In his post this week, Cardinal O'Malley included his homily for the ordination of three new Jesuit priests last week. I didn't read every word, but I really enjoyed the sections I did read. A few highlights...

Commenting on the prophecy from Isaiah that Jesus himself read when he returned to the synagogue in Nazareth:

Jesus Himself selected this same test for his first sermon, which unfortunately ended in disaster. I find great comfort in this because my first sermon ended in disasters. I was to preach for the first time in a prison in Pennsylvania. I was quite nervous and sought guidance in my books on homiletics in the monastery library. The book said, “Speak into the horizons of your audience.” I had an inspiration. I decided to talk on the theme of great escapes in the Bible — Daniel in the Lion’s Den, the 3 lads in the fiery furnace, St. Peter in chains, Paul escaping over the walls of Damascus in a lasher. I had their wrap attention. The disaster came that night when six prisoners escaped, no doubt wafted up by my ecclesiastical oratory. They almost threw Jesus over the cliff at Nazareth after His first sermon. I felt as though something untold was going to be done to me, and that my first sermon would be my last. It was not my last sermon nor my most memorable. A few years later, I was preaching at the St. Matthew’s Cathedral on the Argentine Independence Day during the so-called dirty war. A General in a spiffy white uniform seated next to the ambassador took exception to my preaching—(I was quoting a Papal Document on human rights)—shouted something unpleasant and the entire congregation stampeded out of the Cathedral. I was having visions of my next assignment in Papua New Guinea. Cardinal Baum was so concerned that he left instructions that when Father Sean was going to preach, be sure to take up the collection before the Gospel.

On the second reading:

In the second lesson Paul says, “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ. The accent has to be on Christ. It is not about us. We are His messengers. He is the message —His Gospel, His Church.

In the past, the Catholic Church was often persecuted for what we taught about God, Trinity, Virgin Birth, Hypostatic Union, today those who attack the Church do so for what we teach about the dignity of the human person, the Gospel of Life, the sacredness of Marriage, which is the sanctuary of life, the importance of real freedom based on truth, the origin and destiny of man. As Jesuit priests, you will have a unique opportunity to present a new apologetic of the new evangelization to a world that is increasingly individualistic, cynical and secularized.

Your witness of a holy life will be an important part of the task of inviting people to discover Christ in the Catholic Church.

Christ is the Bridegroom, never the widower. He does not exist separate from the Church. And like John the Baptist, like the Apostles, you are called to be friends of the Bridegroom —who will lead others to the wedding feast.

Some of my newly-ordained friends can use this for prayer:

Today in your ordination you become priests of the suffering servant. The more you penetrate the metaphor, the more you will understand your own vocation as priests and as victim.

Another Jesuit gem:

Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and thus enter into His glory?

That is a phrase that must speak to you as sons of St. Ignatius. Ad majorem Dei Gloriam. In his constitutions he composed for the society. Ignatius repeats this formula 376 times. And here Jesus speaks about the glory that can come only through the Cross. The Cross of discipleship is our path to attain the greater glory of God. You are called to give greater glory, to seek ever to do more. As Cardinal Avery Dulles put it speaking of the Jesuits’ obligation to strive for the greater glory of God: “What we have done and are presently doing is never enough.” And this from an eminent Jesuit scholar who had authored scores of books and who has an airport names after him.

Two thoughts from the last section:

Once I was invited to preach in an old Gothic Church with a magnificent pulpit that was like a crow’s nest it was so high. I mounted the pulpit without a nose bleed, but I was shaken up to read the inscription that was on the pulpit for the priest’s eyes only—Domine, volumus Jesum videre. The words of the Greeks to Philip—”Sir, we would see Jesus.” I was shaken up, because I realized it is true. The people want to see Jesus. They need to see Jesus in your pastoral love, in your ministry, your breaking open Christ’s Word, your prayerfulness, your purity, your obedience, your simplicity of life style, your love for the Church.

...

