Priesthood Satisfaction and the Challenges Priests Face A Case Study of a Rural Diocese in the Philippines 英文参考文献.docVIP

Religions 2012, 3, 1103–1119; doi:10.3390/rel3041103 OPEN ACCESS religions ISSN 2077-1444 /journal/religions Article Priesthood Satisfaction and the Challenges Priests Face: A Case Study of a Rural Diocese in the Philippines Jayeel Serrano Cornelio 1,2 1 Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity, Hermann-F?ge-Weg 11/12 D37073 G?ttingen, Germany; E-Mail: cornelio@mmg.mpg.de 2 Ateneo de Manila University, Loyola Heights, Quezon City 1108, Philippines; E-Mail: jcornelio@ Received: 2 October 2012; in revised form: 16 November 2012 / Accepted: 19 November 2012 / Published: 22 November 2012 Abstract: This article draws from the experience of Catholic priests based in a rural diocese in the Philippines. It will be argued that their satisfaction as diocesan priests is best understood as a religious emotion in spite of the challenges they face on a daily basis. Their challenges revolve around economic limitation, problems with their bishop and leaders, and relational isolation brought about by social and geographic distance. In spite of these challenges, priest-respondents have asserted that they are satisfied because they are still able to fulfill their vocation as priests and have an impact on the lives of their parishioners. Priesthood satisfaction in this sense is not an individual state of the mind dependent on the environment and circumstances. Instead, priesthood satisfaction can be understood as a religious emotion that allows them to remain faithful to their vocation as Catholic priests. The nuances explored in this article inform and complement the various studies on priesthood in the West. Keywords: priesthood satisfaction; Diocesan priests; Catholic priests; Catholicism; Catholic Church; Philippines; religious emotion 1. Introduction A former Spanish colony, the Philippines is a predominantly Catholic society with 80% of the population p