A Fast Pace or a Steady Race?

One month into my seminary studies, I've found one particular issue weighing on my conscience more heavily than any other: Am I really doing all that I can for God?

You see, when you factor in the demands on a seminarian's time (communal prayer and Mass, class, specific times for meals, formation, spiritual direction, service in the community) and then add in things like exercise, personal prayer time, reading, homework, etc., the amount of time in the day just doesn't seem like it's enough. I know that time-management issues aren't exclusive to those seeking to marry the Church; as a matter of fact, I had quite the busy routine in my college career as well and I've seen many others struggle with the same issues. However, in an honest attempt to make myself the best version of 'me' possible, I'm trying to make the right decisions regarding what I am doing with my every moment. As I evaluate the last month here at Mundelein, I can't help but ask myself: Am I falling into the routines that are truly going to conform me to Christ? Am I really too busy or tired to [insert activity], or am I just making excuses for myself?

It seems almost impossible to do it all, but am I doing enough?

More often than not, I go to bed wishing I could have gotten around to just one or two more things in my day; I'd stay up to accomplish them, but losing sleep only makes the following day's work suffer. The heart of the issue is whether to bear these 'shortcomings' with patience or to drive myself to further discipline. The line must surely be walked with caution; to push myself too hard would end just as poorly as to continue my life making excuses to God.

In the end, the questions go unanswered. I only thank God for the wonderful support system that I have found here in the past month. The staff is excellent (I wish I could even begin to describe how truly amazing the faculty here is both intellectually and personally) and the community with my brother seminarians is incredible.

God, grant me the grace to know your will in my daily activities.

St. Charles Borromeo, patron saint of seminarians, pray for us!

A Little Time in Silence

After moving to Mundelein on August 20th, new seminarians began a nearly week-long orientation process. After having been sufficiently oriented, we were blessed with the opportunity to participate in a silent retreat. And yes, despite the fact that I talk more than is considered healthy for one individual, I did still consider this a blessing. Honestly, how many times does one get to put aside all the distractions of life (read: cell phone, facebook/email, television, etc.) to concentrate solely on spending time in prayer and building up a relationship with God?

I took the week very seriously. There was no collection of cell phones or turning off of the internet; I suppose if one wanted to 'cheat,' it would have been very easy to do so. But I was determined to give all of what I could to the silence--to let God speak to me in whatever ways He had planned.

And speak to me He did. I can't say that I saw any visions or was given over to mysticism, but I did feel a sincere sense of peace throughout the entirety of that week. Fr. Andrew Ricci, rector of the Cathedral in Superior, WI, was the retreat master, and his conferences were quite an experience. Thought-provoking and challenging at times, Fr. Andrew spoke exactly the words that I needed to hear at the beginning of this journey.

Also, having ample time to myself, I picked up a book that I've been very eager to finish (ever since I started it almost a year ago; what can I say? I get distracted easily!). Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul by St. Maria Faustina Kowalksa was stunning to me. The beauty of this saint's experiences with Christ and her profound acceptance of God's will in her life spoke volumes to me in the silence of this week. The holiness that radiated from those pages made me truly want to seek the same depth of relationship with God for myself. God, grant me this grace!

To close, I'd like to share with you a piece of prose written by my newest saintly friend and intercessor, St. Faustina. In it, she communicates with simple words the True Presence and her soul's response to It. May we all take her words to heart and seek the same thing in our lives.

My heart is drawn there where my God is hidden,

Where He dwells with us day and night,

Clothed in the White Host;

He governs the whole world, He communes with souls.

My heart is drawn there where my God is hiding,

Where His love is immolated.

But my heart senses that the living water is here;

It is my living God, though a veil hides Him.

The Love of a Mother

This morning I was struck by the example of St. Monica, whose feast we celebrate today. She was the mother of St. Augustine and an incredible intercessor on his behalf. The simple and yet profound witness of the saints continues to bowl me over from time to time, and St. Monica is no exception. As I was reading an excerpt from the Confessions of St. Augustine about his mother, I couldn't help but be amazed by the beauty of her statements to her son.

