Seekholiness Podcast: Tis the Season

Christmas, luck, blessings, and elves are all included in this week's podcast by Father Jeff Coning.

Seekholiness Podcast: Radical Discipleship

Father Franks is our Seekholiness guest speaker. This week he discusses Radical Discipleship: Getting out of the boat.

Advent Season

A theme that has appeared in my homilies this Advent is one of preparation for the coming of Christ. That is the two comings, celebrating His coming as an infant and His second coming in glory. I have consciously tried to concentrate on the second coming of Christ, but I have been drawn to the image of the infant time and time again in my meditation. For awhile it was a mystery as why this was taking place, but I found the answer in listening to my homilies.

I have had two families that are good friends of mine that have newborns in their life. Until this situation, I had never watched infants all that closely. Yes, they are cute, but they are also noisy and demanding. But I have seen these two children grow and mature and it has been an enlightening situation. I have seen how their parents(my friends) lives have changed. At times it is an honor to witness the love the parents have for their children and the sacrifice they demonstrate for them. At other times it has been problematic because we have not been able to eat out and got movies. The children have interfered with our friendship. At times I found myself briefly upset, but I would remember that I was being selfish and these parents, my friends, were being holy by being good parents.

I have been thinking about this even more during this Advent. I had been reflecting on how God demands that we repent and turn to God. I have realized how lovingly God works in our lives. We all know from countless Januaries that new years resolutions we make do not often take hold and last in our lives. They are external principles that we should probably adopt in our lives, but they are difficult to hold onto and remain faithful. That is what God gave us in the Old Testament, that is rules or laws to live by, but it proved difficult.

What wisdom He showed by coming as an infant and teaching the sacrifice that is needed for God first hand by Joseph and Mary. God demonstrated first hand that we are capable of sacrifice. The Father entrusting the Son to us as an infant demonstrated firsthand that with God’s grace we are capable of loving as God does and sacrifice with joy. God showed us in the New Testament that it is not just principles that we are to live, but we are to live for God as God lives for us.

This Advent in 2006 has helped me to realize the true joy of the infant born in Bethlehem. I cannot wait to learn more about the joy of Christ coming again in glory.

Fr. Jeff Coning: Homosexuality and the Priesthood

The Vatican finally released the document from the Congregation for Catholic Education on the homosexuality and the priesthood. This document has been the topic of much debate, from whether it actually existed to what it would proclaim about the topic. I have read the document and have several thoughts about it.

One is that the Church has gone to great lengths to be as specific as possible about the issue of homosexuality. The Church has always taught that it is the act that is a grave sin and not the person; although the Church recognizes that a person with homosexual tendencies carries a greater burden than a person without these tendencies. This document does not change this teaching in any manner. This document does not add a new understanding or dimension to this teaching.

This document states that a young man who presents himself to the Church because he has a calling to the priesthood be rejected if he “practice[s] homosexuality, present[s] deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support[s] the so-called ‘gay culture.’” Some might argue that this is harsh and/or discrimination, but if we stop and think about it this statement actually makes a great deal of sense.

The Church has long taught that the act of sex only belongs in a marriage because it has two principles that must always be joined. That is it must always be unitive and procreative. And that to block one is always a disorder and sinful. If an unmarried man commits either an act of fornication or a homosexual act, he has committed grave sins.

Men who present themselves to the Church because they have a call to the priesthood need to know that they are abandoning the culture of death and are going to live in the culture of life. Accepting the responsibility of the gift means that it is to be used as it is intended. The priesthood is a gift of servitude for the Church. A man should be concerned with adopting the image of Jesus in his life as opposed to furthering his own image.

I would encourage people to read the document and think about the issue. Men in the priesthood need to be as faithful to the Church as men who are married to their wives. Living in this faithfulness is not easy in this world and all of us are called to avoid the near occasion of sin.

Seekholiness Podcast: Jesus Jams -Nov. 20, 2005

We have a special guest podcast this week, Fr. Larry Richards speaks live to a crowd of 500 at the November Jesus Jams gathering. Check out the www.seekholiness.com events page for the next Jesus Jams event.

Seekholiness Podcast: Incarnational

Fr. Jeff discusses how discernment involves the whole person.

