From left, Fathers Zachary Ochsenbauer and Stephen Boatwright share a moment of joy as they greet one another and their fellow ordinands at their May 31 priestly ordination Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul in
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
PAGETWO
WHICH ONE? THAT ONE! Austin Paulson, a second grader at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School in St. Anthony, reaches for a donut that caught his eye May 23. The donut was on a special “donut wall” school officials pulled out of parish storage to prepare for a morning with Bishop Michael Izen: first Mass, then a snack. Bishop Izen picked a glazed donut. School principal Danny Kieffer said finding the donut wall was the brainstorm of Veronica Paulson, Austin’s mother and a graduate of the school. The students had a chance to ask Bishop Izen questions, some of which dealt with sports, others religion and still others favorite foods. One fact: Bishop Izen likes chocolate, but not chocolate donuts.
TOTUS TUUS TRAINING Michael Perrault, left, and Greg Maloney, right, second-year seminarians at St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul, participate in a team building exercise at the college June 2 as part of Totus Tuus training week. Their task was to get their group of 13 across a field on a blanket without touching the grass. The activities were facilitated by Jerome Meeds of Dunrovin Retreat Center north of Stillwater. The missionaries will minister as evangelists and catechists for young people in weeklong summer camps in parishes across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Behind them are other college and seminarian students who will also go out to parishes. Totus Tuus began in the archdiocese in 2013 under Nancy Schulte Palacheck’s leadership in what is now the Office of Discipleship and Evangelization. Last year, the Winona-Rochester and St. Cloud dioceses joined the archdiocese’s more than eight days of training. This year, a representative from the Diocese of Crookston is attending as well. The archdiocese is training 52 missionaries seminarians and other college-age men and women to serve in Minnesota dioceses. Fun fact: three newly ordained priests for the archdiocese Fathers Benjamin Eichten, Zachary Oschenbauer and Randall Skeate are alumni of the Totus Tuus program. More information about Totus Tuus and where the missionaries will minister this summer can be found at archspm.org/totus-tuus
Practicing CATHOLIC
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the May 30 “Practicing Catholic” radio show featured a discussion with Archbishop Bernard Hebda about how individual gifts from the Holy Spirit are part of God’s plan, and an interview with Father Jim Livingston, pastor of St. Paul in Ham Lake, about becoming like children. The program also included a talk with Katie Steiner, a WCCO meteorologist, about her perspective on living the faith boldly. Listen to interviews after they have aired at archspm.org/faith-and-discipleship/practicing-catholic or choose a streaming platform at Spotify for Podcasters.
OVERHEARD
Know that you are role models for young people all over the world. ... Cycling is so important, as is sport in general. I hope that as you have learned to take care of the body, may your spirit also always be blessed. ... Be attentive to the whole human being: body, mind, heart and spirit.
Pope Leo XIV as 159 cyclists from 29 countries made a short pit stop next to the sacristy of St. Peter’s Basilica June 1. In a tribute to the late Pope Francis and his message of hope for the Jubilee Year, the cyclists rode through Vatican City and its gardens before starting the last stage of the Giro d’Italia in Rome. Pope Leo is a fan of American baseball and was an amateur tennis player.
NEWS notes
Archbishop Samir Nassar, the Maronite archbishop of Damascus, Syria, will be in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis this month. On June 26, the archbishop will discuss the archdiocesan partnership with the Maronite Archeparchy of Damascus in Teresa of Calcutta Hall at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. The archbishop also will discuss the dire conditions of his country after eight years of war, which a news release about the Basilica event said includes an exodus of young people, fragmented families, disease, lack of resources and shelter. “The Church structures are slowly disintegrating: In 2017, there were only 10 marriages rather than 30; seven baptisms rather than 40,” the archbishop said. Priests have departed due to the loss of anyone to serve, he said. The evening at the Basilica will include 5:30 p.m. social time and a 6 p.m. program. The archdiocese’s partnership with the Maronite Archeparchy of Damascus began in 2017. It has included financial support to families in Damascus suffering from the economic turmoil caused by war and educational forums designed to raise awareness about the Maronite Church and the situation in Syria.
Bloomington-based Elevate Life, which supports 47 pregnancy resource centers and clinics in Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota, is holding its 39th annual golf tournament fundraiser at 2 p.m. June 23 at Crystal Lake Golf Club in Lakeville. The event includes golf contests, lunch, dinner, and a fundraising auction. Tournament registration can be found at elevatelifeusa.org/golf. In February, the organization announced it had hired a new executive director, Anna Schmidt, whose experience includes communications and information director at Our Lady of the Lake in Mound; director of customer relations for Regional Multiple Listing Service of Minnesota, which serves real estate agents and brokers; and director of consumer affairs for the Insurance Federation of Minnesota.
Planting for this year’s food shelf garden at St. Timothy in Blaine started May 22 and received a special blessing from pastor Father Joe Whalen. The garden team comprised of roughly 12 parishioners — has planted a variety of vegetables this year, including tomatoes, cabbage, beans, cucumbers, cauliflower, onions and several varieties of zucchini and squash. The produce grown is then donated to the Salvation Army food shelf typically, over 1,000 pounds of produce are donated each year, though the amount varies depending on weather conditions during the growing season. The garden’s origins date back roughly 20 years. It is now one of several outreach initiatives the parish has implemented as part of its mission (“nourished in love, and sent to serve”) and it has been a way for the parish to respond to Pope Francis’ call in the encyclical “Laudato Si’” to care for the environment. In addition to the vegetable garden, the parish maintains a pollinator garden with local plants that attract bees, birds, butterflies and other pollinators.
Minnesota state legislators await the start of a special session to finalize the two-year budget. Staff at the Minnesota Catholic Conference noted that cuts to nonpublic pupil aid appeared to not be included in working group documents for the special session and the conference was confident that the cuts will not take place this biennium. The rollback of health care for undocumented adult immigrants remained contested and unsettled. If no budget agreement is made by the end of June, a government shutdown will go into effect on July 1.
Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ Sister Michele Dvorak, a native of Belle Plaine, has been elected to a six-year term beginning in August to lead the international congregation of women religious. The congregation’s ministries span the United States, Germany, India, Nigeria, Kenya, Mexico, the Netherlands, England and Brazil. Sister Michele was elected in May during the congregation’s 26th International Chapter held in Dernbach, Germany. She brings to her new role decades of experience in higher education, provincial leadership and organizational development, a news release from the congregation said. “This is a sacred and hope-filled time for our congregation,” said Sister Shirley Bell, U.S. province leader. “We give thanks for Sister Michele’s ‘yes’ and offer our prayers and support.” The Poor Handmaids have ministered in the United States since 1868 with commitments in health care, education, spiritual development and social justice outreach.
CORRECTION
The Catholic Spirit incorrectly reported in its May 22 edition in a package on priestly jubilarians that Father John Hofstede was pastor of St. Cecilia in St. Paul from 2014 to 2016. He currently is pastor of that parish and has been since 2014.
COURTESY ST. CHARLES BORROMEO
JORDANA TORGESON | FOR THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
FROMTHEBISHOP
ONLY JESUS | BISHOP MICHAEL IZEN
Witnesses to Jesus
This past weekend, we were blessed here in the archdiocese to ordain five men to the priesthood. Besides the beautiful Saturday morning Mass for priestly ordination, it was a weekend full of prayers, Holy Hours, receptions and first Masses of Thanksgiving. We thank God that he has been so generous to give us five new priests, five new shepherds, and five new witnesses to his love.
Most of these men have been witnessing their whole lives. One of the newly ordained, Father Alexander Marquette, was attending St. Timothy Catholic School in Maple Lake when I was pastor there from 2007 to 2012. I recall a particular school Mass when I asked the boys if any of them had ever considered a vocation to the priesthood. Father Alex was in third grade at the time, and his hand shot up immediately. No hesitation. That is being a witness. I’ve asked that question at other school Masses, and sometimes you will see the boys initially look around, to see if anyone else is raising their hand.
Father Alex and the other newly ordained priests are witnesses. They could have done anything with their lives, but they are giving them to the Lord. It is a witness to say, “What Jesus offers us is so infinitely important, I’m going to give my whole life to the Church, to the priesthood, and to others!”
Testigos de Jesús
El fin de semana pasado tuvimos la bendición, aquí en la arquidiócesis, de ordenar a cinco hombres al sacerdocio. Además de la hermosa misa matutina del sábado para la ordenación sacerdotal, fue un fin de semana lleno de oraciones, Horas Santas, recepciones y las primeras misas de Acción de Gracias. Damos gracias a Dios por su generosidad al darnos cinco nuevos sacerdotes, cinco nuevos pastores y cinco nuevos testigos de su amor.