We desired with all our hearts to drink from the streams of your heavenly fountain, the fountain of life. That was the substance of our talk, though not the exact words. But you know, O Lord, that in the course of our conversation that day, the world and its pleasures lost all their attraction for us. My mother said: "Son, as far as I am concerned, nothing in this life now gives me any pleasure. I do not know why I am still here, since I have no further hopes in this world. I did have one reason for wanting to live a little longer: to see you become a Catholic Christian before I died. God has lavished his gifts on me in that respect, for I know that you have even renounced earthly happiness to be his servant. So what am I doing here?"

I'll tell you a couple of reasons why her testimony hit me. First, it speaks to me of how greatly a mother loves her son. I wonder sometimes whether that same love still manifests itself in our selfish culture--whether a mother's primary concern for her son is still the salvation of his soul, as it should be. I am also impressed by St. Monica's unceasing prayer for the sake of her son's conversion. St. Monica so obviously believed in the ability of God to convert her son and she would not stop pleading his cause until God answered. Our world seems to have lost its confidence in God's ability to actually effect something in this world. We pray for peace in the world, but do we actually believe that God can provide that? We pray for the healing of sick members of our family, but do we actually believe that God can provide those miracles? We pray for the conversion of the sinner, but do we actually believe that God can intervene in our lives and save our souls? Do we still believe that God can touch this world? Certainly, God will not grant it if we do not actually believe. The doubt of this world scares me sometimes, but St. Monica's witness provides a beautiful example of faith outshining that doubt.

St. Monica, pray for the conversion of this world. Amen.

My Spiritual Testament of Totus Tuus

At the end of our Totus Tuus experience this summer, we were asked to write a spiritual testament. Not knowing exactly what to write, I sat outside the Chiara Center on a beautiful summer day and petitioned God for His help. Inspired or not, this is what I wrote:

Serviam

God has led me to the doors of the Church, not looking inward, but outward to the world He has called me to serve. Through His grace which sustains, He has given me the faith by which to know His love and mercy.

So then, I am called to respond, to lay down my earthly life to serve the kingdom which my flesh could neither merit nor deserve, all for the sake of spreading Christ's Gospel.

"Yet I consider life of no importance to me, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to bear witness to the gospel of God's grace." (Acts 20:24)

I have been called to withdraw my desire of all earthly things, and yet in His kindness, His earthly creation constantly proclaims the glory due His name.

As I take up my cross and die to self, I know that I shall never be alone in doing so. With so great a crowd of witnesses as have gone before me, I am filled with gratitude for the example that has been and continues to be--the example of the Church. God, so intimately knowing His creation, has inspired in me a great love of humanity, and so blessed me with the gift of the Church, who in her majesty can never displace herself from the love of God. In fact, even before my fleshly existence, He knew of my need for His Incarnation--for His joining in my humanity--and so for my salvation, He sacrificed His only Son.

Thanks be to God for all that He has given me, none of which I deserve, but all freely given, for me, His chosen one.

A Summation of the Last Half of Totus Tuus

Admittedly, I've failed at keeping up the weekly Totus Tuus correspondence. Hopefully that means I was investing the extra effort into the youth of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois...

The last half of the summer was incredibly busy and very intense. We went from St. Peter's in Quincy, which had the largest numbers of any parish this summer (85 day and 55 night!), to St. Francis Xavier in Jerseyville (not a small parish itself), to St. Agnes in Springfield (also pretty substantial), finally finishing up in Auburn at Holy Cross Parish.

Without going into much detail, I found that the last half of the summer was just as epic and grace-filled as the first (if not more). My teammates were all spectacular and I couldn't have asked for a better group of fellow missionaries. We worked hard this summer and hopefully contributed a little to the salvation of souls. I think I'll let prayer and the Holy Spirit take it from here...

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, Pray for us!!

Everyone Needs a Break Sometimes...

...And this one was very much needed. I don't remember being that tired after the first four weeks (five counting training) of Totus Tuus last year. But boy was I exhausted this time around.

To be honest, I was able to kick some of the weariness as the week went on and I looked more and more forward to traveling up to the Chicago area to see some of my friends from college. Even though it's only been a month and a half since I've graduated, it seemed like it had been forever since we last met.

I drove straight from Springfield to Flanagan, where I had dinner with Austin's family. We then drove up to Downer's Grove, dropped my car off at Maggie's, and finished the drive to Libertyville, where we crashed for the night with Dan! We visited some place called the Island for a drink and I'm pretty sure I fell asleep during a movie when we returned home.