Seekholiness Podcast: Holiness

Continuing in the discernment series, Fr. Jeff looks more closely at the topic of Holiness.

Seekholiness Podcast: How does God speak to us?

Fr. Jeff discusses how to discern what God is communicating to us personally.

Seekholiness Podcast: Saint John of the Cross

Discernment as learned from Saint John of the Cross.

Seekholiness Podcast: The Digital Era

What does an iPod, PDA, and cell phone have to do with the Christian life? Sounds like you're going to have to tune in and find out.

James Dodaro: "How Well Do We Love?"

I sat down today to reflect on Pope’s Benedict’s homily that he gave at the opening of the synod on the Eucharist. Pope Benedict returns to an image that he has used several times early in his homily. He states that in the Eucharist Jesus comes to meet us and then asks “Will He find a response?” I think this is a great question. The statistics show that the majority of Catholics do not come to Mass on a weekly basis. I am sure that there are a number of reasons for this, but at the heart is an inability to love correctly. Pope Benedict states in the homily that this inability to love properly stems from sin, that is that we want to be the sole owners of ourselves and that we want to use this world and ourselves in an unlimited manner.

I can think of a number of times when I have done things for family and friends to demonstrate my love. I also know that there are a number of times when I have not done what family and friends have needed me to do in love and unfortunately I remember how justified I felt in my decision. Those times that I felt justified were terrible times of sin. When we are truly in love, we don’t even think about the labor and burden involved in the relationship, when we are feeling self righteous, then labor and burden become an easy excuse to be lazy. What I need to remind myself often is that I am responsible for loving God. And I like to reflect often on John 16:33 where Jesus states, “But have confidence. I have overcome the world.” Which is the same point that Pope Benedict makes near the end of the homily. God does not fail us and God does the work of redemption. The task for us is to respond to God, who has done the work to make redemption possible. We need to be present when God comes to us. The Eucharist is where God comes to us to make us like Him. We show God great love when we show up. When we drop love of ourselves for love of God, then we discover that are humanity is lifted up, and our sinful desires are seen as being petty. Being in love takes effort and thankfully God gives of Himself in the Eucharist and in grace, to assist in this effort. The Eucharist is the font from which holiness is a possibility.

Seekholiness Podcast: Definition of Discernment II

A continuation of last weeks discussion on discernment through Church traditions and early Christians in the Church.

Seekholiness Podcast: Definition of Discernment

Father Jeff Coning discusses the definition of discernment through the tradition of the Church and how it relates to us today.

Seekholiness Podcast: The Universal Call

Father Jeff Coning discusses our call to holiness as God's people, with the Church, and through the Holy Spirit.

Seekholiness Podcast: Discernment

Father Jeff Coning answers a question you may have also asked yourself at some point. "How do I go about discerning God's will for my life?"

Seekholiness Podcast: In the beginning

Seekholiness joins the world of podcasting. Hear Fr. Jeff Coning discuss what Seekholiness.com is about, why the site was formed, and how each of us can discern God's will for our lives.

Ty Tompson: "The Voice of the Lord"

As the Josephinum Choir prepares to go on its Italian pilgrimage this summer, I have tried to pick up a little Italian to get around a bit better over there. Since I just finished three straight semesters of Spanish, it gets a little bit jumbled together in my head. But I have had a little success thanks to the priest I’m living with who has been teaching me some of the phrases he knows (and ragging on me for how I don’t drink coffee and how I’ll never survive in Italy). I’ve also been looking around for CDs or movies that have a little Italian in them. The Godfather series didn’t help much, but they were still fun to watch. I figure if you just move your hands a lot and talk loud enough, they can figure out what you mean.

I did come across a CD that had audio clips of various addresses and talks by Pope John Paul II in Italian. When I heard his voice on the CD, it was a very strange feeling for me. It has been a long time since I had heard that voice in it was younger and stronger. His voice just seemed to make the text take on an urgent and commanding tone, even if it was simply the text of a well-known psalm that he was reading. Just by the way he was speaking, although in a language I don’t even know, he had a way to generate an emotional response. As I reflected on the power that voice had, I remembered the summer of two years ago when I was taking Hebrew classes. A remarkable phrase came up in one of the chapters. The way of saying the word “obey” in Hebrew is to say “shama el-col,” literally, “listen to the voice.” In the Hebrew Old Testament, there is no distinction between the two. Every time someone listens to the voice of God, he obeys.

