Pope, at audience, offers another saint as model of priesthood

Pope Benedict XVI returned to the theme of the priesthood in his regular weekly audience on June 30, speaking about St. Joseph Cafasso, a 19th-century of the Italian priest. The Pope cited him as the model of “a good shepherd, understanding and compassionate."

Pope Benedict has been devoting his Wednesday audiences to a long series of talks on to the influence of major figures in the development of Catholic thought. He interrupted that series as the Year for Priest came to a close, with several talks on the priesthood. Then he resumed the longer series, with three talks on St. Thomas Aquinas.

Now the Pope returned to the priesthood, recalling the life of St. Joseph Cafasso and especially his devotion to hearing the confessions and providing spiritual direction. He also served as a prison chaplain, and in 1950 Pope Pius XII declared him the patron of Italian priests serving in that capacity.

Before concluding his Wednesday audience, the Pope offered some special greetings to the archbishops who had received the pallium the previous day, and remained in Rome for the papal audience.

Joseph Cafasso

Date of birth	January 15, 1811
Place of birth	Piedmont, ITALY
Died	June 23, 1860 (aged 49)
Venerated in	Roman Catholic
Beatified	1925
Canonized	1947
Feast	June 22
Attributes	Minister
Patronage	prison chaplains, captives