November 2015
P E O P L E
“I received the call to the priesthood when was five years old. I believe it was Easter and also my birthday when the idea first came to mind and after that day it never left. I want to be a priest because I have a zeal for souls and as a spiritual father I can help our people discover God’s love for them.”
Joseph Baltz
1st Year Theology Mt. Angel Seminary St. Thomas Aquinas—Rio Rancho
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Sainthood: The Path Least Traveled Rev. Mr. Leon J. Vigil
Every first of November, Holy Mother Church celebrates the Solemnity of All Saints. It is on this day that we commemorate all those men and women who have attained the beatific vision in Heaven. We may have the misconception that sainthood is simply for priests and religious. Quite the contrary. Leon Bloy once wrote, “The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.” Why? Because to be anything less than holy is to have missed the mark; to have missed our created purpose. Each Christian has a unique path to sainthood. Lumen Gentium states, “In the church, everyone whether belonging to the hierarchy, or being cared for by it, is called to holiness.” That is right… you and me are called to holiness. The saints, now revered in heaven and on earth, recognized their greatest potential: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thes. 4:3). That is the will of God for us: our sanctification. It is safe to say that no two saints are alike. There is no mold. There is no paved road to follow. Yet, there
is one prerequisite that all the canonized saints have met: to love the Lord and to live in radical surrender to His holy will. That is authentic holiness. That is saintliness. Aside from that, we may take alternate paths, but Christ must always accompany us on the journey. One such path is priesthood. Now not every priest is a saint, but that should be our aim. The patron saint of priests, St. John Vianney would often say, “the priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus.” Thus, the ministerial priesthood is to be the heart of the lover—Jesus Christ, set afire for the beloved—the people of God. Priesthood is a declaration of love and it is this love that motivates us in all our actions. The priest is called to sacrifice himself, day after day, out of love for God’s holy people. The priest is to be both the wounded lover and the wounded healer, by revealing the mercy and love of the Triune God in his very being and in his actions. As priests, it is important to remember that our priesthood is not our own, but is a participation in the priesthood of Jesus Christ, the Eternal High Priest.
“I want to be a priest so as to serve the Church, to give the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ to others, and to administer the sacrament to my brothers and sisters in Christ. I like the people to please pray for me and for all the ‘intentions of our Mother Mary and the needs of all her children.’”
Deacon Teddy Butler
Timothy Meurer
4th Year Theology Holy Apostles St. Helen—Portales
John Kimani
2nd Year Theology Holy Apostles St. Charles Borromeo
1st Year Theology Mt. Angel Seminary St. Thomas Aquinas—Rio Rancho
“I received my priestly call when I was still a catechumen, and after I had my first Holy Communion my journey to become a priest started. I want to be a priest to lead as many souls as possible to heaven. I like to ask the people to pray for me and all our seminarians that we grow in faith and perservere until the end.”
Nathan Lopez
2nd Year Pre-Theology Holy Apostles Santa Maria de la Paz—Santa Fe
“I have a two-fold desire for being a priest: one, to seek the wisdom of God, Wisdom of the highest order; and two, to bring that Wisdom to the people of God as after Christus. Please pray that I form myself in the image of Christ continually, that I may be molded into a priest that will be able to be successful in my minstry of guiding souls to God.”
“I received the call to the priesthood when I was 16. I felt the Lord drawing me to the priesthood even though it was not in my heart at the time. Later, I would struggle with the call until I finally could see that it was what I truly wanted. I want to be a priest to serve God and his people.”