When I was Bishop in the West Indies, I read the P.R. newspapers every day. In those days, the Jesuits had a vocation ad in one of the Papers that fascinated me. It was truly stunning. The photograph was borrowed from the film, The Mission—actually, it was the same one used to advertise the movie. It depicted a Jesuit priest nailed to a cross, being thrown upside down over Guaza Falls, the huge waterfalls on the Paraguayan Border. Underneath them was a rather banal invitation to consider becoming a Jesuit and provided a telephone number to call. I remember seeing the ad and saying, “Why don’t the Capuchins think of things like that?”

The back cover of the latest America magazine sports your recent vocational material. The ad pictures a trim young Jesuit priest with a full head of hair and good teeth wearing a navy blue Reebock running jersey. And the caption is, “What’s in your heart?” The telephone exchange is (212), so it is a New York number. There is nothing wrong with the America approach, but I rather prefer the Puerto Rican ad myself—there is no doubt about what is in the heart of a crucified Jesuit going over the waterfall headfirst. It is a great metaphor for our days.

He ends with a prayer by Father Arrupe:

Falling in Love With God

Nothing is more practical than finding God,

that is, than falling in love

in a quite absolute, final way.

What you are in love with,

what seizes your imagination,

will affect everything.

It will decide what will get you

out of bed in the morning,

what you will do with your evenings,

how you will spend your weekends

what you read, who you know,

what breaks your heart,

and what amazes you

with joy and gratitude.

Fall in love, stay in love,

and it will decide everything.

- Pedro Arrupe, SJ

Labels: priesthood

Ahead of my own thoughts on the Lincoln ordinations this past weekend, here is a story from the Southern Nebraska Register on the two of them who are both good friends of mine. I played at the first Mass of Father Holdren and stayed with his family over the weekend.

Deacon Ben Holdren

Deacon Ben Holdren grew up in a faithfully Catholic family at St. Joseph Parish in Friend. He and his twin sister, Emily, are the oldest of Greg and Maureen Holdren’s six children.

“My parents were really good about exposing us to Catholic events.” Deacon Holdren said.

At age 14, he was with his family at a Catholic event in Indianapolis when he responded to an invitation to pray about a priestly vocation. His mother was happy and surprised, but no more surprised than Deacon Holdren himself.

Over the years, Mrs. Holdren occasionally asked her son about that calling. Deacon Holdren was struggling.

“I saw priests as isolated,” he said. “I always thought, I’d love to be married and have kids, so if I have that desire, why would God have called me to the priesthood?”

After high school, Deacon Holdren enrolled at the University of Nebraska-Kearney to study graphic design, finishing with an advertising degree from the Lincoln campus. Twice, he almost went to the seminary, but changed his mind. He even left the Church for a year, trying to resist his vocation.

When he finally made up his mind to attend seminary and made the announcement, his mother responded, “Well, are you going or not?”

Deacon Holdren laughed at the memory. “She’s really happy about it now.”

Once in the seminary, Deacon Holdren experienced a profound sense of peace that he was finally heading in the right direction.

“I just really loved it,” he said. “It totally changed who I was as a person… just finding that God is absolutely real and His love is absolutely real and He has directed that to me personally.”

He is looking forward to becoming “Father Holdren” and becoming part of whatever family of parishioners the bishop will assign him to.

“The priesthood is about having a family,” he emphasized. “It’s definitely in a different way, but not in any less of way. You get to bring them the sacraments…. You are there in the best times and worst times, and you get to bring them hope and joy.”

Deacon Holdren’s first Mass will be at St. John the Apostle Parish in Lincoln, with one of his many mentors, Father Brian Kane, serving as homilist.

Deacon Rafael Rodriguez

Born to Emma and Jose Luis Rodriguez of Mexico City, Deacon Rafael Rodriguez comes from an educated family. His sister is a marine biologist in Cancun; his brother is an electronics professor at the National Polytechnic University in Mexico City. Deacon Rodriguez holds a chemical engineering degree from the same university, as well as a master’s degree in chemistry from the UNL.

Before enrolling at UNL, Deacon Rodriguez had been to the U.S. as a tourist, but never Nebraska. “I couldn’t even find Lincoln on the map the first time I heard of it,” he said.

