The Priest;The Man of God

By St. Joseph Cafasso. Born in Piedmont in 1811, St. Joseph Cafasso spent his priesthood among the poor and the condemned of Turin, accompanying prisoners to the scaffold — work that earned him the name Priest of the Gallows. He was also the confessor and mentor of St. John Bosco. He died in 1860 and was canonised in 1947.

These conferences set out the identity and mission of the priest: that he is another Christ, and a sign of contradiction to the world. Cafasso reminds priests that the dignity of their calling stands above every other, and presses on them the need to labour for real habits of virtue if they are to do any good for the souls in their care.

A clear account of both the nobility and the duties of the priesthood, and a guide to living up to them.

280 pages, paperback. TAN Books. ISBN 978-0-89555-164-1.