September 7, 2004
Tuesday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time 9/7/04
One thing section I always read in the St. Louis Review is the “Archbishop’s Appointments.” Not the Archbishop’s Schedule, that’s something else. His appointments are the comings and goings of priests and deacons. It’s kind of like reading the obituary every morning to make sure your name isn’t there. I want to be sure he’s not sending me somewhere else.
In Friday’s review, there was this one-sentence entry:
“Rev. Brian A. Kennebeck, at his own request, is granted a leave of absence from the active priestly ministry, effective Aug. 31, 2004.”
That’s it. One sentence. When Brian was ordained, just two years ago, his picture was on the front page of this same newspaper. His ordination was the topic of Cardinal Rigali’s column the week before. His ordination was a great celebration. There’s nothing quite like an ordination at our Cathedral. 2002 was a good year. Five men were ordained on that Saturday in May. Now, two years later, one of them has requested to be relieved of his priestly ministry.
I know a lot of priests. But, Fr. Kennebeck was the first person I ever knew who became a priest. Brian was a member of the Young Catholic Musicians. I knew him and his family, though not well, from the time he was a teenager. They were a very devout family and it wasn’t a surprise to learn that Brian was headed to the seminary.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus chooses His twelve Apostles. I don’t know, but I can imagine that it must have been very hard to tell Jesus “no” when He was present on this earth. He chose Peter and Andrew, James, John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James, and the two Judases (Judai?), one the son of James and the other Judas Iscariot. He looked them in the eye and said “I want you”, like the old World War II recruiting posters with Uncle Sam pointing his finger. How could they say “no”.
Today it’s different. Jesus speaks to us in more subtle ways. I have a friend who swears Jesus woke him up in the middle of the night and told him He wanted him to become a deacon. For most of the rest of us, it’s not that easy. If we’re not paying attention, we can miss Jesus’ call altogether.
We all know there’s a shortage of priests in the church. They say there’s a shortage of vocations. Jesus isn’t calling people like He used to. I don’t believe that. I think He’s still calling, we just aren’t listening.
He’s not just calling priests, deacons and religious. He’s calling all of us for something. It may be to be husbands and wives, it may be to be parents. It could be to serve our country in the armed forces, or it could be for some other career. He may be calling us to be in the choir or on the parish council. But he IS calling each of us for something. He’s doing it all the time.
So, as difficult as it is sometimes to discern what Jesus is asking of us, it’s easy to miss the call. We may miss it, or we may think He’s asking us to something that He really isn’t.
Priests spend nine years in the seminary. Deacons spend five years in formation. That’s usually enough time to decide if you’re making the right choice. Sometimes it isn’t.
Future priests spend nine years learning how to be shepherds of the flock. They study theology, liturgy and canon law. Then they’re put in a parish where they’re expected to run a business, sometimes a multi-million dollar business. They have to be human resource managers. They have to be labor negotiators. They have to deal with contractors. They have to shovel snow and put up Christmas decorations. And, guess what? We expect them to be perfect. The buck stops there. The Archbishop holds them responsible for everything that happens in the parish. So do we. If they’re not perfect, we let them know about it.
Is it really a surprise that so many young men hear Jesus calling and convince themselves that it’s a wrong number? “He can’t be talking to me. It’s just my imagination. I could never be a priest. How can I live without a wife and family?”
So many calls go unanswered and occasionally one IS answered that doesn’t work out. From so much promise and so much potential, it all ends up with a one sentence entry in the Catholic newspaper that most people never see.
As we prepare to receive the Body of Christ, let us pray for all young people who may be hearing Jesus’ voice and for all those who have answered the call. It’s not nearly so easy as it was when He looked the twelve men in the eye and said, “Come, follow me.”
One thing section I always read in the St. Louis Review is the “Archbishop’s Appointments.” Not the Archbishop’s Schedule, that’s something else. His appointments are the comings and goings of priests and deacons. It’s kind of like reading the obituary every morning to make sure your name isn’t there. I want to be sure he’s not sending me somewhere else.
