'A great time to be a Catholic priest in Ireland...if God calls, He will support you'

Archbishop Francis Duffy believes that it is a great time to be Catholic priest in Ireland.

The Bawnboy native was speaking during the ordination Mass for Reverend Mark Quinn as a priest of the Archdiocese of Tuam earlier this week.

He said that every student for priesthood, and every priest, has his "own story of the path he has followed" in discerning and answering God's call.

"That story of discernment leads us to recognise and believe that at the core of priesthood is Jesus Christ. The priest is called, in the first place to be with the Lord, to love him, listen to him, and to learn from him. Jesus Christ is at the centre of priesthood, not the priest, not the bishop, not the pope, but Jesus Christ. It is His call to which we respond, it is His message we preach and it is He whom we serve. As we will hear, the Instruction for Ordination to the Presbyterate urges you, Mark, to: “attend to the affairs of Christ before your own." For all of us who are ordained as His ministers, that is the key: to put Christ at the centre, put Christ and the care of His people, first," said Archbishop Duffy who is Archbishop of Tuam and Apostolic Administrator of Killala. This homily was delivered on 7 July 2024 in the Church of the Holy Rosary, Castelbar, Co Mayo, Archdiocese of Tuam.

Answering God's call, Archbishop Duffy said, lies outside the experience of many people.

"For some God is an invention, for some an irrelevancy and for others an anachronism in this day and age. For those who have faith, God is the centre. Answering God’s call, attending to His reassuring and hope-filled message, no matter what path we take in life, married, single, no matter what position, God’s individual call is a precious gift. It is something very natural for a believer, challenging and attractive, ‘yes’, risky and rewarding, ‘yes’ but fully within what it is to be a Christian and fully within what it is to be human."