Sunday, March 28, 2010

Discernment dinner with the Little Sisters of the Poor











On Friday March 26th, the last Friday in Lent, 14 young women gathered with the Mother Superior and the Vocation Director of the Little Sisters of the Poor from Denver. This was a powerful encounter with wonderful women of faith who described their charism (the unique gift and character of their order) as one of joyfully finding Jesus in elderly poor of the world. Pope Benedict canonized the founder of the Little Sisters of the Poor St. Jeanne Jugan this past October 11, 2009. The Little Sisters of the Poor are an international order of women dedicated to community living, radical dependence on God's providence, prayer, and service to those society so easily forgets and ignores, the elderly. The Little Sisters of the Poor (lsp) [even using the lower case for the acronym of their order suggests their poverty] provide homes with various levels of assistance to the elderly who would otherwise be on the streets or completely alone. Sr. Carolyn the Vocation Director of the order described her discernment story as one of total surprise. She had envisioned herself as a wife and mother with lots of kids but during a one chance visit to a community of lsp she was immediately attracted to the joy and utter selflessness of the sisters in their love for one another and for the elderly that are part of their family. She offered the advice to those in attendance and to all of us to always remain open to the wonderful plan that God has for us! What makes these sisters particularly inspiring and challenging is that they literally beg for all that they have: from the daily meals they provide to the elderly, to all the funds necessary to run their institutions and for their own needs. They live in radical simplicity and confidence. They told some amazing stories of the regular intercession of St. Joseph to whom they turn for all the material needs and spiritual support of their apostolate.

As we enter into Holy Week we celebrate another Person who recognized, and continues to, minister to the poor and the sinner, Jesus the Christ!

Friday, March 26, 2010

This is the first day of the rest of my priestly life...





















Yesterday the priests of the Diocese of Cheyenne gathered with our new Bishop Paul Etienne for our day of reflection and Chrism mass. Bishop Etienne led the priests and deacons in two sessions followed by prayer. In each session he spoke of the call to deeper intimacy with God and to integrate at a deeper level the insights of St. Paul's letter to the Ephesians 1:1-5. This was a privileged time for the priests and our new bishop. I have always held this day as particularly close to my heart because priests renew their priestly promises and are encouraged as a group with their bishop to grow in fraternal love and support. I truly stood in awe and wonder as I sat and visited with my brother priests during the day. After nearly 16 years as a priest I find myself in the "middle aged" group of priests. Many of my heroes are nearing retirement. Joyfully there is a good sized group of younger priests. What is impressive and humbling is that we are all very different and none of us is worthy of the tremendous gift and responsibility entrusted to us. What is truly awe inspiring is that Jesus knows this and in love called us to this ministry anyway! The Chrism mass is usually celebrated on Holy Thursday to illustrate the integral relationship between the institution of the Eucharist and the birth of the Priesthood in the Church. We celebrate it the Thursday prior to Holy Week because of the great distances priests have to travel in our diocese.
I've been pondering the promises that I renewed yesterday, "Bishop: My brothers today we celebrate the memory of the first Eucharist, at which our Lord Jesus Christ shared with his apostles and with us his call to the priestly service of his Church. Now in the presence of your bishop and God's holy people are you ready to renew your own dedication to Christ as priests of his new covenant? Priests: I am. Bishop: At your ordination you accepted the responsibilities of the priesthood out of love for the Lord Jesus and his Church. Are you resolved to unite yourself more closely to Christ and to try to become more like him by joyfully sacrificing your own pleasure and ambition to bring his peace and love to your brothers and sisters? Priests: I am. Bishop: Are you resolved to be faithful ministers of the mysteries of God, to celebrate the Eucharist and the other liturgical services with sincere devotion? Are you resolved to imitate Jesus Christ, the head and shepherd of the Church, by teaching the Christian faith without thinking of your own profit, solely for the well-being of the people you were sent to serve? Priests: I am. All the bold and italics are mine. What powerful promises made out of an increasingly total love in my heart and in the heart of every priest and our bishop! To give my life away in service to the one I love is truly an honor, a gift, and at times a profound challenge. It has been almost 16 years since I first made those promises. They are still as evocative now as they were then. I try to be aware of them every day as I go about my living of the awesome gift of the priesthood! This was brought home to me after the 150 mile drive back to Laramie. I had just sat down to dinner when my phone rang and I was asked to spend time with a man and his family as he was dying. I celebrated with them the Sacrament of the Sick and the Commendation of the Dying. It was an immediate reminder to me of the power and hope that I get to represent as an ordained priest! Not because of anything that I am or have done, but all for the glory of God and the holiness of each member of the Church and everyone on Earth!

