It is the priests who are destined to carry out this mystery so sublime. Not only do they procure and communicate Christ’s grace to the members of His Mystical Body, but they are also the organs whereby this Mystical Body develops because they must ever give the Church new sons, bring them up, educate them, and guide them. Priests are “the stewards of the mysteries of God”55I Cor., IV, 1.; therefore they must serve Jesus Christ with perfect charity and consecrate all their strength to the salvation of their brethren. They are the apostles of light; therefore they must illuminate the world with the teachings of the Gospel and be so strong in the Christian faith as to be able to communicate it to others, and follow the example and doctrine of the Divine Master in order to lead everyone to Him. They are the apostles of grace and pardon: therefore they must consecrate themselves entirely to the salvation of men and draw them to the altar of God in order that they may nourish themselves with the bread of eternal life. They are the apostles of charity: therefore they must promote works of charity, all the more urgent today when the needs of the indigent have grown enormously.
The priest must also strive to see that the faithful have a correct understanding of the doctrine of the “Communion of Saints,” and that they feel and live it. For this purpose let him zealously recommend those institutions known as the Liturgical Apostolate and the Apostleship of Prayer. In like manner, he must promote all those forms of the apostolate which today, on account of the special needs of the Christian people, are so very important and urgent. Let him, therefore, labor most diligently for the diffusion of instruction in the Catechism, the development and diffusion of Catholic Action and Missionary Action, and, with the assistance of well prepared and trained laymen, let him increase those projects of the social apostolate which are demanded by our time.