La mayoría de estos hombres han sido testigos toda su vida. Uno de los recién ordenados, el padre Alexander Marquette, asistía a la escuela católica St. Timothy en Maple Lake cuando fui párroco allí de 2007 a 2012. Recuerdo una misa escolar en particular en la que les pregunté a los niños si alguno de ellos había considerado alguna vez la vocación al sacerdocio. El padre Alex estaba en tercer grado en ese momento, y levantó la mano de inmediato. Sin dudarlo. Eso es ser testigo. He hecho esa pregunta en otras misas escolares, y a veces se ve que los niños inicialmente miran a su alrededor para ver si alguien más levanta la mano. El padre Alex y los demás sacerdotes recién ordenados son testigos. Podrían haber hecho cualquier cosa con sus vidas, pero se las entregan al Señor. Es un testimonio decir: “Lo que Jesús nos ofrece es infinitamente importante. Voy a entregar mi vida entera a la Iglesia, al sacerdocio y a los demás”. Qué apropiado que nuestros hombres fueran ordenados el fin de semana de la Ascensión. En nuestro Evangelio del primero de junio, las últimas palabras de Jesús
How fitting that our men were ordained on Ascension weekend. In our Gospel June 1, Jesus’ last words on Earth are, “Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name ... . ”
Then he quickly adds, “You are witnesses of these things.”
We see an additional reference to witnesses at the end of the first reading. After Jesus ascends into heaven, we hear that the disciples are looking intently at the sky. Two angels appear and ask, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?” The implication is, “Why are you standing around? Get moving, you are witnesses now!” This directive is something we recall at the end of every Mass. The priest or deacon says, “Go in peace” or “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord” or “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.” In other words, “Go be a witness.”
Priests are called to this, but really, all of us are called to be witnesses. To witness, in short, means to give evidence to the truth, and to take Jesus seriously. We are called to witness to who Jesus is and what he has done in our lives. The latter can often be more effective. It is important to speak about who Jesus is, but witnessing isn’t just remembering facts from Scripture or other doctrine. Not only is it less intimidating, but it can also be more effective to simply share with another person how God has
en la Tierra son: “Así está escrito que el Cristo padecería y resucitaría de entre los muertos al tercer día, y que en su nombre se predicaría el arrepentimiento para el perdón de los pecados...”. Y añade rápidamente: “Ustedes son testigos de estas cosas”.
Vemos una referencia adicional a los testigos al final de la primera lectura. Después de que Jesús asciende al cielo, escuchamos que los discípulos miran fijamente al firmamento. Dos ángeles aparecen y preguntan: “Hombres de Galilea, ¿por qué están ahí parados mirando al cielo?”. La implicación es: “¿Por qué están ahí parados? ¡Muévanse, ahora son testigos!”. Esta directiva es algo que recordamos al final de cada misa. El sacerdote o diácono dice: “Vayan en paz” o “Vayan y anuncien el Evangelio del Señor” o “Vayan en paz, glorificando al Señor con su vida”. En otras palabras, “Vayan y sean testigos”.
Los sacerdotes están llamados a esto, pero en realidad, todos estamos llamados a ser testigos. Testificar, en resumen, significa dar evidencia de la verdad y tomar a Jesús en serio. Estamos llamados a dar testimonio de quién es Jesús y de lo que ha hecho en nuestras vidas. Esto último a menudo puede ser más efectivo. Es importante hablar de quién es Jesús, pero dar testimonio no se trata solo de recordar hechos de las Escrituras u otra doctrina. No solo es menos intimidante, sino que también puede ser más efectivo simplemente compartir con otra persona cómo Dios te ha bendecido o cómo has visto a Jesús obrar en tu vida. Si no damos testimonio, puede ocurrir lo contrario. Cuando no tomamos a Jesús en serio, nuestra forma de vivir puede ser
blessed you or how you’ve seen Jesus working in your life. If we don’t witness, the opposite can be true. When we don’t take Jesus seriously, then the way we live our lives can be used by others as evidence that Christianity might be false. Our neighbors might say, “Well he goes to church every Sunday, but he certainly doesn’t live like a Christian.”
It was C.S. Lewis who once said, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.”
As Catholics, too often we live our lives as if our faith is moderately important. We say our prayers and go to Mass on Sunday, but our faith needs to influence our Monday mornings and our Friday nights. It needs to influence our business choices and our social conversations. It needs to play a role in our time with family and in our time with strangers. Brothers and sisters, our faith must be infinitely important.
The example of how the disciples lived their lives after the Ascension is good evidence that the faith is of infinite importance. They spread the good news and most of them even gave up their lives for that news. Let us pray that our newly ordained priests might always witness to the truth and that they might always speak the words the Lord desires to speak through them. And let us pray also for ourselves, that we, too, might be witnesses to Jesus Christ.
usada por otros como evidencia de que el cristianismo podría ser falso. Nuestros vecinos podrían decir: “Bueno, va a la iglesia todos los domingos, pero ciertamente no vive como cristiano”.
Fue C.S. Lewis quien dijo una vez: “El cristianismo, si es falso, carece de importancia; si es verdadero, tiene una importancia infinita. Lo único que no puede ser es medianamente importante”. Como católicos, con demasiada frecuencia vivimos como si nuestra fe fuera medianamente importante. Rezamos y vamos a misa los domingos, pero nuestra fe debe influir en nuestras mañanas de lunes y noches de viernes. Debe influir en nuestras decisiones de negocios y en nuestras conversaciones sociales. Debe desempeñar un papel en nuestro tiempo con la familia y con desconocidos. Hermanos y hermanas, nuestra fe debe ser infinitamente importante. El ejemplo de cómo los discípulos vivieron después de la Ascensión es una buena prueba de la importancia infinita de la fe. Difundirán la Buena Nueva y la mayoría incluso daría su vida por ella. Oremos para que nuestros sacerdotes recién ordenados siempre den testimonio de la verdad y proclamen siempre las palabras que el Señor desea comunicar a través de ellos. Y oremos también por nosotros, para que también seamos testigos de Jesucristo.
ARCHDIOCESAN SYNOD 2025
OFFICIALS
Archbishop Bernard Hebda has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis:
Effective July 1, 2025
Reverend Stephen Boatwright, assigned as sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Michael in Kenyon and the Church of Saint Joseph in Rosemount. Father Boatwright previously served as a permanent deacon for the Archdiocese and was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 2025.
Reverend Andrew Brinkman, assigned as sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Pius V in Cannon Falls, and sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Joseph in Miesville. This is in addition to his assignment as priest in solidum for the Church of the Maternity of the Blessed Virgin and the Church of the Holy Childhood in Saint Paul.
Reverend Benjamin Eichten, assigned as parochial vicar of the Church of Saint Vincent de Paul in Brooklyn Park, and as chaplain to Totino-Grace High School in Fridley. Father Eichten was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 2025.
Reverend Kyle Etzel, assigned as parochial vicar of the Cathedral of Saint Paul in Saint Paul and as chaplain and instructor for Unity Catholic High School in Burnsville. This is a transfer from his current assignment as parochial vicar of the Church of Saint Joseph in West Saint Paul.
Reverend John Gallas, assigned as sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Pius V in Cannon Falls, and sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Joseph in Miesville. This is in addition to his assignments as Formator for the Saint Paul Seminary in Saint Paul and sacramental minister for the Church of Saint Agnes in Saint Paul.
Reverend Evan Koop, assigned as sacramental minister for the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Minneapolis. This is in addition to his assignment as Faculty for the Saint Paul Seminary in Saint Paul.
Reverend Sean Magnuson, assigned as chaplain for Hennepin Healthcare in Minneapolis. This is a transfer from his previous assignment as parochial vicar of the Church of Our Lady of Grace in Edina.
Reverend Alexander Marquette, assigned as parochial vicar of the Church of the Divine Mercy in Faribault. Father Marquette was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 2025.
Reverend Zachary Ochsenbauer, assigned as parochial vicar of the Church of All Saints in Lakeville. Father Ochsenbauer was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 2025.
Reverend Randall Skeate, assigned as parochial vicar of the Church of Saint Stephen-Holy Rosary in Minneapolis. Father Skeate was ordained to the priesthood on May 31, 2025.
As Archbishop Bernard Hebda seeks input for discerning pastoral priorities for the coming years in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, nearly 500 participants in the June 7 Archdiocesan Synod Assembly at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul will vote on the remaining eight propositions from the top 12 vote-getting propositions in 2022. View videos about all 12 propositions at archspm.org/synodpropositions.
SLICEof LIFE Help for suffering veterans
Tim Murray (holding large scissors), executive director and founder of Trinity Sober Homes in St. Paul, cuts a ribbon with help from Jack Zimmerman, a military combat-wounded veteran, to mark the grand opening of Bravo Zulu House, a facility two hours south of the Twin Cities that Murray created and raised money to build as a way to help military veterans who suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and addictions to drugs and/or alcohol. Noting the high suicide rate among veterans, Murray and a group he formed to spearhead the project raised $1.3 million to finance construction of the 6,000-square-foot home, which will house up to 12 military veterans beginning in June. Bravo Zulu House is an outgrowth of Trinity Sober Homes, which Murray launched in 2012. Trinity has helped hundreds of men ages 40 and older in their recovery from addiction, but Murray was looking for additional ways to make a difference. “What we concluded was, after 10 years of operation, that the military was the most underserved market,” said Murray, 66, who is a member of All Saints in New Richland. “Since 2001, since 9/11, we lost about 7,500 troops in combat, and we mourn every one of those losses. ... In that same 24-year period, more than 120,000 veterans have killed themselves. And yet, virtually nobody knows about that. It’s a silent epidemic.” Bravo Zulu House is for men who have served in the military. Murray noted a similar house will be constructed for female military veterans.
