Thank you and Good bye

Everyone:

Thank you for your prayers and support over the years John and I spent in seminary formation.

I am busy learning my new assignment as the Associate Pastor of St. Monica Parish on the Northwest side of Indianapolis, west deanery. It has been a great first month. There are a lot of things going on here and St. Monica is a warm and welcoming parish. It is a wonderful place for my first assignment.

http://www.stmonicaparishindy.org

John is gearing up for his chaplaincy at Cardinal Ritter High School, also west deanery. I think he has already begun to help out as a wide receiver coach on the football team. In addition, he has already begun providing sacramental assistance at St. Malachy in Brownsburg, where he resides.

Thank you again.

This will be my LAST POST, and I believe John's as well.

May Almighty God bless you and keep, and draw you ever closer to himself, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Fr. Jeremy Gries

Benedict XVI Video Update

This is an update to the video I originally posted below. I usually tinker with my videos for a while until I really like what I've produced. I think this is the final version. At this point it is time for a new project.

So Long

This final week of our lives in the seminary has been a very strange mixture of emotions. There is the sadness of knowing that I might not ever see some of my classmates again mixed with the joy of my pending ordination and first assignment. There is the strangeness of leaving this place I have called home for the last 5.5 years mixed with the relief of crossing the finish line intact and stronger for having run the race.

Many farewell events are piled into our final week in the seminary. Last night our class had a private dinner with the 10 or 15 core faculty and staff who have been in charge of us for most of these past 5 years. It was a very lovely way to begin moving away from the relationship of teacher - student towards one of collegiality with those who formed us.

In each of our classes this past week, the professors have ended our time together with a goodbye talk and/or exhortation, and they have all been very heartfelt and very moving. As a class, we've also had the chance to thank each other personally and privately for the time we have shared together. Many of us have also been cranking out thank you notes by the truckload to all the hundreds of support staff and underclassmen here who have been so pivotal in forming us.

Saturday marks the formal conclusion to our time here with graduation. We receive a masters degree for our time here. The title is "Masters of Divinity" which always has struck me as a fairly intimidating thing to claim for one's self! After graduation, Jeremy and I both will be moving back in with our parents one last time as we make final preparations for ordination.

It is a very strange feeling to fight and claw and pray my way to the top of this mountain, and now that I receive this degree and complete my formation here at St. Meinrad, it is amazing to look back and see how many hundreds of people pushed me, kicked me, and prayed for me to get up this mountain! I think about Pope John Paul II whose time in seminary essentially involved him taking some instructions from his Archbishop in the cathedral basement hiding from the Nazis, and I become even more humbled by how many opportunities I've been afforded here at St. Meinrad. Jeremy and I both feel very blessed to have been helped so much along our way. Thank you for your prayers!

Pope Benedict Video

**** SEE NEW VERSION OF VIDEO ABOVE ****


This is a video I made using a song from Matt Maher. I downloaded the videos from beneicttv.com, which is a site which allows you to watch and/or download videos from all the major things that the pope has been up to. It is an awesome site. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the video. Pope Benedict's Papacy just began year five a few weeks ago; may God grant him many more years!

Priesthood Promises

Last night, the deacon class made priesthood promises in the presence of the Seminary community and guests. The promises were made in the context of mass. These promises are required by canon law prior to ordination and are very similiar to the promises we each made before being ordained to the deaconate. There are three declarations: 1) a declaration of freedom - that we are not being coerced by force or fear to pursue ordination; 2) A profession of Faith - that we believe what the Church teaches and proclaims; 3) an Oath of Fidelity - that we will remain faithful to the Church, our ordination and its duties, the Holy Father and our local ordinary (i.e., bishop or abbot). These declarations are a public witness to the world that we understand what we are undertaking and we are committed, for life, to strive to live out this life of Priesthood for the Church and the world. It is a witness that we, like all people, are free to choose to follow God, per our particular God given vocation. They are a testimony that permenance is still possible, and that great freedom and happiness are possible, only in the context of relationship with God and neighbor.

The text for the Declaration of Freedom:

Declaration to be made prior to the Reception of Sacred Orders According to Canon 1036 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law

I the undersigned Jeremy Michael Gries (John Joseph Hollowell) son of Robert and Kathleen Gries (Joseph and Diane Hollowell) of the Archdioces of Indianapolis having presented my petition to the Archbishop for receiving the Order of Presbyter do now, as Sacred Ordination is at hand, having diligently weighted the matter before God; testify under oath that I am not motivated by any force or fear in receiving this Sacred Order but ask for it of my own free will and choice because I believe that I am truly called by God to do so.

