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Priestly formation was always an important issue for Paul VI, therefore, being the head of both Milan and Universal Church, he annually addressed his paternal words to the priests during the Lenten time. His teaching revolves around such topics as: priestly identity, sanctification, service and unity. Priestly identity stems from a living relationship between a priest, the appointed one, and Christ who appoints him and it is pursued in the concrete world’s realities which impose on Christians, especially priests, difficult choices and tasks. Sanctification consists in proclamation of God’s Word and celebration of sacraments, in which God himself acts. However, the first recipient of the sacred rites must be the priest himself. What is more, the priest’s service to man, the Church and the world, must be humble and have its source in love, in imitation of Christ in Cenacle, it should, moreover, be realized in the spirit of the Gospel and be directed at seeking the greater glory of God, never that of one’s own. Priestly unity provides essential assistance in improving the sphere of identity, sanctification and service. Deriving from the Last Supper and from Christ’s prayer, it guarantees fidelity to the chosen way of life, efficacy of pastoral ministry and stable development of the Church.

The following article is one of the voices in the debate about the universality of priestly celibacy. It attempts to track the development of the theological and personalist arguments for celibacy contained in the most significant documents of the Magisterium of the Church. A special emphasis has been put on contemporary texts, issued after the Second Vatican Council. This choice has been caused by two major reasons. First, post-conciliar documents introduce a new quality to the argument of the universality of celibacy. Second, they have a far bigger impact on the discipline of the Church than previous texts.

The article discusses Pope Paul VI’s encyclicals Eccelsiam suam and Humanae vitae and their relevance for the Church teaching on moral principles concerning procreation, marital love and human sexuality. Pope Paul VI expressed his opposition to the corruption of morality and his words resonate with striking prophetic relevance. The Pope called for conversion and opening to Christ again by showing to the confused generation the joy of Christianity and Christ as the true source of happiness. His pontificate teaches us fidelity to the Gospel and to traditional Church teaching by reminding man’s call to holiness.