When Will Polio Be Eradicated???

Not quite making the front page of the newspaper, but headline news on page 5, nonetheless, is the report of outbreaks of polio in Syria and Iraq.  Polio.  A disease that has been preventable since the mid-1950s.  Why has it not been completely eradicated from the earth?  Why?  Why?  Why?

I am a polio survivor — twice.  The first time I contracted this horrendous disease, I had celebrated my fifth birthday just a month earlier.  Springtime.  April showers . . . .  Flowers blooming.  Trees blossoming before leafing out in varying shades of green.  Easter.  My brother’s 13th birthday.

My brother’s birthday is April 12 and we had celebrated Easter just a few days prior to this momentous day when David became a teenager.  On Easter Sunday, our family had gone to Mass — as we did every Sunday — and then gathered with aunts, uncles, and cousins for an Easter egg hunt and a traditional Easter dinner.  Because I was so young, I have only vague memories but I do remember one of my cousins asking me why I didn’t want to hunt for chocolate Easter bunnies.  As my mother told the story, I was lethargic and clingy that day.  By the time we returned home later in the afternoon, I was running a fever — a high fever.  None of the other children were sick, and to ensure that my brothers and sisters did not catch whatever bug I had come down with, my mom put me to bed.

David’s birthday was a few days later and my fever had not broken.  Plans for a 13th birthday party were postponed while I was taken to the hospital where I was diagnosed as having polio.  The family was quarantined.  Mom was terrified her youngest child might die or be permanently crippled; she was terrified her older children would also become ill.  Thank God, I was the only one who did get sick.

April 12, 1955 — a date my family will never forget, along with hundreds of thousands of other families with young children at the time.  April 12, 1955, was the day, at a press conference at the University of Michigan, that the Salk poliovirus vaccine trials were announced a success.   April 12, 1955, was my brother, David’s, 13th birthday.  April 12, 1955 was the day I was diagnosed with polio.  Polio is something I rarely discuss — it is painful, both physically and emotionally.  However, polio became a part of who I am, and surviving it influenced many of the decisions I have made as an adult.

Yes, I am disabled. I recovered from that initial bout of polio, tossing the crutches and braces in the trash by the time I was 10.  Other than one leg being slightly shorter than the other, I had no noticble residual effects of the polio. By inserting a lift in my shoe, no one was the wiser that I had ever been sick. I could run and play with my friends, my cousins, my siblings. I could climb trees, I could ski, I played baseball on my high school and college teams.  Polio did not hold me back or slow me down.  Until I got sick again.  I had been living in Eastern Europe where polio had not been completely eradicated.  This time, I didn’t recover quite as well as the first time. I couldn’t walk without assistance, I couldn’t run and play, I couldn’t ski, I couldn’t climb trees.  I needed to use a wheelchair.

My health has improved significantly since that second bout of polio.  I use a wheelchair, but I am able to walk with the aid of braces and crutches.  I ski on a mono-ski, I play wheelchair basketball, I “run” in 5K and 10K charity races, and I have been known to “hike” accessible mountain trails.

Now, as we approach the 60th anniversary of the Salk Poliovirus Vaccine Trials, polio is still prevalent in some third world, war-torn countries.  Children growing up in Syria fear for their lives as bombs explode around them.  Children growing up in Syria are hungry and homeless because of terrorism. Children growing up in Syria are contracting polio — a disease that could have been eradicated from Earth half a century ago.  Polio workers in Pakistan have been targeted by the Taliban and murdered — while vaccinating children.  Because of the threats to their lives, many volunteers have stopped working.  Even the police, who are committed to protecting the workers, fear for their lives. According to The Rotary Club’s campaign End Polio Now, only three countries remain endemic to polio.  Southeast Asia was recently declared polio free.  With your help, this devastating disease can finally find its way into the annals of history, just as small pox did three decades ago.

Marriage

My foray into the blogosphere has been, at times, intimidating.  In an attempt to become more comfortable with writing to an unknown audience, I have tried to steer clear of controversial subjects.  If I am going to subject myself, or my writing, to debate, I prefer to do so in the academic arena.  However, in light of the Supreme Court’s decision on same-sex marriage, I feel that I need to step out of my comfort zone and speak up — or, allow another priest to speak for me via his blog.  Fr. Joe Jenkins has written a well thought out essay on why the Catholic Church cannot back down on its theological beliefs or principles.  There is very little in what he says that I disagree with.