Little did he anticipate how moving to Lincoln would change his life. While studying for his doctorate in civil engineering, he began attending events at the Newman Center.

“I wanted to know more about my faith,” he explained.

While on retreat with a Newman Center group, Deacon Rodriguez was approached by Father Christopher Kubat, who asked if he might have a vocation to the priesthood.

Deacon Rodriguez answered, “Well, probably... I might.”

Assured of Father Kubat’s prayers, Deacon Rodriguez considered the possibility carefully. He soon enrolled at St. Gregory the Great Seminary to begin the formation process.

“It was a fantastic time, figuring out what the Lord wants to do with my life,” Deacon Rodriguez said.

At the seminary, he learned of the need for Hispanic ministry in the diocese. Deacon Rodriguez anticipates that his priesthood will focus on this population, bringing the sacraments to Hispanic Catholics in their own language and helping them with various social justice issues.

“Most of them, they come for economic needs,” Deacon Rodriguez explained. Having spent last summer at Christo Rey Parish in Lincoln, his fatherly love and concern for the diocese’s Hispanic population is already apparent. “They leave everything behind to come here.”

Deacon Rodriguez said these Hispanic parishioners have taught him something regarding the future of his own retired parents, now that he has exchanged what could have been a lucrative career for the priesthood.

“I learned from them to truly trust in the Lord that He will protect our families that we leave behind and take better care of them than we can ourselves,” he said.

Deacon Rodriguez will say his first Mass at Christo Rey with Father Kubat as the homilist.

Labels: priesthood, vocations

From yesterday's Zenit:

Thirty-eight men from 18 countries were ordained to the priesthood for the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei.

Bishop Javier Echevarria, prelate of Opus Dei, conferred the ordinations Saturday afternoon in Rome, reminding the ordinands in his homily that they will be instruments of the Holy Spirit "to illuminate souls and answer the questions that weigh upon the hearts of many people."

A reported 1,500 people were present for the ordinations that took place in the Basilica of St. Eugene.

The new priests come from Ireland, the Netherlands, the United States, Australia, Germany, Spain, Colombia, Italy, the Philippines, Mexico, Venezuela, Chile, France, Congo, Brazil, Argentina, Kenya and Guatemala.

During the Mass, Bishop Echevarria offered the new priests some advice from Opus Dei's founder, St. Josemaria Escriva: "We priests must only speak of God. We will not speak of politics, or social ideologies or questions extraneous to the priestly task. In this way, we will make the Holy Church and the Roman Pontiff loved."

Brian Maguire, an American who flew to Rome to attend the event, said: "Many Americans are understandably discouraged by the so-called vocations crisis here at home. They should go to Rome. There's no doubt that God is renewing the Church from its heart in Rome.

"Saturday's ordinations showed not only that many young men are responding to this call, but that they are doing so generously and enthusiastically when it's presented to them as a lifelong surrender of self for others."

Labels: Opus Dei, priesthood, vocations

Back to reality after a great weekend in Illinois.

Everything went off quite well in terms of mere travel intricacies. I had no trouble flying out of the Bradley Airport (although after I got on the shuttle from one of the long term parking lots, I thought for sure I had left my car unlocked... turns out I had locked it after all). The flight was on time and my first time renting a car was problem-free too. They gave me a Pontiac G6, which apparently has a lot of power. Big deal.

I arrived at the retreat center on Friday night and met up with the guys. What a beautiful place. It's a nice piece of land and the rooms are quite comfortable (anything with a private bath is comfortable!).

The ordination of seven men (four of which I went to school with) was Saturday morning. Bishop Doran was the ordaining prelate and the two deacons were friends of mine.

