Into the Breach!

This morning I had the great joy to celebrate mass with the students of St. Laurence O'Toole Catholic School because Fr. James Schumacher took ill and was not able to pray the mass. Last night as I was reading Commonweal I got a knock on my door and Fr. James, looking like death had all but taken hold of him (I'm given to embellishing), asked if I could take the morning mass with the students. The expression "into the breach" may seem misappropriated for such a seemingly simple thing as celebrating a daily mass with Catholic students, but as I was reflecting before mass it really is a remarkable thing to be able to stand "in persona Christi capitis" in the person of Christ as head of his people. Presiding at mass is primarily an awe inspiring service. I can still remember days when all I could dream about was being able to celebrate the Holy Mass during the long eight year exodus through the seminary. It seems so long ago, now that I have been ordained nearly 16 years. This morning I was particularly aware of the gift of being a priest! No one else could have gone in the sacristy this morning and done what I did! The only reason I was able to do so, was that Jesus asked me to become a "fisher of men" (of course both men and women, young and old) and through ordination configured me to Him, by the laying on of hands by a bishop in apostolic succession! It really is no trivial thing to celebrate mass anytime anywhere! Each time it is an encounter with the living God and participation in the salvific power of Jesus' suffering, death, and resurrection. What a joy it was to celebrate with the children and to see their faces in wrapped wonder as I described the first reading (Esther C: 12, 14-16, 23-25) and the gospel. To think that God loves each of us and everyone on Earth, that God would call us as individuals and members of His body the Church, that Jesus could teach us, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you..." (Mt. 7:7-12) This is the essence of a vocation! To experience Jesus and to make ourselves so available and vulnerable in trust, that we can dare to say, "Father, let it be done unto me as you have said." The proclamation of this good news is liberating for all of us. I had the privilege of celebrating "Mass on Campus" with our Campus Minister Brian Neely and several others, mostly college age students this afternoon. It's a joy for me to see how the "older kids", as I described them to the grade schoolers, were just as inspiried as the other students to know of God's solicitude. May we always have recourse to the Lord with utter confidence, even in the midst of great trials, let us always be ready to act on God's call. Let us then, "into the breach!"

Discernment dinner insights from Fr. James Schumacher

Fr. James Schumacher, pastor of St. Laurence O'toole parish in Laramie, was the guest speaker at the February Discernment dinner hosted by the Diocese of Cheyenne Vocation Office. As providence would have it, yesterday was the Feast of the Chair of Peter recognizing the office of the Pope as "first among equals". Fr. James' homily spoke about the meaning of "chair" that is, a recognized and respected office of teacher. In this case, St. Peter and his successors the bishops of Rome, the Popes, hold primacy, first place as teachers of the faith. Fr. James then shared his vocation story with several young men. Fr. James impressed the group as a man of profound love of the mass, the gospel, the priesthood and the Church. Fr. James described his vocation story as "boring" that is lacking any major struggles or points of profound conversion. He related his story as one that grew like a plant, organically, steadily and by grace, gently over time. He offered to all present and to all of us an account of God's call that is exciting in that God knows us so well and relates to us in ways that we can be aware of so long as we pray, stay close to the mass, and really pay attention to the movements both of our hearts and of the needs of the Church. Fr. James beautifully described his number one hobby, history, as an asset to his personal faith and to his priesthood. He wonderfully explained "two great miracles of history: the Jewish people and the Catholic Church." Time and again he said, due to human sinfullness, it appeared in history that the Church was to all appearances doomed. Quoting G.K. Chesterton, Fr. James asserted that ours is a God who knows His way out of the grave, thus by grace the Church and the Jewish people are still testifying to the living God! Fr. James also spoke to the way that the Gospel has unmistakably and indelibly influenced our culture. We are called in a profound way to be aware of the lessons of history in part that we don't repeat mistakes but more so that we can rejoice in the way that God relates to us in history, both on a global scale and profoundly in the way that God calls each of us to follow Him!

