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Oct. 29 —
Priesthood Sunday
PRAISED BE JESUS
CHRIST!
(Now and Forever)
Coordinated by the USA Council of Serra International, Oct. 29 has been
designated as a special day to honor the priesthood in the United
States. It is hoped that on that day, and many others as well, people
will reflect upon and affirm the central role of the priesthood in the
life of the Church.
In the wake of the clergy sex abuse scandal, concern has been raised
that the actions of a few have tainted the image of all priests.
Priesthood Sunday is meant to send a message that the crimes of a few do
not reflect the innocent majority and that the parish priest, as the
instrument of Christ’s ministry on earth, is loved and respected by
those in the parish communities he serves.
Priesthood Sunday is designed to be an event led by the laity. It is
hoped parishioners will develop their own special way of honoring their
parish priests both at Mass and other parish events, be they social
celebrations or school activities. It would be well, of course, if
parish priests would participate by talking about how they experienced
and answered their own calling, the need for priests (vocations) and
about the priests who have inspired them.
Priesthood Sunday also offers an opportunity for priests and their
parishioners to build a stronger working relationship for the future.
Together, in dialogue, they can take an honest look at the challenges of
the future and how they can collaborate to meet those challenges.
The USA Council of Serra International is an organization of lay men and
women whose mission is to foster and affirm vocations to the ministerial
priesthood and vowed religious life. More than 12,500 Serrans in more
than 300 “clubs” nationwide collaborate with their bishops, parishes and
vocation directors to fulfill this mission. At the present time, there
are three Serra units in our own Local Church: Carmel, Kokomo and
Lafayette.
Following the suggestions of Serra in urging priests to share how they
experienced and answered the call to priesthood, no doubt there are many
factors involved in that call and its recognition. First and foremost, I
attribute the fact that I am a priest to the supportive environment
provided by my family.
My father once was a seminarian. I often tell people the best decision
my father ever made, apart perhaps from choosing my mother as his bride,
was to leave the seminary. Nonetheless, all the prayers that were
offered for my father prior to his entry into the seminary and during
his seminary years were not ignored by the loving God. They came to rest
on me. Not only that, I knew from my youngest years that my family was
favorably disposed to the idea of a priest in our family. A surprising
number of students for the priesthood today report opposition on the
part of their families. Priesthood should be viewed as a blessing for a
family. Moreover, a priest son is much closer to his parents than his
siblings. They have their own homes and families. While a priest does
not provide grandchildren, his heart is not divided either. Dad and Mom
are “home.”
A son of St. Mary Parish in Anderson, I was privileged to attend our
parish school which at that time offered grades one through 12. There
was daily Mass. It wasn’t optional for grade-school children, but was
for high schoolers. I loved to serve Mass, even though my mastery of
Latin left much to be desired back in the days when servers were
expected to know select Latin phrases and prayers. All through my high
school years, I was faithful to school day Masses. That opportunity,
plus the fact the sisters who taught me were always promoting religious
life and priesthood, were definitely factors in my recognition of the
fact that God was calling me to be a priest.
One September morning before religion class (I was a junior in high
school), I found myself standing in front of our parish priest asking
him about going to Saint Joseph College. Imagine! He was a Missionary of
the Precious Blood, Father Cornelius Fenton. But he must have had his
eye on me because he understood immediately that I was talking about
priesthood. I didn’t know the difference between a diocesan priest and a
religious order priest. All I knew was that my father had once studied
for the priesthood and the boarding school at what today is Saint
Joseph’s College was part of that picture. Father Fenton was busy
(priests always seem to be), so he couldn’t talk at the time, but asked
me to meet him after school that day. I did. He gave me a program to
follow and suggested that, if I was still interested, we talk about
priesthood again before the end of that academic year.
Well, I did what he suggested and I went back that spring. The sense of
“call” had strengthened, but I was not at all thinking of going to the
seminary until after I graduated from high school the following year.
Father Fenton kindly told me that if I felt God was calling me to the
priesthood, I should go to the seminary without delay. I did. I entered
seminary formation in the fall of 1950 as a senior in high school. In
all, a total of nine years were spent in formation, starting with a
final year of high school, four years of college and four years of
graduate school.
As I look back, I can see the hand of the Lord in so many events that
kept me on the road toward priesthood. Doubts were not infrequent. But,
the years passed quickly and in 1959 I was ordained with a class of 29.
That year, three men were ordained for the Diocese of Lafayette.
As I age, I have come to the firm conviction that the sacrifices
demanded by the priesthood are neither greater nor less than marriage
and parenthood. True, some days seem unending. There are times when
nights are filled with anxiety. But, regardless of who we are or what
our vocation, we cannot escape disappointments. Every life has its
failures, its loneliness. Pain is part of life, as is joy. Fulfillment
is what counts, and for me, priesthood has been a life of profound
fulfillment. I thank God each day that he called me to the priesthood
and that, with the help of family, the good sisters and others, I had
the good sense to say “yes” to priesthood. I can’t imagine myself as
anything other than a priest. It is a blessed life.
Affirmation is important for everyone. Priests are no exception. Priests
themselves have provided much of the support and affirmation I have
received over the years. Father Francis Meehan, my first pastor, and
Msgr. Fred Potthoff, who “took me to the seminary” and later endured me
as one of his associate priests, stand tall on that list. Laity, too,
have provided affirmation for which I shall always be grateful. Many
will never realize how important their support has been and continues to
be.
Priests can be targets of sharp criticism. It wears one down, sometimes
leads to depression, and tends to erode a man’s confidence in his
effectiveness. There have been days when I have felt I simply could not
carry another burden, another phone call, another complaint. All priests
have such days. The tank goes empty. Yet, people come with their
problems, hoping a priest can fill their own empty tank. That, however,
is more than compensated by the affirmation received. The point is, just
like everyone else on this planet, your parish priest needs affirmation
to counter-balance those who heap criticism upon him or reject his best
efforts to minister and who are unforgiving of his miscues. It is as
important to us priests as the spontaneous hug of a challenging child to
parents or the loving smile of a spouse after a quarrel.
Priesthood Sunday is a great idea. Urged by a great organization, Serra
International, I hope it will be taken to heart. |
