“And, dear brothers, flee from clericalism, an anomalous way of understanding the Church’s authority, one common in many communities where sexual abuse and the abuse of power and conscience have occurred,” the Pope told the bishops Sept. 8.

He called some bishops “poor things” who think they have “all the talents, all the charisms” necessary to run the Church. But that is never true, the Pope said. What a good bishop does have, he said, is passion for communion with the Church and with each and every member of his flock.

On the other hand, clericalism “generates a division in the Church body that supports and helps perpetuate many of the evils that we are condemning today,” he said, quoting from his letter Aug. 20 to the Church about the clerical abuse scandal.

The Pope was meeting with 74 bishops from 34 countries in Africa, Asia, Oceania and Latin America. The prelates had been in Rome for a course for new bishops sponsored by the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

“Don’t think you are lords of the flock — you are not the masters of the flock, even if some people would like you to be or certain local customs promote that,” the Pope told them. “Be men who are poor in things and rich in relationships, never harsh or surly, but friendly, patient, simple and open.”

Prayer is not just one of a bishop’s daily tasks, but rather must be the foundation of everything a bishop does, he said. And the chief concern in a bishop’s prayer must be his people and their needs. They must come first.

“It is easy to wear a cross on your chest,” the Pope said, “but the Lord is asking you to carry a much heavier one on your shoulders and in your heart: He asks you to share His cross.”