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Those priests who have grievously sinned, or have become dispirited and somewhat hopeless, are not abandoned by Christ. Some might be in danger of falling into Hell, in the depths of the Abyss; but Christ is reaching out to them. If they reach up to Him in repentance and trust, before they die, they can find salvation and even joy and peace of soul.

A little child can scream for attention, and dispute every instruction from his mother, so ending up alone and miserable - or he can co-operate, and experience her companionship, her wise words, and her consolations; and so it is in the Church. A Catholic can disbelieve parts of the Faith, grumble about discipline, speak with hostility about the Pope, and become a slave to his own opinions, or he can choose to co-operate with God and the Church, and in that trust and obedience find not slavery but freedom, and joy, and peace of soul, and hope.

Throughout history, people have called out to a god or 'gods' in the hope of being heard, but uncertain of it. If we belong to Christ by Baptism, and live in a state of grace, we can be certain that every prayer we offer is heard, and is answered in a way that is best for us. It's as if, when we pray, Jesus lowers a pail from Heaven, to draw up our prayers and petitions, as if up a well-lit shaft. Then He reads each prayer, in person, to God the Father. This is only one of the joys and privileges of being brothers and sisters of Christ, and adopted 'children of God'.

It is true that many priests deserve more rest; however, some priests are as if hiding away, uncommunicative, loathing ordinary life and interaction. Whether this is because of sin or hopelessness, there is no way to find change, and lasting joy, except through a renewal of their dedication to Christ, Who called them to the Priesthood. With sincere trust in Him, they can fulfil their basic duties and persevere in prayer.

There is no easy way out of trouble. If a priest is very sinful, or dispirited and hopeless, and wants to escape from his misery, the only sensible way is by turning to Christ, beginning again to trust in Him, to repent, to pray, and to receive His gifts, for the service of God and neighbour, just as the only sensible way for a man in prison to act is to act well, until the door opens to freedom rather that try to dig a tunnel with bare hands through a brick wall.

Just as it is too late for a miner to search for his lamp, his sandwiches and his handkerchief when his carriage has moved into the darkness of the mine, so it is too late for us to repent and make amends, if we do not do this before we die. By our carelessness or pride, we can go into that apparent darkness with little hope of finding our way to Heaven.

Just as, in a cold, snowy street, the people are encouraged to be cheerful because of the unseen work of electrical engineers, gas suppliers and other who provide background services, so in the 'winter' of the Church in recent times, people who love Christ and the Church have helped to keep others cheerful, and hopeful, through fervent and sustained evangelisation and declarations of faith.

It is dangerous to succumb to spiritual stagnation when a priest or other person goes on prolonged leave, or a lengthy sabbatical, but for far too long, with little relish for prayer, and becoming weighed down with discontent; then it is time for him to look carefully at his relationship to God. Just as a buoy, left under the surface of the sea, becomes encrusted with shellfish and festooned with seaweed, becoming almost unrecognisable, so there is a danger of losing interest in a vocation, or becoming graceless and hopeless, unless changes are made.

There is no easy way of being a Christian. The Lord asks each of us to sacrifice whatever impedes our particular vocation. Traditionally, He has asked priests to sacrifice hopes of marriage and parenthood. Religious make sacrifices to live the evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity and obedience. Married people too must be chaste, and faithful to each other, open to life, and making sacrifices to care for their families.

The gift of a child is meant to bring joy and gratitude to all members of a family. It pleases God to see people welcome a pregnancy and to look forward hopefully to the birth. It gives Him joy when people do not grumble about 'inconvenience', as many might call it, or about hard work, but see the life of a child as a gift from God.

Older children deserve to hear the truth: "If you throw away your life - your spiritual life - by immorality, drunkenness, pornography or violence, it will be impossible to regain holiness by your own power. You can then only hope to reach Heaven one day if you receive from God the grace to repent: a grace perhaps brought to you through the prayers and penances of people who care about you.

This is what happens when the Faith is not preached in its fullness. A Bishop who has not preached about sin and repentance, Heaven and Hell, but more about self-esteem and trivial matters, will find himself in a Church which appears to be in decline, with fewer priests, fewer devotions, a faithless laity, few signs of hope, and bored school-children. The great drama of salvation, and the Real Presence of Jesus, should be preached with fervour.

Someone trapped in sin is like a man trapped in a deep quarry; but the most pitiable is the one who, though trapped, does not want to come out. When a person at last wants to escape that prison of sin, helped by the intercessions of others, there is hope that he will open his heart to Divine grace: the power to rescue him.

In difficult times, of increased dissent and disobedience, Christ asks dispirited priests not to give up, or to leave a damaged Church, but to work hard to build it up, as hard as any effort with nails and hammer to mend a broken piece of furniture. He was once a carpenter, He says - and knows how to be hopeful, and to set out to repair what was broken.

Like a mountaineer in a dangerous place, someone who is trying to escape from a sinful way of life needs the intercessions of other people. He also needs trust in God's power, and the virtue of hope, by which he will persevere in the belief that God can change him, save him, make him holy and happy, and bring him in the end to Heaven.

In the life of the Spirit, interiorly, God can bring about astonishing changes in the lives of ourselves, or of people we know, as great as if some slum-dwellers were to become famous in Hollywood. But just as those people would never have become actors if they had refused to speak to the film director, we and our friends cannot hope to enjoy great spiritual progress if we refuse to speak to God, or to follow His directions.

During the Mass, the whole Church is united in praising God the Father, through, with and in Christ, in the Holy Spirit. All the Saints of Heaven are adoring the one true God Who has brought them to His heart, for all Eternity. We too can hope to enter Heaven if we receive the Sacrament of salvation, and remain faithful.

Everyone who hopes for union with God in Heaven should ask himself, is he the sort of person who will be happy there: pure-in-heart, peaceful, holy? People who are more anxious about fulfilling their earthly desires and ambitions - including sexual desires - than about honouring God by obeying His laws are not making the necessary preparation for the reception of the gift of salvation.

Those Catholics who never frequent the sacraments, or never pray, or live trapped in mortal sin, are in great spiritual danger, with no sure hope of being carried across the Abyss to Heaven when they die. It's as if a man is walking surrounded by clouds thrown up through his own sinful ways, clouds which hide from him the sight of the Abyss in front of him, and the Heaven which lies at the other side. Unless he repents, and sees where he is heading, he will fall into the pit.

Though we cannot see them, the other members of the Church, of Heaven and Purgatory, are united with us in praise of the Father, through Jesus Christ, at every Mass. We can take comfort from the truth, that we are already doing, on earth, in our prayer, what we hope to do in Eternity, when we are perfectly joyful in God's Presence.