Pope Leo XIV Warns Seminarians "Nothing would be more dangerous than becoming accustomed to the things of God without living from God" FULL TEXT
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Pope Leo XIV met on Saturday, Feb. 28, with Spanish seminarians attending the seminaries of Alcalá de Henares, Toledo, Cartagena, and the Interdiocesan Seminary of Catalonia. In his address, the Pope invited them to read his letter to the Archdiocesan Major Seminary of Trujillo in Peru, saying it covers the essential aspects of priestly formation. Full Text of Pope Leo XIV to the Communities of four SPANISH SEMINARIES: ALCALÁ DE HENARES, TOLEDO, INTERDIOCESAN OF CATALUÑA, AND CARTAGENA
in the Vatican Clementine Hall on Saturday, 28 February 2026
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Dear brothers in the episcopate, priests and seminarians, Your Eminence, priests, seminarians and family members,
The seminary is always a sign of hope for the Church; hence, meeting with you — both those who are going through this stage and those who are responsible for accompanying you — is a source of true joy for me.
I could speak about many important aspects of your formation, which I have already had the chance to write about in the letter I sent to the Seminary of Saint Charles and Saint Marcellus in Trujillo, Peru — an institution I belonged to for several years — and which I would encourage you to read when you have the opportunity. But today I would like to focus on something that silently underpins everything else and which, precisely for that reason, runs the risk of being taken for granted without being cultivated: having a supernatural view of reality.
There is a quote from the author Chesterton that can serve as a key to understanding everything I would like to share with you: “Take away the supernatural, and what remains is the unnatural” (cf. Heretics, VI). Man is not made to live closed in on himself, but in a living relationship with God. When that relationship is obscured or weakened, life begins to fall into disorder from within. The unnatural is not only the scandalous; it is enough to live without God in daily life, leaving him out of the criteria and decisions with which we face existence.
And if this is true for every Christian, it is particularly serious on the path of formation towards the priesthood. What could be more unnatural than a seminarian or priest who speaks of God with familiarity but lives inwardly as if God’s presence existed only in words and not in the depth of life? Nothing would be more dangerous than becoming accustomed to the things of God without living from God. That is why, ultimately, everything begins—and always returns—to a living and concrete relationship with the One who has chosen us without any merit on our part.
Having a supernatural view does not mean fleeing from reality, but learning to recognize God's action in the concrete reality of each day; a vision that cannot be improvised or delegated, but must be learned and exercised in the ordinary course of life. Precisely for this reason, if supernatural view is so decisive for Christian life, it is even more so for those who will act in persona Christi, and from the formative stage onwards it deserves to be nurtured with special attention, because it is the principle that gives unity to everything else.
This believing outlook on reality needs to be translated every day into concrete choices in life; otherwise, even intrinsically good practises – such as study, prayer, community life – can become empty and distorted, becoming mere fulfilment. A simple and proven way to safeguard this view is to practise the presence of God, which keeps the heart awake and life constantly focused on Him.
Sacred Scripture expresses this truth with a simple image in the first psalm, when it describes the righteous as “a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (v. 3). It is not fruitful because of an absence of difficulties, but because of the place where it has taken root. Wind, winter, drought, and pruning are all part of its growth, but neither storm nor drought can destroy it when its roots are deep and close to the source. Scripture itself, however, recognizes the paradox of the fig tree that does not bear fruit despite the care it receives (cf. Lk 13:6-9).
It is said that trees “die standing”: they remain upright, they retain their appearance, but inside they are already dry. Something similar can happen in the life of a seminary or of a seminarian — and later in the life of a priest – when fruitfulness is mistaken for the intensity of activities or with merely external care for appearances. Spiritual life does not bear fruit because of what is visible, but because of what is deeply rooted in God. When that root is neglected, everything ends up drying up inside, until, silently, it ends up “dying standing upright”.
Deep down, the supernatural gaze springs from the simplest and most decisive aspect of vocation: being with the Master. Jesus called those he wanted “to be with him” (Mk 3:14). That is the foundation of all priestly formation: staying with Him and allowing oneself to be formed from within; seeing God at work and recognizing how He works in one’s own life and in that of His people. Therefore, although human means, psychology and formative tools are valuable and necessary, they cannot replace this relationship. The true agent of this journey is the Holy Spirit, who shapes the heart, teaches us to respond to grace and prepares us for a fruitful life in the service of the Church. Everything begins now, in the ordinary routine of each day, where each one decides whether to remain with the Lord or to try to sustain oneself by one’s own strength alone.