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

"These are the voyages..."
















This weekend I had the privilege of promoting vocations with the parishes of St. Mary Magdalen in Evanston and St. Helen in Ft. Bridger. Fr. Jaime Bueno is their pastor. The readings offered a perfect launch point for vocation discernment. Jesus declares to Martha, "Your brother will rise." She asserts her faith in the resurrection on the last day and then Jesus reveals the fuller truth about himself, "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" "Do you believe this?" It is the discovery of Jesus as our life, as our security, that opens our hearts to offer ourselves to God in relationship and in service. This discovery calls for a conversion of heart on our parts. Jesus is the resurrection and the life! It was a powerful experience to celebrate with these communities of faith and to experience their openness to the way that Jesus calls us to follow Him in marriage, priesthood, religious life, the diaconate, or the single life. I got a particular joy celebrating mass in Ft. Bridger, a small mission parish served by Fr. Jaime. It has been my experience that mission parishes really own and celebrate parish life and priestly ministry. I had been a seminarian in these communities nearly 20 years ago and what a gift it is to return and see how much these parishes have grown. I learned that I need to work on my Spanish! Though I was able to offer the entirety of my vocation presentation to many in the youth group in Spanish and English. On Sunday morning I received a surprise gift! The Knights of Columbus from Evanston, primarily led by a High School student and his mother, did a bingo fundraiser for vocations. They presented me with a check for $1,335.51! What a support this will be! Being with Fr. Jaime Bueno was truly an encouragement. I was really sick during my time in Evanston. Must have had the stomach flu, so I felt awful. Fr. Jaime came from Columbia to Wyoming after many years working in missions in Africa, Europe, and South America. Three separate times, in two different counties, people tried to kill Fr. Jaime for his work with the poor! Not only that, while in Africa he experienced the cultural and religious prejudices of other religions. Though it all, he persevered and joyfully served as a witness to the "resurrection and the life!" Now he is serving in another "mission" the Diocese of Cheyenne. After the masses in Evanston I drove back 313 miles on Monday to host a discernment dinner for young men at St. Paul's Newman Center. Fr. Steve Titus was the guest presider and presenter. He related his vocation story as a gentle journey in utter freedom. "God is good! God only gives us what we need to take the next step." He used the image of light in darkness. As though we only have a lantern or flashlight, you can only see so far, just enough to take the next several steps. Fr. Steve described God's guidance working in the everyday events of our lives and in keeping with the general direction of our lives. He suggested not looking for signs, rather trusting that "the God who made the universe is not going to screw up when it comes to leading us to our fullest joy." Prayer, keeping a journal of our important prayer experiences, spiritual direction, and being serious about our moral and spiritual lives are all elements of our discovery of God's call. It was so joyfully obvious that Fr. Steve and also Fr. Bueno are happy in their choices to become priests. It is always an inspiration to me and an encouragement to know that God does have a plan for us and that it is possible to discover it, and in the living of that plan is found an adventure and fulfillment!