I assert that one and all of the duties flowing from this Sacred Order are fully knowon to me, which duties I willingly accept and propse with God's help to carry out most diligently all the days of my life.

Especially I swear that I clearly understand the implications of the law of celibacy and that I freely embrace it and will keep it faithfully with God's help until the end of my life.

Finally I faithfully swear that, according to the norms of the Sacred Canons, I shall obey most faithfully in all the matters which my superiors command and the discipline of the Church demands and that I am prepared to give a good example in word and deed, relying in hte hope that I may be rewarded by God for receiving this Order.

So I affirm, so profess, so I swear; so help me God and these holy Gospels which I touch with my hand.


Fr. Denis, the President-Rector, preached the Priesthood Promises mass. A copy of his homily can be found on his blog at: http://substancehopedfor.blogspot.com

John and I only have 2 weeks of class left. We will both graduate with our Masters of Divinity (MDiv) on Saturday, 09 May here at Meinrad. That same weekend it is hoped that our assignments will be made public.

God's blessings!
jmg

Notre Dame Continued

The controversy at Notre Dame continues, and all signs from the university are that they are in no way ashamed of their decision. I include a letter I wrote to some of the board members and sent into the Criterion. Unfortunately, they don't publish the letter of clergy members from our own Archdiocese, just priests like Fr. Daly from outside our Archdiocese. Anyway - here it is:

Notre Dame: The “Titanic” vs. “The Rock”

Despite President Jenkins wishing it to be otherwise, Notre Dame University, like all Catholic universities, is not an institution which stands outside of the umbrella of the local bishop. Is authentic freedom ever to be found apart from being in harmony with the successors of the apostles? The idea that freedom can not be achieved within the realm of adherence to the Magisterium of the Church has been shown, throughout the history of Christianity, to be not only highly erroneous but also highly dangerous. The idea that there must be people allowed to operate outside the auspices of the Magisterium of the Church is an extremely distorted understanding of authentic human freedom, and has throughout history been the position taken up by those on the doorstep of heresy.

At stake in all of this, whether those placed at her helm realize it or not, is the integrity and indeed the very existence of Notre Dame. If President Obama is given an honorary degree of law from Notre Dame, it is very likely that Notre Dame will not suffer any drastic effects immediately. However, it is possible to wreck, in the long haul, even a ship as stalwart and sturdy as Notre Dame. If Notre Dame is the Titanic, the finest ship in the fleet of institutions comprising Catholicism in the United States (and I readily admit that Notre Dame is such an institution), then it will take more than this one event to sink her. However, the Bishops of the world stand in direct succession to the Rock, St. Peter, and they fulfill the charge that Christ first laid at his feet two thousand years ago. One thing I know for certain is that if the “Titanic” and the “Rock” continue to run into one another, it is the Titanic which will sink, and not the other way around. The Rock cannot sink because it has been welded, by the Blood of Christ, to the very foundation of the world. If “the gates of Hell shall not prevail against” the Rock per the promise of Jesus, I doubt Notre Dame will succeed either. Notre Dame is in perilous waters, and its captain seems to be relishing the role of steering the ship on a course such that it is repeatedly smashing into the Rock, and it seems that the breech of the ship’s hull might soon occur. Notre Dame has a long and storied and very Catholic history, and She has done incalculable good for the Catholic Church throughout the United States and indeed the world. However, Christ said “Upon this Rock I will build My Church,” and not “Upon this university I will build My Church.” I pray Notre Dame and her captain and crew always humbly seek to work with the Church, steering a course in truth; a course not guided by the pride which can arise from being in charge of the most impressive ship in the fleet.

If Notre Dame continues to steer a different course, may we (no matter how much we love Notre Dame, and no matter how bad it hurts to leave her) all have the courage to flee for the life boats and abandon ship.

Holy Thursday - Mass of the Lord's Supper

Hi All:

I know, I'm terrible at posting to this. Thankfully, John is much better and diligent about it or the blog would be blank. My apologies.

