CARDINAL Jose Fuerte Advincula, the archbishop of Manila, urged priests to look after their mental well-being, noting the prevalence of depression and anxiety among the clergy.
Advincula said 18 percent, or about one in five Filipino Catholic priests are experiencing psychological distress or emotional burdens.
“This is a concern we cannot ignore anymore, and we have to face it to resolve it,” Advincula said during the Chrism Mass at the Manila Cathedral on Maundy Thursday. Among the audience were priests from across the archdiocese renewing their commitment to service.
Advincula laid out a three-step approach for priests to care for their mental health: recognize, reconnect, and renew.
He urged priests to acknowledge their struggles and not hide their difficulties in shame or denial.
"We need to acknowledge the signs and symptoms of difficulty so that they can be addressed. Or as mental health advocates often say, we have to name it to tame it. We have to feel it to heal it," Advincula said.
He reminded priests that it is not a failure to admit exhaustion, emotional burdens, or struggles in their prayer lives. Instead, he said, recognizing these signs is an affirmation of their humanity.
"The danger is not that we grow tired, but that we refuse to recognize it. Because what is unrecognized cannot be offered to God, and what is not offered to God cannot be healed," the cardinal said.
Advincula noted that connection is essential for priests to maintain their mental and emotional health. He pointed out that even Jesus did not carry out his mission in isolation, but instead remained connected to his disciples and community.
"In the priesthood, isolation can drain us, but communion will sustain us and heal us," he said.
Advincula called on priests to renew their sense of identity and mission in God. He reminded them that their worth is not defined by their work or achievements but by their identity as beloved sons of God.
"We are not functionaries of an oppressive master. We are sons of a loving God. We are men who are anointed, chosen, and blessed by God," the cardinal said.
He stressed that renewal begins with an intimate relationship with God, who sustains them even in their darkest moments.
Advincula urged the public to pray for priests.
