Those Mysterious Priests

by Fulton J. Sheen

"A priest is mysterious, because he lives in two worlds. He is at his best when he leads 'a double life,' at once both human and divine." In this penetrating book written some five years before his death, Sheen explores this duality inherent in the vocation of the modern-day his need, like that of Christ, to feel the holiness of God that binds him to the Father; and at the same time his need to become a victim, like Christ, for the world's sins, assuming its guilt and poverty in union with the Lord.

Genres: Theology, Catholic, Spirituality

Paperback

First published May 1, 2005

About the author

Fulton John Sheen was an American bishop of the Catholic Church known for his preaching and especially his work on television and radio. Ordained a priest of the Diocese of Peoria in Illinois, in 1919, Sheen quickly became a renowned theologian, earning the Cardinal Mercier Prize for International Philosophy in 1923. He went on to teach theology and philosophy at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. and served as a parish priest before he was appointed auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York in 1951. He held this position until 1966 when he was made bishop of the Diocese of Rochester in New York. He resigned as bishop of Rochester in 1969 as his 75th birthday approached and was made archbishop of the titular see of Newport, Wales.
For 20 years as "Father Sheen", later monsignor, he hosted the night-time radio program The Catholic Hour on NBC (1930–1950) before he moved to television and presented Life Is Worth Living (1952–1957). Sheen's final presenting role was on the syndicated The Fulton Sheen Program (1961–1968) with a format that was very similar to that of the earlier Life Is Worth Living show. For that work, Sheen twice won an Emmy Award for Most Outstanding Television Personality, and was featured on the cover of Time magazine. Starting in 2009, his shows were being re-broadcast on the EWTN and the Trinity Broadcasting Network's Church Channel cable networks. His contribution to televised preaching resulted in Sheen often being called one of the first televangelists.
The cause for his canonization was officially opened in 2002. In June 2012, Pope Benedict XVI officially recognized a decree from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints stating that he lived a life of "heroic virtues," a major step towards beatification, and he is now referred to as venerable. On July 5, 2019, Pope Francis approved a reputed miracle that occurred through the intercession of Sheen, clearing the way for his beatification. Sheen was scheduled to be beatified in Peoria on December 21, 2019, but his beatification was postponed after Bishop Salvatore Matano of Rochester expressed concern that Sheen's handling of a 1963 sexual misconduct case against a priest might be cited unfavorably in a forthcoming report from the New York Attorney General. The Diocese of Peoria countered that Sheen's handling of the case had already been "thoroughly examined" and "exonerated" and that Sheen had "never put children in harm's way".

Reviews

[Paulus · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5

Written for priests, this extended theological reflection on the priesthood had a lot of good food for thought. Along the way, Sheen shares some beautiful and profound reflections on scenes from Scripture that suddenly became alive and meaningful to me (e.g. John the Baptist's imprisonment [chp. 17]).

Some main takeaways for me:

-Just as Christ was both priest and victim in his self-oblation on the Cross, a Catholic priest must be prepared to suffer as a victim in union with Christ. Furthermore, priests must understand suffering as essential to their mission.

-Involvement in social reform and working for a truly just society are critical to Catholicism, and Vatican II rightly emphasized this. However, social action must flow from living the Faith; otherwise, people may simply use the Faith to justify their social programs without actually believing anything at all -- the Faith becomes mere rhetoric to support an agenda. To quote one of Sheen's many comments on this: "Not every one who condemns corruption and protests injustice is thereby a prophet; the test is always whether it leads people to God or away from Him." (chp. 16)

-Making a daily Holy Hour is the primary means that Sheen recommends for a priest to live out his role as "victim" offered for his people.

-The priority of saving souls: "[Jesus] began to teach a new doctrine to men—the doctrine of the Divine Sense of Humor. Everything He said, everything He did could be summed up in these words: Nothing in this world is to be taken seriously— nothing—except the salvation of a soul."

Throughout this book, Sheen treats many of the crises and errors that were plaguing the Church and the world in the 1970s (when he was writing). Communism; Liberation Theology; pseudo-Christian utopianism (aka. "immanentizing the Eschaton"); etc. It helped form a clearer picture for me of the tumultuous times which we are [hopefully] just emerging from as a Church.

Warmly recommended!

[Jonathan Lackey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is pure Sheen- well written, easy to read, and imminently quotable. I was recommended this book by a Franciscan sister who was excited to hear I was in seminary, even though it was a Lutheran seminary. Though written in 1974, it could have been written last week. A lot of the heresies and less helpful practices that sprang up after Vatican II are still bogging down the church at large today. Most of my copy of this book has highlights and underlines galore.

The reason for four stars is the last two chapters are VERY, VERY Marian. You will not get much out of them if you are not Roman Catholic. Would still recommend the book as a whole, though.

[Earl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I may not agree totally with the views of Fulton Sheen, which seems to slant toward a form of conservative Catholicism and view of the priesthood. However, I was impressed by the way he argues and defends his own views regarding the Catholic priesthood. It is worth reading for his vast references and writing style.

[Reuben Nuxoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent portrayal of priests with the spirituality of victimhood and motivation to live it. There are some slower parts, but definitely helpful to priests for their vocation.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightfully Christ and Cross centered.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

He is a dense writer, I don't remember much.