I had the opportunity to deacon and preach at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis with the Archbishop last night. It was a beautiful service. I was most touched by the humble nature of service that the Archbishop portrayed as he washed the feet of twelve representatives from the Cathedral's parish. He poured the water over their feet, dried them, and then kissed each one. It was a great witness to the type of priesthood I soon hope to join, one of service to others.

Below is my homily from the mass.

Looking up around the table full of his disciples, his beloved, his hand-picked followers and soon to be messengers to the world, the first priests, Jesus got up, removed his outer garment, and wrapped himself in a towel. Methodically, He worked his way around the table. Moving his basin and pitcher from disciple to disciple, He gently and tenderly took each one’s feet in his sacred hands, caressed them, and bathed them with water. Kneeling there, He lovingly looked into each of their eyes and then washed their feet. These disciples, whom Jesus had called to himself and with whom he had traveled, taught, and taken care of, these men Jesus called friends. And He washed the feet of all 12.

Progressing around that table, Jesus reached Judas. Their eyes met. They could read each other. They could see into each other’s soul. Judas could recall in an instant the past three years: the numerous miracles, the healing of the lame, blind, and mute, the driving out of demons, the walking on water, the calming of a storm with a word, the crowds of followers that seemed constantly to be gathering around to listen to Jesus’ teachings, the multiplication of loaves and fish to feed thousands, the quiet nights around campfires when it was just Jesus and the disciples, the exhilaration of being one of the selected twelve, the feelings of pride and triumph when he had entered Jerusalem with Jesus just a few days before to the cheers of ‘Hosanna in the highest; Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’ Judas could see it all right there. He knew who Jesus was; and yet, he could not accept it. It showed in his eyes. Yet, he allowed Jesus to serve him. Judas sat there patiently as the holy Passover meal, what was in fact Jesus’ Last Supper with his beloved twelve, took place, all the while harboring wickedness and evil in his heart. He had the nerve to ask Jesus, “Is it I, Lord?” He allowed those hands which broke the bread of the New Covenant, which would soon bear the marks of nails that Judas would help place, to cleanse the grime from his feet. He looked down on Jesus, not just from his seated position, but from his sinful position of pride. Judas allowed the ‘Lord of all’ to serve him by cleansing his feet.

In our own ways, we are all Judas. Have we not seen the wonders of God in our own lives?!? We have been graced with life… with food, water, and shelter… with family and friends. All we have, all we are, all is gift. Daily, we experience this love, these blessings, the gifts God pours out upon us packed down and flowing over. With our own eyes, we have seen the miracles Jesus has worked in our lives. And yet… singly and as a society, we betray our neighbor. We cheat God. We turn loved ones into enemies. We fight. We argue. We deceive. We take more than we need. We live beyond our means. We allow fear and aggression to flow freely. We place ourselves, our opinions, our wicked desires, above the teachings of love and service to God. We fall short of the lives to which we know we are called, as we continue in sin. Like Judas, we have experienced Christ, the Messiah. We even have the added benefit of knowing ‘how the story ended.’ We know that Jesus rose on the third day and is alive. Yet, we still – one and all – cut our own deals, turn our backs, and sneak around in the shadows. All too often, we are Judas expecting to have our feet washed, expecting to be served, arrogant and prideful.

The devil having already induced Judas to betray the Lord, Jesus also knew what Judas was about. The trajectory was set, and Jesus knew the actions Judas had set in motion. He knew about the 30 pieces of silver weighing Judas down like a mill-stone. He knew of the ironic kiss of peace that would lead to betrayal. Jesus knew. And knowing, He thoughtfully extended his hands and took up Judas’ feet to wash and bathe them. One can imagine that Jesus might have taken just a bit more care with those feet that had walked to the Sanhedrin to cut a deal. One can imagine, perhaps, a tear or two being mixed in with the water that washed the dirt and filth of the dusty Jerusalem streets off those feet. Jesus looked his friend in the eye knowing full-well the imminent doom to be perpetrated, and he served him. Jesus, the Lord, the King, the true Messiah that Judas was indeed looking for in his own ignorant way, attended to Judas’ needs in humble submission, just as he had served every other sinner around that table. Jesus looked with love, concern, and I suspect a bit of disappointment at Judas, but Jesus treated him as one of the twelve. ‘For, Jesus loved his own in the world, and He loved them to the end,’ even when, his own, included the one, who was to be his betrayer, his enemy, the traitor. Jesus, kneeling there on that upper-room floor, poured water over Judas’ feet.