The music was loud (which is the way I like it). They did the Jubilation Mass (Chepponis) which is just okay. The Gloria is relatively triumphant, though as one Rockford sem was heard to say later at dinner, "When did the Gloria become a responsorial psalm?" Point taken. The other music was fine. They did a Taize Veni Creator which was nice. The postlude sounded like an improvisation which as long as it's loud, fine by me. The opening was "Lord, You Give the Great Commission" with half of the words missing in the program. Awkward. At the end of Mass the bishop's microphone wasn't working, and since I was sitting in the fourth to last row, I couldn't hear him. From secondhand sources, he commented on Mozart's Ave Verum Corpus which had just finished by saying that it was nice to hear some Catholic music. Someone in the combox can clarify lest I be accused of spreading rumors.

The homily was decent. He started by reading the introduction in the Rite itself, then went off. It largely centered around a return to the confessional, both for the priest as confessor and as penitent. Not a bad idea. I couldn't help but get the feeling that the sentiment was directed at the entire presbyterate and not just to the seven ordinands, but again, that may just be me projecting my cynicism. Other than that, he called the priesthood a "dicey" vocation. Not words I would have used. As one of the visiting sems put it later, "The vocation can hardly be dicey... it comes from Christ!" Obviously I understand the point the bishop was trying to make: to accept the call of Christ is difficult these days, more difficult than it may have been in other times in our history.

Even though I knew four of the new priests, I went for one in particular, so I attended half his first Mass, unfortunately cut short by my return flight. It was the novus ordo celebrated in Latin with the readings and intercessions in English. The Ordinary was Palestrina's Missa Papae Marcelli. Again, not a choice I would have made since it's so long compared to what we're used to. Following a wonderful homily by Father Miller of the Mount faculty, the new priest explained why he had chosen the details of the celebration: to remind all of us that Latin is the language of the Church and to connect us with our tradition. I buy that about 40% of the way. Even though Father disavowed the fact that it's not only because he likes it better that way, I think that's still some of the reason. All due respect to the good padre, of course, because he's a faithful reader!

As an aside, W.S. will be salivating to hear of Father's vestments, a description of which would be more appropriate in a private conversation.

Overall it was a wonderful trip and I'm looking forward to heading to Lincoln this coming weekend for their ordinations. Any of the Rockford guys or those who were there as guests are welcome to comment!

Labels: personal, priesthood, U.S. Church

From Catholic News Agency:

Nearly 500 men from Catholic dioceses across the country will be ordained for the priesthood this spring. This year’s cohort is representative of the Church in the United States, which is filled with well-educated professionals, newcomers to the nation and souls touched by war.

At least seven ordinands have a military background. Others immigrated to the United States, leaving situations of poverty and strife in their countries of origin. About one-third of the class is foreign-born, coming from countries as diverse as Poland, Vietnam and the Philippines.

About six percent of the Class of 2007 are converts to Catholicism. Douglas Freer, for example, who will be ordained for the Diocese of Trenton, New Jersey, was an Episcopal priest for 12 years.

The men being ordained have a broad range of educational backgrounds. Many are educators. One was a professional pilot for 28 years, another worked in finance and yet another in law enforcement. Other ordinands include former physicians, lawyers, psychologists, architects, and the vice-president of an ad agency.

Ages vary, too. Among the older candidates for ordination are a 60-year-old and a 53-year-old in the Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Some men were in religious orders as brothers or friars. They received dispensation from their orders to be ordained diocesan priests. Others are widowers.

The number of ordinations varies from diocese to diocese as well. Some dioceses, such as Stockton, California, are ordaining their largest group in years. Spokane Diocese has seen an increase in the diocesan priesthood over the last three years. From 2004 to 2007, the number of active priests in the diocese has increased by 20 percent. The boost comes as the diocese deals with bankruptcy brought on by the clergy sexual abuse scandal.

I'll be in Rockford, Illinois next weekend for ordinations and Lincoln, Nebraska the week after. June and July will be Fall River ordinations. Unfortunately, I'm not getting to as many as I had hoped. I'm missing Rockford (Diaconate), Columbus, and Burlington. Despite my blogging absence, I'll be giving info on all of them as I see them happening.

USCCB's annual survey on the Class of 2007

Praying for holy and faithful priests...