Dear sons, I thank you, on behalf of the Church, for the generosity of having decided to follow the Lord. Do so always with the certainty that you do not walk alone: Christ goes before you, Mary Most Holy accompanies you, and the entire Church supports you with her prayers. Finally, I would like to give special thanks to all the families present here.
Confident in this certainty, move forward with peace and fidelity. May the Lord bless you. Thank you very much.
__________________________
Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office, 28 February 2026
in the Vatican Clementine Hall on Saturday, 28 February 2026
_________________________________
Dear brothers in the episcopate, priests and seminarians, Your Eminence, priests, seminarians and family members,
The seminary is always a sign of hope for the Church; hence, meeting with you — both those who are going through this stage and those who are responsible for accompanying you — is a source of true joy for me.
I could speak about many important aspects of your formation, which I have already had the chance to write about in the letter I sent to the Seminary of Saint Charles and Saint Marcellus in Trujillo, Peru — an institution I belonged to for several years — and which I would encourage you to read when you have the opportunity. But today I would like to focus on something that silently underpins everything else and which, precisely for that reason, runs the risk of being taken for granted without being cultivated: having a supernatural view of reality.
There is a quote from the author Chesterton that can serve as a key to understanding everything I would like to share with you: “Take away the supernatural, and what remains is the unnatural” (cf. Heretics, VI). Man is not made to live closed in on himself, but in a living relationship with God. When that relationship is obscured or weakened, life begins to fall into disorder from within. The unnatural is not only the scandalous; it is enough to live without God in daily life, leaving him out of the criteria and decisions with which we face existence.
And if this is true for every Christian, it is particularly serious on the path of formation towards the priesthood. What could be more unnatural than a seminarian or priest who speaks of God with familiarity but lives inwardly as if God’s presence existed only in words and not in the depth of life? Nothing would be more dangerous than becoming accustomed to the things of God without living from God. That is why, ultimately, everything begins—and always returns—to a living and concrete relationship with the One who has chosen us without any merit on our part.
Having a supernatural view does not mean fleeing from reality, but learning to recognize God's action in the concrete reality of each day; a vision that cannot be improvised or delegated, but must be learned and exercised in the ordinary course of life. Precisely for this reason, if supernatural view is so decisive for Christian life, it is even more so for those who will act in persona Christi, and from the formative stage onwards it deserves to be nurtured with special attention, because it is the principle that gives unity to everything else.
This believing outlook on reality needs to be translated every day into concrete choices in life; otherwise, even intrinsically good practises – such as study, prayer, community life – can become empty and distorted, becoming mere fulfilment. A simple and proven way to safeguard this view is to practise the presence of God, which keeps the heart awake and life constantly focused on Him.
Sacred Scripture expresses this truth with a simple image in the first psalm, when it describes the righteous as “a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (v. 3). It is not fruitful because of an absence of difficulties, but because of the place where it has taken root. Wind, winter, drought, and pruning are all part of its growth, but neither storm nor drought can destroy it when its roots are deep and close to the source. Scripture itself, however, recognizes the paradox of the fig tree that does not bear fruit despite the care it receives (cf. Lk 13:6-9).
It is said that trees “die standing”: they remain upright, they retain their appearance, but inside they are already dry. Something similar can happen in the life of a seminary or of a seminarian — and later in the life of a priest – when fruitfulness is mistaken for the intensity of activities or with merely external care for appearances. Spiritual life does not bear fruit because of what is visible, but because of what is deeply rooted in God. When that root is neglected, everything ends up drying up inside, until, silently, it ends up “dying standing upright”.
Deep down, the supernatural gaze springs from the simplest and most decisive aspect of vocation: being with the Master. Jesus called those he wanted “to be with him” (Mk 3:14). That is the foundation of all priestly formation: staying with Him and allowing oneself to be formed from within; seeing God at work and recognizing how He works in one’s own life and in that of His people. Therefore, although human means, psychology and formative tools are valuable and necessary, they cannot replace this relationship. The true agent of this journey is the Holy Spirit, who shapes the heart, teaches us to respond to grace and prepares us for a fruitful life in the service of the Church. Everything begins now, in the ordinary routine of each day, where each one decides whether to remain with the Lord or to try to sustain oneself by one’s own strength alone.
Dear sons, I thank you, on behalf of the Church, for the generosity of having decided to follow the Lord. Do so always with the certainty that you do not walk alone: Christ goes before you, Mary Most Holy accompanies you, and the entire Church supports you with her prayers. Finally, I would like to give special thanks to all the families present here.
Confident in this certainty, move forward with peace and fidelity. May the Lord bless you. Thank you very much.
__________________________
Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office, 28 February 2026
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