Ald. Burnett compares his job to that of a priest...

I think it's a stretch but then if I ever desired a political career being an Alderman wouldn't be the position of choice. From a Sun-Times article:

Despite the $73,280-a-year expense allowance and an annual salary of $114,913 for those who accept annual cost-of-living adjustments, Burnett candidly complained to the students about the abuse he has to take and the bile he has to swallow while dealing with angry constituents.

“I went to a block party Saturday [with] every next person I talked to asking me for something, complaining about something. You have to have a thick skull to deal with that,” Burnett said, apparently intending to say skin—not skull.

“Sometimes, they even accuse you of not doing something when they don’t know what you did. Dealing with the public, you can’t just respond like you normally would [by saying], `Who you talking to? You lying.’ You can’t say all of that. You have to be like, `Okay, ma’am. We’ll look into it,’ or, `That’s not true. But, let me show you what I did do. Give me another opportunity to fix it for you.’”

Burnett, chairman of the City Council’s Special Events Committee, cautioned students who might be considering a run for elected office that they need “a lot of tolerance and a lot of patience” to succeed.

That last paragraph good advice to any aspiring leader. And surely that doesn't just go for the constituents but for any policy goals as well.

But to compare being a Chicago alderman to the priesthood though. This article made sure to note that 31 aldermen past and present have been sent to prison for corruption.