From the Desert

I want to be a Saint

This is one of those stories about myself that I hate to admit. During my seminary years, I think it might have been around my second year, one of our instructors asked us what we aspired to be. One of my classmates said, “I want to be a Saint!” He said it with much conviction and fiery determination. I remember, sadly, rolling my eyes, thinking “Duh! Yeah, we all want to get to heaven!” A few others just shook their heads, as if to say, “There he goes again.” My best friend in the seminary, who always sat right behind me in every class, kicked my chair. It was his way of saying, “Oh, give me a break!”

I am embarrassed about how I responded to my classmate’s quite honest desire to become a saint. To this day I am not sure if he meant he wanted to eventually be officially recognized and canonized by the Church; or just make it to heaven, where all who reside are saints by definition. I think some of us were just embarrassed by his zeal for Jesus Christ. Perhaps we thought he was nutty. Maybe, he was just ahead of the curve of the rest of us in the class. I too, now have that zeal.

Yes, of course all of us in the seminary wanted to be saints. Why else would we want to become priests? We wanted to be priests and help others live good holy lives—in effect, helping them to become saints. All those who place their faith in Jesus Christ, and cooperate with His Grace to live a Holy life here on earth should make it to heaven. All of those are saints.

I want to be a Saint. No, I don’t have any aspirations to be recognized and later canonized as “Saint Gabriel Landis!” Yet, I desire—in the interior of my heart—to be closer united to the Heart of Jesus, to be closer united to His Wounds. I think I have caught up with the zeal of my former classmate. (What was I thinking all those years ago; “There he goes again?” God forgive me.)

Since my first assignment as an associate pastor at Ascension Parish, I have slowly become aware of a growing desire for a greater interior life with Jesus. I think all my discussions and emails with my Spiritual Director probably are bearing fruit. To paraphrase his teachings; “Gabriel, the Lord loves you just as you are and where you are, but He is always calling on you to be more and more like Him. He calls you higher and closer into His own Life.”

So what is the way to become a Saint? I refer to Father Jacques Philippe. I am reading his book, In the School of the Holy Spirit. And I draw from the wisdom of my own Spiritual Director, Father Tom Acklin, O.S.B., and his book; The Passion of the Lamb. I will explain more in depth in future columns, but for now the short answer is to truly pay attention to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. We all receive these, perhaps we might need some work on better listening skills, but He does speak to us. Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to move in accordance with His Will. In the end, this will provide greater interior Peace as well as prepare you and me on our road to sainthood.

Praised Be Our Savior Jesus Christ! Now and Always! Amen!

...To dust you shall return

Benedictine College students filled the Abbey Church to capacity for an Ash Wednessay All-School Mass. At left, students sing a hymn after receiving ashes; center, Father Bruce Swift in the foreground along with Father Denis Meade, Father Meinrad Miller, and Father Matthew Habiger distribute ashes; at right, Father Meinrad Miller was the homilist.

From the Abbey Altar

Courageously giving life; that is the Cross’ power

By Fr. Marion Charboneau

If you enjoy reading about the Old West or the frontier, I’d suggest taking a glance at the current issue of Kansas History magazine.

An article in it talks about surviving on the frontier of southeastern Kansas in the late 1860s. One of the keys to making it in that world was banding together. Early settlers were quick to form associations and organize to aid people in need. What many an honest settler discovered, though, was that the frontier attracted many people whose good appearances concealed unreliability and bad character.

Such was the experience of Father Paul Ponziglione, a Jesuit missionary who discovered a man, posing as his nephew and a priest, was going about the country “baptizing” babies for a “fee.” We can also include young Mr. Brenner, who settled in Kansas with his wife and quickly assumed a respected place in his community. His neighbors were shocked when the wife he had abandoned in Indiana tracked him down.

Likewise, you can imagine the scandal when a newlymarried sheriff by the name of Davies failed to return a borrowed horse and buggy. He needed it to visit his three other wives, one in Missouri, one in Arkansas, and another in Illinois.

