The Path I've Chosen

“If you wish to make any progress in the service of God, we must begin everyday of our life with new ardor.” ~St. Charles Borromeo

The Path I’ve Chosen
 
In every life that is lived, there is a journey shared and a story told. In Christian faith, the backdrop of our story is our salvation in Jesus Christ. We do not make life’s journey alone as many accompany us along the way. There are countless lessons to be learned through the days, the weeks, the months and the years of our lives as they unravel through the stages of our journey that extend from birth - through family upbringing, classroom education, to our life’s vocation. The word ‘vocation’ is derived from the Latin, vocare, meaning, “to call”, which refers to a personal or collective summons by God. Everyone has a vocation or a calling from God to share in His saving purpose.

Our basic and primary call, is to that of faith and we respond to the love and the grace of God. No vocation happens in a vacuum. It is God who initiates the call and the human person responds in faith through God’s gratuitous grace. We, in turn, participate in God’s life which is totally gratuitous. It is nothing that we have earned, nothing that we deserve or nothing that we can accomplish without being beneficiaries of His love. “I have come in order that you may life—life in all its fullness.” ~John 10:10

We are called to be agents and instruments of His love, mediating it to others. Christian holiness, love and maturity cannot be mastered in a season, a decade or even in a jubilee year. It is the work of a lifetime, and then some. In every journey in life, through the varied landscapes of life, there are good times and bad times, plusses and minuses, virtues and vices, peaks and valleys, joys and sorrows, triumphs and defeats, successes and failures, twists and turns, laughter and tears, light and darkness. Life comes at us in surprisingly paradoxical ways, challenging us to embrace the Paschal path and to connect ourselves step by step with the truth of what it means to be fully human and fully Christian. This pilgrimage of faith recalls the deepest experience of human life: Resurrection’s victory over death, love’s victory over injustice and healing’s victory over pain.

Every person is inspired to make a difference along their journey, that makes a lasting impression, that leaves an indelible mark on the lives of others. No story or journey should ever be forgotten. It’s worth savoring, cherishing and sharing with others. “The glory of God is revealed in a human being who is fully alive.” ~St. Irenaeus of Lyons.

At a young age, I felt the hand of God in my own life, gently nudging and tugging at my heart. I was inspired by priests, religious mentors and models who had given their lives for Christ and His Church. Their example and witness excited and ignited a fire in me to explore more deeply a vocation to the priesthood. During my years in high school I explored the path to priesthood by spending more time in quiet solitude, reading and meditating on the Bible, attending discernment weekends and retreats, detaching from worldly attractions and strengthening my prayer life. Because I received great love from my parents’ example of faith and our family life, I learned to sacrifice and share that very love, which culminated in a desire to give that same love away, with a passionate desire to know Jesus Christ and follow Him, wholeheartedly.

In discerning the ebb and flow of my desires over time, I chose a particular way of life - giving up other alternatives such as a spouse and family, believing that sacrifices are necessary to love as God calls us to love. I discovered who I wanted to be and what I wanted to do with my life as Jesus laid claim to all my heart’s love.

In seeking this way of life I knew there would be challenges, vulnerabilities, constant demands and expectations as well as rewards. Because we are human beings first, we seek and long for relationships, for intimacy, acceptance and affirmation that lead to pathways of friendship and love. The priest’s love is all-inclusive. This mysterious love calls the priest to embrace celibacy, as a charism of the priesthood, which allows the priest a more wholehearted commitment to the pastoral care of all the faithful. The priest is called to holy, healthy and happy relationships, which includes parishioners and those entrusted to his care. Celibacy is a gift and a learned discipline. It is not an abstract or absent way of loving, but instead genuine and all encompassing.

As a priest, the greatest need is for loving interpersonal relationships that do not come to an end, but instead, extend unto eternity. As a priest, I long to unite with people and merge with their lives, joining them and accompanying them as my own person, independent and autonomous, in order to give myself to Christ’s Mystical Bride, the Church. And it is with respect, appreciation and gratitude that I accept this way of life to shepherd God’s people.

My father always said that no matter what you do in life you have to do it each day, so you’d better love what you’re doing and not just go through the motions. At the age of 18, Mom said, “Why don’t you give the seminary a try? Whether you’re called to it or not, God will show you the way.”

Every journey is marked by milestones. At age 33, the age that Christ suffered and died, I ran a marathon, and at age 50, the half-century mark, I began writing a book. Some priests build churches and schools; some are cardinals, bishops and monsignors; some are administrators, chancellors, school principals, college professors, high school teachers and Biblical scholars; some are missionaries, airport, hospital or prison chaplains; some work in the seminary, some are rectors of cathedrals, spiritual directors and some work with Canon Law; some are in religious orders; some are retreat masters or media personalities; others are composers, authors, poets and writers. My heart’s only desire has been to serve as a parish priest. “The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus.” ~ St. John Vianney

May the Church be built up first and foremost always in the hearts of the people. On the day of my ordination I was configured to Christ, the High Priest, into whose image and likeness I must grow more and more each and every day of my life.