That’s really an idealistic view of things. Certainly we don’t obey every voice we hear. But the way our late Holy Father’s voice struck me when I heard it reminded me that when we do hear the voice of God, we shouldn’t avoid it or make excuses or find a way around it: we should follow it. As he grew older, Pope John Paul II’s voice weakened greatly. Towards the end of his life, he gradually lost his ability to speak almost entirely. As the Vicar of Christ Our Lord on earth, it pained the Faithful to see their Pope in such a condition. Our hearts broke as he came to his window to greet the crowds gathered in prayer below, and he could not even vocalize a blessing. Reflecting upon that, I have learned a great lesson. The Lord’s voice isn’t always blasting at full volume. Elijah encountered God in the silence of a gentle breeze. We didn’t hear the voice of the Holy Father, but he communicated to us what was in his heart. God might burst through the clouds or give us a prophetic dream or take over the earbuds to our mp3 player. But He will make His Divine Will known to each of us in a mysterious and fulfilling way. Our part is to listen for that voice of the Lord speaking to us in unexpected yet unassuming ways. Whether we hear God’s voice calling us to avoid sin, to grow in virtue, or to explore a vocation as a priest or religious, we are obligated to listen and follow.

Bill Fergeson: "My Pilgrimage to Santiago"

This July I took part in a pilgrimage to the relics of St. James the Apostle, which are kept in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostella in northwest Spain. Since early medieval times, when what is thought to be the bones of St. James were discovered in this location, many Catholics have walked across Spain along a path called "El Camino" in order to make a pilgrimage to this sacred site. The path is still used by many pilgrims today. A few years ago, I found out about a small religious congregation, the Idente Missionaries of Christ Crucified, which has organized a pilgrimage along part of this route for the last several years. I decided to take part this summer. It sounded like it would be interesting to experience being a pilgrim and walk part of this path, meet other pilgrims, learn more about the local culture and Spanish Catholic history, and to see what God might have in store for me spiritually. I didn't begin the pilgrimage with any specific spiritual expectations or requests from God, but, given that this is my final year before my priestly ordination, I was wondering what graces, peace, and consolation this pilgrimage might offer for my vocation.

Before leaving for the pilgrimage, I was beginning to have some doubts about what to expect and how difficult the pilgrimage might be. Even though I have hiked a lot, would I be able to keep up with the daily pace and complete the 150 miles of our pilgrimage? I didn't know any of the other pilgrims before arriving in Madrid, so I didn't have any idea what they would be like. And I didn't know any more than one semester of Spanish! But I've also come to learn over the years that the Devil likes to plant doubts in one's mind when God is trying to get you to do something for your own good.

Well, I arrived in Madrid on July 11 and eventually met most of the other pilgrims that day. We left on a bus the next day to go to a small city called Astorga, where we would pick up the pilgrimage trail and begin our hike to Santiago. In Astorga, we met the rest of our group. We were quite a mix of folks: of the 13 of us altogether, I was the only native-born American, two were Polish-American cousins, four were from Brazil, three from Italy, one from Germany, and two, including our leader, the only priest in the group, were from Spain. Some of them were lay missionaries with the Indentes. Others were college students, and some like me were in their thirties.

We started our pilgrimage from Astorga early in the morning of July 13. We began what would become our routine for the next eleven days: up at 5:00 a.m. for breakfast and packing; on the path by around 6:30; walk on average about 13 miles and arrive at our pre-arranged destination about 1:30 or 2:00 in the afternoon; have a picnic lunch of sandwiches followed by "siesta"; then around 5:00 we usually had a cultural presentation given by some member of the group about their native country and the El Camino; then we had a Mass of the Pilgrims, usually at the local church in whatever town we were in, around 7:00; then dinner, sometimes at our lodging site or sometimes at a local restaurant around 9:00 (which is actually a typical time for Spanish culture), and then we often had fun time afterwards when we got together and put on funny skit or other displays of talent for each other. Then we went to sleep around 11:30 or so.

