“Do the same”: U.S. Catholic Bishop Urges Newly Ordained Priests in Uganda to Emulate Pope Leo XIV’s Humility

Jinja, 15 September, 2025 / 7:19 PM

Bishop Patrick Michael Neary of the Catholic Diocese of Saint Cloud in the U.S. has called upon the four newly ordained Priests of the Congregation of Holy Cross (CSC) in Uganda to anchor their Priestly Ministry in humility, prayer, and closeness to the people of God in the example of Pope Leo XIV.

In his Sunday, September 14 homily during the Priestly Ordination of the four members of the CSC Province of East Africa, Bishop Neary remarked, “Our new Pope is truly a humble servant.”

“His desire is to be close to the people he serves, to walk with them and to suffer with them. My hope and prayer is that you men will do the same,” he said during the event held at Holy Cross Senior Secondary School in Uganda’s Catholic Diocese of Jinja.

The American-born CSC member added, “Pope Leo spent 20 years of his life serving the poor in Peru, not in the cities, but in remote villages, where children die from treatable diseases and families walk miles to find clean water.”

The Catholic Church leader, who had previously served as a missionary in Uganda further noted that during his Priestly and Episcopal ministry in Peru, the Holy Father went beyond living among the poor in the remote villages of Peru to becoming one of them.

“He carried food for days on foot, slept on dirty floors, taught maths under broken rooftops, and carried the sick on donkeys,” he said, and noted that the life of the 267th Pontiff, who turned 70 on September 14, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, “has mirrored these words of Christ: Rather, let the greatest among you be as the youngest, and the leader as the servant.”

Reflecting on what he said are the most important qualities of a Catholic Priest, Bishop Neary said, “We tend to estimate a person's aptitude for a profession or leadership by listing that person's strengths.”

“We can think that because a man is prayerful, socially adept, and intellectually perceptive, possesses common sense, and works hard, that he will make a fine Priest, yet I think that transfer is a mistake,” said the 62-year-old American Bishop.

He continued, “The big question is whether this man is weak enough to be a Priest. Is he deficient enough so that he cannot ward off significant suffering from his life? Has he had to live with a certain amount of failure? Is there any history of confusion, self-doubt, or interior anguish?”

Bishop Neary used Hebrews 5:2 to remind the four Priests-elect that just like Christ, the Clergy are called to embrace weakness in order to deal gently with those they are called to serve.

“As stated in our Holy Cross Constitutions, your goal must be single-hearted intimacy with God,” he said, and went on to underscore the essence of prayer life and intimacy with God in the Priestly Ministry.

He said, “Most of our problems arise from a poor life of prayer and a lack of intimacy with the Lord. If you are close to the Lord, you'll be close to his people as well. He will bring your heart to beat in time with his own Sacred Heart.”

The Local Ordinary of the Saint Cloud Diocese since February 2023 recalled the late Pope Francis’ teaching that Priests must allow devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus shape their ministry.

“He links the Sacred Heart devotion to the Priestly Mission, urging Priests to orient their hearts like the good shepherd towards the lost and the distant,” he said, referring to the October 2024 Encyclical Letter of Pope Francis on the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ, Dilexit Nos.

He urged the Priests-elect, Kamushana Benjamin, Bwanandeke Matayo, Nyenza James, and Ogezi Novert to look to Blessed Basil Moreau, founder of the CSC, who considered “zeal” as the most essential virtue.

“He wrote, ‘Our zeal is always guided by charity. Everything is done with strength and gentleness, strength because we are courageous and unshakable in the midst of pain, difficulty, and trials, and with gentleness because we have the tenderness of our divine model,’” he said.

He continued, “So you men are called to make God known, loved, and served in every moment of your ministry, especially through your preaching, but most importantly, through your example. Help the people see that the kingdom of God is within them.”

“Your hands will be anointed today with Chrism Oil, the Priest's own participation in the Priesthood of Christ. In Christ's name, you will baptize, forgive sins, anoint the sick and dying, bless marriages, bury the dead, and preside at the Eucharist. I am already looking forward to attending your 25th anniversary of ordination, when I will be a youthful 87 years old. So please invite me back,” said Bishop Neary in his September 14 homily.