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Spring Break




































This week the University of Wyoming is on Spring Break. Laramie streets become much safer to navigate and life just seems to slow down. I've been reflecting about mission and about refreshment. Every significant pause in the academic year for the University of Wyoming, the Laramie campus of Laramie County Community College, and Wyo Tech is felt by all in Laramie. Jokes are made about how much slower Grand avenue traffic is or about how quiet things seem to be. But the experience is also one of displacement. Though Laramie wasn't originally founded for the sole purpose of hosting the only four year institution of higher education in the State of Wyoming, now Laramie is primarily known for the University of Wyoming (UW). When the students, professors, and staff are "off" Laramie seems somehow incomplete. This has been a reminder to me of our Catholic vocation, that is, to be proclaimers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a member of the Church. Each of us, like UW, exists for a purpose. When we are inattentive, lax, or not giving our all toward this vocation something is missing in us and in our world. Jesus used the image of "talents" and "light" to articulate this in His ministry. The Church exists to complete Jesus' ministry and that of the Holy Spirit. Each of us is called to "give our lives" in service of this mission. This requires prayer, courage, the help of good guides, and healthy community: our families and our parish. When we discover our vocation, be it to priesthood, diaconate, marriage, religious life, or the single life for the Gospel we are "complete" in the sense that we are "doing" what we are meant to do! Though this may involve the cross, and calls for perseverance it also allows us a tremendous sense of satisfaction, joy, and meaning! This led me to think about what brings us refreshment and renewal. 10 of our students and our campus minister are on an "alternative Spring Break" in Los Angeles, ministering at a Catholic Worker house then will be attending the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress. Fr. Carl Gallinger the Pastor of St. Paul's Newman Center as well as many members of our parish community will be attending. When we do things that are related to our vocation we experience refreshment and regain our center and focus for joyfully continuing the mission entrusted to us. This calls for prayer and creativity. As a Vocation Director I took a couple days off to be with my family, to spend time in prayer, relaxation, and reading. As I experienced daily life with my parents, my brother, my nieces and nephews, and friends I realized anew the gift of the priesthood and also the challenges so many face with health, worries about jobs, homework, the joy and stress of relationships, and the hope of the Gospel. For instance, My brother had recently been notified that he would be laid off at the end of March, yesterday just before returning to Laramie he told me he had been offered a job! Another dear friend of mine let me know of a new difficulty in his life. I also had dinner with my goddaughter who'll be receiving Holy Communion for the first time in April. In the midst of the Paschal mystery as it is lived daily in the lives of ordinary people like me, I was renewed and refreshed by God's constant love and movement in so many ways. Now it is back to what I've been given to do at this time and in this place for the People of God in Wyoming and I am glad for it!

Friday, March 12, 2010

"Holiness in Your Own Back Yard" Cheyenne CCW Deanery Meeting























This morning I had the privilege of attending the Cheyenne Deanery meeting of the Wyoming Council of Catholic Women. Each Spring the women of the Diocese have the opportunity to gather at the deanery level for prayer, fellowship, and mutual support. This Spring's Theme is "Finding Holiness in Your Own Back Yard". Fr. Carl Gallinger, the Dean of the Cheyenne Deanery, was the guest speaker and eloquently spoke about holiness as the call to be in the present moment and to "choose love" in the events of daily life. Holiness is really about accepting the grace of Almighty God and allowing ourselves to be, like Jesus, fully human. "God meets us in the present moment" and invites us to "heroism" in the everyday tasks that God sets before us. Salvation is unfolding each moment as we live the responsibilities entrusted to us through our relationships with the people around us and in the tasks that our current situation demands of us. It was truly inspirational and liberating to consider that God is actively making me holy as I accept the crosses that come my way and even in mysteriousness of the ordinary I make choices to be loving. As baptized persons we are called to holiness, to greatness, to sainthood. This is not an achievement but a lifelong process to live God centered lives. Conversion is a necessary part of this process and so is the conviction that God loves us in this moment. Having a healthy sense of humor is a vital asset as we realize just how sinful and slow to understand we can be. Yet, God still works in and through us in the midst of the everyday experiences of our lives. This was wonderfully demonstrated to me as I listened to the activities of the various women's groups from Cheyenne, Pine Bluffs, Torrington, Wheatland, and Laramie. So many simple graces given by extraordinary women serving funeral dinners, organizing receptions for First Communion celebrations and Confirmation receptions, being attentive to legislation that affects families, fundraising for poor and needy in their local communities, finding ways to pray with one another and to support each other. All these ordinary daily activities done for husbands, children, grand children, parishioners and strangers are the actions of holy women. I was also inspired by the support we all receive, particularly this day the women received, from the priests of the deanery. As we continue the Year for Priests this gathering reminded me of what an honor it is to be a priest and a member of our diocese. The women of our diocese, members of the Wyoming Council of Catholic Women seemed very moved and encouraged by today's event. I too am invited and challenged to be "now here" rather than "no where" and allow myself to be holy this day! All as a response to God's love for me, demonstrated by all the women in my life especially my mom, and the women with whom I had the joy of sharing this day!