Stories like these left many an individual struggling with a difficulty: these people needed each other, but how to know who could be trusted? It is a question which every person faces, one which breeds in most of us a prudent concern and reserve about those we encounter, perhaps even a little fear and suspicion.

The Apostles were able to overcome the usual doubts and fears they might have had about Jesus—who was at this point still a stranger because they had the same experi-

This, too, was the experience of the Apostles. Somehow, in Jesus’s words “Come after me,” they did not hear the words of a man, but the voice of God. The normal human fears and doubts and worries which everyone has about safety and security melted away, and they went

Photo by Abbot Barnabas Senecal

ence as Abraham, one of their greatest and holiest ancestors.

Once long ago, Abraham heard the call of God: “You, go! From the land of your kinsfolk and from our father’s house to a land that I will show you.” Abraham experienced in these words the power of God; it was all that was needed to convince him to go. off to follow Jesus. Recall for a moment that they were good Jews, dedicated to the greatest of the commandments: to love the Lord with all their hearts, with all their souls, and all their minds. To them, the Lord spoke and he was to be loved above all things, above even respected, profitable careers and the joys of family life.

With this Gospel, there’s certainly much to be said for those who’ve entered the monastic life and priesthood because we emphasize selfabandonment for the kingdom of God. More generally, though, God’s call is often direct and powerful enough to get us moving without much thought or consideration, it isn’t always so. We may have to make a decision in the face of doubts and fears and moments of hesitation. And no matter how clearly and powerfully God has spoken, we will still have to face moments of doubt and uncertainty.

We can take courage from Jesus’ decision to go to the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali. In his day it was called Galilee. Herod Antipas ruled Galilee and had ordered John’s arrest, and his order would result in John’s death as well. Lest we lose courage, know from this gospel passage that Jesus had the nerve to go into that very place, gather up some of John’s own disciples, and preach the very same message: “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jesus was truly walking into the lion’s den, inviting death on the cross. We take courage because we know that he has won.

This week, I found myself reading the experience of Father Emmerich Vogt, a Dominican priest and psychologist. He told about an old woman who had married a “miser,” and from the start got nothing from him. She suffered for many years with very little, except that given to her by sympathetic friends. Father Vogt’s insight was that this really wasn’t the cross. The cross, he reminds, is the Tree of Life, but her decision to tolerate her husband’s injustice did not give life to anyone. It made her a doormat

and allowed her husband to be a heartless sinner. The real cross for this woman was to lovingly and gently confront her husband, and inform him that if he continued to deprive her, she would earn her own money and provide her own things. Her decision to stand up for herself and go to work, and the struggles that would bring, should have been her cross. She would have no doubt suffered doing this, but that new suffering would have given life she had not had before.

Father Emmerich Vogt presents a fundamental truth of the cross—if it doesn’t give life, it’s not the cross at all. We monks are confronted with this reality day after day. The monastery is our cross if we see to it that out of a conflict comes reconciliation and brotherhood, if out of anger and hurt come kindness and compassion. In this, we are very much acting in unity with Jesus. After all, in the end, after he had risen, his disciples were to find him in Galilee (Mt 26:32, 28:7). Indeed, by going there, what Isaiah had said came to pass, that despite the terrible darkness cast on that land by John’s arrest and death, the land of Zebulun and Naphtali became a place of light through the risen Christ. All of us have in our experience old, saintly monks whom we have looked to as models of holiness and charity. They did it this way. They made their peace with God and with others, and through them, the cross brought its life to the world. In our own encounter with the cross in our vocation and in this Eucharist, let this be in our minds. Our Lord gathered the Apostles and moved to the cross, determined to bring life to the world. It must be the same with us if the cross is to have any power.

Abbey Notes

Continued from page 7

bey Pilgrimage to Bavaria in April. Abbot Owen Purcell was originally in the group; Abbot Barnabas asked if he would prefer a trip to Rome a little later, in the spring, to be with Father Daniel McCarthy when he defends his doctoral thesis at Sant’Anselmo. Also joining Abbot Barnabas on the pilgrimage to Bavaria are Father Denis Meade and

Prior James Albers.

