Ministerial Year

John Paull II underlined the pastoral value of the formation of candidates to the priesthood: “The whole formation imparted to candidates for the priesthood aims at preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ the good shepherd. Hence their formation in its different aspects must have a fundamentally pastoral character (q. v. Pastor Dabo Vobis 57).” He further pointed out: “pastoral formation develops by means of mature reflection and practical application, and it is rooted in a spirit, which is the hinge of all and the force which stimulates it and makes it develop.”

This pastoral training program enables candidates to the priesthood to engage themselves in pastoral experiences through their involvement in certain pastoral services. The ministerial year has a two-fold purpose: “on the one hand it is about being inducted into the pastoral life, with a gradual assumption of responsibilities in a spirit of service; on the other hand, it is about making a suitable preparation with the help of a specific accompaniment, in view of the priesthood (q.v. Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis 74, 2016 ). Moreover, the candidates are being prepared to be shepherds in the image of Christ; hence, their “priestly formation must be permeated by a pastoral spirit. It will make [enable them] to demonstrate that same compassion, generosity, love for all, especially for the poor, and zeal for the Kingdom that characterized the public ministry of the Son of God (q. v. RFIS 119, 2016).

At the end of the ministerial year, a student receives a certificate of completion from DWST.