Ash Wednesday

Happy Ash Wednesday! Today we enter into the penitential season of Lent and allow ourselves to be particularly reflective. Last night I had the priviledge of offering Mass with the Catholic Students of St. Paul's Newman Center during their REVIVE peer ministry session. Each week, on Tuesday evenings, Catholic students attending the University of Wyoming, the Laramie campus of Laramie County Community College, or WYO Tech have the opportunity to gather together to celebrate mass, and then enter into reflection about the teachings of the Church, books of the Bible, and to help one another to grow in their faith. These meetings are all student led. I've been very impressed by the desire I see in these young men and women for holiness and authenic community. I am inspired by the degree to which they are willing to go to learn about our faith and to live their faith in Jesus Christ. In addition to REVIVE they participate in Night Prayer usually at 9 p.m. every night and also have mass on campus Thursdays at 12:20. This semester they've chosen to study the book of Romans. In their actions and their desire to discover God's will for them I experienced a very good springboard for the season of Lent.

The readings for Ash Wednesday call us to honesty before the Lord. We're invited to "repent", to reassess our relationship with God and our living of the faith as members of the Church. For areas of sinfulness and selfishness we discern and choose a pattern of penance: prayer, service, and fasting that help us to more freely live the grace that God gives us. Isaiah the prophet proclaimed, "Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance: That a man bow his head like a reed, and lie in sackloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own." This is the call to holiness which is our vocation. It is the bedrock from whence we can discover which of the Sacraments at the Service of Communion: marriage, Holy Orders, religious life, or the single life lived for the Kingdom of God, to which God is calling us.

May this be truly a season of grace for all of us and make us ready to live Easter joy with greater integrity, an integrity which others might see and want to enter into! Know of my prayers for you during this holy season.

Pictures from today's WCC Mass

Greetings from Lander Wyoming! I am in Lander to promote vocations at Holy Rosary Parish and the Wyoming Catholic College. Yesterday I had the priveledge of celebrating the daily mass with over 95 students, faculty, and staff of the Wyoming Catholic College. The Gospel reading (Mk 7:31-37) was an apt entry into the topic of vocation discernment. Jesus touched the man's ears and spat on his tongue. This conjures the image in the Sistine Chapel of the creation. It is as though the man were being recreated anew and now is able to hear the Word Incarnate, Jesus Christ, and is able to speak clearly about Jesus. In essence this is what discernment involves, allowing ourselves to hear God's word, Jesus beconing us to follow Him, and through that experience being able to share that experience with others. I'm taken with the devotion, excitement, and humanity of the students at Wyoming Catholic College. It certainly is true that anyone authentically exploring a relationship with Jesus and His Church and endeavoring to live it fully, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit and a vital community, will definitely have cause for joy and strength to "stand fast no matter what comes." I'll share some more pictures of the Lander valley and the Wind River Mountain range. As I drove the 227 mile journey yesterday morning I could not help but reflect on my personal journey to become the Vocation Director nearly seven years ago. At the time, I was the pastor here in Lander. My first pastorate! What a joy and a challenge that was. I was just hitting my stride when Bishop Ricken asked me to serve the diocese in this capacity. "The future of a diocese passes through the office of the Vocation Director." This was said to me by a dear friend and former Vocation Director. It is that conviction that enabled me to say "yes" to leaving the beauty of this part of the State of Wyoming and this portion of the People of God. I can honestly say that I have no regrets taking this ministry as I have had the opportunity to see God's healing and liberating finger touch the ears and toungues of some amazing seminarians and potential religious. May God continue to speak to each of us a call to holiness and offer an exciting invitation to follow Him and become a "fisher of men."

To boldly go...

I am a huge Star Trek fan! The motto "To Boldly Go..." is a wonderful description of my entry into the world of blogging. Another way to put it might be the biblical expression, "Put out into the deep, and prepare for a catch." My hope is that this blog be another way for Jesus to reach you and to call you by name to become a "fisher of men" (of course men and women, young and old.) As a Vocation Director I travel a lot so I hope to share with you, and to have our seminarians and Cameron Smith a Youth minister, the exciting journey of discovery of Jesus' call for you to follow Him!

Right now I'm in between vocation trips. Last weekend drove 410 miles to celebrate with over 200 teens at the Wyoming Youth Retreat 2000 then celebrated 6 masses at St. Mary's Cathedral in Cheyenne, preaching vocations, Friday 2/12/10 I'll be in Lander to celebrate mass with the students of the Wyoming Catholic College and the parishioners of Holy Rosary parish. I'll sent posts from the road.