By Father Richard Kieran

When I was ordained, just before the final session of Vatican II, the priest was the only person in the Church expected to manifest any initiative in bringing about the Kingdom of God on earth. Now I find myself called to be more and more the spiritual leader of other active Christians, directing them in their ministry. My main work has become discovering and directing the spiritual gifts of the individuals and groups whom I serve.

When I was first ordained I suffered from a “Messiah complex,” thinking that the salvation of the school or parish depended on me. I was discouraged because my effectiveness seemed to be directly proportional to the number of intensity of my priestly activities.

It was a layman who suggested that I reflect upon II Timothy 2:2 as an antidote for my complex: “You have heard everything that I teach in public; hand it on to reliable people so that they in turn will be able to teach others.” The secret to Paul’s ministry (and he was implementing what he had learned of Jesus’ ministry) was multiplication.

Paul’s only direct contact in this situation was with Timothy. He counted on Timothy forming lay leaders, who in turn would form others in Christ. This simple principle of multiplication in ministry made the outreach of the early Church exciting and dynamic. Very few ordained leaders revolutionize the known world.

The Second Vatican Council, in many of its documents, the International Synod of Bishops of 1971 and the recent studies on the American priesthood commissioned by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, all encourage the modern priest to be a true spiritual leader among his people by multiplying his ministry through them.

The essential elements of my priestly ministry today are simple indeed: 1) Discovering the potential leaders – the leaders already exist in all of our parishes. They need to be given the opportunity of using their chrisms to further the work of the Church. 2) Forming them in Christ -- helping them to find a meaningful faith relationship with our Lord. 3) Helping them to find a genuine Christian community, which will support and encourage them to grow personally and to reach out to others in Christ’s name. 4) Sending them to transform their environments with the Gospel.

I find this ministry exciting and fulfilling. I have discovered that it is possible to have a very fruitful priesthood in a modern world, provided I seek to work in partnership with the community and am faithful to my role as spiritual leader within it.