Dear David,

The answer to your question will depend on the type of priest you are called to be. Every priest should be poor in spirit, detached from the possessions he uses, careful in the use he makes of TV and the internet, (careful not to waste time in detriment to his prayer and his ministry, or to let them harm him spiritually).

Now, in addition, some priests are members of religious orders, and as religious they take an explicit vow of poverty. The use they make of material things and the possessions they are allowed to have will depend on the spirit of the specific order they belong to, their community life and their communitys customs and rules; so, if you are thinking you may be called to a particular order you should ask them what their customs and rules are in this regard. In the order I belong to, we dont have anything beyond what we need for our formation and work, and when we are changed we leave it all behind for the next man; we dont have personal savings nor do we receive a personal allowance, and we are particularly careful to use our time well. These things can vary from order to order, according to what each one's Founder intended.

Other priests are diocesan priests who don't take a vow of poverty. Each parish generally has its budget and is equipped with what is needed, but it all belongs to the parish and not the individual priest. The priests, however, do have the ownership of their personal possessions and they use them as they see fit; they receive their salaries and save or use the money as each one wants. I have met and stayed with many diocesan priests over the course of the years, and I have always been struck by the very high number of them that support missions, their diocesan seminary and other works of charity out of their own very modest income.

I hope this information helps you.

God bless.