Pastoring Pastors

I know this is mainly from ACP and therefore should treated with at least a bit of caution, it is an ACN report suicide among clergy in Ireland. It is based on eight suicides in ten years, though the number could be much, I suspect Irish coroners might be concerned for relatives and only record those deaths as suicides if there is no possibility of a priest's death being interpreted in other way.

What it does indicate is the low morale of the Irish clergy, as it is the ACP it is presumably especially acute among their members the more liberal and more elderly clergy. The picture is of old exhausted men doing their best to cope and at the same time coping with loneliness an isolation.

Ireland because of its recent history might be a little extreme but I suspect it reflects the situation in the rest of Europe and maybe the Americas too. One of my predecessors ended by losing his faith, in practice leaving the priesthood and the Church, he died in very suspicious circumstances, he left instruction that there should be no religious rites at his funeral, at least two other priests I know have left the same instruction.

Bishop Egan has spoken of his concern about the spiritual lives of retired priests who move out of their parish give up wearing clerical dress and often saying Mass. While I was ill I thought I might well have to retire it was a depressing prospect, my parishioners give me practical support, their demands for the sacraments: daily Mass and confession give structure to my life, and most importantly they give me friendship and pray for me. Retirement meant either a little house somewhere, with none of those supports  for someone becoming less and less able or a nursing home, I think I would have preferred death to both. Many priests,. I think put off retirement, simply because the prospect can be so lonely.

I have a young priest friend in what some might describe as a not very nice diocese, I suppose he is bit immature at times but he has no support at all from any priestly friends, there are few young clergy in his diocese, his seminary classmates are all different parts of the country, his parish priest is out of sympathy with him theologically, liturgically and just about every other, in the old days he would have been described as a 'curate breaker'. His bishop telephones him from time to time but never to encourage, or just to talk, always to complain or criticise or to reprimand.

During my illness I was so grateful to priests who phoned or visited and texted me. I am ashamed that I am not very good at doing that myself. In most diocese there is very little 'pastoring' of pastors. In Ireland as in England after the abuse crisis or other serious scandal very few bishops offered support to those priests who were often deeply wounded by the crimes of their brothers or their subsequently deposed bishops. I remember an old priest on his deathbed saying, "Ah, sure this might get the bishop out to see me but only when I am in my coffin". It was true the bishop hadn't seen him or contacted him in the five years since he retired but he did turn up for his funeral.

Another priest friend visited a retired priest and was a little horrified that said he hadn't be to Confession for five months because he hadn't seen a priest for that amount of time.

This is repeated in many diocese, perhaps some have a priest who might be appointed to care for the sick and elderly but it is not regarded as important.

In Ireland the suicide amongst clergy might be amount to less than one a year but amongst many spiritual suicide is not quite so rare, there seem to be a steady stream of younger priests leaving and perhaps equally worrying older priests staying despite having lost either faith because they have nowhere to go. For any bishop care of his spiritual sons, his co-workers should be a priority - for the majority it far down the list.