Pope Francis Quotes

To pastors and leaders who serve faithfully, who work to teach and shepherd those who are in your church or religious institution: thank you for all you do.

I have had the good fortune through my God that I should never abandon his people whom I have acquired in the extremities of the earth.

I am grateful for the men and women who pastor, who lead in churches across our country. Ultimately, their role of loving people and seeing hearts changed is probably the greatest calling.

Let us pray for all good and faithful priests who dedicate themselves to their people with generosity and unknown sacrifices.

Preachers are always pleasant company when they are off duty.

I used to be married to a pastor, and I had a church for two years. Pastors are just men, too, with a different job description than others. We're all called to bear one another's burdens. We're all called to pray for the sick. They do it on a larger scale, but they're just a man. A lot of women don't think that. Trust me. I know.

The Pope is only concerned with the spiritual welfare of his flock.

I'm a pastor of a local church. I'm not a televangelist. I've never had a televised program. I'm a pastor. A pastor's role is to care and comfort, encourage, teach, and everything that I do, even when I meet with world leaders, is from a pastor's heart.

The people of God want pastors, not clergy acting like bureaucrats or government officials.

When a church is spending more of its budget on media than shepherding, something is out of whack. We have gotten things twisted around.

Churches need to figure out how they will address the spiritual lives of their staffs and leadership teams.

I've been a minister and I know how cautious you have to be.

I see clearly that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle... The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you.

[Pope Francis] is a humble man. He lives the faith out in his own personal life. ... He's here to be a shepherd; he isn't here to be a scold. I think that's a good thing for the church and for the world, frankly.

We have so many priests who have gone half way … it’s sad that they did not manage to go the whole way; they have something of the employee in them, something of the bureaucrat in them and this is not good for the Church. Please be careful you don’t fall into this! You are becoming pastors in the image of Jesus, the good pastor. Your aim is to resemble him and act on behalf of him amidst his flock, letting his sheep graze.

We . . . exercise on earth the power of our Lord and seek with all our might to bring those sheep of His flock who are outside into the fold committed to our charge . . .

Never was there a more injurous mistake than to say it was thebusiness only of the clergy to care for souls.

This is precisely the reason for the dissatisfaction of some, who end up sad - sad priests - in some sense becoming collectors of antiques or novelties, instead of being shepherds living with 'the odor of the sheep.' This I ask you: Be shepherds, with the 'odor of the sheep,' make it real, as shepherds among your flock, fishers of men.

Whatever call a man may pretend to have, if he has not been called to holiness, he certainly has not been called to the ministry.

Live as with God; and, whatever be your calling, pray for the gift that will perfectly qualify you in it.

We should not pray for God to be on our side, but pray that we may be on God's side.

If you're looking for Jesus Then get on your knees

The vicar, whose name is Reverend Waite, leads us in prayers that all begin with 'O Lord' and end with our somehow not being worthy-sinners who have always been sinners and will forever more be sinners until we die. It isn't the most optimistic outlook I've ever heard but we're encouraged to keep trying anyway.

Preach in the name of God. The learned will smile; ask the learned what they have done for their country. The priests will excommunicate you . . .

The Saints were not superhuman. They were people who loved God in their hearts, and who shared this joy with others.