Although I believe, wholeheartedly, that my church needs to stand her ground on the issue of marriage, I also believe that from a civil perspective, same-sex couples deserve to be treated with respect, love, and kindness.  Whether or not we believe, as individuals or as a church, that homosexuality is acceptable, it has become accepted by society.  Same-sex attracted couples fall in love and, just like heterosexual couples, they want to commit to a lifetime together.  They want to raise a family, frequently adopting the “unadoptable” children that no one else will give a home to.  To protect the welfare of their families, they want the same legal rights as their heterosexual neighbors and friends and family.  Morally, we must, as a society, acknowledge their right to the same civil legal status as their neighbors.

My thoughts on the subject of civil unions may seem liberal and radical for a priest. Opinions can be changed by life experiences or observations.  Mine have changed over the past few years as I have watched my nephew struggle with his same-sex attraction. Because of his Catholic upbringing, that struggle has been made more difficult because his church does not fully accept him as God created him.  Not everyone is called to a celibate life and by asking ALL same-sex attracted individuals to live celibately, we are asking for the impossible.  For the moment, my nephew is celibate.  He is only 30 years old.  Can I, a celibate priest, ask him to remain celibate for the rest of his life?  All I can do is ask that he try, that he pray about the path in which God wants him to follow.  If he cannot commit to a lifetime of celibacy, I pray that he commits to ONE person.

I do believe that same-sex couples deserve to be protected by all the same legal rights as their heterosexual neighbors.  I do, however, draw the line at marriage. Marriage is sacred, between one man and one woman.  We, as a society, have lost sight of the sanctity of the vows a couple recites before God.  “I will love you, until death do us part,” not “until divorce do us part.”  (Although there are circumstances where divorce is the only recourse for abused women or children.)  While civil law establishes societal standards of conduct, we must also consider the natural law, moral law, and divine revelation.  It is from these fonts of wisdom and grace that Catholics understand that marriage between one man and one woman is a gift to humanity.  The blessings of such a marriage cannot be legislated, litigated, or changed by civil authorities.

Rather than repeat what Fr. Joe has written so eloquently in his blog, I ask that you read it. I also recommend the blog Fr. Joe refers to, written by Monsignor Charles Pope from the Archdiocese of Washington.

May God bless each of His children.  May God bless the married couples, man and woman, who believe in the sanctity and holiness of their vows and their commitment to one another and their children.  May God bless . . . .

Boston Strong

Four weeks ago I was in Ireland, visiting cousins after a blessed Lenten spiritual retreat. Four weeks ago, the United States was, once again, attacked by Muslim terrorists, this time at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, a marathon I have run four times — thrice as an able-bodied runner and once in the wheelchair division.  Four weeks ago, my cousins and I watched in horror as a city very dear to my heart reeled from the attack of innocent bystanders, permanently injuring many and killing a few.  Four weeks ago, I felt terribly helpless, wanting to be in Boston to offer spiritual support and comfort.

• Psalms 46:1 ~~ God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
• Psalms 55:22 ~~ Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.
• Psalms 25:1 ~~ In You, Lord my God, I put my trust.

And, so, we came . . . .  After a middle-of-the-night visit from their priest and through the remarkable generosity of a small Irish parish, funds were gathered and an airline ticket was purchased for my cousin, Meghan.  I had an open-ended return ticket to the USA that I had not intended to use until summer, but God was calling me to be in Boston.  Meghan is a retired nurse who worked in the trauma unit of a hospital for many years; my brother, Patrick, is a retired orthopedic surgeon, my sister, Colleen, is a retired pediatrician, and my niece, Michelle, is a nurse; my nephew, John, and I are priests.  With ties to this great city, we descended upon Boston to help where we could.

• Psalms 147:3 ~~ He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.
• Jeremiah 17:14 ~~ Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved; for you are my praise.
• Mark 5:34 ~~ He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
• James 5:14 ~~ Are any among you sick?  They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.
• Luke 4:18 ~~ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.

John was ordained just a year ago and continues to live in Boston, teaching at one of the many colleges that line the historic streets.  Through the gracious hospitality of people he knows, we all had lodging arranged for us.  Each of us has felt extremely blessed to meet the victims of the bombings and their families.  Americans are resilient, Bostonians are resilient, and the spiritual strength of those we met never ceased to amaze me.