Jesus said, “ I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.” This is the wonder of that night in the upper room. Jesus not only gave us the model of our worship, the gathering together for word and table, for the Gospel and the Blessed Sacrament, the institution of the Eucharist. Jesus not only gave us the witness to serve others less fortunate than ourselves. No, the model given here shows that we must allow the love of God and neighbor to overwhelm us, to consume us, to be our all, even to the point of loving, caring for, and sacrificing for the one who wills us the most harm, our most fervent enemy, that person who cannot stand or tolerate us with their whole beings or vice versa. That is the model, the message, the mission we have this evening, for the whole of our lives. Jesus tells Peter, “What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later.” It is only when we can wash the feet of even our worst foe in wholehearted authentic love that we too will begin to understand what Jesus has done for us.

I hope everyone has had a prayerful Lent, a holy 'Holy Week', and a blessed Easter.

Pax Christi,
jmg

Meeting with the Archbishop

Archbishop Buechlein, in a very gracious move, spent three days this past week at St. Meinrad meeting with each individual seminarian for about an hour each. Not many dioceses have a bishop willing to do something like that, so we were really excited about it.

For Jeremy and I, the focus was not so much on our seminary lives (since we have four more weeks at St. Meinrad) as it was on where we might end up as priests. The Archbishop is also very kind in trying to work with his priests in figuring out where everyone will end up each year. Trying to make all those puzzle pieces fit each year is not a task I am envious of!

We should know sometime in the next month or so where we will probably end up as priests. For now, conversation will continue to take place among the decision makers, and Jeremy and I both offer it up to God!

Spring Break!

Spring Break has begun at St. Meinrad! Spring Break is always a two week break for us, but it actually is a fairly busy time as well.

For at least five days, every seminarian must make a personal and directed retreat at some point before the Chrism Mass (Tuesday before Easter). For the Triduum (Holy Thursday - Good Friday - Easter Vigil) every seminarian is expected to be in their parish serving the liturgies.

The Triduum is the high point of the Church's year, and I invite all of us to try and make it the high point of our own personal year as well. I've found that the more I put into the Triduum, the more I get out of it. It can be an amazing experience if we enter into it with joy and sincerity. God bless all of you during this holiest of weeks which is coming upon us next week!

Notre Dame Scandal

I have been a fan of Notre Dame since I can remember. I can still see in my mind the first time I got to visit the campus when I was about 9 years old. I knew there was something special about the place even then. I grew up watching Notre Dame football and wanting to play there (until I realized I had no shot!). My mom let my brother Matt and me stay in the car and miss the beginning of 5:30 Mass so that we could listen to the end of the miracle game of 1993 when Notre Dame beat undefeated and number 1 in the country Florida State. My Mom said she felt guilty until she saw the holiest man in the parish - Frank Svarzkopf - walk into Church at the same time Matt and I did! It was the only time we ever were allowed to miss the beginning of Mass.

All of that love for Notre Dame is gone today.

Notre Dame has offered an invitation to President Barak Obama to speak at commencement this May. That, in and of itself, would be a violation of the Bishops' of the U.S., who in 2004 issued a statement denying specifically CATHOLIC COLLEGES from providing platforms for any politician who takes openly hostile approaches to Church teaching. Not only has Notre Dame spat in the face of the Bishops on this issue, what is an even bigger joke is the fact that they are presenting him with an HONORARY LAW DEGREE. The man who is working to rewrite the very rule of law in our country on abortion, the man who is working to see to it that every doctor in the country MUST provide abortion on demand, no matter what their personal stance on the issue is, the man who has cleared the way for federal funding to be used throughout the world on abortions and contraceptives - that man IS GOING TO HAVE A DEGREE OF LAW FROM A CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY HANGING IN THE OVAL OFFICE!!

Seminarians at St. Meinrad and Catholics around the country are letting the university of Notre Dame hear their voices. This is a disgrace, and I will never again offer my support or cheer for or put the slightest interest into anything that occurs on or stems from the University of Notre Dame until this action is either publicly rescinded or, if they go through with it, until a sincere, thorough and public apology is issued to the Catholics of this country.

An online petition is being signed which has over 200,000 names attached. Add your name at www.notredamescandal.com
Or, even better, write president Jenkins a letter. It costs 42 cents, but it is so effective in the fact that it is hand written - and everybody reads notes sent to them by hand.

