Human, christian and priestly maturity

The author establishes that in western culture the concept of maturity has been obscured, disfigured and to a considerable extent lost. The reason for this is confusion between the concepts of "person" and "personality": a confusion between ontologic and moral order. With this background, the author examines the ethical-moral-spiritual maturity of a person, Christian, priest. The first step toward authentic maturity is to become acquainted with and acknowledge the degree of ones immaturity, to unmask oneself before the face of Him who is omniscient. Maturity conditions the correct relationships with others. The immature person is incapable of accepting the other the way he is. The immature person is incapable of living a life with others. Maturity is not achieved automatically but with serious and protracted work on oneself in all personal dimensions: in relations to ones fellows (social aspect), in relation to the world (cosmic aspect), in relation to God (transcendental aspect). The paths of human, Christian and priestly maturity are outlined on the pages of the Holy Scriptures, in the experience of the chosen people, especially in the prophets and sapiential ethos, as well as in the experience of the Church