press conference in Rome introducing the Pope’s letter, Cardinal Dario Castillon Hoyos, the prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, said that the Pope is exhorting every cleric “to transform his priestly existence into a radical gift for the Church and for humanity�. — CWN