New Constitution

A few weeks ago, the seminarians at St. Meinrad voted to approve a new constitution which will regulate how student representation is handled. Jeremy and myself, along with the other class representatives, helped lead the student body through the process. At the heart of the change was a desire to make the seminary operate more like a parish given that the rector (Fr. Denis Robinson) has offered to meet with student leadership once a month.

Many drafts, revisions, and meetings took place before the document was finally approved. It was an interesting process for both Jeremy and myself, and I think we both learned a lot in the process that will serve us well as priests.

Holy Week

Jeremy and I know our Holy Week assignments for this year.

For Holy Thursday Jeremy will be one of the deacons at the Cathedral with the Archbishop. Jeremy will also have the honor of giving the homily at that Mass. I will be at Nativity, I believe giving the homily at Nativity. I am very excited about that, as I'm sure Jeremy is as well, because Holy Thursday is the celebration of Christ giving us the Eucharist and also the priesthood. As we will both be about two months away from becoming priests, I think it will be a tremendous privilege to preach about the priesthood.

On Good Friday, we'll both be at Nativity.

For the Easter Vigil, I will be one of the deacons at the Cathedral. I will be chanting the Exultet, which is an ancient Christian hymn which essentially begins the Easter Vigil liturgy, just following the holy fire. Jeremy will be the deacon at Nativity, and will be chanting the Exultet at Nativity.

Both of us should be at one or both of the liturgies on Easter morning at Nativity.

May we all hold one another and Nativity parish in prayer during this wonderful season of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, and may this time allow all of us to strip away habits and hurdles that prevent us from drawing nearer to our Lord!

God bless,
Dcn. John Hollowell

Lent and Waiting For Our Assignments

Well, it is Lent. Our Holy Father has a fantastic and short reflection to kick off Lent 2009 which I think is definitely worth a read. It can be found at:
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/lent/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20081211_lent-2009_en.html

Lent for us here at St. Meinrad is off and running. Since we don't have classes on Wednesday anyways, Ash Wednesday is always converted into a day of prayer for us seminarians such that we all stay here instead of going to our ministry assignments.

This year's Ash Wednesday day of prayer was toned down from past years. In the past, it felt like at times that we were more busy during our "day of prayer" running from one event to the next, but this year was very calm and reflective. It will likely be our last chance for an Ash Wednesday like that for a long time. Ash Wednesday is supposedly the third most well attended day after Easter and Christmas in most Catholic parishes. Anyways, most of us took advantage of the day and grew in prayer.

May your lent be blessed!

Jeremy and I are now awaiting very anxiously and excitedly for our first assignments. Probably in about a month we'll know where we will be assigned for our first year of priesthood. It is very exciting to be sitting here not knowing quite literally where in the world I will be next year. I think I will probably be in one of the Catholic high schools in the Archdiocese, but there is no garauntee on anything with regards to assignments. Please pray for us as we get ready to transition to the next phase of our lives.

A New Paint Job

First of all, sorry it has been so long! We've been busy with things here at school, but it is good to be posting again!

Two weekends ago, I (John) went to visit a good friend of mine, Father Jonathon Meyer, who is now the pastor of two parishes near Seymour. St. Joseph's and St. Anne's in North Vernon are his two parishes. St. Anne's just finished renovating the interior of their church, and Father asked if I would come and deacon the Masses with him for the weekend.

The Mass at St. Anne's was beautiful, and the parishoners were rightly very proud of their newly renovated interior. Mass was actually celebrated ad orientem, otherwise known as everyone, including the priest and servers, facing east, the direction that Christian prayer has been carried out for the last 2000 years. It was my first time deaconing a Mass facing the altar, but it was very beautiful. I'd often heard the phrase growing up that "before the Second Vatican Council, the priest celebrated Mass with his back to the people." I've been reading Pope Benedict and others on the topic, and I've since realized that in none of the language or documents of the council does it ever say that Mass is to be celebrated with the priest "facing the people" and in fact the sacramentary that we use today says in several places "the priest turns to face the people and says..." Anyway, I hope that the Church continues to examine which changes that have arisen since the council were actually called for and which were simply added in a rush to change things by those not actually at the council.

Anyways, here are some pictures from inside the newly repainted and restored St. Anne's parish.