So what does one do when one has to walk for six or seven hours each day? Well, we did a number of things; sometimes some of the native Spanish speakers tried to help me to converse in Spanish or to improve my pronunciation, since after my first couple of times reading the Gospel at Mass in Spanish as a deacon, I apparently cracked them up with my "American accent." I would also help them with English words. Some folks sang songs from their native lands, including the Polish guys and even myself with American patriotic songs. Many jokes were shared. And we had many other discussions about such topics as politics and religion. One of the pilgrims, who was a graduate student from Berlin, Germany, was not a Catholic but seemed to be seeking for a deeper relationship with God; he said he liked to pray and meditate often by himself in the cathedral in Berlin, where he eventually met an Idente priest who told him about the pilgrimage. He still had a lot of problems, issues, and questions with the Catholic Church and about Christian faith and prayer, and so it was a good experience to try to share with him some of what being a Catholic Christian is like and why the Church teaches what it does. It was also great to get to know the Polish-American cousins who left Poland as young kids after the fall of the Iron Curtain, moved to New York City with their families, and have remained a close family and very interested in their Polish heritage. It was interesting to hear about the lives of these two guys; one became an Idente missionary and the other one, a college student, more recently came to have a deeper Catholic faith after a period of being spiritually "lost" in high school. Even in their 20's now, it was fun to see them act like little brothers with they way they played pranks on each other. The whole experience of the daily walk reminded me of what it must have been like for the pilgrims in medieval England who walked to the tomb of St. Thomas Becket in Canterbury; the stories they shared on the path were actually later written down to become the famous "Canterbury Tales".

I also found it helpful and peaceful to simply walk by myself sometimes and pray, to meditate on the beautiful mountainous scenery passing us by in this northern part of Spain, and to enjoy the peace and quiet of the countryside and tiny farm towns with their ancient stone houses, some now in ruins.

Eventually, on the eleventh day, which was our longest hike, of about 24 miles, we arrived at our goal, the city of Santiago and the Cathedral of St. James. We arrived late in the afternoon of July 23, in time for the weekend festivals to mark the Feast Day of St. James, which is July 25. We walked, or at least in my case, hobbled our way up to the Cathedral, had a big cheer on the steps, and then went inside. Amidst the mob of other pilgrims and tourists, we got in line to climb up into the gold-laden sanctuary to reverence the large statue of St. James, and then climb down into the tiny crypt underneath the sanctuary to view the silver reliquary of St. James visible through two metal gates. Afterwards, we went to the pilgrim office nearby to obtain our Latin certificates stating that we had completed the pilgrimage. Those who complete at least 60 miles and have obtained stamps in their pilgrim passports from towns along the way, as we all did, are eligible to get this document with their name, in Latin, written in.

The next day in Santiago, July 24, was the day of the major Mass of the Pilgrims in the Cathedral. We all went, and I was able to serve the Mass, which was packed with pilgrims, the elderly, and tourists, as the deacon with several priest concelebrants. The highlight of the Mass for many is this Cathedral's famous custom, after Communion, of swinging a huge censer from the top of the dome. It swings the entire length of the transcept (the side wings of the Cathedral), just about touching the ceiling on both ends and barely scraping the floor of the sanctuary in the middle. It was quite a sight; I was less than 10 feet away from it as it came swinging by; fortunately, no one got clocked in the head by it! Later in the day, we enjoyed some of the carnival in the city, and also had a small group discussion about what we each experienced on the pilgrimage.

The next day was the Feast of St. James, July 25. The highlight of this day was the privilege our group had of being able to celebrate a private Mass in the actual crypt containing the reliquary of St. James! The 13 of us barely fit into the tiny chapel, and we had Mass on the same small altar upon which sat the large, ornate, silver reliquary holding the bones of an Apostle! It was quite a treat to say the least.

Later that day, we packed up our things one last time and began our journeys home. Most of us took the overnight train back to Madrid, where we sadly parted ways and returned to our native lands.

