"We are only the earthenware jars that hold this treasure" (2Cor. 4:7).

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, my dear Brother Bishop, Patrick, my dear Brother Priests and Deacons,

We gather here today in the Parish Church of Mourne Abbey to celebrate the Holy Eucharist and to hand on the great treasure of the Church, namely the Priesthood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Right from the very moment of the institution of the Eucharist in the Upper Room during the Last Supper, Jesus wished to link the great gift of His Body and Blood wilt the gift of His Priesthood and this He did when He said to His Apostles: "Do this as a memorial of me" (Lk.22:19). There and then He gave them the power to do exactly as He had done, to change the Bread and Wine into His Body and Blood and to offer the consecrated species in Sacrifice to His Father for the salvation of the whole world. Down through the ages, in the Apostolic Tradition of the Catholic Church, these two inestimable gifts of Jesus Christ have been handed on, in unbroken succession, by the Apostles and their successors, the Bishops, thus ensuring that the Church would never lose the gift of the Eucharist because she would never lack the generosity of individual souls who would answer the call of Christ to be ordained to the ministerial Priesthood.
The Servant of God, Pope John Paul II, once said: 'Without the Priesthood there is no Eucharist, without the Eucharist there is no Church". So, it is incumbent on the Church, in the name of Christ; to call men to ordination to the Priesthood, in every age, as did Jesus when He chose His own disciples. It is a treasure to be cherished and Saint Paul reminds us: "We are only the earthenware jars that hold this treasure". (2Cor.4:7).

After His Resurrection from the Tomb, Jesus met again with His new Priests, the Apostles, greeting them with the words: 'Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you" (Jn. 20:21). He handed on the very same mission to them as He had received from His Father. Then Sacred Scripture continues the account of that first encounter of the Risen Lord with His disciples: "After saying this He breathed on them and said: Receive the Holy Spirit For those whose sins you forgive they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained"(Jn. 20:22-23). The mission Jesus received from His Father was to overcome evil and sin and to reconcile mankind with Him. Evil can only be overcome by the forgiveness of Jesus Christ, won for all by His death on the Cross, and He empowers His newly ordained Priests to forgive in His name. Only He can forgive sins and He does this through the ministry of His ordained Priests. The Sacrament of Penance is one of the precious treasures of the Church to be cherished and availed of by all the faithful, priest and people alike.

Before Jesus left this earth to return to His Father, He spelt out the full significance of the Mission He had given to His newly ordained Priests. He said: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; Baptise them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you"(Mt 28: 18-19). And then He gave them this assurance: "And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time" (Mt
28:20).

My dear friends, I have spelt out, in the words of Jesus, what the layman might call the 'job description' of an ordained Priest: from the Eucharist he comes and for the Eucharist he is ordained; he is sent on the mission of Jesus Christ to overcome sin and evil through the Sacrament of Penance and to make disciples of all nations through incorporating them into the Church through Baptism, teaching them everything Jesus has taught. And he is assured of the living presence of Jesus at all times by his side, for all that he is called to do is done 'in persona Christi '- in the person of Christ.

This local Church of Cloyne has just called one from your own Parish Community, Sean Corkery, to service in the Priesthood of Jesus Christ. He has been nourished and formed in faith within his family and parish. He is now called, from among you, to be ordained for you in the things that pertain to God. He has been preparing for this call for years and it is quite understandable that he might be somewhat apprehensive as he stands on the threshold of becoming a Priest of God forever according to the order of Meichizedek. The words of God to the Prophet Jeremiah will be a comfort to him: "Do not be afraid..for I am with you to protect you- it is the Lord who speaks"(Jer. 1:8). The Lord repeats this promise to Sean Corkery today. He needs your constant support in prayer and love for he is only too conscious that he will carry the treasure of the Priesthood in an 'earthenware jar'. On being ordained he will be inserted into the presbyterate of the Diocese of Cloyne, he will be warmly welcomed by his brother priests and he will always have the support and encouragement of his Bishop.