Abbot Owen will give a talk as part of the 150th anniversary observance of St. Joseph parish in Leavenworth, April 11. Father David McEvoy, pastor, has lined up a series of anniversary talks and that part of the parish’s history that touches on Benedictines will focus on the parish’s first pastor, Benedictine Father Casimir Seitz, who came to Kansas in 1857 as one of the first members of St. Benedict’s Abbey.

Brother Anthony Vorwerk

was pleased to know that his nephew and godson, Leo Vorwerk, was inducted into the University of North Florida Athletic Hall of Fame, February 20, in Jacksonville, Fla. He was the first head coach of the men’s and women’s tennis teams, compiling a record of 321-129 during seven seasons, ending in 1990. He guided the 1986 women’s team to the NAIA national championship, the first national championship in UNF history. He coached 26 AllAmerica selections. Leo is a 1974 graduate of Benedictine College.

Brother Philip Neri Padley, Novice, is baking bread for the monks’ table. A name for this bread, if produced for sale, might be “A Lemke Loaf,” in honor of the first Benedictine in Kansas, Father Peter Henry Lemke.

Father Maurice Haefling

continues to serve the American Cassinese Congregation as one of four Financial Counselors. He recently traveled to Silver Spring, Md., on congregation business.

Father Meinrad Miller gave a Parish Mission at St. Patrick parish, Kansas City, Kan., Feb. 10-13. He preached at all the Masses over the weekend and gave a talk each night, Sunday through Wednesday. The topics were Family, Our Lady of Lourdes (150th anniversary this year), the Eucharist, and Reconciliation. Msgr. Michael Mullen is Pastor of St. Patrick’s; Father Anthony Ouellette is Associate Pastor.

The Kansas City Star Magazine carried a wonderful cover story about the Abbey and the Gordon Parks photos, which were exhibited for the first time Feb. 10 in the art gallery created in the crypt of the Abbey church. Brother Dominic Cason, curator of the gallery, was featured on the cover. To read The Star article, go to: http://www.kansascitystar. com/238/story/475138.html.

The St. Benedict’s Abbey Capital Campaign committee met Feb. 10. Dan Madden, director of Development, and Gene Hegarty, chairman of the committee, led the meeting. Committee members who attended pledged themselves to gaining new members, and to undertake personal fundraising visits, with monks of the Abbey.

St. Joseph’s Priory, Mineiros, Goias, Brazil

Prior Josias Dias da Costas

has assumed leadership of the House of Studies in Goiania. He has finished his teaching tasks in Mineiros and will be with the group of young men, accompanying them in monastic formation and scholastic endeavors. Prior Josias and the community have decided to send the high school-age candidates to a Catholic diocesan school in Goiania. Previously, they attended the Salesian school.

Father Kieran McInerney is much at ease with his role and presence in Goiania. He joins in the prayer life, counsels with the young members, and teaches class on our history and on monastic lectio. He is also translating to Portuguese Father Peter Beckman’s book, Kansas Monks, with assistance from Father Rodrigo Perissinotto.

Father Kieran gave the retreat conferences for the community. He used the material he had prepared for the Ralph Voss retreat group in Atchison. He also showed a DVD of Bishop Matthias.

Brother Vinicius de Queiroz

Rezende will be ordained to the priesthood on Dec. 12, 2008.

Sisters of the Rule

On Nov. 25, as part of the St. Benedict’s Abbey Sesqucentennial celebration, the Benedictine sisters from Mount St. Scholastica came to St. Benedict’s for vespers and a banquet. Pictured, clockwise from top: (1) Abbot Barnabas Senecal, Prioress Ann Shepard, and Sr. Mary Terese Morris await dinner; (2) The monks, and sisters joined their voices in song for vespers; (3) Fr. Matthew Habiger and Sr. Rosaria Schafer chat; (4) Sr. Philomena Glatzbach greets Fr. Regis Hickey; (5) and Br. Lawrence Bradford and Sr. Deborah Peters pose for a photograph.