• Proverbs 3:5 ~~ Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight.
• John 14:1 ~~ “Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Believe in God, believe also in me.”

The medical O’Malleys and Donahues remained in Boston for two weeks, volunteering their services where needed.  I remained in Boston for another week where Fr. John and I ministered to the spiritual needs of the injured and their families.  We prayed, we celebrated Mass, we offered the Eucharist and, while blessing those who were in crisis, we felt blessed to be a part of their healing.  Strong.  Boston Strong.

In a city that is predominately Roman Catholic, at a time when people from all walks of life ran towards the bombing victims, priests who were within reach of the wounded and dying were prohibited from approaching them.  Anointing of the Sick is one of seven sacraments in the Catholic church.  It is sacred to us.  For priests to be within reach of those needing and wanting to receive this sacrament, and to be denied the opportunity, is maddening.  For the police — many of whom are Irish Catholic — to barricade priests against entering the crime scene to minister to the dying and injured is unconscionable.  At this writing, the police have not responded to calls from the media as to their reasoning.  Anointing of the Sick at the Boston Marathon

Emotions continue to run high in Boston, mine included.  And, so, while on an airplane, flying home to the West, I nearly lost my priestly pacifism when my seat mate referred to me as an apostate priest who was leading my fellow Catholics down an evil path.  This is not the first time I have been called an apostate priest; most recently, it was a fellow blogger who has nothing kind to say about the Roman Catholic Church or its followers.  However, being confronted in person, on an enclosed airplane, was a first.  While trying to ignore his diatribe, I continued to read my Bible, most specifically the Book of Wisdom which is considered apocryphal by Protestants and is not included in the Protestant Bible.

And, so, I tried to be wise.  I tried to heed the spirit of the Book of Wisdom.  I tried to keep my impish Irish temper in check.  After explaining to my fellow passenger that an already long flight would be made only longer if he continued to criticize my church and me, I asked him to allow me to continue reading the Bible in peace.

• The Wisdom of Solomon 1:11 ~~ Beware then of useless grumbling, and keep your tongue from slander; because no secret word is without result, and a lying mouth destroys the soul.

After a couple of hours of peaceful silence, I opened a discussion with him about the Book of Wisdom.  I explained that, although considered apocryphal by Protestants, it contains much of what is found in the Protestant canon.  It contrasts the lives of the just and the wicked, dramatizing the eschatological destinies of the two groups.  It celebrates the figure of the divine Sophia, or Wisdom.  It uses historical comparison based principally on Exodus 7-14, providing Biblical examples of the righteous and the unrighteous, and demonstrates how the power of the divine wisdom operates in human history.  Knowing that this person believes the Bible to be the inerrant, factually historical, Word of God, not the inerrant, inspired, Word of God, I needed to compare and contrast very carefully.

We discussed the Bible and our interpretations of certain scriptures.  Then, I asked him if he would explain to me why, without knowing me as a person, he thinks of me as an apostate, why he believes the Catholic church is evil in its teachings, and why he thinks it wrong of me to minister to those in Boston who were injured.  I will not relive our conversation here but, suffice it to say, I got an earful.

When he was finished with his diatribe, I explained to him what I had witnessed in Boston — families of those who were murdered, the injured and their families, and witnesses who will forever be affected by the war scene.  I met people from all walks of faith — Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, and some who claimed no particular faith but who still believed in a powerful God.  What I learned from these people is that in the big scheme of the universe, it does not matter to God which faith community we belong, but that we believe in Him and His healing power.

I witnessed people from different faith backgrounds coming together to pray, to offer support, to cry.  I witnessed people from different faith backgrounds giving blood for the victims.  I witnessed people from different faith backgrounds working side-by-side in hospitals to heal the injured.  Not one person gave thought to which denomination another might belong.  During this time of crisis, it did not matter.  I prayed with, not only Catholics, but with Protestants from many different denominations, and Jews.  What mattered to the injured, their families, and the city of Boston, was the benevolent humanity from all walks of faith.