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Maple Lake dairy farm to host Rural Life Sunday
By Tim Montgomery For The Catholic Spirit
When Greg Elsenpeter died in 2003, his sons Dan and Luke became the fifth generation to operate the Elsenpeters’ dairy farm outside Maple Lake. About 45 miles northwest of Minneapolis in Wright County, Valley View Dairy is an organic farm of roughly 700 acres south of Minnesota Highway 55.
The brothers and their two families milk 200 cows twice daily from a stock of about 400, including calves. They grow their own hay and feed corn, and a few other grains. On June 29, the Elsenpeters’ dairy farm will be the site of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ celebration of Rural Life Sunday — an annual event that was last held on a Maple Lake area farm in 1995.
Rural Life Sunday celebrates the blessings of rural life and highlights the people who live and work in rural areas, said Father John Meyer, pastor of the host parish, St. Timothy in Maple Lake.
Father Meyer said a rural lifestyle is characterized by families who, relying on weather and the land, place their trust in God and recognize that they are stewards of his creation.
“Rural life has so much to celebrate,” said Father Meyer, “a strong sense of family, faith, solid values, community and trust in God.”
Working the land is a faith-based profession, said Dan Elsenpeter, because to a large extent, outcomes can’t be controlled. Farming demands the strength of spirit to overcome uncertainty as well as the skill and experience to diagnose and address issues along the way.
“There are so many times we’ll be working on a project or trying to get a crop in (amid) problem after problem and things not going as planned,” said Dan’s son Henry, “and Mom will say, ‘maybe God doesn’t want you doing that.’”
But divine providence and small miracles also figure into the equation. There was the time the problematic corn chopper finally fell apart just as Dan was driving it along the road after finishing up in the field on the final day of the harvest — perfect timing. Or the day of their grandma’s funeral, when Dan and Luke somehow managed to harvest 60 to 80 acres of hay after the service and just ahead of a torrential downpour.
The general public might not fully understand all the work and risks that are part of farming. But Rural Life Sunday is an opportunity to experience a taste of it at the Elsenpeters’ farm.
Weather permitting, Mass will be celebrated outdoors by Bishop Michael Izen, a former pastor of St. Timothy,
and food and activities will follow the service.
Bishop Izen said that in addition to celebrating the blessings of rural life, Rural Life Sunday is important because it builds on the work of Catholic Rural Life, a national organization that supports Catholic farmers and others in rural areas. Founded in St. Louis in 1923 as the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, the organization has been based in St. Paul since 2014.
There are “(s)o many special people at St. Timothy’s,” said Bishop Izen, while expressing gratitude for the opportunity to be with the community of his first pastorate, “people who I truly think of as family.”
Food and activities will follow the Mass. The Elsenpeter family is supplying hot dogs and beef from their stock, and the parish community is pitching in to help. The Knights of Columbus are signed up for grilling duty, and the Council of Catholic Women is providing side dishes and serving. There will be children’s games and tours of the farm.
Father Meyer said the Elsenpeters represent the best in rural life. They were approached about hosting Rural Life Sunday, he said, because they are active in the church and can manage a large event. Many of the Elsenpeter relatives are also active in the parish and school, Father Meyer said.
Greg Elsenpeter, known as a good storyteller, was a deacon at St. Francis Xavier in Buffalo for four years before his death, and his wife, Krista, has been involved in the parish music ministry as a pianist and an organist for almost 70 years.
“There’s a lot of music in the family,” confirmed Krista, who said that one weekend she counted 13 family members — three children and 10 grandchildren — participating in the parish’s music ministry and as altar servers. “But the real blessing for me is that they like the music of the church,” Krista said.
One thing she’s personally grateful for is the kind of children that she said rural families are sending out into the world. They are children with a good work ethic and good values who, when they take on a job, are ready to take on the responsibility, Krista said.
“Our younger kids are on the calf-feeding crew,” said Dan’s wife, Erica, describing the six to eight weeks of bottle feeding required for calves. “If calves are not fed, they may get sick. There’s a safety net, but the kids learn there’s a direct connection between what they do and the outcome — they learn accountability.”
And they’re learning to care for living things, added Dan, “they’re learning respect for life.”
The Elsenpeter dairy farm has provided learning experiences for school children. Luke’s wife, Elizabeth, pointed out that they had recently hosted St. Timothy preschool, kindergarten and first grade classes, showing them the ins and outs of the milking parlor, the calves, the free stall barn and what the cows eat. And then, she said, she talked about God’s creation — what he gave us in a little seed, and how that little seed is used by farmers.
“Faith isn’t just in a church building,” said Elizabeth, “You can go outside and it’s everywhere.” Elizabeth has taught at the elementary level, and Dan’s wife, Erica, was a high school English teacher for six years.
DIRECTIONS
Those planning to attend Rural Life Sunday at Valley View Dairy farm are encouraged to bring lawn chairs. To get there, drive along Minnesota Highway 55 from either the east or west, turn south onto Dillon Avenue NW (between Buffalo and Maple Lake), and, at the T-intersection, head east on 30th Street NW until parking signs appear at a four-way intersection. Handicap parking will be available. In case of rain, celebrations will be held inside a shed at the farm. Outdoor restrooms and hand washing stations will be on site. For more information, visit archspm.org/events/rural-life-sunday.
TIM MONTGOMERY | FOR THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Dan Elsenpeter, left, and Luke, his brother, stand at the Elsenpeter homestead sign at Valley View Dairy farm near Maple Lake.
Archbishop Hebda urges prayers, accompaniment at 5-year anniversary of George Floyd’s death
By Joe Ruff
The Catholic Spirit
It has been five years since the police-involved killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. In a May 25, 2020 incident captured on police body cameras and other videos, a white officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on the neck of Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, who was being arrested on suspicion of passing a counterfeit $20 bill. No officer provided medical aid, despite Floyd saying he could not breathe and calls from a gathered crowd to help him. Chauvin was convicted of murder in 2021; the other officers were convicted of lesser charges. Many interpreted the officers’ actions and inactions as racially motivated, and the incident sparked protests as well as looting, rioting and violence in the Twin Cities and across the country.
Archbishop Bernard Hebda in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and other faith leaders including Pope Francis called for prayer, peace and racial healing. Archbishop Hebda agreed to talk May 27 with The Catholic Spirit about the incident and its aftermath. The following conversation has been edited for clarity and length.
Q Archbishop Hebda, thank you for being with us today. How has our local Church responded to the death of George Floyd five years ago?
A Thank you for this opportunity to talk about this important topic. It’s shocking to me that it’s been five years. There’s a lot that’s happened in that time. Certainly, we as a Church have had a good opportunity to reflect; I think it has been a time of growth for us, really. You’ll remember that it was at the height of COVID(-19). We did a few things online with listening sessions, and then we had a wonderful organization spring up, the Catholic Racial Justice Coalition, that’s sponsored by a number of Catholic entities in our archdiocese. They, too, headed up a wonderful listening opportunity. One of the things that I had not been sensitive to before the killing of George Floyd was just the amount of pain that our Black Catholics carry from experiences that they’ve had in their lives. You always hope that it was something in the distant past, or that it was something that happened elsewhere. But as we listened to people tell their stories — and that’s really what those events were for — we realized how much pain there was even from more recent events. I guess that was the shocking part of it. To listen as they shared experiences of racism in the Church was very painful.
And yet I felt that the Holy Spirit was certainly moving in those events and that, just by listening to the stories, we have an opportunity to think about how it is that we respond in the present, preparing for the future, but based on those experiences in the past.
Q The Church at that time called for prayer, peace, racial healing and unity. That encouragement continues to this day. Divisions can be found not only in the Black experience, but among Native American, Latino, Vietnamese and other minority populations as well. Families, schools and parishes also experience division. How can we walk with one another to deepen our common bonds and bridge our differences?
A I think about the call for peace. Isn’t it interesting, that was
the first expression of our new pope, Pope Leo, when he spoke about the peace that Jesus offers to the world. In all the different circumstances that you spoke about, I think we as a Church have that opportunity to infuse the peace of Christ, knowing that there is real pain in the world. Jesus came to offer peace; the hope is that we’re able to address that. You know, in the course of this Jubilee Year, Pope Francis called for us to be Pilgrims of Hope. I think that hope is so significant, even as we look at these questions of racism, war; when we think about the healing that’s needed; or when we begin to pray for peace; when we consider how prejudice has been part of the human experience for thousands of years, always people drawing distinctions between us and them, regardless of how those lines are drawn; that it’s only that peace of Jesus (that is possible) and the fact that we are brothers and sisters in Jesus. Through Jesus, we have the opportunity to move beyond (those divisions).
