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A cause for
joy in our Local Church
PRAISED BE JESUS
CHRIST!
(Now and Forever)
This Saturday, June 4, it will be my privilege to ordain two men to the
ministerial priesthood: Deacon Christopher Joseph Weldon III and Deacon
Jeffrey David Martin. This is truly a cause for joy for our Local
Church, as the Lord gives us two additional men to forgive sins, to
anoint the sick and to feed the people of God with the Body and Blood of
the Lord. Thanks be to God!
On the same occasion, Joshua Moran Janko and Eric Christopher Underwood
will be ordained transitory deacons. With great joy I welcome Deacon
Janko and Deacon Underwood to the clergy of our Local Church. They will
advance to the priesthood in June 2006.
This year’s ordinations will take place during Mass which will begin at
11 a.m. June 4 in the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception
in Lafayette.
If you have never participated in a ceremony of ordination, I cordially
invite you to consider the grace of this opportunity. It is a most
moving liturgy. All are welcome.
Father Martin will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 12:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 5, at his home parish of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Carmel.
Father Weldon will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 5 p.m. Sunday,
June 5, at his home parish of St. Lawrence in Lafayette.
The ordination ceremony for priests includes rituals rich in meaning and
history: prostration, the laying on of hands, the anointing of hands,
the conferral of the Book of the Gospels, the giving of the chalice and
paten and the sign of peace conferred by priests present. The actual
sacrament is conferred through the scripturally rooted laying on of
hands and a prayer of consecration. Concelebrating priests join the
ordaining bishop in placing hands on the heads of men being ordained
priests as a sign of their mutual sharing in the apostolic ministry.
In ordination, a man is set apart to function in persona Christi (in the
person of Christ). The candidate lies prostrate on the floor of the
cathedral as a sign of his unworthiness and of his dependence upon God
and the prayers of the community he is being ordained to serve.
After the imposition of hands and the prayer of consecration, the newly
ordained are vested in the liturgical garb of their office. While the
dalmatic and chasuble are the outermost garments, it is the stole that
is the symbol of ordination. The stole symbolizes both the authority and
the responsibility to serve as deacon or priest. It is the “yoke”
reflected in Matt. 11:30: “For my yoke is easy and my burden light.”
In the case of the men being called to priesthood, I will anoint the
palm of their hands. From Old Testament times, the use of oil signifies
a setting apart for a sacred purpose. The priests’ hands will be the
anointed vessels which will offer the bread and wine, which will anoint
the sick and bless people.
Both Father Weldon and Father Martin will be handed a chalice and a
paten as I say: “Accept from the holy people of God the gifts to be
offered to him. Know what you are doing, and imitate the mystery you
celebrate: Model your life on the mystery of the Lord’s cross.”
The Eucharist is at the heart of priesthood. Its meaning and
significance is inexhaustible. The chalice and paten symbolize the
importance of the Eucharist in the life of the priest.
For Father Weldon and Father Martin, the day of ordination has been the
focus of years of preparation. The formation itself centers on the whole
person, his humanity, his spirit, his intellect. He must also learn to
relate to others in pastoral training. He takes academic classes to be
sure, many of them. Four years of college and four years of graduate
school are demanding. Equally important, each day is full of spiritual
activities such as Mass and Prayer of the Hours. There is also regular
spiritual direction and retreat experiences. Not all the formation
occurs in the seminary. A seminarian goes out to schools and religious
education programs, hospitals and parishes. Each future priest
experiences living in community, and he participates in workshops and
other learning activities. Of course he must learn how to preside at
Mass, administer the sacraments, preach and provide pastoral counseling.
The seminary does not automatically mean ordination. It is a time of
discernment and formation. “Is God calling me to the priesthood?” is the
ever present question. A seminarian is not alone, but it is his life and
his will that must be surrendered. The vocation director keeps in close
contact with each seminarian, attesting, as they advance in formation,
whether each candidate’s commitment to ordination is solidly rooted. At
the same time, countless hours are spent recruiting additional
candidates and in consultation with seminary personnel.
The day of ordination does come. The man coming forth from the community
where his faith was nurtured is called to the altar of God.
This weekend is the first of two weekends during which Catholics of
Northcentral Indiana will be asked to contribute to a seminarian fund
appeal. As I explained in detail last week, a seminary fund and Fruitful
Harvest together have become insufficient to pay the ever-increasing
costs of providing recruitment and formation for diocesan seminarians.
There currently are 14 seminarians under the sponsorship of this
Diocesan Church. Even with two priesthood ordinations this weekend, 15
seminarians are expected next year. Having 15 men studying for the
priesthood is a blessing greater than any sacrifice required to support
them. I know I can count on the people of our Local Church to provide
that support.
This weekend was chosen to kick off the pulpit appeal because it is
ordination weekend. However, there will be a second opportunity the
weekend of June 11 and 12. For those who might wonder why priests, like
other professional people, are not responsible for their own education,
the answer is simple. Once ordained, the salary received is not
sufficient to cover the expenses incurred. The new ordinand’s payback is
a life of service to the people who have made his formation possible.
I am confident that like me the Catholics of our diocese never want
money to be a detriment to a man being accepted for the priesthood.
Historically when Hoosier Catholics have understood the need, remarkable
generosity has followed. Depending on that I thank you for what I am
confident will be a generous response to this pulpit appeal.
This weekend, four men will receive holy orders. The generosity of the
Catholics of Northcentral Indiana have made that possible. I know you
join me in welcoming Father Christopher J. Weldon, Father Jeffrey D.
Martin, Deacon Joshua M. Janko and Deacon Eric C. Underwood as priests
and deacons of our Local Church. |
