Apostolul Pavel ca model de păstor în operele Despre Preoţie ale Părinţilor
Apostle Paul – a Model of the Shepherd in the Works of the Fathers on Priesthood

Summary/Abstract: This article has the intention to portray the personality of St. Apostle Paul as it appears in the works on priesthood written by the Fathers. Naturally, the model of the shepherd par excellence is Jesus Christ and all His followers in pastoral ministry need to imitate His love and care for the fl ock. Among all shepherds, however, the image of St. Paul is distinguished above all as a role model, as shown by the two great Church Fathers who are the authors of the fundamental works On Priest-hood — St. Gregory the Theologian and St. John Chrysostom. According to the teachings of the two Fathers, the primacy of the Apostle Paul is due to the fact that he appeared, especially in his pastoral epistles, as the perfect image of the shepherd, who worked and suffered much for spreading the Gospel throughout the world; because he loved Christ like no other man; also because he had great power with words and equal culture—powerful tools to pass on his teachings and to confront adver-saries. The author of this article is particularly interested in the importance the Holy Fathers give to the power of the word and the teaching in pastoral ministry. In the times of the two great bishops, when the choice of bishops and priests was made—as nowadays—without the appropriate attention, highlighting St. Paul as a shepherd model shows the greatness and responsibility of priesthood.

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