I explained my observations to my seat mate and, yet, it fell on deaf ears.  Rather than praying intercessory prayers, asking God to comfort those who had lost loved ones or asking God to heal those who had been injured, he believed the only prayers he should offer were for their salvation.  Intercessory prayer is simply prayer for other people and, in a sense, everyone is called to be an intercessor as we pray for one another.

• James 5:16 ~~ Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
• 1 Timothy 2:1 ~~ First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people.
• Ephesians 6:18 ~~  Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.

After a long flight made only longer by our discussion, I knew my seat mate and I would never agree.  I have very close friends who are not of my faith.  We do not always agree, but we respect each other’s beliefs and we try to learn from each other.  I am saddened that this man could not open his heart to loving others as they are, no matter their faith backgrounds.  If we are to ever experience world peace, it will be because we take to heart . . .

• Mark 12: 30-31 ~~ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.  There is no commandment greater than these.

EASTER

Christ is risen! Alleluia!

To all my family, friends, and readers, I hope for the fullness of Christ’s Easter peace, praying that our risen Lord will strengthen within each of us the deep and abiding joy that belongs to those who, through baptism, have died with Christ and are one with him in his resurrection.  After 40 days of fasting, almsgiving and prayer we enter 50 days of rejoicing and celebration, thanking God our Father for bringing the faithful to him through his Son, Jesus the Christ, in the Holy Spirit.  We are truly God’s children and “Alleluia” is our song!

Every aspect of our lives, all that we are, is caught up in Christ’s boundless love and bears the promise of new beginnings at every turn. Ours is not a faith that says, “Don’t worry, nothing bad will ever happen to you.”  Rather, our faith says, “Don’t worry, bad things may happen to you but they are nothing to worry about.”

Faith ~~ It is only through faith that we can see the empty tomb as a sign that Christ is risen from the dead.  It is only through faith that we can hold onto hope even in the midst of our own pain and suffering.  Faith teaches us that Christ is always with us, particularly in our darkest moments.  In St. Mark’s account of the passion, it is the centurion who finally proclaims what we had been waiting to hear throughout the first 14 chapters of St. Mark’s Gospel: “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15: 39) He came to believe in the midst of the darkness: “at noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon” (Mark 15: 33).

During these holy days of Easter, may we all be a source of life for each other, wounds and all, as we continue to follow Christ, recognizing him in the breaking of the bread.  It is worth repeating:  Death never has the last word – Jesus Christ does! Indeed, He is the Word uttered by God the Father, in the Holy Spirit, calling us out of darkness and into his own, wonderful light.

GOOD FRIDAY

Good Friday ~~ A day of fasting and of prayer and of reflection.  When we were children,our very devout mother asked that we remain silent during the hours our Lord was on the Cross, from noon until 3 p.m.  We fasted — no meat, no in-between-meal snacks, only light meals.  We prayed.  We attended Mass.

Because I have been “fasting” from the Internet for most of Lent, my prayer for Good Friday will appear a few days later.  My prayer for my family, my friends, and my brothers and sisters in Christ who may be reading this, is that you were able to pray and reflect on the sacrifice Jesus paid for us.

And, so ~~

“Jesus, my Lord, let me go to Mary when suffering threatens to overwhelm me. Ask your mother to stay with me when I am afraid and tempted to surrender. Let me look to Mary as my model for love, as well as my haven of healing. Make sure I am considerate of other people and notice how they are affected by their suffering. I’m not the only one. I beg you, Lord, to help me grow in compassion. If I am faithful to You and close to Your blessed mother, those who suffer will be comforted by my presence . . . and they will gain courage as I stand beside them, by their cross.”  ~~ Amen.

Pope Francis’ First Chrism Mass

As I watched and listened to Pope Francis give his homily at his first Chrism Mass, I felt in awe of the man who is to lead the Roman Catholic Church.  Each time I hear His Holiness speak, I know the Holy Spirit is at work in his life and all the lives of the faithful.  Pope Francis is a true man of God.  He has a love for humanity, a love for the least who struggle to survive due to the burdens that life has presented them.  He is a humble man who has been called to lead the largest Christian church — over 1 billion strong.  He is a Jesuit.

And, in his homily, he gave a “clear test” to the meaning of the priesthood.  He challenged each of us to work to pass this test as we serve the poor, the sick, the prisoners, the homeless, and those who are alone.

