For over a decade, I have been discerning a vocation to the permanent diaconate in a diocese that does not yet have an ongoing permanent diaconate formation program. One class of deacons was ordained several years ago (I just missed that class). Since that ordination, there has been little activity related to continuing a permanent diaconate formation program in my diocese.
About a year ago, I was ready to join a parish in a neighboring diocese so that that I could continue my discernment. I was very frustrated after a decade of running into brick walls and it didn't appear that I would ever get the opportunity to pursue being a deacon in my home diocese. Fortunately, I crossed paths with Father A and Monsignor B. Father A suggested that I let someone at the diocese know of my plans to join a parish in another diocese in order to be in a position continue my discernment. Father A suggested that I meet personally with Monsignor B, a diocesan official. Monsignor B was very understanding of my frustration. He suggested that I hold off on any transitions until he had the opportunity to discuss my situation with our Bishop. He suggested a plan that included getting my pastor involved and remaining actively involved in my parish. He also supported my efforts to learn more about permanent diaconate formation programs in nearby dioceses.
Recently, I received permission from my Bishop to seek application to a permanent diaconate formation program in a neighboring diocese with the intention of being ordained for service in my home diocese. I really wondered if I would ever reach this point - even though I understand there there is a significant portion of the discernment journey in front of me.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Taking A Pulse
Last week, I had a conversation with a person about priests. The person mentioned that it would be nice if priests had "real world" experience. The implication was that priests could not understand the struggles that most people face since priests don't have the responsibilities related to having a spouse, a family, making a living, etc. I was a bit taken aback and mentioned that priest didn't just "fall of the turnip truck" - that they experienced family life, the demands of college and seminary, the challenges of running a parish, etc.
After giving some thought to this exchange, I came to the conclusion that I missed the boat. I have had the good fortune to have crossed paths with many priests. Virtually every priest I have known has a much better handle on "real world" issue than I do. Yes, I struggle with a fair number of the challenges most non-priests face - maintaining a strong relationship with a spouse, paying a mortgage, dealing with work issues, etc. However, the length of the list of my "real world" challenges is nowhere near as long as the list of such challenges in which priests are deeply involved. Priests regularly do the following: help people prepare for the final portion of their earthly journey, help families through the grief process, help couples work through significant marriage challenges, help people work through addiction issues, help people work through depression related to a job loss, guide people struggling in their spiritual life, assist couples dealing with infertility issues, etc. And this list is just the proverbial tip of the iceberg.
The next time someone mentions to me that priests have no "real world" experience, I will be in a better position to assert that most priests have far more "real world" experience than most non-priests.
After giving some thought to this exchange, I came to the conclusion that I missed the boat. I have had the good fortune to have crossed paths with many priests. Virtually every priest I have known has a much better handle on "real world" issue than I do. Yes, I struggle with a fair number of the challenges most non-priests face - maintaining a strong relationship with a spouse, paying a mortgage, dealing with work issues, etc. However, the length of the list of my "real world" challenges is nowhere near as long as the list of such challenges in which priests are deeply involved. Priests regularly do the following: help people prepare for the final portion of their earthly journey, help families through the grief process, help couples work through significant marriage challenges, help people work through addiction issues, help people work through depression related to a job loss, guide people struggling in their spiritual life, assist couples dealing with infertility issues, etc. And this list is just the proverbial tip of the iceberg.
The next time someone mentions to me that priests have no "real world" experience, I will be in a better position to assert that most priests have far more "real world" experience than most non-priests.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Annointing of the Sick
1) I could have used it.
2) Bea really needed it.
3) We need more priests.
For the past several days, I have been under the weather. It started with fatigue and nausea early last week. It moved into a fever. Over the weekend, it hurt so much to swallow that I gave up on swallowing - I walked around with a plastic "spit" cup. I went to urgent care on Sunday. The physician assistant said I had all the signs of Strep throat, event though the thtoat culture swab test came back negative. I am now on one of those many medications with "mycin" at the end of its name. I will get better.
Earlier today, I got a call from a nearby assisted living center to inform me that one of the Catholic residents, Bea, has entered the active process of dying. I bring communion to about 25 people there each week. Well, I contacted Bea's home parish. The pastor was out of town and nobody really knew how to reach him to see if Bea has received the Sacrament of the Annointing of the Sick. Obviously, he would not have been able to administer this Sacrament to her. I contacted both Catholic parishes in town. Both parishes have two priests. Of those four priests, three were enjoying a well-deserved day off (many priests take off on Mondays to rest from a weekend of Masses, weddings, baptisms, funerals, etc.). The other priest was at an appointment. I left voice-mail and e-mail messages with all of the priests. All four got back to me - two of them almost immediately. One went immediately to administer the Sacrament of the Annointing of the Sick to Bea. Bea will get better, too - especially if she dies.