When I was trying to think about what I spiritually received from the pilgrimage, in order to share with the others in our discussion before we parted ways, it seemed that probably the greatest spiritual benefit I received was a sense of a greater commitment to my vocation. There were, in particular, a couple of occasions along the way when I was hit with an unexpected sense of peace and enthusiasm for my upcoming priesthood, along with an appreciation of its potential for bringing people who are seeking Him, especially the youth, to the Person of Jesus Christ. I'm sure other unseen graces will come to light as I reflect on this great experience over time. My pilgrimage to the tomb of an Apostle was certainly a worthwhile experience and one which has helped me to see more the universal and timeless dimension of the love of God for His Church and for all people.

Ty Tomson: "To Restore All Things in Christ"

They say that fashion trends are circular. What was popular today may not be popular tomorrow, but if you wait for the next day, it will be back in style. This is true with more than fashion. It can been seen in some kinds of music from the 20th century, various schools of architecture from throughout history, cooking techniques from around the world, and, yes, even certain styles of dress (especially from the 70s!). Such constant change is either a testament to the fickle indecisiveness of human nature or evidence for our collective insanity.

There is a recent movement to return old things to their original state. This can be seen in the renovation of the old homes of famous people to what it would have been like when they lived there, the use of authentic antique instruments in the playing of medieval music, and the fixing and reusing of old family heirlooms like jewelry, furniture, or wedding dresses. This drive to restore has been present in the Church since Her beginning, since the Apostolic Age in which Christ sent forth His apostles to evangelize the nations has been an inspiration and example for Christians of every age. The call to restoration was highlighted by Pope St. Pius X in his motto, “Instaurare omnia in Christo” (“To restore all things in Christ”).

The college seminarians at the Josephinum have recently taken up this adage. St. Pius X happens to be the patron of our college chapel, in which we saw the great potential to restore to its original beauty seen in pictures from the 1950s. We especially wanted to return pews to the chapel as there originally were, get more appropriate floor covering than the maroon carpet that covered the nave of the chapel, and expose the original brick that is hidden by drywall on the sides of the sanctuary. In our vigor, of course, we promised to donate as much time and energy as was needed for the restoration project, however long it took us. We paid big for that one.

A church in the area was building a bigger church building and offered their pews to us, which we simply had to find a way to transport to the seminary. Although that required a couple of trips with some extremely heavy lifting, it was nothing compared to what would come. Together we spent hundreds of hours over six months stripping, cleaning, sanding, staining, repadding, reupholstering, polyurethaning, and installing the pews for our chapel, and that doesn’t even count the week we stayed after graduation to tear out the carpet, rip up the tile under it, and lay down two layers of a subflooring so the hardwood floor could rest evenly. We will soon be looking into a way to take out the drywall to expose the beautiful original brick that bordered the sanctuary.

Now, the chapel is just about finished. It will take some more work, but it is finally coming together. As we worked for countless hours on these projects, we had a great deal of time to reflect on what connection this project might have for a priestly vocation. Restoration to the original state is a timeless Christian theme, as I said before. But it has to do with more than just the externals. A priest brings the grace of the Sacraments to the faithful and restores them to life in Christ. In Baptism, he restores their fallen human nature to life in the Church and cleanses it from original sin. In Confession, he brings them the Sanctifying Grace for which their souls were designed. In marriage, he brings man and woman together in marriage, as God intended from the beginning. In the Eucharist, he makes present the historical events of the Last Supper and the Crucifixion through the halls of time to the altar at Mass and makes the graces of the Cross flow into our hearts in the Body and Blood of the Lord. In everything the priest does, he is a pontifex, a “bridge-maker,” who joins the gap between man and God and restores their original relationship.

Certain styles or fashions are temporary, coming and going unpredictably. Living in God’s grace, on the other hand, is not transient. It is not only an original state that is meant to be preserved for our time on earth, but also a divine vocation that calls us to beatitude with God forever in the life to come.

