Catechesis Notes for the Week — Pray for Your Pastors — This week we begin eleven weeks of meditation upon the biblical texts in the Table of Duties concerning Christian vocation. The first set of texts concerns those who are called to preach the Word of God: To Bishops, Pastors, and Preachers. There are not three different offices, but one office. Each word describes an aspect of their work. A bishop is an overseer. He is to supervise the doctrine and life of the congregation, along with the administration of the Sacraments so that everything is taught and done according to God’s Word. Pastor means shepherd. The Pastor “shepherds” the flock by calling to repentance, admonishing the erring, and bestowing forgiveness for Jesus’ sake to the penitent. The word “preacher” gets at the heart of the minister’s work: proclamation of the Word of God. “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”  This section of the Table of Duties not only teaches us concerning the qualifications of our ministers, but it also encourages us all to “pray for our pastors” that they might remain faithful in the work God has called them to do.CP250309