The next day we bummed around Libertyville. Later that day, we ended up in Naperville, where Dana was so nice as to invite us for dinner and a pool party. Dinner was delicious, but the company was what I truly missed. I was SHOCKED when everyone showed up...it was literally everyone that I was hoping to see during my trip up to Chicago (with the exception of Claire and Tim, who I saw earlier that day during Mass at Marytown). It was like a dream come true. It was so great being back together for one more meal before we all part ways for the school year.

After a night of awesomeness, Komo, Austin, Maggie, and I retired back in Downer's Grove. After Komo left the next afternoon, the happy couple and I wandered around the DG area and had a very nice dinner. We spent most of the night drinking strawberry daiquiris and playing Trivial Pursuit (that's right...and it was awesome). This is why I love my friends. I then fell asleep (again) during a movie.

After a great weekend, I drove home to visit family. Now, after visiting a few high school friends and spending a very restful few days at home, I'm armed and ready to start another four weeks of Totus Tuus!

I love my friends.

P.S. I'm sorry most of the posts this summer haven't been terribly interesting or cleverly worded...my method the past few posts has definitely been word-vomit until my mind is purged and don't try to spice it up at all. I'll see if I can work on that.

Totus Tuus Parish #4: St. John Vianney, Sherman

Whew! It's been a couple of weeks since I've posted. You can attribute that to the fact that I was pretty tired during our fourth week of...catechizing those kids!!

After having distanced myself from the work by a week, let's see how much of a memory I can produce of that wonderful time spent in Sherman.

First off, the church was beautiful (especially for a 1960s construction), as you can see for yourself:

As it turns out, the pastor of the parish is also the Vicar General of our diocese, so it was also great to get to know him a little bit. He's an incredibly busy man, but he managed to clear his schedule and spend some time with us!!
The beginning of the week was a little shaky, with a somewhat low turnout of the jr. high/high school kids. But by the end of the week, the numbers for both the daytime program and nighttime program grew, and I managed to get over my initial tiredness and be there for the kids! Totus Tuus...not halfus tuus; something frequently said to remind ourselves that the kids and families we encounter deserve more.

Final thought for this (not-so-well-put-together) post: something by St. John Vianney that was written on the side of the church.

Legend of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste

This week, the Gold Team is at the parish of Forty Martyrs in Tuscola, IL and St. John the Baptist in Arcola (pictured below respectively, outside then in).

I'm not sure I had ever heard the story of the forty martyrs, but it's pretty interesting. Here's the story as found on a holy card I found in the church:

"About 320 A.D., Roman Christian soldiers ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods refused and were exposed naked on ice in a lake, tempted by a warm bath nearby. One renounced his faith, entered the warm water, and died. A guard nearby had visions of angels giving them precious gifts. Moved by the Holy Spirit he removed his clothes and died with them."

The week has been pretty great so far! The team's a little tired, but there have been many moments through the week where I feel as though God is picking me up and encouraging me onward. Adoration this week was spectacular...gotta love spending an hour with Jesus in the middle of a crazy hectic week!

Sorry for the short post. I was hoping to do more, but it's almost prayer time and I'm a little tired. Pax!

Hello, Paris!

Okay, sure, it's not quite as exciting as Paris, France, but it's a start, right?!

The Gold Team for Totus Tuus 2011 Springfield just arrived yesterday at our new digs in Paris, IL, still located in the very eastern part of our fine diocese/state. Paris is a town of about 9,100 and was founded in 1823 (I think that's what I read on the sign on the way into town?). This week, the three other missionaries and I will be serving the parishes of St. Mary (pictured below) and St. Aloysius (which is a smaller, rural parish nearby).

If you can't tell from the pictures, the architecture of the Church is astounding and fairly unique to our diocese (at least what I've seen of it). St. Aloysius was similarly beautiful, albeit in a less sweeping way. St. Al's is apparently (from what Father told us in the car ride over to Mass at 7 am this morning) the oldest running parish in the diocese, having its start in a log cabin built in 1817 as a part of some diocese in Kentucky. They're located only about 5 miles from the border to Indiana and we actually crossed the road which marks the border between the old United States and Indian Territory. A nice little piece of history for this morning!

After a long day of playing on a jet ski, swimming, and cooking out (with the girls' host family) at Twin Lakes, we settled down for the evening program, preceded by a performance from a band consisting of four of the kids who were coming to the program. The parish provided pizza and they provided the music...a nice way to get the kids to come out and participate! It must have worked, as 27 people ended up being our final tally for the night program (only about half that were previously registered I think...). Praise God! I'm feeling good things coming out of this parish!