Ty Tomson: The Sacred Heart

The Sacred Heart of Jesus is a rather unfamiliar devotion among the younger generations of Catholics, but I think it is a beautifully expressive tradition in our Catholic heritage. How many images do we have in our language that refer to the heart? “It breaks my heart,” “the heart of the matter,” “put your heart into it,” “with your whole heart,” “heart to heart,” and so many others. Scripture also is filled with memorable examples of imagery that refer to the heart: “I am meek and humble of heart,” “do not let your hearts be troubled,” “did not our hearts burn within us,” “sin speaks to the sinner in the depths of his heart,” “thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart.” One meditation about the heart that I have been pondering is from St. Matthew’s Gospel: “Unless you acquire the heart of a child, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

I always considered that metaphor an inspiring testament to the innocence, purity, and simplicity of children and a summons to acquire these childlike virtues even in our adulthood. Then I read some of St. Augustine’s writings. He had a different view of children’s behavior. He wrote that children are basically selfish and whatever they do is out of self-interest and greed. At first I thought that was a little harsh, but when you think about it, isn’t there some truth in his suggestion? Think of the time when a baby learns how to say “no.” The parents’ lives are miserable! When does that baby become mature? We could say when he learns to set down the desires of his own will and think of others before himself, that is the point at which he gets beyond this childlike phase. But I would like to reconcile the scriptural notion of the heart of a child and the Augustinian idea. I think the answer lies in the problem that plagues our world so thoroughly and so constantly that we are sometimes so accustomed to it that we hardly realize its presence: the harmful effect of original sin. As a result of original sin, as the Catechism teaches us, “human nature is weakened in its powers; subject to ignorance, suffering, and the domination of death; and inclined to sin (This inclination is called ‘concupiscence.’)” (CCC 418). Scripture encourages us to take on the heart a child should have, as God originally intended, unstained by original sin; St. Augustine calls us to notice the effects of that original sin in our world and in our personal spiritual lives.

The Sacred Heart of Jesus, however, was left untouched by original sin. That is why such strong emphasis upon devotion to the Sacred Heart is fitting. The Heart of Jesus is a model for us all since, as the Catechism goes on to say, there is a struggle between the spiritual ideal of perfected human nature to which we are called and for which we were created and the reality of our inheritance of fallen human nature. This struggle leads us into spiritual warfare, and the goal that we must have is that sinless childlike disposition that is exemplified in the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As we notice more and more the iniquity of man in his fallen and miserable state, we should be driven more and more to venerate the Sacred Heart of our Savior. For, unless we make our hearts like His, we shall not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Ty Tomson: Writings of Benedict XVI

Since the new Holy Father Benedict XVI was elected, I have been looking back through some of his writings: I figure if my boss is one of the most respected theologians of the modern era, I should at least see what he has to say. What he has already said probably will indicate what he is going to keep on saying in the future. Most importantly, I went looking for things he has said about himself, because I think you can learn much of what you need to know about a person from what he says about himself. Since His Holiness is a rather humble guy, it’s not easy to find much. He did write memoirs entitled Milestones, which covers a great portion of his life. But I stumbled across a most interesting part of a more recent work, God is Near Us. In it, he speaks of himself without even realizing it! It was a sermon delivered in 1977 entitled “A Church of All Times and Places.” Concerning the Mass, he says, “it can be carried on only in unity with the whole Church and with her authority. That is why the pope belongs in the Eucharistic Prayer.” He stresses the Church as a universal communion “of all times and of all places,” united under the Holy Father. It is true throughout history that whenever a person or group separates from the Supreme Pontiff, they stray from the truth. In fact, in the early Church the bishops themselves (with St. Peter being primary among them) would travel around and celebrate Mass, and as it became more difficult due to the growing number Christians they ordained priests to carry this out in his name; the same idea is at work today in our dioceses. There is a hierarchy in the Church; every parish priest celebrates Mass on behalf of his bishop in union with the Holy Father. This connection to the Bishop of Rome keeps us individually and collectively assured of God’s grace, for He will never abandon His Universal Church. Now that the man who wrote about this has succeeded to the See of Peter and is himself the Vicar of Christ, the visible symbol to everyone of all things “Catholic” (which means “universal”), his words ring all the more true. The connection to our Holy Father must run deeper than simply a ceremonial necessity or an obligatory ancient custom. It has to be more profound than even an intellectual adherence to the Church and Her teachings through him. Our bond with him must be an intense spiritual one, as he is the one who unites all of our prayers – more than symbolically – as a whole Church. These reflections which have come to be about himself have great importance already in these early days of the pontificate of Benedict XVI, as he has stressed the unity of the worldwide Church and reached out to bring others to the fullness of the Faith. As a priest, I hope one day to bring the ultimate prayer of the Church, the Mass, under his name during the Eucharistic Prayer: “We come to you, Father, with praise and thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ your Son. Through Him we ask you to accept and bless these gifts we offer you in sacrifice. We offer them for your holy Catholic Church, watch over it, Lord, and guide it; grant it peace and unity throughout the world. We offer them for Benedict our Pope, for Frederick our bishop, and for all who hold and teach the Catholic Faith that comes to us from the Apostles...”

