Last month I had the privilege of ordaining two young men to the priesthood and three to the transitional diaconate at the Cistercian Abbey. The five ordinations reflect a surge of new vocations being experienced by the Irving community.
In August I ordained Father Augustine Hoelke and Father Philip Neri Lastimosa. Last year I ordained Cistercian Father Joseph Van House, the first monk to be ordained for the Abbey community since 1998. The three deacons ordained in August will be ordained to the priesthood next year. Five other young men are in formation either in Irving or in Rome.
Abbot Denis Farkasfalvy and other monks of the community have been aggressive in approaching young men about becoming a Cistercian. Fathers Hoelke and Lastimosa are both graduates of Cistercian Preparatory School. The three deacons all came in contact with Cistercians at the University of Dallas. The two to be ordained to the diaconate next year are both graduates of Cistercian Prep.
It is the Holy Sprit who calls men and women to a religious vocation but parents, teachers and friends are the instruments of the Spirit. This truth is amply demonstrated by the number of new vocations at the Abbey.
This is indeed a blessing for the Cistercian community and for the Church of Dallas which benefits greatly from the presence of the monks and their ministries at Cistercian Prep, the University of Dallas and in our parishes.
You may be an instrument of the Holy Spirit. Have you invited a young man or woman to consider a vocation to the priesthood or religious life?
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Some back-to-school thoughts
As our children and young people head back to school and to college I want to wish them well and encourage them in their educational endeavors. They need only to read the daily newspaper or watch a television newscast to realize how fortunate they are to live in a country where there are so many educational opportunities.
Whether a first-grader or a freshman, what they learn in the classroom must stand on the foundation of what they have learned at home. As the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council taught: “the task of imparting education belongs primarily to the family, but it requires the help of society as a whole.“
Parental responsibility is particularly important in forming and nurturing faith in their children. It is in the Christian family where children are “taught to know and worship God and to love their neighbor” in accordance with the grace received at Baptism (GE ¶3).
So as our children trudge off to school or take off for college they carry with them the indelible imprint of their family or origin. Indeed it will shape them for the rest of their lives.
I ask God’s blessing on all of our Catholic students and upon their parents for their loving care.
Whether a first-grader or a freshman, what they learn in the classroom must stand on the foundation of what they have learned at home. As the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council taught: “the task of imparting education belongs primarily to the family, but it requires the help of society as a whole.“
Parental responsibility is particularly important in forming and nurturing faith in their children. It is in the Christian family where children are “taught to know and worship God and to love their neighbor” in accordance with the grace received at Baptism (GE ¶3).
So as our children trudge off to school or take off for college they carry with them the indelible imprint of their family or origin. Indeed it will shape them for the rest of their lives.
I ask God’s blessing on all of our Catholic students and upon their parents for their loving care.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Father McGivney’s Men
It was nearly 129 years ago when a young Irish priest gathered a group of men together in the basement of St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Connecticut to establish an organization of Catholic men to promote the work of the Church and provide security for their wives and children. The priest was the Venerable Father Michael J. McGivney and the organization they founded that night became the Knights of Columbus.
Today the Knights number about two million men and have been described as “the strong right arm of the Church” for their promotion and defense of the Faith and their great charitable works. One the nation’s strongest insurance programs protects members’ families and supports many charitable programs.
Texas’ first Knights of Columbus Council was established in El Paso in 1902. Councils in Dallas, Fort Worth, Galveston and Houston quickly followed. Today the Diocese of Dallas has 9500 Knights in 52 councils with both members and councils increasing every year.
Knights in the Diocese sponsor numerous parish and diocesan programs. They contribute to the support of 94 seminarians and fund the diocesan Ministry to the Deaf and Disabled. Knights are in the forefront in Pro-Life activities and sponsor the annual Hike for Life. Knights of Columbus Friday night fish fries during Lent have long been traditional in many parishes.
Over the years the Knights have been active in educating the public about Catholicism and confronting the Ku Klux Klan and other organizations opposing Catholics and Catholicism. One way of doing this is by supporting efforts to show the important contribution of the Church to the growth of Texas. Among other projects Knights supported the seven-volume history of Texas Catholics, Our Catholic Heritage, by Dr. Carlos Castañeda and they continue to support the Catholic Archives of Texas in Austin.
Nationally, in 2009 the Knights donated $151,105,867 to charity and over the past decade their contributions to local, national and international Catholic causes have exceeded one-and-one-quarter billion dollars.
