Year for Priests

A shepherd freeing a lamb from the jaws of a lion; above, the state name 'CITTÀ DEL VATICANO'; below, the inscription 'Anno Sacerdotale', the year 2010, the name of designer Guido Veroi, the initials of engraver Ettore Lorenzo Frapiccini, and the mint mark 'R'.

The priesthood is one of the oldest and theologically most charged institutions of Christianity. In the Catholic Church, the priest occupies a mediating role between God and the faithful that has deepened doctrinally and spiritually over centuries: he celebrates the Eucharist, administers the sacraments, and bears pastoral responsibility for his congregation. Toward the end of the 20th century, however, this office came under considerable pressure — from declining vocations in Western countries, societal secularization, and above all from the abuse scandals that shook trust in the clergy worldwide. In 1992, Pope John Paul II had presented one of the most important foundational texts on priestly formation and identity with the post-synodal exhortation Pastores Dabo Vobis; his successor Benedict XVI took up the theme in a special way.

Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed a worldwide Year for Priests from 19 June 2009 to 19 June 2010. The occasion was the 150th anniversary of the death of Saint Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney, better known as the Curé of Ars, who is regarded as the patron saint of all parish priests and venerated for his extraordinary pastoral dedication. The year was meant to give priests an opportunity for spiritual renewal while also sharpening public awareness of the significance of priestly ministry. The Vatican opened the year with an international gathering of priests from around the world in Rome. To mark the conclusion of this Anno Sacerdotale, as the initiative was officially called, the Vatican issued a 2-euro commemorative coin in 2010 recalling this event.