2) Bea really needed it.
3) We need more priests.
For the past several days, I have been under the weather. It started with fatigue and nausea early last week. It moved into a fever. Over the weekend, it hurt so much to swallow that I gave up on swallowing - I walked around with a plastic "spit" cup. I went to urgent care on Sunday. The physician assistant said I had all the signs of Strep throat, event though the thtoat culture swab test came back negative. I am now on one of those many medications with "mycin" at the end of its name. I will get better.
Earlier today, I got a call from a nearby assisted living center to inform me that one of the Catholic residents, Bea, has entered the active process of dying. I bring communion to about 25 people there each week. Well, I contacted Bea's home parish. The pastor was out of town and nobody really knew how to reach him to see if Bea has received the Sacrament of the Annointing of the Sick. Obviously, he would not have been able to administer this Sacrament to her. I contacted both Catholic parishes in town. Both parishes have two priests. Of those four priests, three were enjoying a well-deserved day off (many priests take off on Mondays to rest from a weekend of Masses, weddings, baptisms, funerals, etc.). The other priest was at an appointment. I left voice-mail and e-mail messages with all of the priests. All four got back to me - two of them almost immediately. One went immediately to administer the Sacrament of the Annointing of the Sick to Bea. Bea will get better, too - especially if she dies.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Hardball?
I have never been a huge fan of the Survivors' Network of Those Abused By Priests (SNAP). Like many organizations that started out with good intentions, SNAP now seems more interested in generating publicity for itself and its leaders than in assisting victims of priest abuse and seeking effective ways to minimize priest abuse. However, one of their recent publicity-seeking missives got me thinking. (By the way, the comments about the story are fairly amusing and misguided).
SNAP is alleging that a lobbyist with some connection (but not an lobbyist registered by the organization) to the Wisconsin Catholic Conference put pressure on Wisconsin State Senator Jim Sullivan to oppose legisation that would extend the time window in which abuse allegations could be brought against Catholic priests (my guess it that the window would have applied to allegations of abuse by a broader group, but the target was Catholic priests). In its statement, SNAP suggests that the lobbyist and Senator Sullivan discussed the legislator's desire to continue to receive Holly Communion. Of course, SNAP representatives saw an implied threat to withhold Holy Communion if the legislator did not oppose the bill.
While I have grave reservations about withholding Holy Communion from individual Catholics, I feel that any Bishop must have the ability to do so within his diocese in cases where individuals publicly oppose basic Catholic theological doctrines and will not stop their public opposition. In the case of Senator Sullivan, the issue was NOT his possible opposition to a theological doctrine of the Catholic Church. The issue was a matter of civil and criminal judicial procedures. So, if what SNAP implies is accurate (and that is questionable) about the Senator Sulivan situation, I would be terribly disappointed.
SNAP is alleging that a lobbyist with some connection (but not an lobbyist registered by the organization) to the Wisconsin Catholic Conference put pressure on Wisconsin State Senator Jim Sullivan to oppose legisation that would extend the time window in which abuse allegations could be brought against Catholic priests (my guess it that the window would have applied to allegations of abuse by a broader group, but the target was Catholic priests). In its statement, SNAP suggests that the lobbyist and Senator Sullivan discussed the legislator's desire to continue to receive Holly Communion. Of course, SNAP representatives saw an implied threat to withhold Holy Communion if the legislator did not oppose the bill.
While I have grave reservations about withholding Holy Communion from individual Catholics, I feel that any Bishop must have the ability to do so within his diocese in cases where individuals publicly oppose basic Catholic theological doctrines and will not stop their public opposition. In the case of Senator Sullivan, the issue was NOT his possible opposition to a theological doctrine of the Catholic Church. The issue was a matter of civil and criminal judicial procedures. So, if what SNAP implies is accurate (and that is questionable) about the Senator Sulivan situation, I would be terribly disappointed.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Who's On Third?
Two of us left the house on Mother's Day to visit a dog breeder that lives three hours away. Three of us came back. The third is Chauncey. When I refer to my beloved canine companion from this point on, I will be referring to Chauncey. My beloved human companion and I are very happy. Chauncey seems to be happy, too. However, it is an adjustment for all three of us.
I promise to return to more "newsy" theological issues. However, the past couple of weeks have included some major life moments.
I promise to return to more "newsy" theological issues. However, the past couple of weeks have included some major life moments.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
8 Days A Week
It has been a long and difficult week. My wife and I didn't expect that the loss of our dog would have created such an unbalance in our lives. While we aren't one of those crazy families that treats their pet(s) like a human, we have come to realize that much of our life was focused on our dog without us knowing it. For instance, when I wake up in the morning, I still have the sense that I need to take the dog out for a walk. I still hurry home from work to take the dog out - even though, for the time being, there is no dog.
