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Text Box: at Catholic universities often wear civilian attire. Some say they so do because they do not wish to offend the students and colleagues who practice a different religion. Others, that they may “fit in”. The worst of the lot so do because they wish to make the statement that they respect the beliefs of others - in effect stating they do not hold Church Dogma in high regard. With the exception of those who do not wish to offend, such individuals are apostates, if not blasphemous recipients of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Those who do not wish to offend should reassess their Faith and learn to offend, offend gladly, and offend as often as possible. They are Priest of the Living God, entrusted with the greatest Gift God has given to mankind. If their proclamation of that Gift, and their practice of that Gift, causes discomfort to those who deny the truth proclaimed by God, so-be-it. There are occasions where clerical attire is not appropriate. But playing golf is not one of those occasions. Perhaps the Priest could wear just the clerical shirt with regular slacks and no coat, for the coat is restrictive and those black slacks can become very hot. And playing football, baseball, soccer, or other sports, would undoubtedly ruin a very expensive shirt; so even the clerical shirt may be properly omitted in such situations. And clerical attire is often inappropriate or impractical in a variety of situations, such as if the Priest is digging a ditch, or also is a physician performing surgery, or is also a lawyer arguing a case before a jury. If he is an engineer, or a roustabout, a member of the merchant marine, a day laborer, or works in a bank, clerical attire would normally be considered inappropriate while engaged in those activities. But if he is sports fishing with a bunch of his buddies, unless he is very inept, or the situation hot and messy, a clerical short sleeved shirt with the collar unbuttoned hanging over some decent shorts - naw that is too ridiculous. OK, include fishing in the permitted civilian attire category. Very often a Priest will be engaged in a

Text Box: variety of activities at the Church during the course of the day. Some may be somewhat messy, and when this is the situation wearing regular slacks or even blue jeans may be appropriate. But the clerical shirt should always be worn unless it will be damaged. Clerical shirts are expensive so there is a need to utilize them wisely. But they should be changed daily like any other shirt, so daily wear does not present an undue expense. The traditional black pants are easily soiled while regular slacks, khakis, or blue jeans often are able to weather several days wear and hold up under regular cleaning better than the black pants. These should therefore be factors for consideration - but not to the extent that they become an excuse for abandoning the Priesthood. Not even age or isolation should serve as an excuse for a Priest to abandon clerical attire. His clerical attire reminds him of what he is. Should he be thrust into the public without notice, it will serve to inform the public of what he is - a Priest. Those two pocket, white or off white, flowery or design stitched, loose fitting, over the belt style, shirts which some Priest effect or wear “when off duty” are just too unmanly for viable consideration, especially considering the problems the Roman Priesthood has thrust upon the rest of the Church during the past several years. Besides, if a Priest is injured, if it is obvious he is a Priest, there is a good probability someone will contact another Priest thereby providing the injured Priest with the opportunity for Holy Anointing and Absolution. But if it is not known he is a Priest, he may die without the benefit of those Sacraments. Only if a Priest has been defrocked should clerical attire not be his normal attire. But he should never attempt to defrock himself. If he is seeking a reason to not be a Priest, to not fulfill his vocation, he should contact his Bishop, inform the Bishop, and leave.

Text Box: + THE IMPORTANCE OF WRITING SERMONS, OF NOT BEING EXTEMPORANEOUS, AND OF CONTINUING TO WRITE SERMONS EVEN IF “RETIRED” Of almost equal importance with provision of the Sacraments is the Priest’s role as teacher. Every Priest teaches by his conduct, his acts and omissions, his expressed emotions, and every aspect of his life. In the formal teaching setting the Bishop is the primary teacher and each of his Priests teaches in a formal setting only under the authority of the Bishop. Therefore each Bishop must insure the teaching material he authorizes be used within his diocese properly expresses and teaches true doctrine and so does to the extent required for the salvation of every soul in his diocese. The Bishop must not, may not, and can not rely on experts in the fields of education, psychology, or other secular disciplines, to replace or supplement his own expertise. If his own expertise is lacking, he is obligated to supplement his knowledge and expertise by additional training and personal education. He may rely on theologians proven to be correct in dogma to assist him in determining what study material is to be used in his diocese, and the composition of such study material. But the responsibility before God for providing good and accurate study material is that of the Bishop. Most Roman Bishops have failed miserably in that responsibility since the late 1960’s or early 1970’s, using grade school catechisms which teach that the stories in the Bible are fables designed to teach us socially acceptable conduct. The dogmatic surety of the Baltimore Catechisms and similar catechism does not exist in many if not most of the Roman Catholic catechisms of today. The role of the weekly sermon given by most Priests therefore takes on an even more important role than it did in the

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