“The Lord will say this clearly: his anointing is meant for the poor, prisoners and the sick, for those who are sorrowing and alone. The ointment is not intended just to make us fragrant, much less to be kept in a jar, for then it would become rancid, and the heart bitter.

A good priest can be recognized by the way his people are anointed. This is a clear test. When our people are anointed with the oil of gladness, it is obvious: for example, when they leave Mass looking as if they have heard good news. Our people like to hear the Gospel preached with “unction”, they like it when the Gospel we preach touches their daily lives, when it runs down like the oil of Aaron to the edges of reality, when it brings light to moments of extreme darkness, to the “outskirts” where people of faith are most exposed to the onslaught of those who want to tear down their faith.

People thank us because they feel that we have prayed over the realities of their everyday lives, their troubles, their joys, their burdens and their hopes. And when they feel that the fragrance of the Anointed One, of Christ, has come to them through us, they feel encouraged to entrust to us everything they want to bring before the Lord: “Pray for me, Father, because I have this problem”, “Bless me”, “Pray for me” – these words are the sign that the anointing has flowed down to the edges of the robe, for it has turned into prayer. The prayers of the people of God. When we have this relationship with God and with his people, and grace passes through us, then we are priests, mediators between God and men.”

I ask for prayers that I may be the priest — the Jesuit — who strives to pass the “clear test” presented to us by His Holiness, Pope Francis — a Jesuit.

Ireland

Ah, the ancestral home of my family!  Although an American, I know I have come home when I visit Ireland.  So green.  So lush.  So beautiful.  So peaceful.  So Catholic!!  And, if not for my annual Lenten fast, so much Guinness!  Imagine being in Ireland and not being able to drink Guinness.

I am 100% Irish — both of my parents were born in this incredible country.  I love everything about being here, most of all seeing family.  Yep, I have first cousins in Ireland.  Because my parents were the youngest of their families, my first cousins, once removed, are closer to my age.  I will be spending part of my visit with my cousin, Meghan, her husband, Ronan, and their family.  We will reminisce about our childhood antics during my family’s visits to the ancestral home or when her family visited us in the USA.

Ireland is in my blood — I have joked that my blood runs green.  Without being too specific about where I grew up, let’s just say I think my grandparents settled where they did because it reminded them of Ireland.  Rain.  Green.  Ocean.  Catholic churches established by missionaries of long ago.  Home.

I am taking a semester-long sabbatical from my teaching position.  It is the first sabbatical I have had — never taking more than a one month vacation from teaching/preaching, of which two weeks of that summer vacation is always spent on retreat in a Catholic Abbey.  I have filled my time with family and prayer.  I have contemplated where God is leading me as I ponder retirement.

Contemplative prayer — In a few days, I will enter a Jesuit retreat center where I will reside for an undetermined length of time.  Maybe a month, maybe more.  I do not need to be back in the USA until August.  I have spent most of my adult life in front of a classroom — teaching.  Teaching theology at the high school level, teaching ancient Christianity and world religions and all things relating to Religious Studies at the university level.  I love teaching.  I love teaching about God.  I love teaching about Christianity.  I love learning about other religions so that I can teach about them.  God led me to the classroom, and there I have been for over 30 years.

As I approach retirement age — although not mandatory — I need to figure out the next phase of this journey called life.  Thus, the extended retreat where I will be cloistered for part of the time.  God has a plan that only He knows.  As a child of God, I need to listen to Him and follow His guiding hand.  Where will He lead me next?  Each summer, when I am on retreat — for a short two weeks — it has become more difficult to reenter the world.  I am drawn to a life of contemplation.  I have spent my career being “public,” speaking before groups, socializing with fellow academics or fellow priests or congregations.  In reality, I am the ultra-introvert.  I prefer to be alone.  Quiet.  What I hope to discern during this extended retreat is whether I would serve God well by being a spiritual director at a retreat center.  Should I trade my absent-minded professor garb for my clerical garb?

I have much to pray about over the next several weeks — not just about my future, but prayers for my family, prayers for my friends, prayers for the world.  I know a few people who are hoping I will blog about St. Patrick — after all, I am in Ireland, I am Irish, and I was born on St. Pat’s Day!  However, I will be cloistered so I doubt if I will write anything about the patron saint of the land I love.

Until I return — my prayers to all of my readers.  Please pray for me, too!

God bless . . . .