Q I think about the efficacy of prayer. I wonder, Archbishop Hebda, if you might outline some of the benefits of drawing closer to Christ in prayer, and what, then, we can do to help others?
A I think it’s when we have that encounter with Jesus, and when we dedicate time and energy to doing that, that we come to know Jesus all the more. It’s easier for us, then, to see Jesus in our brothers and sisters who might at some level seem different from us. As we come to know Jesus, we’re going to see how it is that his love is in the hearts of those who might look different than we do, or it’s his strength that’s within them, or his hope. As we come to see Jesus in one another, it’s easier for us to see the bonds that we share.
Q We mark this tragic anniversary as we approach our second Archdiocesan Synod Assembly. Nearly 500 people will gather
at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul on June 7 to help you discern through the Holy Spirit a pastoral direction for the next several years in our archdiocese. A consistent effort on your part, Archbishop Hebda, has been a call for unity and evangelization in our parishes, so that we might better know one another and reach out to people who might not fully know the Church. How might this call through the assembly foster unity and understanding in our broader community?
A You might remember that the impulse here — for us (in the archdiocese) to engage in that kind of listening — even preceded Pope Francis’ frequent discussions about synodality. It was an impulse, I think, that many people were feeling around the globe. It called us to recognize that the Holy Spirit speaks in all of us, and to recognize the priesthood that we all share by virtue of our baptism, and that everybody has something to say. It has really helped the Church, I think, to be better at listening.
And certainly, here in the archdiocese, when we engaged in the prayer and listening sessions before our last Synod (2022) and then at the Synod itself, the hope was that we would be able to develop, with the help of the Holy Spirit, a real sensitivity to the needs of our brothers and sisters. There was a wonderful quote from Pope Francis, who was speaking about what he was looking for in bishops and pastors, saying that we had to have spiritual stethoscopes, so that we’re able to listen to what’s going on in the lives of one another. Even those basic listening sessions that we had in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing, I think really helped us to develop some skills as listeners, even when the topic is painful.
We saw that modeled beautifully in the different sessions that Pope Francis called for the universal Church. He talked about them as conversations in the Spirit. And it’s a fascinating process. It seems like sometimes that it’s a little bit on the slow side and doesn’t quickly come to resolution, but it really is aimed at helping us to hear what our brothers and sisters are saying, and trying to be attuned to their experience, where the Holy Spirit is moving them.
Now, we always need to grow and go deeper. We already have a sense of how important it is to strive to listen to one another in a spiritual way. It’s also a way in which we’re able to listen to the Holy Spirit — that the Holy Spirit uses us to bring to bear the light that the Spirit knows the Church needs.
So even in difficult times, even in contemplating racism or prejudice, the Holy Spirit has something to say.
Listen to the interview with Archbishop Bernard Hebda at TCS Podcast: tinyurl.com/yt3wehsv. Find a short video at TheCatholicSpirit.com
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Archbishop Bernard Hebda responds to a question in a May 27 interview at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center in St. Paul.
Chanhassen parishioner finds small group that offers support, camaraderie, growth
By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit
Christina Kraus has always been active in her Catholic faith, but during the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic the parishioner of St. Hubert in Chanhassen realized she longed for a closer faith community where she could grow spiritually and develop Christian relationships.
Kraus found that connection last October in one of the parish’s small groups. The group suits her extroverted personality and love of discussion. It is one of more than 40 small groups at St. Hubert, which means many options for people to fit their backgrounds, preferences and state of life.
Many of the groups, launched with hundreds of others throughout the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis at the start of Lent 2024 and joined by many more that continue to form, use a format known as the Parish Evangelization Cells System (PECS). During 90-minute meetings held in homes, churches or other locations, groups such as Kraus’ follow the structure of the PECS seven moments, which include song and praise, sharing, teaching, discussion, intercession, announcements and healing prayer.
Use of the PECS model and growth of parish-based small groups is encouraged by Archbishop Bernard Hebda as part of implementing his 2022 pastoral letter, “You Will Be My Witnesses: Gathered and Sent From the Upper Room.”
“I knew I was missing something,” said Kraus, whose group has 11 members of all ages and backgrounds. “And to be able to end up finding that, eventually; it’s just a blessing.”
Kraus has found support and opportunities to share and pray in her group, during good and hard times. There
| THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
From left, Greg DeBenedetto, Christina Kraus and Brian Busch talk during their small group meeting May 28 at St. Hubert in Chanhassen. All are parishioners. DeBenedetto leads the group.
is camaraderie and a love of exploring and discussing the Catholic faith, she said.
“It’s the highlight of my week,” Kraus said of her group, which meets in the parish school’s library and is led by a fellow St. Hubert parishioner, Greg DeBenedetto.
“I can sometimes go in there in a down mood, and I always walk out in such a much better mood. I am enthused, I’m joyful. I am just filled with peace and happiness, and it completely changes my mood for the better every week,” Kraus said.
Kraus has received support from her group during trials. Not long after she joined the group, she was deeply saddened by the death of someone in the company where she works.
Group members listened to Kraus’ story and then comforted her and prayed with her. “We pray for healing, we pray for support, we pray for whatever the circumstance calls for. But a lot of times we may or may not know (someone’s need) ahead of time,” she said. “It sometimes
comes out in the sharing of what God did for me, or what I did for God.”
Even though she was still affected by the loss, which also impacted many of her coworkers, Kraus said she began to see ways she could comfort other small group members through their grief and challenges.
“They (her small group members) kind of filled up my bucket … so I could then in turn pass that on to others and help them fill up their buckets,” she said.
The group is one of six St. Hubert small groups that are open to parishioners of all ages and backgrounds, said DeBenedetto, adding that members range in age from in their 20s to 75.
Membership in each St. Hubert small group is capped at 12. Groups benefit from being aware of the different perspectives of others in diverse stages of life and in different places in their faith journeys, he said.
“We have a whole bunch of people who all have perspectives, and it’s been
so amazing,” DeBenedetto said. “It’s been such a Godsend.”
From the time Kraus joined the group, she was very open in sharing her story. Her openness helped encourage other members and made them feel more comfortable with sharing, DeBenedetto said. “A safe space opening up and loving each other and loving God, that’s what (the small group) is,” he said.
During a group study program early in the year, when members were learning about their personal gifts and how to use them to serve the Church, God and the community, Kraus discerned she had a gift of empathy. Now, she has begun training to become a small group leader.
“It was just so powerful the way God was not only working through me but also making me understand and realize that was a gift that I give to others,” she said.
Helping people who are interested in joining a small group find the right group for them is a goal at St. Hubert that Andrea Krautkramer believes other parishes also share. “A good group, a group that works for you, rather than (one) you leave, rather than you give up on a really important ministry,” said Krautkramer, St. Hubert small group coordinator.
People who are not parishioners, or who are not Catholic, also can join, though the small groups are essentially Catholic, Krautkramer said. “If small groups can not only get you more connected to the community and to the Lord, and bring more people into the Catholic Church, that would be amazing.”
Through her small group, Kraus said, she’s found support not only for her faith journey but to discern how she can help others. While all small groups can be beneficial, taking time to find the best fit can make all the difference, she said. “It can be life changing if your heart is open to it.”
By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit
Prayer and praise, small and large group dialogue and voting.
Those will be key elements June 7 as nearly 500 people from across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis gather at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul for Archdiocesan Synod 2025, the “Be My Witnesses Assembly.”
There are three ways for all the faithful to join Synod members in prayer. The first is a 7-8 p.m. June 6 Holy Hour of Adoration at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
Blessings and Congratulations FATHER RANDY SKEATE on your ordination to the Holy Priesthood!
Our prayers of love and support from your brothers and sisters at the community of St. Francis de Sales
Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Auxiliary Bishops Michael Izen and Kevin Kenney will be there.
The second opportunity is after the daylong assembly at Cretin-Derham Hall, when Synod members and people across the archdiocese are invited to celebrate a 7 p.m. Archdiocesan Pentecost Vigil Mass followed by a prayer service, also at the Cathedral.
“The readings are all aimed at helping us see what’s the work of the Holy Spirit,” Archbishop Hebda said of the vigil Mass. “We’re also going to be doing a classic prayer meeting afterward, invoking the gifts of the Holy Spirit and asking that we be open to those gifts.”
The third way to support the Synod is to pray at any moment of any day, Archbishop Hebda said.
Assembly members, the faithful preparing for Archdiocesan Synod 2025
“Just that general prayer, which you can do from your rocking chair or on your front porch, or while you’re riding your mower, you can pray for the Synod, that it would be a great experience in a very concrete way,” the archbishop said.
