Cultivating Gratitude

CULTIVATING A GRATEFUL HEART by Br. Simon Baker

In the very first week of my summer assignment I moved in with the Jesuits across from Rockhurst University (Sunday), began my eleven-week Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program (Monday), and was ordained to the transitional Diaconate (Thursday)! Although the learning curve was a steep one, I find myself with countless reasons to be grateful.

Gratitude arises from the awareness of having received something one did not earn or deserve. Therefore, the key to cultivating a grateful heart is to recognize everything as gift. As one of my seminary professors likes to say, “Unexpressed gratitude is useless.” Therefore, allow me to express my gratitude for the gifts I received this summer.

First, I am grateful to the Jesuits of the Claver Residence at Rockhurst University for opening wide their doors to me. It is no secret that monks have historically been known for their hospitality. However, if ever a monastery could be rivaled in its practice of this virtue, I think the Kansas City Jesuits would give us a run for our money! I am grateful for their treatment of me as a colleague and for modeling dedicated service to God’s people.

Second, I will be forever grateful for the gifts I received during my time as a hospital chaplain in the ICU – of a Level 1 Trauma Center – in a tough part of town! My time in CPE taught me how true it is that in ministry “we get much more than we give.” My patients taught me how to pray, no longer for ambiguous categories, but for people - no longer for the vague category of “the unloved,” but for Theresa who has five children by four different men and is being physically abused by the fourth; no longer for the generic “helpless,” but for Jim who is watching his wife die and is powerless to do anything. Although I did nothing to earn the intimacy my patients shared with me, I am grateful for them inviting me into the mystery of their life and death, pain and loss, faith in God, and sometimes almost inhuman strength in trials.

I am grateful for the opportunity of ministerial collaboration with the many wonderful staff of the hospital (doctors, nurses, security, environmental services, etc.) and especially my strikingly diverse group of fellow CPE interns. I never imagined a group of people could be so diverse religiously, ethnically, culturally, in personality, and still get along so well. They taught me to love Jesus and live my Catholic faith with renewed zeal and fervor. Ministry to God’s people takes all kinds. And working with these marvelous men and women, I take solace in the Church’s teaching that even if someone is not one of us (Catholic) they are still one of us (a member of God’s Kingdom). “Whoever is not against us is for

One of Br. Simon’s first acts as a deacon was to baptize his newborn nephew.

Br. Simon Baker has been a Benedictine monks since 2009. On June 5 Br. Simon was ordained to the transitional Diaconate after studying at St. Meinrad Seminary in Indiana. He will spend the next year working in various ministries preparing to be ordained to the Priesthood in April 2015.

us,” says Jesus (Mk 9:40) – see also Unitatis Redintegratio (3) and Lumen Gentium (16). I am forever in debt to their companionship, mentorship, and discipleship.

And finally I am grateful, perhaps most of all, to have been invited by God into a new way of doing ministry, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders. The very day I was ordained I gave new life to my youngest nephew through the Sacrament of Baptism; later in the summer I was privileged to witness the marriage of my uncle; and I “Deaconed” at the Eucharistic table of my parents’ parish, which has supported me since the very first day that my vocation was born. Assisting at Mass is without question the greatest gift of all and therefore deserving of the most gratitude. In fact the very word, Eucharistia, while usually translated as “thanksgiving,” can just as accurately be translated “gratitude.” The Eucharist is a feast of gratitude!

Truly, all is gift, even if some gifts are more easily recognizable than others. When we make a conscious effort to give thanks for the gifts we do recognize we might begin to see the wisdom of Henri Nouwen’s words in Life of the Beloved: “every time we decide to be grateful it will be easier to see new things to be grateful for. Gratitude begets gratitude, just as love begets love” (p. 52). So let us heed the words of St. Paul and “In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess 5:18).

Br. Simon pictured with the other summer interns at Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Young Knights Accomplish A Steep Mission

Thanks to Benedictine College’s Knights of Columbus, St. Benedict’s Abbey holds a complete Pontifical set of vestments. Br. Simon Baker’s (above, center) ordination to the transitional deaconate was a perfect opportunity to raise money for a dalmatic, a liturgical vestment worn by deacons.

“The vestments are hand made, so they exude a sense of beauty and design that reflects our Creator,” said Zach Rohm (above, left), Grand Knight and senior at Benedictine College.

The Knights of Columbus place an emphasis on charitable works, especially when it comes to supporting religious vocations.

“The Knights have numerous opportunities to support priests on the diocesan level, but we thought that supporting a future priest who was within our own Benedictine community would be most meaningful,” Rohm said.

“This dalmatic is special because it comes from the Knights!” Br. Simon shares. “Raising the money to purchase it for the monastery demonstrates the respect the students have for the monastic liturgy. The choice of this specific vestment confirms that they understand the monastic liturgical ideal of ‘noble simplicity.’”

“It’s wonderful,” Br. Simon expresses the essence of his thoughts about the student support. “A nice liturgical vestment is not cheap. I don’t want to quantify the students’ level of support but it does show to what lengths they will go to express this support.”

Fundraising took place at events throughout the school year guided by Br. Luke Turner (above, right), the financial secretary for the Knights. The largest fundraiser was through spring study mugs for the college students. A study mug includes candy and a letter from parents to encourage their son or daughter during exams.

The Knights fundraising motivated Br. Simon during his own seminary studies. “Br. Luke informed of the Knights support. It has been a great encouragement for me as I move toward Ordination.”

Every year, BC Knights of Columbus elects a particular seminarian to pray for and support financially.

“Not only is it fulfilling our mission as Knights, but it also fulfills our call as Catholic gentlemen. Hopefully it will foster future vocations for the Abbey,” Rohm said.

Br. Simon will be ordained a priest April 25, 2015 at St. Benedict’s Abbey Church.

“Part of the reason I have dedicated the rest of my life as a monk and priest of St. Benedict’s Abbey is because of the students. The gift of this vestment by the Knights of Columbus is the tangible expression of their reciprocity and their mutual dedication to the monastery.”