Meinrad Hoops

This past weekend marked the end of my six year career on the basketball team for the St. Meinrad Ravens. Yes, that is correct, we have a basketball team. Every year, the Knights of Columbus in Chicago put on a basketball tournament for all of the seminaries in the Midwest. It is really an amazingly great time. I still remember my first year thinking it would be a big joke, but then I saw someone dunk in a game, and I realized that there was some good competition out there.

My first two years, we were pretty much the doormats of the tournament. Then we picked up a few good players from Owensboro my third year, and we went on to win the whole thing in a Hoosiersesque run to the title.

This year, we finished second place. We beat some really good teams on the way to second place. We were winning the championship game at half time, but we couldn't pull out the W.

The best tradition of the whole weekend, though, has always been the spaghetti dinner at my parents' house on the way back to St. Meinrad. This year was no different. My mom fed an army for one last time, although the team is in negotiations to stop by again after next year's tourney, even though I won't be playing anymore.

Anyways, the tourney is probably another one of those things people wouldn't think goes on in the seminary, so I thought I'd share the story with all of you.

God bless,
Dcn. John H

March For Life

Last Thursday, almost all of our seminary traveled out to Washington D.C. for the annual March for Life. The March is an absolutely amazing event and if any of you ever get the chance to go you should definitely join a trip! It is the largest gathering of Catholics, and it really affirms people young and old in their faith. There are Masses all weekend long with Cardinals and Bishops all over town. The night before the March, the Vigil Mass for Life is held in the Basilica Church in Washington D.C. You can watch it on EWTN every year. It is an unbelievably awesome liturgy. There are usually about 5 cardinals present and there are always tons of priests and deacons as well. There is quite literally no room to move, as young people are in the basilica like sardines. The fire chief must take the night off every year!

The day of the March, the Archbishop usually celebrates a Mass in the Basilica's Crypt for all of the youth of the Archdiocese. There were about 700 attendees at this year's Mass. I was fortunate enough to be able to deacon the Mass this year, which was really special.

After Mass, marchers congregate on the National Mall for a few hours as special speakers, senators, congressman etc. speak out against the Roe vs. Wade decision. In the past, President Bush would phone in every year. Not surprisingly, the new administration was not as hospitable towards the pro-life movement. The most impressive part of the rally, though, is the presence of all the women who silently hold signs on the stage and throughout the audience that say "I regret my abortion." It really is an amazing witness.

The March itself is fairly short, lasting only about 1 mile. Mostly the youth pray and carry banners. The March ends on the steps of the Supreme Court. Although it is short, it lasts upwards of about 2 hours because there are so many people marching. The usual turnout is around 500,000 - 750,000 people.

On a related note, the following video is a message about life that aired all day on BET the day our current president was sworn in. The people who put it together are trying to raise enough money to put it on during the Super Bowl. Check out the thirty second spot at www.CatholicVote.org

God bless!
Dcn. John Hollowell

My Nativity Homily

It was a pleasure to come back to Nativity and preach on vocations. I also really enjoyed talking with the youth at school and also at the religious education classes on Sunday morning. I really wanted to commend the catechists who offer their time and talent to teach the youngsters every week. I also wanted to commend all the youth who show up to learn about their faith every week. It was really inspiring to see so many young people at the religious education classes. Anyway, here is my homily, as best as I can remember. I actually preached off of a fairly sparse outline, so I tried to type it up for Jeremy because he didn't want to repeat anything I said. Once I typed it up, I though I mine as well post it if anyone wants to read it. Thanks again for being such a loving congregation; it was very easy to preach to so many smiling and attentive faces. God bless!

Dcn. John H

The Baptism of the Lord - Vocations Awareness Week

I’m pretty pleased, this morning, I got my homily down to 42 minutes, so I think I’m getting the hang of this preaching thing.

It is a pleasure to be back here at Nativity. This weekend, we begin what is known as vocations awareness week. Probably not a date on most peoples’ calendars, but nonetheless a very important week for our Church universal, and our own parish.

Today’s readings give us a good focus for which to think about vocations awareness. The first reading is from Isaiah’s servant song, a section where Isaiah speaks of the anticipated Christ, and also, we can say then he longs for those who carry out Christ’s ministry today.

The Gospel is the baptism of Jesus, which is from the first chapter of Mark, so in Mark’s Gospel, the Baptism is in a very real way the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, which takes me back to an ordination or a marriage where a person begins to live publicly a life which they have been preparing for for many years.

