There has been a lot of attention recently on the relationship between bishops and priests, and rightfully so. This relationship is critical to a flourishing priesthood, and a flourishing priesthood is critical to a flourishing Church.
In my experience, the erosion of this relationship has been a top priority for the evil one. Why? Because the return on investment is so great. It’s a simple equation: destroy the relationship between spiritual father and spiritual sons → destabilize the priesthood → destabilize the Church → hinder the Church’s mission.
It’s the same strategy the evil one uses everywhere: strike at the heart of the father, and whisper into the ear of the children: “You can’t trust him.” Once the children are outside the protection of the father, they can be picked off one by one.
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