Mary, Mother of God and St. Aloysius, Pray for us!!

Goodbye, Robinson!

So for the first week of Totus Tuus, the eight missionaries made ourselves at home in Robinson, IL, welcomed so kindly by the parishioners of St. Elizabeth (church pictured below) and Our Lady of Lourdes.

The families we met were incredible and having the two teams together in one parish was an amazing experience. We all bonded so well that it made it very difficult to want to separate for our next 6 parishes. But that's the essence of our mission!! Gotta spread the love!

Before we left, we had the great blessing of spending Friday night with one of the host families, whose son happened to be turning 9. I think it was probably one of the funnest nights I've had in quite a while. We laughed and laughed...mostly about the goofy stuff that we do to get kids to open up to God...but it made the union and family into which Christ calls us seem so tangible. It was an absolutely beautiful thing.

Yesterday afternoon, as we were driving to the new parish, the girls read the note that the high-school aged daughter of that family had written to us. She explained how seeing a group of excited, college-aged kids who were so willing to be goofy was all it took to get her to "want to be Catholic for the rest of her life." I was so floored by her note. While I certainly don't seek or hope for those earthly consolations, I believe that God does indeed provide them for specific reasons. I know that in the difficult moments of this summer, I'll be able to think back to how I, through God's graces and talents within me, have helped to draw her closer in union with Christ and His plan for our salvation. And sometimes, a small consolation like that is all we need to take up our cross and carry on...

Training Complete--Now on to the Real Stuff

Wahoo!! Totus Tuus training is officially complete. After a whirl-wind week full of lots of learning and bonding, my seven teammates and I are finally fully commissioned little portals of evangelization!

Can I just say that BroomTree retreat center in Irene, SD is like a little slice of heaven? I very much enjoyed my week there without internet or other worldly distractions (not that we'd have much time for them if they were present).

Here are the cabins that we called home for a week:

And a picture of Sts. Isidore and Maria chapel just on the other hill! And it's inside:

And the lodge where we trained:

Also, there's just something about spending a week with complete strangers in a strange place that brings you together. The eight missionaries on the Springfield team are basically best friends now, despite the fact that we've only known each other for about 10 days. Here's my team (it's the only pic I have of all four of us right now...bear with me. Long story short: scavenger hunt requiring awkward family photo):

My mission this week leads me to the beautiful little town of Robinson, IL. Not too small and not too big. St. Elizabeth's and Our Lady of Lourdes (in Oblong, IL) are the Catholic Churches we are serving this week, and I'm very happy to be here! Tonight, the parish surprised us with 14 junior high and high schoolers that showed up, when only 5 were registered! Here's to starting the summer off right!

And So It Begins!

Totus Tuus started today!!! I'm actually really pumped about it, despite the fact that I was so busy this past week that I couldn't even think about the fact that it was starting up.

Now that I've had adequate time to reflect on what I'm getting myself into (again), I'm really very excited to be started with it again! The other team members seem pretty awesome, and I'm really pumped for what the summer has in store!

We're staying tonight at the Chiara Center in Springfield, IL, which is attached to the convent of the Hospital Sisters as well as a gorgeous chapel. It's pretty awesome and very hotel-like. Personally, I miss the Villa Maria, though...

Also, Deacon Brian Alford gets ordained for the Diocese of Springfield on Saturday!! I really wish I could go, but alas I'll be in South Dakota for training! Speaking of which, I leave at 8 am...time for bed!

Busy Times!

After departing the funeral on Monday, my family and I drove up to Champaign to collect the rest of my things from my college apartment. The trip was pretty quick, but not without its trials. Only twenty minutes into our return trip, the alternator of our truck decided to cease and desist, making all battery-run devices in our vehicle a precious commodity. We discovered (oddly enough) that at slower speeds, the alternator seemed to charge the car battery sufficiently for a short time, so we simply pulled over periodically to ensure that the fuel-injector (which runs off the battery) wouldn't stop giving our vehicle fuel (as is required for a car to move). This worked well...until we reached Decatur, where we had cleverly called ahead to an AutoZone to ask if they had a new alternator for us to purchase. We were in luck! They did...

