The Unchanging Heart of the Priesthood

Author: Father Thomas Acklin, O.S.B.

Softcover, 228 pp

In The Unchanging Heart of the Priesthood: A Faith Perspective on the Reality and Mystery of Priesthood in the Church, Father Thomas Acklin presents an apologetic for that which is immutable — that which cannot change since it is found in the unchanging heart of Christ. Father Acklin refutes modern misconceptions and false understandings of the priesthood, while uncovering the beauty, strength, and hope that is found in God’s plan. This book will encourage the heart of every priest and help the laity to understand and appreciate the reality and mystery of the priesthood in the Church.

Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life praises this effort by Fr. Acklin, saying: "In response to recent and ongoing attacks on the institution of the priesthood, Fr. Thomas Acklin, OSB provides meaningful evidence of the true dignity of the Catholic priesthood in The Unchanging Heart of the Priesthood. . . . This book addresses many of the misunderstandings concerning the priesthood, and highlights a proper understanding of celibacy. I am grateful to Fr. Acklin for this gift he has provided to the Church."

Father Thomas Acklin, a Benedictine monk, first professed vows in 1976 at Saint Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. He was ordained a priest in 1980 and studied theology and psychology of religion at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, where he earned the STD (Doctor of Sacred Theology). He undertook psychoanalytic training at the Belgian School of Psychoanalysis and graduated from the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute. Father Acklin then served as master of junior-professed monks for four years and as president-rector of Saint Vincent Seminary for twelve years. He is a member of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars, the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Society and Foundation, the American Psychoanalytic Association, and the International Psychoanalytic Association. He is certified in the psychoanalysis of adults by the International Board of Accreditation and Certification in psychoanalysis and the National Association for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis. Currently, Father Acklin is professor of theology and psychology at Saint Vincent College and Saint Vincent Seminary, where he has taught since 1982, and is a faculty member of the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute and Foundation.