In Friday’s review, there was this one-sentence entry:
“Rev. Brian A. Kennebeck, at his own request, is granted a leave of absence from the active priestly ministry, effective Aug. 31, 2004.”
That’s it. One sentence. When Brian was ordained, just two years ago, his picture was on the front page of this same newspaper. His ordination was the topic of Cardinal Rigali’s column the week before. His ordination was a great celebration. There’s nothing quite like an ordination at our Cathedral. 2002 was a good year. Five men were ordained on that Saturday in May. Now, two years later, one of them has requested to be relieved of his priestly ministry.
I know a lot of priests. But, Fr. Kennebeck was the first person I ever knew who became a priest. Brian was a member of the Young Catholic Musicians. I knew him and his family, though not well, from the time he was a teenager. They were a very devout family and it wasn’t a surprise to learn that Brian was headed to the seminary.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus chooses His twelve Apostles. I don’t know, but I can imagine that it must have been very hard to tell Jesus “no” when He was present on this earth. He chose Peter and Andrew, James, John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James, and the two Judases (Judai?), one the son of James and the other Judas Iscariot. He looked them in the eye and said “I want you”, like the old World War II recruiting posters with Uncle Sam pointing his finger. How could they say “no”.
Today it’s different. Jesus speaks to us in more subtle ways. I have a friend who swears Jesus woke him up in the middle of the night and told him He wanted him to become a deacon. For most of the rest of us, it’s not that easy. If we’re not paying attention, we can miss Jesus’ call altogether.
We all know there’s a shortage of priests in the church. They say there’s a shortage of vocations. Jesus isn’t calling people like He used to. I don’t believe that. I think He’s still calling, we just aren’t listening.
He’s not just calling priests, deacons and religious. He’s calling all of us for something. It may be to be husbands and wives, it may be to be parents. It could be to serve our country in the armed forces, or it could be for some other career. He may be calling us to be in the choir or on the parish council. But he IS calling each of us for something. He’s doing it all the time.
So, as difficult as it is sometimes to discern what Jesus is asking of us, it’s easy to miss the call. We may miss it, or we may think He’s asking us to something that He really isn’t.
Priests spend nine years in the seminary. Deacons spend five years in formation. That’s usually enough time to decide if you’re making the right choice. Sometimes it isn’t.
Future priests spend nine years learning how to be shepherds of the flock. They study theology, liturgy and canon law. Then they’re put in a parish where they’re expected to run a business, sometimes a multi-million dollar business. They have to be human resource managers. They have to be labor negotiators. They have to deal with contractors. They have to shovel snow and put up Christmas decorations. And, guess what? We expect them to be perfect. The buck stops there. The Archbishop holds them responsible for everything that happens in the parish. So do we. If they’re not perfect, we let them know about it.
Is it really a surprise that so many young men hear Jesus calling and convince themselves that it’s a wrong number? “He can’t be talking to me. It’s just my imagination. I could never be a priest. How can I live without a wife and family?”
So many calls go unanswered and occasionally one IS answered that doesn’t work out. From so much promise and so much potential, it all ends up with a one sentence entry in the Catholic newspaper that most people never see.
As we prepare to receive the Body of Christ, let us pray for all young people who may be hearing Jesus’ voice and for all those who have answered the call. It’s not nearly so easy as it was when He looked the twelve men in the eye and said, “Come, follow me.”
posted by Mike at 7:49 PM
1 Comments:
Hi, Mike,
Every now and then I google my name, and this time your blog showed up in the top 5. I was quite interested to see what was written about me, especially because it is almost 4 years to the day that my leave of absence took effect.
I like your entry. Discerning to take a leave was the most difficult decision of my young life. Subsequently, discerning whether or not to return has been even more heart wrenching for me and for others. I agree that it would have been so much better if He were here, looking me in the eye and giving me a direct invitation.
I appreciate your sensitivity to the discernment process. Keep up the good work!
Brian
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