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday is the first day of the 40 day season of Lent (excluding Sundays).  For Christians, Lent is a somber season of reflection, penance, and fasting in preparation of the resurrection of our Savior on Easter through which we attain redemption.

Many Christian churches have Ash Wednesday services in which the priest or minister places a cross of ashes on the foreheads of the believers. The ashes are made by burning the blessed palms used in the Palm Sunday celebration of the previous year.  The ashes are then christened with Holy Water and are scented by exposing them to incense.  While the ashes symbolize penance and contrition, they are also a reminder that God is gracious and merciful to those who call on Him with repentant hearts.  God’s Divine mercy is of paramount importance during the Lenten Season, and the Church calls on us to seek that mercy during the 40 days of Lent with reflection, prayer, and penance.

The ashes are a symbol of the sacrament of penance, and they help us to develop a spirit of humility and sacrifice.  “Remember, you are from dust , and to dust shall you return” (Genesis 3:19).  In ancient times, Christians who had committed grave faults were required to perform public penance.  On Ash Wednesday, the Bishop blessed the shirts worn by the penitent and sprinkled over them ashes made from burning the palms from the previous year.  Then, while the faithful recited the Seven Penitential Psalms, the penitents were turned out of the church because of their sins.  This turning away was symbolic of Adam being turned out of the Garden of Eden because of his disobedience.  The penitents did not enter the church again until Maundy Thursday after having been reconciled by the toil of 40 days’ penance and sacramental absolution.  Later, whether public or secret penitents, all Christians came to receive ashes out of devotion.

Ash Wednesday and Lent are times of fasting and abstinence.  From the time we were children, my brothers, sisters, and I learned the importance of fasting to become closer to God and his merciful forgiveness.  Traditionally, Christians “give up” something for Lent — chocolate, coffee, soda pop, or cussing seem to be common.  My parents asked us to “give up” something that would “give gain” to someone else.  We would “give up” our allowances to buy food for the hungry, we would “give up” play time with our friends to spend time with the elderly in nursing homes or the crippled children at Shriner’s Hospital, we would “give up” piano lessons and ask our piano teacher to give “free” (we would still pay the teacher) lessons to kids whose parents couldn’t afford music lessons.  By “giving up” to help others “gain” we learned of the sacrifice Jesus “gave” so we Christians could “gain” salvation.  Fasting from food was sometimes more difficult when we watched our non-Catholic friends enjoying after school snacks.  Lent for us meant smaller meals, no in-between meal snacks, no meat on Fridays.  Fortunately, from a religious perspective, we attended Catholic schools so all of our classmates were also “suffering” through the fasting of Lent.  It was when we got home from school and our public school friends wanted to play and eat snacks that it became more challenging.

What will be interesting about this Lenten season, for me, is that I will be in Ireland for most of it — cloistered in a monastery.  Ash Wednesday will be honored, as usual, and then I depart for my ancestral home the following week for an undetermined length of time.  I can’t recall ever spending Easter in Ireland, a country that does not understand the concept of “separation of church and state” as we Americans do.  The State is Roman Catholic.   The Irish imp in me is feeling a need to stir up the pot — to rebel against authority.  My parents taught us well to believe in social justice, to work towards making better lives for the least.  Ireland has a few social justice issues that I believe need to be addressed.  It is quite possible that this Lenten season, I will look for an Irish cause to donate my time, to “give gain” to a worthy cause.

My prayer for all who read this is that you have a very blessed Lent — that you allow for time to reflect, to repent, and to fast in order to bring your spirit closer to God.

Married Priests???

St. Ignatius of Loyola

I am also a Jesuit.  A Catholic priest.  My vows are sacred and I would never do anything, knowingly, to break those vows.  I love the Catholic Church and what it represents in my life, in the lives of my family, and to the world as a sacred place of worship.  My personal relationship with Jesus began when I was five years old, sick with polio.  Jesus visited my hospital bed and he comforted a scared, sick little boy.  Jesus has walked beside me ever since.I teach.  It is what God has called me to do.  Teach.  I love my job.  I love my students.  I love sharing my passion for historical Christianity with those who have a desire to learn.  I have been a teacher for so long I think I have lost track of the years — high school, elementary school, college.  My present job as professor of religious studies began almost 20 years ago.