And so as soon as we pulled off the exit, the truck died. Aww yeah. Long story short, dad thumbed his way to the AutoZone (still 5 plus miles away from us), while mom and my brother and I stayed in the car to explain to a curious police officer why we were pulled off the road in such a precarious place. An hour and ten minutes later, we were well on our way back home. We had some good jams going the entire way, too; gotta love family sing-alongs!

Today was a bit more chill. I spoke this morning to a local parish about Totus Tuus, hoping to increase the number of enrolled students for this summer. The parish coordinator and I moved from classroom to classroom, delivering a slightly-modified spiel to the un-suspecting children. Hopefully it served its purpose. It got me pumped up at least...

I'm also in the process of moving everything from the back of my truck to my bedroom. It seems like things expand in volume when they have to fit into smaller spaces. To thwart this problem, I've engaged in a battle with the things of my past, attempting to convince them that I no longer need them and that they'd find better rest at a trash dump than in my closet and under my bed. It's a process, and one that I probably don't have time for, but it's on its way.

Tomorrow I only have to finish that epic project, pack for Totus Tuus, and write about 30 thank you cards. Oh, and pick up my friend from New York at the St. Louis airport (yay!). And meet some friends for lunch. And do some banking. And maybe even sleep some before starting Totus Tuus bright and shiny on Thursday!

Heh...what can I say? I live a busy life, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Sometimes, being on the brink of so many exciting things is just, well, exciting.

--

"Well," said Pooh, "what I like best," and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called. ~A.A. Milne

Death and Hope

On Monday, the family and I attended the funeral of my uncle's dad (Bill Fite). It struck me as I was sitting in the small country church that I wasn't very phased by death. After all, for Christians, death is only the parting of our spirit from this material world. What lies in store for our soul (given that we've lived a life worthy of our call to holiness) far surpasses what we could ever get from this earthly life. Of course I was sad to see the passing of a man held so dear to his family, but I couldn't help but be hopeful that Bill was in a far better place than I was, sitting in that little creaky church. All that saddened me was seeing the sadness of the family...perhaps they, too, would find hope in Christ's conquering of death. But at the very least, it's always a little hard to cope with never being able to see someone again. What completely wrecked my composure was seeing his great-grandchildren (about 7 and 4, give or take a couple of years on each), who certainly did not understand the circumstances. Their tears were sincerely hard to witness, but the family support was beautiful.

An aside: at the wake, the four-year-old was pulling on the bottom half of the casket, determined to look over the edge of it (but only succeeding in making several people anxious that the thing would topple over). Upon asking the child what he could possibly be doing, he replied simply: "I want to see where the other half of grandpa is." Kids just say the darnedest things...

A Quick Reflection on a Busy Weekend...

Having had my college graduation party this weekend, at the forefront of my mind is how truly blessed I am to have the excellent group of family and friends that I do. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect celebration, except maybe to request that I get a little more time to spend with each of the guests. A few college friends even found the means to drive from the distant corners of Illinois and show up in dusty ol' Bethalto, IL. (Thanks to those of you who did! It meant a lot!!)

Today, after spending the afternoon at my grandma's house opening the gifts from my graduation party, my family attended the wake of my uncle's dad. Family continued to be on my mind as I witnessed a family say their final goodbyes to their father and grandfather. It was really beautiful seeing a man, with a small but close-knit family, be received into eternal rest after a long and fulfilling life. While death is inevitably sorrowful, I couldn't help but reflect on how beautiful death can be to a Christian...

My immediate family (including my brother! who came home from Conception Abbey for my graduation party!) then retired to our home, where we ended up listening to Chris Stefanick's talk entitled Beyond Boredom from FOCUS Nashville Conference 2011. We had some good discussion about it afterward that again made me very thankful to have such a beautiful Catholic family. Faith, though always present from the beginning, has slowly begun to make its home at the very center of our family; I'm glad to see it.

Thank you, God, for such a beautiful weekend.

They Call That a Statue?!

Once upon a time, two days ago, a new statue of Bl. John Paul was revealed in a Rome train station.

From what I can tell, the reactions have been pretty mixed. And by mixed, I mean to say that I'm pretty sure most Catholics hate it. Understandably so, too, since the massive structure just kind of looks like they went to the scrap yard and picked up some bronze, slapped something that looks mildly similar to the late Pope's face on it, and called it a commemoration. I mean, come on...surely the contractors would have given you an extra few weeks on the project if you needed it. Maybe then you could sculpt something that resembles the man we all knew and loved.