The assembly at Cretin-Derham Hall will include praise and worship, comments from the bishops and opportunities for assembly members to discuss the various propositions, which can be found online, with videos about each one, at archspm.org/synodpropositions
DAVE HRBACEK
NATION+WORLD
Cuts to CRS food aid projects could impact hundreds of thousands of children, group says
By Kate Scanlon OSV News
Catholic Relief Services said May 21 that most of its projects under a federal international food aid program were terminated, leaving hundreds of thousands of children more vulnerable to hunger.
The Trump administration said it was seeking to “align” its programs “with the President’s agenda.”
More than 780,000 children across 11 countries will be left without their school meal, in many cases their only meal of the day, as a result of the termination of 11 out of CRS’ 13 projects under the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program being terminated, CRS said.
The program — named for the late Ambassador and Sen. George McGovern and former Sen. Robert Dole, both advocates of ending childhood hunger — purchases agricultural commodities grown in the U.S. to support school food programs and maternal and early childhood nutrition programs in countries around the world, with the stated purpose of reducing hunger and promoting literacy, preventing children from trying to learn with empty stomachs.
A student is pictured in a 2017 photo eating lunch at primary school in the Kumala community in Sierra Leone’s Koinadugu District. At the school, volunteer parents prepare and serve warm, nutritious meals for students each day through a Catholic Relief Services’ project titled, in English, “Every Child Should Be Educated.” The project is part of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition initiative sponsored and funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Commodities purchased by the program include flour from Oklahoma, bulgur from Kansas, beans and lentils from North Dakota, and vegetable oil from states including Arkansas, Florida, Illinois and Iowa, according to the Agriculture Department’s website.
Politico reported on May 20 the program was among the major international food aid grants the Agriculture Department plans to cancel. The White House’s proposed fiscal 2026 spending plan called for entirely eliminating the McGovern-Dole program. The first Trump administration proposed a similar plan, but Congress continued to fund the program.
A spokesperson for the Agriculture Department said in a statement shared with OSV News the programs that have been terminated did not align “with the foreign assistance objectives of the Trump Administration.”
Sean Callahan, CRS president and CEO, said in a statement, “This decision isn’t just a policy shift — it’s a life-altering blow to hundreds of thousands of children who rely on these meals to stay healthy, stay in school and stay hopeful about their future.”
“Having just returned from Honduras, where I saw one of the programs in action, I can confidently say its success is undeniable,” Callahan continued. “I witnessed firsthand the remarkable contributions of the community and local government. I spoke with young children who endure nearly two-hour walks to school each day —
driven by the hope of receiving both a meal and an education. It is un-American to stand by and not provide assistance while hunger robs children of their chance to learn and thrive.”
The Agriculture Department’s spokesperson said that President Donald Trump “is putting America First and at USDA we are ensuring our programs align with the President’s agenda to make America safer, stronger, and more prosperous.”
“After completing a thorough review of USDA’s Food for Progress and McGovern-Dole programs in accordance with Executive Order 14169, Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid, USDA has terminated 27 Food for Progress program agreements and 17 McGovern-Dole program agreements that are not in alignment with the foreign assistance objectives of the Trump Administration,” the statement said. “14 Food for Progress agreements (serving 17 countries) and 30 McGovern Dole agreements (serving 22 countries) remain, totaling more than $1 billion in funding, including projects of Catholic Relief Services.”
The spokesperson also said “all U.S. agricultural producers have received payment for commodities for which invoices have been received.”
Saint Patrick
“Those projects which were terminated received a 30 day notification. During this time partners are required to deliver any commodity to its final destination, in accordance with the Agreement, to ensure no product goes to waste,” they said.
“The USDA has posted the 2025 notice of funding opportunity for McGovernDole on USDA.gov, with an emphasis on a safer, stronger, and more prosperous program. We look forward to ensuring USDA foreign aid is spent implementing existing projects, as well as any new projects, that continue to put American agriculture at the forefront and align with the President’s agenda.”
But Callahan said, “Ending a program that provides a child’s only meal is deeply troubling and goes against our values as a nation and as people of faith.”
“We have a moral responsibility to ensure vulnerable children have access to the nourishment they need to learn, grow and build a better future,” he added.
On its website, CRS urged its supporters to “ask the administration to reverse the terminations of CRS’ McGovern-Dole Food for Education and Food for Progress programs and continue providing lifesaving and life-affirming food aid.”
“We call on the administration to reconsider its decision and restore funding for these life-affirming programs,” Callahan said. “By reinstating the McGovern-Dole awards in particular, we can ensure children continue to have access to daily meals in school, and invest in their future, their health, and their ability to break the cycle of poverty.”
ACTION ALERT
In response to Catholic Relief Services announcing that most of its projects under a federal international food aid program were terminated, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has launched a nationwide call-to-action, asking Catholics to contact members of Congress.
“Ask your members of Congress to insist that the administration reverse the terminations of Catholic Relief Services’ Food for Progress and McGovern-Dole Food for Education programs, to continue lifesaving and life-affirming food aid,” the USCCB stated in its alert.
The USCCB alert can be found online: tinyurl.com/2vhm62we
OSV NEWS PHOTO | MICHAEL STULMAN, CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
HEADLINES
Situation in Gaza reaches “catastrophic levels,” warns a Catholic humanitarian organization. Food insecurity in the Gaza Strip has reached “catastrophic levels,” warned Catholic aid group CNEWA-Pontifical Mission. In a late-May update, regional director Joseph Hazboun said 96% of Gaza’s population now faces extreme hunger, with families surviving on fewer than two meals a day. Over 90 community kitchens have shut down, and health conditions are rapidly worsening amid shortages of medicine, clean water, and sanitation. Nearly 2 million people about 90% of Gaza’s population are displaced. Gaza’s two Christian churches, Catholic Holy Family and Greek Orthodox St. Porphyrios, are sheltering hundreds, offering basic aid and support. Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe, New Mexico, a longtime, vocal advocate for peace, called the humanitarian toll “beyond anyone’s worst fears.” Since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the ongoing Israeli response, over 52,000 Palestinians have been killed. Pope Leo XIV and Cardinal Parolin have both urged an end to hostilities and release of hostages.
Pope Leo visits the papal villa and former summer residence in Castel Gandolfo. Pope Leo XIV spent several hours May 29 visiting the Borgo Laudato Si’ ecology project set up at the papal villa and farm in Castel Gandolfo, as well as the former papal summer residence there. Pope Francis established the project in early 2023, saying he wanted “to make a tangible contribution to the development of ecological education by opening a new space for training and raising awareness,” according to the Vatican City governor’s office. The project offers tours of the formal gardens to tourists and school groups but also is set up to train gardeners and maintenance workers. Pope Francis also turned the papal palace on the town’s main square into a museum, which opened in 2016. Many of the townspeople hope the new pope will once again spend at least part of the summer in the villa, but there has been no word about that.
Panelists: Transhumanism is not just the latest tech advance but seeks to one day replace humans. A panel discussion hosted by the Institute for Human Ecology at The Catholic University of America in Washington took a hard look at transhumanism calling it more than just sci-fi speculation. Held May 15, the discussion explored the movement through the lenses of philosophy, theology and science. The panelists were Jan Bentz
of Oxford’s Blackfriars Studium, Wael Taji Miller of Hungary’s Axioma Center, and Father Michael Baggot, LC, a theology and bioethics professor in Rome. All three warned that transhumanism is not just a tech trend, but what they called a “modernist heresy” an effort to redefine the human person through artificial enhancements and reject the God-given nature of humanity. Bentz drew parallels between transhumanism and utopianism, arguing both ideologies see man as self-sufficient, confuse progress with redemption, and replace enduring truths with ideology. The takeaway? Catholics can’t afford to ignore the deeper spiritual and philosophical implications behind this fast-moving frontier. Transhumanism, Father Baggot said, ultimately hopes to remedy “the perennial difficulties of human nature” aging, sickness, suffering and death. Miller noted the transhumanist obsession with death as a sort of defect erroneously written into human existence.
Supreme Court rejects an Indigenous coalition’s appeal over a mine’s threat to a sacred site. The U.S. Supreme Court on May 27 rejected an appeal from a coalition of Western Apache people, along with other Native American and non-Indigenous supporters, that sought to protect their sacred site at Oak Flat, Arizona, from destruction by a copper mining giant. The high court left in place lower court decisions that will permit the transfer of Oak Flat in Tonto National Forest to Resolution Copper, a foreign-owned mining company. An environmental impact report for the project mandated by the National Environmental Protection Act estimated that mining the site would result in a crater nearly 2 miles in diameter and about 800 to 1,000 feet deep. In a dissent, Justice Neil Gorsuch, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, argued the court made “a grave mistake” in declining the case. Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, a religious liberty law firm representing the coalition known as Apache Stronghold, called the court’s decision “a tragic departure from its strong record of defending religious freedom.” He said, “It is hard to imagine a more brazen attack on faith than blasting the birthplace of Apache religion into a gaping crater.”
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Knights of Columbus, and Notre Dame Law School’s religious liberty clinic were among the groups that filed briefs in support of Apache Stronghold.