Labels: priesthood, U.S. Church, vocations

Wire report that I saw at Curt Jester on an article in Civita Cattolica regarding the numbers of married priests out there:

Advocates of abolishing the celibacy requirement for Catholic priests exaggerate the numbers of those who leave the Roman Catholic Church in order to marry, an influential Jesuit magazine said Thursday.

Groups such as the US-based Married Priests Now claim that between 80,000 and 100,000 men have done so.

But the magazine Civilta Cattolica said that while "no precise statistics" are available on the number of priests who have married after leaving their ministries, "on the basis of information from the dioceses" 69,063 priests left overall from 1964 to 2004.

Of those, more than 11,000 returned between 1970 and 2004, "which means that married priests cannot number more than 57,000 today" given that a certain number have no doubt died over the 40-year period, the magazine argued.

Also, each year some priests are allowed back into the fold after they are widowed or their children grow up, according to the magazine, which is tightly controlled by the Vatican.

Civilta Cattolica noted that rejection of the celibacy vow was not the only reason for leaving. Some priests suffer crises of faith, have conflicts with their superiors or disagree with Church teaching, for example, it said.

Severe depression can be another cause, it added.

In the past 40 years, 438 married priests have asked to return to the Church, of whom 220 have been accepted. Another 114 applications are still under consideration.

The Church can take back priests who have been widowed, who were not married in a church or whose marriages were annulled.

While the Catholic Church's Western rite requires a vow of celibacy, its Eastern rite counts several thousand married priests, Civilta Cattolica noted. In addition, hundreds of Anglican and Lutheran pastors who converted to Catholicism are married.

Labels: priesthood

Via the Curt Jester. This is a letter from Fr. Greg Shaffer (Archdiocese of Washington) whom many of you know:

As you may or may not know, we started a basketball team of Washington priests and seminarians two years ago called “DC ‘Hood” (short for DC priesthood). We have played 11 games against 8 different parish teams of coaches, teachers, and teens. Thanks be to God, it has been growing and growing, averaging about 200 fans a game. The games have been great nights of fun for families while promoting vocations.

The Catholic Standard wrote an article about DC ‘Hood a few months ago. The sales manager of the Washington Wizards read the article and generously called the Archdiocese to see if DC ‘Hood ever wanted to play at the Verizon Center after a Wizards game. Umm, yeah! Thanks, Wizards!!

So DC ‘Hood will be playing at the Verizon Center (against CYO coaches after the Wizards 3:30 pm game versus the Chicago Bulls) on Sun., April 15. After our game, there will a game b/w CYO 11th and 12th grade co-ed all-stars; the winners of the two (16 minute) games will play in a “championship” game.

This event is intended to a) promote vocations, and b) raise funds for the CYO / OYM (Catholic Youth Organization/Office of Youth Ministry). We are helping CYO to sell tickets to the Wizards game; they receive a generous portion of the proceeds.

I personally will be purchasing a large amount of tickets the week of Feb. 11. Can you help me? The tickets are $ 25 (Upper Level B), $30 (Upper Level A), and $85 (Lower Level). Buying two $25 tickets, for example, would help greatly! Even if you’re not able or interested in going, can you make a donation to our cause? The more tickets we sell, the more we promote the priesthood and raise funds for our youth.

You can order tickets online at www.verizoncenter.com/cyo or, for donations only, mail a check to me directly at: Fr. Greg Shaffer, St. Andrew Apostle parish, 11600 Kemp Mill Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20902 (I will give your tickets to kids in the school or parish).

Labels: priesthood, random

So why do people criticize the Church for being too political? Well, perhaps it's because her main representatives can't shut up! First, full disclosure: everytime I see the name Fr. Frank Pavone, I cringe. Not because I'm not unequivocally pro-life, but because I think he's a little off. I think he's a media hound and that in the grand scheme of things, he's done very little for the movement.

Thanks to Amy, here's his next gaffe:

In a letter to his own supporters, Fr. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, said he intends to serve on the Advisory Committee of Brownback’s potential campaign for president.

Senator Brownback has not officially announced his candidacy, but has formed an exploratory committee.