The days of polio are long forgotten by those never touched by that horrific disease.  The vaccine became readily available the same month I got sick.  My brothers and sisters were inoculated in their schools; I hadn’t begun school, yet, so I was the “lucky” person to contract polio.  Very few Americans remember the disease, nor do they know of anyone who is a survivor.  Unfortunately, polio remains prevalent in some underdeveloped countries — unlike smallpox, polio has not been completely eradicated from the earth.

As I recovered from that bout of polio so many years ago, I spent a great deal of time with our family priest, who was also a family friend having been a childhood friend of my parents.  Father Mike was permitted to visit me every day in the hospital where he taught me the Rosary and read Bible stories.  After being released from the hospital, I still had months of rehabilitation.  I couldn’t run and play with my siblings and my friends, so I’d hang out with my priest, my friend, my godfather.  I’d been named for Father Mike and, because of polio, we had a very special bond which remained tight until his death at the age of 95.  It was that bond and my friendship with Jesus that led me toward the priesthood.

From the time I was five years old I knew I wanted to serve God and those feelings never wavered.  As I was studying and training, I realized my talents would better serve in a classroom rather than in a parish.  It was Father Mike’s dream that I would come home and become the pastor of “our” parish when he retired.  For two years I tried but I missed the classroom — hence my move to another state where I was hired at a public university.

Jesuit Circuit Rider

After 18 years of teaching at that university, I am taking a semester sabbatical.  I came home to spend time with my family and to enjoy the beauty of my home state.  I have also been filling in for vacationing priests — the past few weeks have been fulfilling and exciting.  At times I have felt like a circuit riding Jesuit of years gone by  — all I needed was a horse, a long black cassock, and a big brimmed hat!

At one of the churches I visited this past week, I had an experience that proved to be more emotional than I expected.  One of the priests I filled in for was vacationing with — his wife.  His wife.  How, do you ask, can a Catholic priest be married?  This particular priest, as with most married priests, comes from a Protestant background, most of them Episcopalian.  Following God’s call, he was first ordained in the United Church of Christ and later in the Episcopal Church.  Because I never met the man, I do not know his reasons for renouncing his Episcopal orders, but I can guess.  The Episcopal Church has become, in the eyes of many, too liberal — ordaining women, ordaining gay priests, acknowledging gay marriage.  I do not know if these are the reasons this particular priest left the Episcopal Church, but it is a good guess.  I have known for quite some time that Episcopalian priests have been given permission by the Holy See to be ordained as Catholic priests.  But, this was the first time it hit me in the face, so to speak.

I live all my vows faithfully — the vow of chastity, the vow of poverty, and the vow of obedience.  Over the past 30 + years, there have been times when I have doubted my human ability to be faithful to my vows.  But, the strength of my devotion to God has always prevailed and, with Jesus standing by my side, I have found the courage to work through my doubts and to remain faithful.  And so, this week, I wondered why it is possible for a former Episcopal priest to be ordained Catholic and bring his wife and children with him?  Why can he be married and I can’t?  Why can he come home after a long day “at the office” to the loving arms of his soul mate and I can’t?  Why?  Why must I suffer through bouts of loneliness when he doesn’t?  I was born Catholic — a cradle Catholic.  I knew when I was a child I wanted to become a priest.  Being as idealistic as any young man entering the priesthood, I wanted to save the world and I knew I could live my vows.  What I did not know is how difficult it is sometimes — to be lonely.  To come home to an empty house.  It just doesn’t seem fair.  I can hear my mom saying, “But, Michael, life isn’t fair.”  Every kid learns that lesson.  Right?  Right.

This, too, shall pass — like all the other times I have wondered about the fairness of the vow of chastity. Priests haven’t always been required to be celibate and, I believe, sometime in the far off future, a liberated Pope will change the “rules” and allow priests to marry.

I know many who are reading this are saying, “Yeah, right, a celibate priest.”  We all know what has been in the media for the past couple of decades.  Please remember how the media plays on the negative.  With all the “bad” priests that have made the news, how many “good” priests have you heard or read about?  Not many, I’d guess.  For the record, the good priests do outnumber the bad ones.

As a dear friend tells me frequently, I will sleep with my angels, and pray they soothe my soul.  God bless each and every person who reads this.  God bless all those who serve Him, whether they be Catholic or Protestant or Jewish or Muslim.  God bless.