Law Office, P.A.
Padre Pio’s habit and rare relics are coming to the U.S. along with his fellow Capuchins. A habit worn by St. Pio of Pietrelcina and other rare relics are coming to the U.S., brought by Capuchin friars from the very monastery that was home to the beloved saint known as Padre Pio. The National Center for Padre Pio in Barto, padrepio.org, and the Padre Pio Foundation of America in Cromwell, Connecticut, padrepio.com, announced the visit in a May 19 joint press release. Capuchin Father Francesco Dileo, provincial minister of the Capuchin Friars Minor of San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy the monastery at which the saint served will lead the relics tour Oct. 11-14 at the Barto center and Oct. 15-18 at St. Pius X Church in Middletown, Connecticut. The friars will bring with them a full-size habit worn by the saint, one that has previously never left Italy, along with a second relic. Padre Pio’s habit is “a sacred symbol of his vocation, humility and total devotion to Christ,” said Christina Calandra Rocus, whose late mother, Vera Calandra, founded the National Center for Padre Pio after a profound encounter with the saint during his earthly life an encounter that led to the healing of her sister, Vera Marie, and a pledge to spread devotion to the saint.
More than 90,000 pilgrims venerate the body of St. Teresa of Ávila. Over 90,000 pilgrims flocked to Alba de Tormes, Spain, May 11-25, to venerate the incorrupt body of St. Teresa of Ávila marking just the third public exposition of her relics since her death in 1582. Displayed from May 11 to 25 at the Basilica of the Annunciation, the event followed a Vatican-authorized study confirming the saint’s body remains incorrupt. The faithful came from around the world to witness this rare moment of grace. A facial reconstruction, based on historical descriptions and forensic science, brought the saint’s image to life. The Discalced Carmelites framed the event in prayer and reflection, culminating in a solemn Mass on May 25, led by their Superior General. St. Teresa, known for her profound mystical writings, remains a spiritual giant whose legacy still inspires. Her remains have now been returned to the monastery she founded, where she spent the final days of her life.
Russia rejects a Vatican offer to host peace talks on Ukraine. Russia has rejected the Vatican’s offer to host talks for ending the war in Ukraine, despite international support for the idea. Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin had offered to “eventually make the Vatican ... available for a direct
meeting” between Ukraine and Russia, as May 16 talks between those nations in Istanbul ended after just two hours, with little result except for a mutual prisoner exchange. The move was endorsed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and U.S. President Donald Trump, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying he was “ready for direct negotiations with Russia in any format that brings results,” whether in “Türkiye, the Vatican, Switzerland.” But Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov nixed the prospect, saying May 23 at a Moscow conference his nation has “no plans” for when or where the next meeting between the two nations will take place. He described efforts to coordinate talks at the Vatican as “unrealistic.” Lavrov cited religion as one obstacle, saying a meeting between Russia and Ukraine, “two Orthodox countries,” at a “Catholic platform” would be “somewhat uncomfortable” for the Vatican. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is also the subject of one of six arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes by Russian officials in Ukraine, and would in principle risk arrest entering Italy, an ICC signatory.
Bishops urge renewed efforts to end antisemitism after Israeli Embassy staffers murdered. Two U.S. Catholic bishops expressed their “profound grief and outrage” over the May 21 killing of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, D.C. “We stand in prayerful mourning with our Jewish brothers and sisters and denounce this act of violence and antisemitic hatred in the strongest possible terms,” said Bishop Joseph Bambera of Scranton, Pennsylvania and Metropolitan Archbishop Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia in a May 23 joint statement. The bishops who respectively chair the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs and Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development said their hearts were “burdened by sorrow” over the murders of 26-year-old Sarah Lynn Milgrim and 30-year-old Yaron Lischinsky, who were fatally shot at close range while leaving a young diplomats reception at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington. The bishops urged a recommitment to “Nostra Aetate,” the landmark document of the Second Vatican Council that affirmed Christianity’s spiritual kinship with the Jewish people while denouncing all forms of antisemitism.
CNS and OSV News
5 MEN ORDAINED TO THE PRIESTHOOD
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
From left, Deacons Randall Skeate, Zachary Ochsenbauer, Alexander Marquette, Benjamin Eichten and Stephen Boatwright listen to Archbishop Bernard Hebda during the homily just before their ordination to the priesthood May 31 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
By Joe Ruff
The Catholic Spirit
Newly ordained, bestowing his first priestly blessings, Father Randall Skeate smiled with quiet gratitude when asked what he felt May 31 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
“Extreme joy,” he said. “Fulfillment and a lot of peace.”
A few weeks of butterflies in the stomach had given way to calm confidence, said Father Skeate, 27. He and his newly ordained brother priests — Fathers Stephen Boatwright, 74; Benjamin Eichten, 30; Alexander Marquette, 25; and Zachary Ochsenbauer, 26 — had fanned out to separate chapels in the Cathedral to bless family, friends and others in the congregation.
About 2,000 people filled most of the Cathedral for the Mass. Archbishop Bernard Hebda was the chief celebrant, with concelebrants including Auxiliary Bishops Michael Izen and Kevin Kenney, Bishop Emeritus Richard Pates, Maronite Catholic Chorbishop Sharbel Maroun of St. Maron in Minneapolis and more than 100 priests.
Also present were men and women in consecrated life, faculty members of seminaries including St. John Vianney College Seminary and The St. Paul Seminary, both in St. Paul, and parishioners and deacons from across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
“I look at Deacons Steve and Alex, Ben and Randy and Zach, and I can’t help but think that God loves this local Church, that he would have called such fine men to serve this archdiocese, to feed his flock here,” Archbishop Hebda said in his homily. “While they are all very different men, each of them is faithful, hardworking, compassionate.”
The archbishop noted their ordination came at a special time in the Church, during a Jubilee Year, a year of grace celebrated around the globe.
“How beautiful, moreover, to be ordained not only in a Jubilee Year, but in May, the month dedicated to Mary, our mother and queen of the clergy,” Archbishop Hebda said. “As if that weren’t enough, today is also the 100th anniversary of the canonization of St. John Vianney, patron of parish priests and the secondary patron of our archdiocese. The icing on the cake is that we also celebrate today the feast of the Visitation. If you ask me, brothers, Jesus loves you dearly.”
The archbishop brought the congregation’s attention to the image on the cover of the ordination program, that of Mary visiting her cousin, Elizabeth, with the artist creatively adding the women’s husbands to the scene, St. Joseph and Zechariah.
“These two men, I’d like to suggest this morning, would be good models for you, as you assume as priests a somewhat new posture to Christ’s beloved bride, the Church. Jesus, the bridegroom, is asking you as his priests to love, respect and protect his bride.”
In Luke’s Gospel, a pregnant Mary hastens through the hill country to visit Elizabeth, who is carrying John the Baptist
in her womb, the archbishop said. Mary is there to serve, but she does not go alone. “Rather, she’s bringing with her Jesus, the Messiah, in her womb. She’s bringing Jesus to the needs of others,” the archbishop said.
In addition to the privilege everyone has as bearers of God through baptism and receiving holy Communion, Archbishop Hebda said, the newly ordained will have the privilege of bringing Christ to people through the Eucharist and other sacraments.
“That’s every time that you’ll celebrate the Eucharist, every time that you’ll hear a confession, every time that you celebrate the sacrament of the sick, things you would have never been able to do without the priestly ordination you will receive today,” he said. “My encouragement to you, brothers, is to stay close to Mary, and she’ll always keep you close to her son and focused on the needs of others.”
Finally, there is a servant girl in the painting, Archbishop Hebda said. “For me, she’s a wonderful reminder that the Lord will be encountered in the midst of our everyday labors, our everyday work, when we’re just doing our job. My bet is that the Lord will make himself known to you when you least expect it.”
“Christ is indeed passing by often,” the archbishop said. “He loves you, brothers, and will want to break into your lives to visit you as he did the house of Elizabeth and Zechariah. May we be prepared to sense his presence and welcome him always.”
Father Ochsenbauer said he felt the significance of being a bearer of Christ after the archbishop anointed the hands of those being ordained with sacred chrism, signifying their sacramental duties and participation in Christ’s priesthood. During the ordination Mass, he looked intently and with joy at his hands in the moments after they were anointed.
“I was thinking, ‘These hands will hold the body and blood of Christ,’” Father Ochsenbauer said after the Mass. “That’s really powerful. I was thinking how my fingers would touch the body and blood of Christ. Yes, that brought joy to my heart.”
Father Marquette’s mother, Peggy, 49, and his father, Kevin, 52, parishioners of St. Timothy in Maple Lake, said they were excited for their son and grateful for all the support fellow parishioners have provided. People supporting Father Marquette in the congregation included St. Timothy parishioners and Father Marquette’s grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends, his father said.
“It’s been a wonderful process to watch him grow in faith and toward this day, and he’s been so excited, too,” his mother said. “I’m very excited for him, also very peaceful about this.”
