Benedictine Pastors

Serving Their Monastery, Their Parish, Their Church

by Audrey Edwards - BC ‘12 The routine of a parish priest and Benedictine monk may seem like a split lifestyle, but for Fathers Roderic Giller, Gabriel Landis, and Gerard Senecal, the two vocations are inseparable. The lives these men lead are simple yet multifaceted, challenging yet fulfilling, resolute and yet a daily choice.

Father Gabriel Landis

Before he became a Catholic, Father Gabriel

Landis was a Baptist, a Lutheran, a man undecided in his faith. Now the parish priest of St. Joseph’s in Atchison, Father Gabriel had been searching with a head that was as restless as his heart for a true faith to follow. “God calls us to be active, to build up his kingdom,” Father Gabriel said. “We are not just meant to be contemplative. We are called to greatness.”

Father Gabriel explains how he tries to emphasize Benedictine prayer in his parish. “Prior to daily Mass, I start with the Christ-centered experience of adoration. I also place texts in the church pews for the parishioners to read and practice lectio divina, holy reading, on their own.” Before Mass, Father Gabriel completes a holy hour in prayer, practices lectio, and goes over other preparations for Mass.

Every now and then, Father Gabriel tries to join fellow monks at the monastery for lunch. “I never thought I’d be a parish priest, my first calling is to my monastery, then as shepherd to my congregation,” he noted. “However, monks were originally called to build and start parishes in Kansas to establish a community. I do my best to serve both.”

The angel Gabriel’s messages of “be not afraid” and “everything will be possible with God” are very close to Father Gabriel’s heart. As part of his Benedictine spirituality, he tries to say individual prayers through phrases such as these over and over each day. In this way he manifests a balance between prayer and work, allowing each action to become a constant stream of prayer itself. Father Gabirel also combines prayer and work by including aspects of the Rule in his homilies. “I try to preach on the importance of developing a friendship with Christ and how the Benedictine religious life strengthens your interior life.”

Father Gerard Senecal

“Monks share in a community within the monastery,

just as parishes share in a community life within their diocese,” Father Roderic Giller said. “Even though I am away from the Abbey grounds, I have found community within my diocese. Above all, my first vocation is to be a monk. I practice my monastic call to ora et labora, pray and work, daily. You must consistently have a balance and be focused on the Lord, not on yourself.”

Even though not all priests are part of a monastic order, Father Roderic knew he wanted to serve parishes as a monk, as well as a priest. He joined St. Benedict’s in 1956 and has now been a priest for more than fifty years. “For me, it felt so natural,” he said. “Being a Benedictine monk is all I’ve known. It’s all I wanted, and I felt so welcome. I knew I had found my identity, and I intend to live it out for the rest of my life.”

Understandably, parish priests are often pressed for time. “Preparation for my homily overlaps with my daily prayers at times,” he said. “But the two in themselves are both centered around the Word of God. I find ways of incorporating them together if I can.”

As a parish priest, Father Roderic has assisted in marriage prep, distributed food to the needy, and provided for the sacramental needs of his parish community. As a monk, these are all acts that stem from Benedictine virtues of stability, charity and humility. Father Roderic is constantly living out his Benedictine vocation by way of these virtues. “Discernment is about discovering God’s purpose for you in life,” he said. “You must find God’s calling, one which will fill you with a peace that only he can give.”

Benedictine College President 1972-1987 From College President to Parish Priest, Father

Gerard Senecal has served St. Benedict’s Parish since 1998. “I incorporate my Benedictine calling to work and prayer through my routine here at the rectory,” Father Gerard Senecal said. “I start the day off with the Liturgy of the Hours, then continue to prepare for my pastoral duties.”

Father Gerard was president of Benedictine College for fifteen years after Mount Saint Scholastica College and St. Benedict’s Collage merged to form a single institution, a change which brought the Abbey, Atchison community, and students closer together. “Education is the gateway to greater life experiences,” he said. “I have loved seeing the growth and formation of my parishioners. It’s one of the great joys of leading a parish.”

Being a monk as well as a parish priest can be challenging, but for Father Gerard, it is more than rewarding. He finds joy in knowing that God is always calling him to a more interior life with him, combining his innermost monastic life with his pastoral vocation. “As a parish priest I am called to keep order and preserve virtue within the parish community,” he said. “Being a Benedictine monk is one way of doing this, being a priest the second.”