Sean, I welcome you, in the name of Christ, as you present yourself for ordination to Priesthood. You come today endowed with all the gifts of nature and grace generously offering yourself to Christ for service to His People in the ministerial Priesthood. You have no idea how the Lord Jesus is going to use you in His plan for the salvation of His People. You come with an open heart saying: 'Here I am, Lord, I come to do your Will'. You have discerned the Will of God in your regard over many years, within your family and Parish, with the sound advice of good spiritual directors and those who have been charged with your formation to Priesthood. At the beginning of the Ordination Rite today you were called by the Church to remind you that it is the Lord Jesus who calls you. He says to you today just what He said to His first priests: "You did not choose me, no, I chose you and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last"(Jn.15:16).
Seán, the fruit of your priestly ministry will last only in so far as you are seen and known to be Christ-centered in all you do. Intimate union with Christ will be guaranteed if you make your daily Eucharist celebration the centre of every day and the time you spend with Him in Eucharistic Adoration will be golden moments of maturing into Christ. Your prayer life will be the mainstay of your pastoral activity and your fidelity to your daily recitation of the Prayer of the Church (the Divine Office) will keep you in tune with the mind and heart of the Church. "Share with all the Word of God which you have received with joy. Meditate on the law of God, believe what you read, teach what you believe and put into practice what you teach" (Instruction from Pontifical). In the Ordination Rite it will be said to you in regard to the gifts you receive from the People of God for Eucharistic Consecration: "Know what you are doing, and imitate the mystery you celebrate: model your life on the mystery of the Lord's cross" (Ordination Rite). The priority prayer of Jesus for his new Priests, before He was crucified, is highlighted in the text of the Gospel proclaimed today. Know, Seán that Jesus continues to pray for you to His Father that you may be "consecrated in truth" (Jn. 17:19).

Finally, Seán, have a deep and constant devotion to the Mother of Jesus. She is the Mother of the Eternal priest and consequently the Mother of all priests. Take her into your heart and home with the same enthusiasm as did Saint John at the foot of the Cross. Lead the people entrusted to your pastoral care to a mature understanding of her role in the work of redemption and invoke upon them the protection of her maternal love. She will truly teach you how to love Her son more and more.

I wish to take this occasion to thank all those involved with the formation of this young man to priesthood. First of all his parents John and Mary and his brothers Dan and Brendan and his sister Trish. I congratulate your family on having a son and brother chosen by Christ for service in the Priesthood. I thank all those who contributed to Seán's education, from Primary School, through Secondary level and Third level to his formation in Seminary. A special word of thanks to the President and staff of St. Patrick's College, Maynooth and to the Rector and Staff of the Irish College in Rome. I wish to express my deep gratitude to Bishop Patrick O'Donoghue, Bishop of Lancaster, for affording Seán the opportunity to engage in pastoral work in his Diocese and for the sound direction and advice he gave him. Special mention, in this regard, must be made also of the V. Rev. Stephen Cross, the Parish Priest of St. Mary of Furness, who welcomed Seán into his parish and gave him such valuable assistance in his on-going discernment of his vocation to Priesthood. Together with him goes my gratitude to the faithful of his Parish for making Seán feel so much at home among them. The Parish Priest of this Parish of Mouneabbey, the V. Rev. Fr. Jackie Corkery played a very significant role in assisting and guiding Seán to this day. I know that Seán himself has often stated to me how indebted he is to Father Jackie. On behalf of the Diocese I express to you, Father Jackie, our deepest gratitude and I encourage you, and indeed all Priests, to continue to encourage young men under your pastoral care to be open to the call of Christ and generous in responding to it. In this 'Year of Vocation' we pray that many more young men may follow the example of Sean and take to heart the words of the Lord: "Do not be afraid for I am with you to protect you" (Jer. 1:8).

Sean, come now and, by the power of the Holy Spirit of God, be ordained a Priest of Jesus Christ forever.