Fr. Jeff Coning: Eighth Anniversary

I was watching the news today to see people's reaction to deep throat’s identity being revealed. It made for interesting news, some thought him a criminal and others a hero. But one item that kept being stated was President Nixon was forced to resign more from duty to friends than an actual crime. I don’t want to get political here, but duty to friends is a thought provoking line. It's a thought I think about often.

One important tenet of friendship for me is that I would never ask someone to jeopardize their soul for an action that I desire. Someone who is my friend should never ask or expect me to do something immoral or illegal. Today I celebrate my eighth anniversary of ordination. What makes this a time of joy is that Christ has not asked me to do anything that He Himself has not done. I feel a great sense of duty to my friendship with Christ. This friendship is made easier knowing I am doing the same actions that Christ has done. One of the great joys of my priesthood is the trust that I have in my relationship with God. I live knowing that the trust that I have in other people will lead to disappointment, but there is no chance of disappointment with God. This is what continues to motivate me to remain faithful to my calling.

Fr. Jeff Coning: Corpus Christi

Today is Corpus Christi. Pope Benedict stated in his homily today, that “it would seem deep down, people do not want to have God so close, so available, so present to their affairs. People want Him to be great and, in a word, distant.” This gets me back to the point of friendship that I have been pondering for many years. When I read this statement I pondered it for awhile. Pope Benedict stated earlier that part of friendship is conformity of wills. The statement he makes today states that many do not want to have their wills conformed to Christ, at least not yet. I recently sat down with several of my friends and we had a long discussion. The discussion centered around the fact that I needed them to challenge me. I have a tendency to be lazy; I have a tendency to be happy with drifting aimlessly. I needed them to challenge me, I needed them to disturb the boat, I needed them to not let me drift. I told them that they are friends because I needed to be a better person and I looked to them to help me.

I wonder if this is a common view. Do we want our friends to support who we are? I think this is the statement that Pope Benedict is making in his homily. I think he is stating that people are glad that Jesus exists, but they are not ready to yet encounter Him.

Bill Ferguson: Ordination Day

It's now been a couple of days since I was ordained as a Deacon here at the Josephinum with two of my classmates from other dioceses. It was a great experience - I am grateful to God for his guiding me along to this moment and His continuing providence in helping me to keep faithful to what seems to be His plan for me in his Kingdom. In the couple of days leading up to the ordination, I spent some time praying more about my ordination, including seeing my spiritual director and going to Confession. Several things came to mind: why has God been calling me, out of so many others in His Church, to go ahead with receiving Holy Orders? It makes one wonder about how God comes up with His plan, but also makes one have a certain humility, that God wants to make use of you in a special way, and sense of trust that God knows what He was doing and will provide you with what you need to fulfill his will. Another thought was a temptation to wonder if this indeed was the right thing to do...have I been deluded all this time? Will I be regretting this later on? I suppose Satan often does this to those who are committing themselves to the Lord. I took consolation in realizing that taking the commitments of Ordination would be, for me, a natural consequence of the whole path of my life; I remembered back to my ongoing relationship with Christ over the years from when I was really young, andrealized that I've been wanting to do His will in various ways for a long time; in a sense, this day would not be radically different from that trajectory. I could see how He had been preparing me for this for many years.