Peggy Marquette said their son looks forward to teaching and working with children. Her husband said Father Marquette has a strong faith and ability to share it with others.
“This is absolutely the perfect role for him as he goes forward, you know, to be able to mentor other gentlemen toward the faith, toward the seminary and priesthood. He’s going to be a strong advocate for the seminary, but then also for families,” Kevin Marquette said. “He’s always been a good
family person, so I’m looking for him to encourage families as they participate in the Church and encourage them to get married and have families of their own.”
Joe Ackerman, 63, of St. Timothy in Maple Lake, said he came to the ordination with his wife, Mary, to support Father Marquette.
“It’s been such a blessing to see Alex grow, I wouldn’t want to miss this day,” Ackerman said. “This is just amazing that all these young men are going to give their lives to the Lord.”
Father Eichten’s father, Jonathan Eichten, 59, a member of St. Peter in St. Cloud, said despite the distance from the Twin Cities, he plans to attend as many Masses wherever his son presides as he can.
“When he’s been at the teaching parish (during priestly formation) the last couple of years at St. William in Fridley I’ve been there pretty much every Easter and other times as much as I can,” Eichten said. “Oftentimes we combined that with brunch together. ... I would anticipate that we’ll simply continue that.” Eichten said the seeds of a priestly vocation were sown early in his son’s life. As a young boy, Father Eichten was honest and earnestly followed instructions, he said. When Father Eichten was a deacon at St. William, his father said he noticed a natural connection between his son and parishioners.
“I told Ben this is such an amazing moment, and I cherish it.” Eichten said. “But I told him I actually cherish more the future, because I know what kind of guidance he will give to the parishes that he will work with.”
The Lord has blessed his son, Eichten said.
“There’s no doubt in my mind it’s been the Lord’s intervention to have him be able to stand up in front of a full parish, as he did a few days ago at his first Mass, and without blinking go through all the different prayers and all the different functions of the Mass.”
Lisa Skeate, mother of Father Skeate, said she was “past happy” about her son’s ordination. “I kind of had a feeling since he was an altar boy. But he knew after confirmation” that he wanted to be a priest, she said.
“You always hope your children are happy and healthy,” she said. “He’s doing what he is called to do.”
Father Skeate’s twin brother, Brian, is a St. Paul police officer, their mother said, and both men have the heart of a servant. Their sister, Erica, played the prelude for the Mass on the pipe organ.
Erica Skeate, 25, also a member of St. Patrick, said she was honored to be asked by the newly ordained priest to embroider his manutergium with his name, his date of ordination and in Latin the phrase, “You are a priest forever.” The manutergium typically is a cloth made from the priest’s mother’s wedding gown. Father Skeate said he used his mother’s baptismal cloth instead. The cloth is later wrapped around the mother’s hands when she is buried as a lasting reminder that her son is a priest.
When Father Skeate first mentioned the idea of becoming a priest to his sister, it made sense to her, she said. In ninth grade, he was a catechist to middle schoolers at St. Patrick.
“He was so in tune with his faith already at that point,” Erica Skeate said. “He’s just so giving. Generous, giving and willing and disposed to people.”
Mackenzie Garcia, and her husband, Brandon, both 28, parishioners of St. Patrick, have known Father Skeate for a long time. Mackenzie Garcia said she and Father Skeate knew each other as teens, participated in parish youth groups and retreats and she attended game nights at his family’s house. Brandon Garcia went to seminary with Father Skeate but discerned out and married Mackenzie. Together, they attended the ordination and Father’s Skeate’s first Mass of Thanksgiving June 1 at their parish.
“He was such a natural,” Mackenzie Garcia said of Father Skeate’s first Mass. “It felt like he had done this 1,000 times already. ... At the end, when Randy gave the manutergium and the stole to his parents, a few of us were sitting together just bawling because he gave it in such a heartfelt way. We are so excited for his priesthood.”
Others in the congregation included Jane Whelan, 69, of Mary, Queen of Peace in Rogers, who came with a friend, Annie Sparrow, 68, of Epiphany in Coon Rapids. Sparrow said she has been to at least 10 priestly ordination Masses, each one “beautiful in its own way.”
“This diocese is so blessed,” Whelan said. The ordination Mass “is so beautiful and the music just adds to it.”
Jenny Mena, 42, parishioner of Mary, Mother of the Church in Burnsville, also noted the beauty of the Mass.
“Just overwhelming glory to God for his beauty, his majesty — it’s so powerful. I was just overwhelmed with gratitude, especially to see all of the priests from our diocese come to support the other men — it’s so touching. I was so excited to come today, it was my first time seeing an ordination; a friend invited me, and I was thrilled to be here.”
With it being her first priestly ordination Mass experience, Mena said, “I appreciate how much time they take. I love each step of ordination. And yeah, just so grateful to be here.”
Kate Jackson, 40, a member of the Cathedral, said it was the second priest ordination Mass she has attended.
“I think that we’re incredibly, incredibly blessed in this archdiocese,” Jackson said. “I know Archbishop Hebda was speaking specifically to the men, but what really struck me was his words about how blessed this archdiocese (is) and seeing the men who have been ordained in the past few years and who are coming up through the seminary, it’s just so wonderful … the Lord is working in such incredible ways. The Holy Spirit is moving. And watching the procession of priests coming in, it’s these generations of men who are such good shepherds. We’re so blessed with our bishops, and to see them all gathered here in one place like this is — I feel like there’s a little piece of heaven (here).”
Jackson said scandals in the Church in recent years have damaged the image of the priesthood for many people and “it takes an incredible amount of conviction and joy and courage to be a priest.”
“I think that they (the newly ordained) are healers, they are coming in and healing it, the image of the priesthood, and showing what it truly can be; what it’s meant to be. ... They have a special mission right now to provide an example of what true fatherhood is meant to be and can be,” Jackson said.
Jessica Nieters, 25, and her 22-year-old sister, Megan, both of St. Genevieve in Hugo, grew up one house away from Father Ochsenbauer’s family at St. Peter in Forest Lake. Their homes were on Forest Lake. Water skiing, fishing and ice hockey were part of the fun, they said. “He’s always been a very caring individual,” Jessica Nieters said, visibly excited as they waited for Mass to begin.
Family at the Mass for Father Boatwright, a widower from St. Joseph in Rosemount who ministered as a permanent deacon before answering a call to the priesthood at age 72, included his daughter, Sarah Esper, 44, from Nashville, Tennessee, and three of her daughters.
Esper said it was a beautiful, emotional ceremony, beginning with the procession of bishops, priests and ordinands into the Cathedral.
“The joy for him, in that next step (priesthood) coming to fruition,” she said tearfully of watching him in procession. “Seeing his journey as a father, family (man), deacon, now going to the next calling.”
Father Boatwright attended Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, a seminary often attended by men with late vocations. A classmate who became a close friend to Father Boatwright, Deacon Philip Mayer, 71, attended the May 31 ordination Mass. He will be ordained to the priesthood June 13 for the Diocese of Duluth and Father Boatwright plans to attend that ordination.
The two share a lot in common, Deacon Mayer said, including being widowers who were ordained permanent deacons before their wives died.
Father Boatwright has a “goofball sense of humor” but takes the faith seriously, Deacon Mayer said.
“Once you sit down to talk with him, you know why this guy is a priest,” Deacon Mayer said.
Josh McGovern and Rebecca Omastiak contributed to this report. 5 MEN ORDAINED CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11
Archbishop Bernard Hebda presents
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
In front row, Peggy Marquette and her husband, Kevin, the parents of Father Alexander Marquette, listen at the end of Mass.
From left, Fathers Benjamin Eichten, Stephen Boatwright, Zachary Ochsenbauer and Alexander Marquette bless, from left, Bishop Emeritus Richard Pates Mass. Behind the priests at left is Father Randall Skeate, who also participated in the blessing of bishops.
Father Stephen Boatwright
By Joe Ruff
The Catholic Spirit
Father Stephen Boatwright’s journey to his May 31 ordination as a priest was marked by 44 years of marriage with a loving wife, 33 years as a permanent deacon and 13 years in retirement.
He was ordained at age 74 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
“The thing I’ve learned very keenly in the last, well, two years, I guess, is that God doesn’t always draw in a straight line,”
Father Boatwright said on the May 16 “Practicing Catholic” radio show on Relevant Radio 1330 AM.
He grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, with his late parents, Dan and Barb; and siblings, Mary; his late sister, Nancy; and brother, Bill. Each night after dinner the family gathered to pray a rosary. He attended St. Pius X Catholic School in Urbandale and Loras College in Dubuque, both in Iowa, which also provided supportive environments and led him to a year at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul from 1973 to 1974.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that either I wasn’t ready for God or God wasn’t ready for me” at that time to pursue the priesthood, Father Boatwright said.
He went on to forge a 35-year career with AT&T Inc. in accounting and billing resolution and retired in 2010.