Tuesday, March 9, 2010

REENTRY!















I have been thinking about the fruit of the SEARCH retreat that 48 members of St. Paul's Newman Center and I experienced this last weekend. I had Monday off so today is my first day "back to work". I often wonder what will be different about me and my experience of life after retreats. I've often been disappointed after even just a few days as life seems to be just the way it was prior to my leaving. Yet grace works in the ordinary and beckons me to be vigilant, contemplative, and generous. By now, the 48 college age students who attended SEARCH are nearly recovered from last weekend and begin the challenging process of "reentry". I take that phrase from the space program. After achieving orbit, traveling 17, 500 miles an hour, space shuttles and other craft have to navigate the difficult "corridor" to return safely to Earth. This involves passing through the atmosphere and enduring searing temperatures then slowing down enough for a safe touchdown/landing and return to every day living. Reentry is also experienced by those returning from retreats or integrating spiritual highs or other powerful life illuminating experiences. It involves allowing ourselves to settle into the change of values, perspectives, attitudes, choices, ways of acting and interacting in light of who we have come to understand God to be and ourselves in relationship with God. My Spiritual director once told me that it takes six months to live into a change. SIX MONTHS! I was stunned when I first heard that and frightened as well. How in the world am I supposed to remember, let alone be transformed by the experiences that seem so invigorating and inspiring now?! Slow, deliberate, and sometimes hard fought spiritual growth is more often than not, the way of discipleship. This is also a pattern for discernment. "We walk by faith and not by sight." Yet St. Ignatius encourages us to reflect upon powerful experiences regularly in order to mine those experiences for new insights, inspiration, and strength. Also to accept the discipline of virtuous living each day. Spiritual direction and "deep conversations" with others like that between St. Scholastica and St. Benedict or St. Therese and Fr. Maurice can be instrumental in helping us to "pray into" the graces of powerful experiences and even the grace of Lent. It may seem shocking and difficult to "come down" from spiritual highs but the much more exciting and invigorating realization is that Jesus is still Emmanuel, God-with-us, sharing our ups and downs, the seemingly ordinariness of the everyday. Another powerful way to "hold onto" the grace of deep experiences is through the regular interactions we have with others, be it our spouses, our parents, children, coworkers, classmates, parishioners, strangers and the poor. Prayer is meant to animate and illuminate each moment so that we do not seek the extraordinary but realize the extraordinary in the everyday! A final image from the space program captures this for me. During the Apollo age, capsules used to "splashdown"-land in the ocean. Now space shuttles land like planes. Not as spectacular on the surface. So is with us, may our reentry into the daily spiritual journey and service to others be like a landing on a flat road and not a plunge!

Friday, March 5, 2010

SEARCH!!!
