Okay, so all-in-all, it's not completely horrible. But I think the fine man that shepherded our Church for oh-so-long deserves a little better than tolerable. Give the guy a real statue. May I suggest you give it hands?

There's No Place Like Home

I frequently forget how much I love to be home, at least for short periods of time. I forget how much I love rolling down the streets I know so well with the windows down and the music up. I forget how much I love looking at the birds flitting around my backyard, or the beautiful gardens that I used to help maintain. I forget how much I love just being able to relax and not think about the next deadline or thing that I have to do.

Don't get me wrong, I love the busy life...I suppose that's why I keep it that way. But I've been thinking a lot (more) about the "simpler" life...perhaps what my life outside of college will be like. I really enjoyed (and I am NOT a morning person) waking up for Mass today and going to breakfast with a friend from high school. We chatted about simple things for about 3 hours in some little cafe in Edwardsville. It was really nice.

I came home, took a nap, and didn't take life to seriously. That's nice for a change. After dinner, mom and I took a walk around the neighborhood (while praying the Rosary). Again, something I never find time to do, but absolutely loved. I came home, dusted off a bike for nostalgia's sake, and took a spin around the block a couple of times. I can't even tell you how long it's been since I've ever even thought about getting on a bike...but it reminded me of simpler times, when the wind whipping through my hair as I sped down the hills in my neighborhood was about all I could do to get myself out of the house.

I also spent a little time walking around the backyard, looking at the tons of plants that my parents have spent much time laboring to nurture. As I was pruning some hips off a rose bush, I thought about how weird it was that there weren't a ton of bees flying around me yet (it's too early in the season, I suppose). I used to hate bees...they were just a nuisance more than anything. Things like that mark the maturity of a gardener, I'd say: the point when you realize that bees are an essential part of the process, and as such, you're just gonna have to share the rose bush with them. I think there's a spiritual maturity parallel there somewhere, but I'm too tired to dig it out right now.

Lastly, I ask you to pray for the repose of the soul of Bill Fite, the father of my uncle, who died today. He was an excellent man and lived a very long life (I think he was 96). May he rest in peace!

The Death of Osama bin Laden

I know, I know. It's been like a week (or more?), but I feel like commenting on it.

As a Catholic, I was a little saddened by the amount of celebration that was going on with his death. Yeah, he did horrible things...I understand that. But what happened to preaching forgiveness? Jesus said to forgive those who do us wrong, not just those who want to be forgive for it. I can say from experience that it's truly hard to forgive someone who doesn't seem to be at all sorry for what he's done, but God calls us to rise above and be Christian in those circumstances.

After all, God loves Osama just as much as he loves me, right? As a person of equal dignity, Osama and I are equals. And frankly, I want my brother to come into heaven as much as any other person I may or may not know. Shouldn't we all want that? To see as many people in heaven as possible? To have as many people experience forgiveness as God would grant?

One priest who accepted a Mass intention for the late terrorist leader, according to catholicculture.org, caught a lot of flack for it. He simply replied, "Their hearts are troubled because they're thinking emotionally about what he has done, and he has done a lot of evil."

Let's remove our emotions about the matter, and remember Osama's dignity. Let's pray for the repose of his soul.

Reflection on Priest

After reading a post from Fr. Daren's blog (dzehnle.blogspot.com) from quite a while back (what can I say, I'm trying to catch up on the semester's-worth of blogs I haven't read), I ran upon a reflection on the person of the priest from my very own patron saint: St. Norbert.

Oh, Priest! who are you?

Not through yourself, since you are from nothing.

Not for yourself, since you are mediator of men.

Not to yourself, since you are the spouse of the Church,

Not yours, since you are servant of all,

Not you, since you are God.

Who are you then?

You are nothing, and all.

A Return to the Blogosphere?

Well, we'll see how far this goes, but I'm interested in starting to post on this wonderful thing slightly more frequently.

Now that I'm officially a college graduate, maybe I'll have more time on my hands! (Doubtful.)

I leave for Totus Tuus training on May 26th, so the time will be short when I have very little to do. But regardless, perhaps I'll find a little time to update this intensely exciting (heh heh...) blog every once in a while.

Oh yeah, I'm officially a seminarian for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois now! I'll be headed to the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary in the fall! I can't wait!!!