The actual ordination day, this past Sunday April 24th, was a great grace. I actually slept pretty well the night before (several people asked me that; actually, I can sleep just about anytime!). The three of us who were to be ordained came to the small chapel (St. Rose of Lima) near the main chapel to sit and pray before we were to be called to join the procession. When Mass began, we processed out to a full chapel with Bishop Blair of Toledo, and then listened to the Liturgy of the Word, which happened to include, on this particular Sunday, the reading from Acts about the laying on of hands of the first deacons by the Apostles. Then, after the Bishop's homily, came the ordination ritual. One of the moments I remembered most vividly was the Litany of Saints, when the three of us were prostrated on the floor, praying for the saints' prayers. I recall thinking back to various spiritual books I had read the last few years of some of the saints who were named, including St. Therese of Liseaux, St. John Chrysostom (who's book "On the Priesthood" is a must-read for those considering vocations), St. Anthony of Egypt (I've had a great devotion to the spirituality of the early Fathers of the Eastern Church), and others. Then came the laying on of hands by the Bishop and the Prayer of Ordination, the actions which actually ordain one to Holy Orders. I had occasional flashbacks to various moments in my life, including a memory of a second-grade religious ed class when the teacher was explaining vocations and that some people have a "calling," and I remember wondering what such a "calling" looked or sounded like, and thinking it must be neat to experience it. Well, ironically, here I was being ordained, apparently having had such a calling, and appreciating how God has taught me much about the Faith and how to listen to Him, all these years since second grade!The ordination ritual finished with myreceiving the vestments of a deacon, the stole and dalmatic, from two great deacons, Dcn. Steve Seever (who will be ordained priest this summer) and Dcn. James Keating, who has been one of my favorite teachers here in the semianry. Then I received the sign of peace from all the other deacons in attendance. During the rest of Mass, the three of us newly-ordained were able to assist the Bishop as Deacons at the altar. It felt strange to be a deacon at the altar now; it will take some getting used to!

After Mass, we had a great lunch downstairs with Fr. Coning, my brother from New York State, Dave Schalk who is a great seminarian who came from Mundelein Seminary, and several friends of mine from Columbus. It was a very happy and blessed day.

Tim and Tricia Graham: Spring

Spring is a time where the world explodes with rebirth. This means that a sense of freshness and light has begun. It is at this time that I am reminded that God’s work is everywhere. His tapestry is the world: the new blossom on a tree, the morning dew on a budding flower and even the crisp breeze that brings the promise of warm weather. The awakening of the world around me brings about a re-awakening and a renewed appreciation of God.

This springtime is unique with my ten-month-old daughter who makes my heart leap for joy. Such perfection! God is so kind and merciful to grant us this beautiful gift of life! She is a constant reminder of God’s magnificence: to love unconditionally, to smile through tears, instantly forget any offense, to love God’s creatures and to see the good in all people. This is what my daughter teaches me over and over again everyday.

With the freshness of spring, my marriage is also seen fresh in the light of day. I am reminded to see my husband as I did when we dated, so we play more, laugh more and love more. The daily stresses of finances, childcare and chores around the house are forgotten, so that I can be carefree. God shows Himself to me through Tim, that is in his smile, his touch, and in the tender way he cares for Adriana. I feel God’s closeness to me and my heart is filled with happiness.

Mike Hinterschied: Mourning the Holy Father

It has certainly been a very monumental few days in the life of the Church. We are now in mourning as our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, has passed from this life and has entered into the Eternal Rest of Christ.

I first heard the news of John Paul's death Saturday afternoon. Here in the college, we were in the middle of one of our "Live-In" weekends with many young men coming to see what life is like in the seminary. Immediately upon hearing confirmations from the Vatican that the Pope had died we tolled the bells in the building, calling everyone to our college chapel.

In the chapel, on the vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday, we prayed together the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, the prayer which became known through Saint Faustina. She was given a message from the Lord of mercy that she was to spread throughout the world. We prayed for Divine Mercy on the soul of our beloved Holy Father as he makes his journey to meet Christ.

Throughout the day I realized that hardly anyone in the college remembers any other pope besides John Paul. He has been a spiritual father forever it seems to all of us 30 and under. What lies for the future of the Church, is certainly mysterious and unknown to anyone but God alone, and that can be a scary thought for us. I know I have worried at times these past few days about what will happen now in the Church.

I have been reflecting in prayer the need to continually put my trust in the Lord. Just as in the words of Saint Faustina: "Jesus, I trust in You." We all need to trust in God and especially in the Holy Spirit, praying that the Holy Spirit will burn in the minds, hearts, and lips of the cardinals as they gather this week to elect a new pontiff.