The priest said he is making this endorsement in his personal capacity, and not in the name of any of the organizations he leads.

He said Brownback has his “unequivocal support.” He described the senator as “a hero for the unborn and one of the strongest and most consistent supporters of pro-life policies” since Brownback was elected to Congress in 1994.

Now, how can a priest ever say, "well, I'm not representing the Church"? Isn't that a contradiction? Isn't that a denial of his spousal relationship to his Bride? If it were the other way around... let's say a priest supports Hillary Clinton but only as an individual and not as a representative of the Church. Who would be the first to have his name in the paper with a quote that condemns his brother?

We have to stand firm in our faith, but how does endorsing a political candidate in 2007 America further our mission? To me, it detracts from it and here's another reason I don't like the guy.

Am I wrong?? Could I be the only one who feels like this is a bad idea?

Labels: life issues, politics, priesthood, U.S. Church

Fall River has lost another good one. I suppose we were blessed to have him as long as we did since his health has been so poor for the last few years. He was a man who could joke about all of his myriad heart attacks and then get to the altar and celebrate Mass like he was really doing something supernatural. Let's all be sure to pray for the repose his soul.

Rev. Ralph D. Tetrault, 68, of Fall River died Saturday January 13, 2007 at Catholic Memorial Home.

Born in New Bedford on October 16, 1938, he was the son of the late Norman G. and Mary Jesse (Langford) Tetrault. He was a graduate of Holy Name School in New Bedford and Fairhaven High School, Class of 1956. He began his studied for the Priesthood at St. Thomas Seminary, Bloomfield, Conn., receiving an Associates Degree in 1959 and a Bachelors Degree in 1961 from St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore.

Father Tetrault was ordained a priest on May 1, 1965 in St. Mary's Cathedral, Fall River, by the Most Reverend James J. Gerrard, Auxiliary Bishop of the Fall River Diocese. His assignments as a Parochial Vicar included Immaculate Conception Parish, Fall River (1965-1969), St. Patrick's Parish, Wareham (1969-1974, Sacred Heart Parish, Fall River, (1974-1977), and St. Thomas More Parish, Somerset (1977-1981).

He served as Pastor of St. Mary's Parish, North Attleboro from 1981-1994. He was the Pastor of St. Patrick's Parish, Wareham from 1994 until his retirement from active ministry in January 1998 due to failing health. In retirement he resided in Fall River at the Cardinal Medeiros Residence for Retired Priests, while celebrating Mass at the former Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Swansea, St. Dominic's Parish, Swansea, and St. Thomas More, Parish, Somerset.

Survivors include four brothers, Norman of Margate, FL, Wayne and Paul, both of New Bedford, and Gregory of Westport; four sisters, Susan Bryan-Royster of Gloucester; Nancy Rochon of Cumberland, RI, Pamela Silva of Dartmouth; and Valerie Fogarty of Worcester; and many nieces and nephews.

He was the brother of the late Maryann J. DeMelo.

Father Tetrault will be transferred to Holy Name of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, 121 Mount Pleasant St., New Bedford on Tuesday at 2 PM, where he will lie in state until a Wake Service at 7 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Wednesday at 11 AM, with Bishop George Coleman as principal celebrant. Burial will be in Sacred Heart Cemetery. Please do not send flowers. Remembrances may be made to the Cardinal Medeiros Residence, 375 Elsbree St., Fall River, MA 02720. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.

Labels: priesthood

Interesting comments from the new head of the Congregation for Clergy, especially considering the Vatican's recent affirmation of the discipline:

An influential Brazilian cardinal says the Roman Catholic Church should reconsider its ban on allowing priests to marry.

Cardinal Claudio Hummes, who was recently named to head the Vatican's office in charge of priests around the world, made the comment about two weeks after the Holy See reaffirmed the requirement of celibacy for priests.

"Celibacy is a discipline, not a dogma of the church," Hummes was quoted as saying by the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper. "Certainly, the majority of the apostles were married. In this modern age, the church must observe these things, it has to advance with history."

Labels: priesthood, Vatican