I was speaking with Sr. Theresa Clare and Sr. Marie Grace a few months ago about how a lot of the orders of sisters are decreasing. I asked them why they thought the numbers were decreasing. They said a lot of the women they speak with feel that now they don’t need to be sisters in order to accomplish work within the church. These women felt that there was no need to be a sister because they can now teach, work in hospitals, etc. I thought how sad that was, but also how that really captures the climate that we are in now today. The idea that what I took away from having the sisters in class was multiplication tables or state capitals is crazy. The things they taught me were definitely important, and I received a great education here at Nativity, but the value of being taught by the sisters was what they represented to us, their living out of their vow in front of our very eyes, that is what was important about having them in class.

There are 2 sacraments of vocation – marriage and holy orders, and I can say from personal experience that it is a great gift to have these two sacraments which hold each other in balance. I know for me, having friends who are getting married and having children now, getting to watch them live out their marriages through sacrifice and recommitment, each morning waking up and recommitting themselves to each other. Sometimes if I’ve had a long day of meetings or classes, and I think I’ve had it tough, I think about the difficulties that my friends are living out in their vocation, and that inspires me to recommit myself to my vows. The interesting thing too is that they don’t ever realize the significance of their marriages and the sign value and the witness that some attach to their marriage. Likewise, my friends tell me that I’m a sign of hope to them as well, and likewise, I don’t walk around during the day thinking about how I’m a witness to others in my vocation. And so, each side, those married and those living out a religious vocation, are really inspired by the other, and there is balance and beauty in that.

Throughout the Bible, individuals and also communities are compared to trees or vines. The good trees are nourished by the gardener, and the bad ones are cut down and burned. I think that is a good analogy for vocations. What kind of marriages and priests and sisters is a community sending out into the world? What fruit are we bearing as a tree?

I have three very short suggestions of things we can do. 1) Pray. I know people think “well, he is supposed to say that.” However, it is Jesus’ only advice about vocations when he says “pray that the master of the harvest will send workers into the harvest.” So at your meal prayers, during the day, or maybe at night before you go to bed, pray a quick prayer that God will send us many holy vocations. 2) If you see someone who would be a good priest, tell them that. That seems to be the one common thread among all of the vocation stories I’ve heard is that when guys start discerning the priesthood, they can always recall times when people told them they should have been a priest. A teenager might think you’re crazy if you say something like that, but, then again, they’re going to think you’re crazy anyways, so you mine as well get a vocations plug in there as well. I can still remember in 5th grade when Kelly Hannigan told me I should be a priest. I don’t remember much from 5th grade, as good a job as Rose Haltom did, so I thought it was strange that I could remember that incident with great detail. Also, when I was at Mass with my aunt, during what she deemed to be an especially bad homily, don’t worry, it wasn’t you Fr. Pat, she leaned over to me and said, “you need to be a priest.”

The third thing I leave you with is the need to be open as a family to the idea of our children becoming sisters and priests. I’ve met a lot of guys in the seminary who come from good Catholic families but nonetheless met a lot of resistance from their families in pursuing the priesthood. I can’t help but think about how truly sad that is. It doesn’t take much. People always ask me what my parents did to trick me into becoming a priest, and I tell them it was very simple. We always gather to plan the weeks travel arrangements for practices, and I recall very clearly, on just a few occasions, my dad saying, “ you know if any of you would ever consider becoming a priest or a religious sister, we’d support you in that.” I pray that we may all be open as families to our own children pursuing the priesthood and religious life.

Nativity is a special place. I try and tell people about it all the time. My best friends are people I went to grade school with here. I’m not sure what makes it so special, maybe it is that we’re still on well water. Whatever it is, I’ve always experienced Nativity as a fruitful and nurturing place. May the Eucharist we are about to receive, and the Eucharist that we receive every Sunday nourish us as individuals and as a parish community, so that Nativity can continue to be that fruitful vine.

We're Coming To Preach

Jeremy and I are both coming back the next two weekends to give the Sunday homilies at Nativity. This coming Sunday kicks off "Vocations Awareness Week" in the United States. Since Jeremy will be out of town, I am going to be giving the homilies this weekend. Jeremy will be in town next weekend, and will be preaching at all of the Masses that weekend to wrap up the week. Hopefully our time at Nativity will bear fruit in the future. Please pray for us as we prepare for our homilies.

Dcn. John H