In the past 9 months, I have been at the side of my mother when she passed away and by the side of our dog when he passed away. Both passed away very peacefully. When my mother passed away, there was a definite sense that her soul had separated from her body. I could feel the presence of both her soul and her body, but I knew that her soul was no longer contained in her body. Although it was a sad experience, I knew that while her body finished a journey, her soul was beginning another journey. I did not have that same feeling when our dog passed away. There was a finality to his passing. This is likely due to the fact that dogs don't have souls (sorry you crazy dog lovers). However, pets do have something that other animals don't have - something that I can't explain. While they do not have their own souls, they have some of ours that we share with them. So when a pet dies, the part of the soul that our pet had returns to us.
This experience has led me to ponder how I would reply to a child that asks this question: Will I see my pet in Heaven? Since dogs don't have souls, I don't feel safe in saying that people will see their pets in Heaven. However, I feel safe in saying this: Our earthy interactions with our pets have given us great joy. In Heaven, we will have that same joy multiplied infinitessimally in intensity. Does that mean we will see our pets? I don't know. But anything, including that which we cannot begin to comprehend, is possible with God.
On Sunday, my wife and I are making a journey to visit a breeder that has several young adult dogs and some very young puppies. Prior to learning that our dog was very sick, we made plans to see other dogs that we might consider bringing into our family as a young sibling to our older dog. We had planned to make the visit last Saturday, but the breeder had to postpone the visit because the puppies arrived on Friday evening - a week early. The delay was fortuitous, as our dog passed away the following day. So, we will visit some dogs and puppies. If there is a connection that develops between any of the young adult dogs and us, we won't let any grass grow under our feet in our efforts to make that connection permanent. We will be bringing a dog crate, a leash and collar, a blanket, some dog food, some water and the checkbook - just in case. While we won't get our hopes up, if there is a connection, it would make for a wonderful Mother's Day for my wife.
In the past 9 months, I have been at the side of my mother when she passed away and by the side of our dog when he passed away. Both passed away very peacefully. When my mother passed away, there was a definite sense that her soul had separated from her body. I could feel the presence of both her soul and her body, but I knew that her soul was no longer contained in her body. Although it was a sad experience, I knew that while her body finished a journey, her soul was beginning another journey. I did not have that same feeling when our dog passed away. There was a finality to his passing. This is likely due to the fact that dogs don't have souls (sorry you crazy dog lovers). However, pets do have something that other animals don't have - something that I can't explain. While they do not have their own souls, they have some of ours that we share with them. So when a pet dies, the part of the soul that our pet had returns to us.
This experience has led me to ponder how I would reply to a child that asks this question: Will I see my pet in Heaven? Since dogs don't have souls, I don't feel safe in saying that people will see their pets in Heaven. However, I feel safe in saying this: Our earthy interactions with our pets have given us great joy. In Heaven, we will have that same joy multiplied infinitessimally in intensity. Does that mean we will see our pets? I don't know. But anything, including that which we cannot begin to comprehend, is possible with God.
On Sunday, my wife and I are making a journey to visit a breeder that has several young adult dogs and some very young puppies. Prior to learning that our dog was very sick, we made plans to see other dogs that we might consider bringing into our family as a young sibling to our older dog. We had planned to make the visit last Saturday, but the breeder had to postpone the visit because the puppies arrived on Friday evening - a week early. The delay was fortuitous, as our dog passed away the following day. So, we will visit some dogs and puppies. If there is a connection that develops between any of the young adult dogs and us, we won't let any grass grow under our feet in our efforts to make that connection permanent. We will be bringing a dog crate, a leash and collar, a blanket, some dog food, some water and the checkbook - just in case. While we won't get our hopes up, if there is a connection, it would make for a wonderful Mother's Day for my wife.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Archie, April 18, 1999 - May 2, 2010
ARCHIE
April 18, 1999 - May 2, 2010
In Archie's early years, he kept himself busy by chewing walls, making regular visits to his canine cousins and chasing non-existent squirrels. He had the joy of being skunked on two occasions.
Archie enjoyed daily walks in the nearby park, weekly visits to doggy day care and weekday midday visits from his nanny. He enjoyed trips to his human relatives, especially his human grandparents. On one such visit, he fell out of the back of a pop-up camper during the middle of the night and was "none the worse for wear" after the incident.
Archie enjoyed a fairly long and healthy life. He is survived by his human parents, his canine mother, his canine brother (Best of Breed in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show) and many family and friends - both canine and human.
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