This weekend over 50 college students from St. Paul's Newman Center will be attending the Spring SEARCH retreat. The title of this retreat is, "For this I was born, to testify to the Truth." For several weeks now dozens of students have been preparing to shepherd their peers as Directors (a young man and young woman); presenters of topics about the faith and personal experience of living the faith; hospitality; and a range of other ministries. I've been truly inspired by how much prayer, thought, and time has gone into every aspect of this retreat experience. This retreat is "put on" by the college age students themselves for their peers. It is definitely one of the most successful retreat experiences in our diocese! I've noticed that many of those leading this retreat were searchers themselves last Fall! All of them have regularly participated in mass, night prayer, and campus ministry. The fruit of their prayer, the daily living of their lives with a contemplative eye, is that the testimonies that they give is so real. The potency of the retreat flows from the willingness of everyone involved to be vulnerable, humble, and honest with their experiences. What a call to me and to all of us about taking the "stewardship of the mysteries of God" seriously. What is striking and attractive about this retreat is the joy that permeates every aspect of it. I'm always encouraged when the searchers return to see the genuine community that is born of the experience, very much like witnessing Penticost all over again. Pope John Paul II recognized the power of youth, and the youthfulness of the Church. This weekend let us all consider why our lives are so exciting, challenging, and meaningful, "we were born to testify to the TRUTH!" May this Lent be for us a SEARCH experience, an entering into the mystery of our relationship with God in a deliberate concerted effort with a view to passing on the truths of our faith with our peers, those who live with us, those who are new to us, to all who overtly or not are searching for the Truth that will set them free!

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

"These are the voyages..."
















Since Saturday February 27 till yesterday evening I logged 766 miles promoting vocations in Sheridan then attending the first Deanery Mass offered by our new bishop then attending a retreat with the Diocesan Staff in Virginia Dale Colorado. The expression "These are the voyages" I've taken from my favorite program Star Trek. My extended travels began with a discernment dinner for college age women on Friday February 26th. Three members of the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles came up from Denver to spend the eveing with a number of young women from St. Paul's Newman Center. The Carmelite Sisters shared their vocation stories and also the charism (gifts/spirituality) of the Carmelite order: prayer, penance, and intercession for priests. Each of the three sisters had very different backgrounds and different experiences of God's call. What was impressive in each sister's life was a definite gentleness and uniqueness of God's action in their lives. God reached out to each one in a particular way. God knows us by name and knows just how to guide us, according to our personalities and sensibilities, into greater union with Him and service to the Church. I then drove on Saturday to Sheridan Wyoming to promote vocations at Holy Name Catholic Community. Holy Name is a parish with 1200 families. I celebrated four masses and met with the youth group while I was there. Our newest priest, Fr. Rob Spaulding, is Parochial Vicar (the technical term for a priest who is not the pastor). It was a joy to see how well Fr. Rob is doing and also to visit with Fr. Tom Ogg and Fr. Ron Stolis. I always am inspired to be able to speak about vocations and to point to the priests and in this case one sister, Sr. Letitia Lenherr SCL, and all that they have contributed to the ministry of Jesus. Frs. Ron and Tom have each been priests for 42 years! That is as long as I have been alive! They serve with joy and genuine love for God's people. Sr. Letitia has been "professed" that is has been a member of her order for 57 years! What a testimony to the power of God's grace and Sr. Letitia's gift of self to so many for so long. I've only been ordained for 15 years! I had a terrific time with members of the youth group. Their questions and desire to know and live God's will really struck me as a sign of the fruits of the ministry happening in their families, through youth ministry, and at the parish. On Monday March 1st I drove over 300 miles to attended mass for the Cheyenne deanery with Bishop Etienne. (each diocese is divided geographicaly into clusters of parishes in close proximity for mutual support and coordination of pastoral efforts. The Diocese of Cheyenne has five deaneries.) The strongest memory of this event was Bishop Etienne's affirmation of his fatherly love for all of us as members of his diocesan family. The image of spouse on the part of a bishop toward his diocese is an ancient concept and is a powerful encouragement to all of us as to God's presence and activity in our lives-we literally are anchored to the Apostolic ministry Jesus gave to the Apostles and is currently exercised by Bishop Paul Etienne. This was further reinforced in me by attending the annual Diocesan Staff retreat with the Bishop and Pastoral staff. We have so many wonderful people in Cheyenne collaborating with the Bishop in the areas of Education, Youth ministry, Vocations, Tribunal, finances, Family life, and media so that the mission of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit might advance. In just 4 days I drove 766 miles, celebrated 8 masses, led one youth gathering, attended one retreat, and participated in one Deanery gathering in Cheyenne! Just a snap shot of the recent "voyages" of the Vocation Director. Consider the wonderful journey that God has you on and the generosity God is asking of you today!