I commend and encourage the Knights of Columbus for their magnificent contribution to the Church in Dallas, nationally and internationally. I would like every parish in the Diocese of Dallas to have a Council and I would urge every Catholic man to become an active Knight of Columbus.
Today the Knights number about two million men and have been described as “the strong right arm of the Church” for their promotion and defense of the Faith and their great charitable works. One the nation’s strongest insurance programs protects members’ families and supports many charitable programs.
Texas’ first Knights of Columbus Council was established in El Paso in 1902. Councils in Dallas, Fort Worth, Galveston and Houston quickly followed. Today the Diocese of Dallas has 9500 Knights in 52 councils with both members and councils increasing every year.
Knights in the Diocese sponsor numerous parish and diocesan programs. They contribute to the support of 94 seminarians and fund the diocesan Ministry to the Deaf and Disabled. Knights are in the forefront in Pro-Life activities and sponsor the annual Hike for Life. Knights of Columbus Friday night fish fries during Lent have long been traditional in many parishes.
Over the years the Knights have been active in educating the public about Catholicism and confronting the Ku Klux Klan and other organizations opposing Catholics and Catholicism. One way of doing this is by supporting efforts to show the important contribution of the Church to the growth of Texas. Among other projects Knights supported the seven-volume history of Texas Catholics, Our Catholic Heritage, by Dr. Carlos Castañeda and they continue to support the Catholic Archives of Texas in Austin.
Nationally, in 2009 the Knights donated $151,105,867 to charity and over the past decade their contributions to local, national and international Catholic causes have exceeded one-and-one-quarter billion dollars.
I commend and encourage the Knights of Columbus for their magnificent contribution to the Church in Dallas, nationally and internationally. I would like every parish in the Diocese of Dallas to have a Council and I would urge every Catholic man to become an active Knight of Columbus.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Christianity is not just a point of view
In a recent homily at World Youth Day the Holy Father reminded us that: "to be Christian means to believe that the way of Jesus Christ is the right way to be human, the way that leads to the goal of a completely fulfilled and authentic humanity".
What struck me was the Pope’s use of the term “the way”. Long before the word “Christian” was coined in Antioch as a derogatory term for followers of Jesus,” they were known as followers of “The Way” (Acts 2:9). John tells us (14:6) that Jesus said: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
In his homily, Pope Benedict continued: “to be Christian is a way; or rather it is a pilgrimage, a journey with Jesus Christ. It is to go in the direction He showed us, and continues to show us.”So we are all on a journey to the Father and Jesus is our roadmap and our companion.
If Jesus is the way, then in order to find our way we must know Jesus, not just know about Him. Christian discipleship is growing in our knowledge of Jesus. To be imitators of Christ, in the word’s of Paul (Rom 13:14) we must “put on the Lord Jesus Christ”. We do this by seeking the Lord in prayer, studying His Word, frequenting the Sacraments and sharing in the liturgical life of our Catholic community.
There are other companions on our journey, parents, family, spouse, children, teachers and friends. They strengthen and encourage us along the way, but the full journey is ours alone and our only constant companion and guide is Jesus.
Christianity is not just a point of view; it is a way of life. It is following and imitating Jesus. It is making decisions and judgments based on the mind of Christ. It is never losing sight of our goal and knowing that we will never be abandoned.
It is the Way. It is His Way.
What struck me was the Pope’s use of the term “the way”. Long before the word “Christian” was coined in Antioch as a derogatory term for followers of Jesus,” they were known as followers of “The Way” (Acts 2:9). John tells us (14:6) that Jesus said: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
In his homily, Pope Benedict continued: “to be Christian is a way; or rather it is a pilgrimage, a journey with Jesus Christ. It is to go in the direction He showed us, and continues to show us.”So we are all on a journey to the Father and Jesus is our roadmap and our companion.
If Jesus is the way, then in order to find our way we must know Jesus, not just know about Him. Christian discipleship is growing in our knowledge of Jesus. To be imitators of Christ, in the word’s of Paul (Rom 13:14) we must “put on the Lord Jesus Christ”. We do this by seeking the Lord in prayer, studying His Word, frequenting the Sacraments and sharing in the liturgical life of our Catholic community.
There are other companions on our journey, parents, family, spouse, children, teachers and friends. They strengthen and encourage us along the way, but the full journey is ours alone and our only constant companion and guide is Jesus.
Christianity is not just a point of view; it is a way of life. It is following and imitating Jesus. It is making decisions and judgments based on the mind of Christ. It is never losing sight of our goal and knowing that we will never be abandoned.
It is the Way. It is His Way.
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