New Vatican guidelines regulate psychological testing in seminaries

Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski has affirmed the value of psychological testing for seminarians, while also insisting that such screening should not be compulsory. These were among the the new guidelines released on October 30th for the psychological evaluation of candidates for the priesthood."You must use them only si casus ferat—that is, in exceptional cases that present particular difficulties." In any case, it is clear that the use of psychological testing should not be a mandatory or ordinary practice for the admission or training of candidates for the priesthood."The Congregation for Catholic Education document stressed that, quote, priesthood and discernment lie outside the strict competence of psychology. When they are consulted, these psychologists must, quote, share the Christian vision about the human person, sexuality, as well as the vocation to the priesthood and to celibacy. Cardinal Grocholewski cited canon law in saying that formators will still sometimes need to resort to these evaluations."The document mentions three times Canon Law 1052: that the Bishop, in order to proceed with the ordination, must have moral certainty about the suitability of the candidate, proved with positive arguments, and that in the case of a doubt, the ordination should not proceed."Approved by Pope Benedict XVI, the guidelines took 13 years to prepare. Congregation for Catholic Education secretary Monsignor Jean-Louis Brugues told press that clergy sexual abuses scandals were not the primary reason the document was created, though they were, quote, certainly a determining factor.

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• psychology
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