He met his wife, Marcia, in 1975 and they married in 1977. They had a daughter, Sarah, who married, has six children, and traveled with three daughters from her home in Tennessee to attend his ordination. His wife died of pancreatic cancer in 2021.
“She was a nurse, through and through,” Father Boatwright said of his wife. She gave of her time and talent in other ways, as well, including making clothes for people in impoverished countries. A moving example was fashioning wedding dresses into burial garments for infants, the priest said.
A fond memory is their first date, eight hours riding together on a tandem bicycle through Des Moines, topped by an ice cream with candy sprinkles.
“When we were done, I looked like I’d been on a horse for four years,” Father Boatwright said.
He and his wife moved with his work to the Twin Cities in 1987, and in 1991,
Father Boatwright was ordained a permanent deacon. God remained close, he said, and he loved the ministry and working with people.
“All throughout my life I have discerned a calling. I wasn’t always sure where the Lord was going to lead,” he said.
Two pieces of advice helped him get through the death of his wife. The first came from a Jesuit priest and the second came from a book: Recall the good and happy times of his marriage; and life is a book filled with many chapters.
“After my wife passed, I decided that ‘OK, buster, there’s a new chapter. What are you going to do?’”
His experience as a deacon included people wishing he could hear their confession and administer the anointing of the sick, two sacraments that can only be performed by a priest.
“I went and talked with Father (David) Blume (then-vocations director for the archdiocese) and a number of other priests to see if it was even possible” to pursue a priestly vocation, Father Boatwright said. “I started formation when I was 72 years old.”
Those considering a religious vocation should “pray, pray, pray and pray more,”
Father Boatwright said. “Develop your relationship with Christ.”
Be prepared as well to study and work hard, he said.
“I say that because I was retired for 13 years. I had gone through my wife’s death, and I had not been in school for 50 years. I’ll tell you; education has changed a whole bunch since the early ’70s with the internet and all that other business. The courses for a master’s (degree) and above require a lot of work. I think the younger you can go into that, the better off you are.”
A blessing is the support provided in the seminary to develop the human, spiritual, intellectual and pastoral dimensions of ministry, Father Boatwright said.
“You’ll have spiritual directors, formators, all those folks who will provide you input and feedback throughout your journey.”
As he readies to begin his priestly ministry, Father Boatwright said he looks forward to celebrating Mass, and he hopes to spend “whatever remaining time I have with the people and serving God as a priest.”
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT presents the bread and wine to Father Randall Skeate during the ordination Mass.
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Pates (not visible, at left), Bishop Michael Izen, Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Bishop Kevin Kenney after the ordination
Father Benjamin Eichten
By Josh McGovern
The Catholic Spirit
Growing up in Anoka and attending St. William in Fridley, Father Benjamin Eichten had an appreciation for the priesthood as being a great witness to Christ. At a young age, he wanted to grow up to be a priest. But his journey to his May 31 ordination at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul was a “whirlwind” in which the Lord brought him to many different places.
He came in and out of discernment. But Father Eichten especially credits his mother, Tracy, for her support and always giving him the “thumbs-up” to become a priest.
“Now I remember, especially when I was first thinking of the idea, it was always my mom,” Father Eichten said on the May 16 “Practicing Catholic” radio show on Relevant Radio 1330 AM.
Family, Father Eichten said, has been with him every step of the way with prayer, support and generosity.
“As time went on, I was still wrestling, especially once I entered high school, with where the Lord might be inviting me to go,” Father Eichten said. “It wasn’t until about my junior year in high school, by an invitation of a priest, I was able to visit the local minor seminary (St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul) and really experience a deep, profound love of God.”
On the way to that visit, Tracy was driving Father Eichten and his brother, Nate, who didn’t know where they were going. Tracy broke the news to Nate, saying, “Ben’s gonna go check out the seminary because he might be a priest one day.”
Nate responded, “Ben, don’t do that.”
“Thankfully, he’s kind of changed his mind on the idea,” Father Eichten said. “The Lord has honestly blessed me abundantly through my family members and their own support.”
He said that some of his biggest supporters are his Protestant family members. Ironically, he said, all his Protestant aunts and uncles gifted him a traveling Mass kit to celebrate his ordination.
“It’s very, very generous,” Father Eichten said.
During the visit to St. John Vianney, Father Eichten experienced other men living lives directed toward God. This led him to wonder, “God, what do you want from me?”
While discerning the priesthood in the minor seminary for four years, he stepped away and worked in health insurance and
medical software. He remained involved in his parish, St. Mark in St. Paul, and Catholic Advance Movement, the lay movement of Pro Ecclesia Sancta, an ecclesial family of consecrated life. During this time, Father Eichten said he grew in understanding of his relationship with the Lord and how to speak to him.
“It was really a blessed time of growing in my own personal holiness and just allowing me to give that yes to major seminary later on,” Father Eichten said.
After three years, Father Eichten entered The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul in 2020.
Father Eichten’s best advice for anyone thinking about priesthood is to give time to the Lord and be honest with him.
“Seminary is just a place where you don’t have to have everything figured out right away,” Father Eichten said. “You’re given that space to just say, ‘Lord, what do you want me to do?’ … As long as you’re being honest with the Lord, he’s going to reveal where you’re called to be.”
Before his ordination, Father Eichten, 30, served as the prefect of the Propaedeutic House, a recent addition to the road to the priesthood as stipulated by the Program of Priestly Formation. It is a one-year program of “pre-seminary” formation in which the men live together in community and focus on spiritual and human growth.
“It’s really just a blessing to see the guys transformed and be open and free in a way they weren’t before,” Father Eichten said. He also encouraged those interested in the seminary: “If there’s some hesitancies or fears that might be in your hearts wherever you’re called to be, I would say just reach out. Check it out. … (Don’t) be worried if you enter into it and you don’t necessarily make it through.”
Father Eichten is most excited for the pastoral charity of being a diocesan priest serving the people of God. He said he is excited to see the Eucharist transform others. He celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving June 1 at St. Mark.
“Even in little ways, there’s this opportunity for profound intimacy with the Lord,” Father Eichten said.
Through the sacrament of reconciliation, Father Eichten is looking forward to showing the Lord’s mercy to individuals struggling with sin and guilt where “the Lord needs to enter their lives and provide them healing.”
Father Alexander Marquette
By Rebecca Omastiak The Catholic Spirit
Father Alexander Marquette remembers a question then-Father Michael Izen asked during a Mass at St. Timothy Catholic School in Maple Lake.
“He asked: ‘How many of you young men want to be priests one day?’” said Father Marquette, who was a third grader at the time. “That’s where the desire in my heart sort of awakened for the first time and I knew in that moment: I want to be a priest.”
That experience served as a guidepost along Father Marquette’s path, which included the 25-year-old’s ordination to the priesthood at a May 31 Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
Father Marquette grew up in Maple Lake, with St. Timothy as his home parish. He became an altar server at St. Timothy as a fourth grader, alongside a group of his close friends. “There were three server spots at Mass, and there were five of us who would try and serve as many daily Masses as we could.”
What developed, Father Marquette said, was “this boyish competition of who could get to the sacristy first to serve daily Mass.”
“It just shows how the Lord draws us to himself through our own desires, like the boyish desire of ‘I want to be there first so I can do something,’ but that something was serving the holy sacrifice of the Mass,” Father Marquette said.
Father Marquette said attending Sunday Mass with his parents, Kevin and Peggy, and his younger brothers, Zachary and Samuel, “really anchored our week as a family.”
Consistent in his family’s life of faith have been mealtime prayers and going before the Blessed Sacrament for guidance. “Whenever some problem would come up, the first place we would go to is prayer as a family.”
When his extended family learned of his interest in becoming a priest, Father Marquette said, “They started nicknaming me ‘Father Al’ and (have) made me lead grace and meal prayer at every family function for the last 10 or 15 years.”
His parents “have been immensely supportive” of his pursuit of the priesthood; he said he “can’t thank them enough” for their wisdom, help, and “listening ear.”
He’s also grateful for his brothers, their close relationship, and the conversations they have. “We have a little intellectual sparring, philosophical or theological arguments around the dinner table even now, when we’re all three (at) home. … I know they both have
my back, they’re both very supportive with what I’m doing.”
Soon after Father Marquette became an altar server, he joined the parish youth group. He found “a lot of friends who knew Jesus; and coming to know Jesus myself personally in prayer, that fed a lot of my vocation.”
After attending St. Timothy Catholic School through eighth grade, Father Marquette went on to Maple Lake Public High School, graduating in 2017. He was confirmed while in 10th grade. “I found a love of teaching,” he said, and taught faith formation his junior and senior years.
Father Marquette entered St. John Vianney College Seminary (SJV) on the University of St. Thomas’ campus in St. Paul, where he graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and Catholic studies and a minor in Spanish. He then entered The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul for his Master of Divinity degree. He continued teaching: a year of confirmation classes at Our Lady of Guadalupe in St. Paul while in college seminary and faith formation at Immaculate Conception in Columbia Heights, his teaching parish, while at The St. Paul Seminary.
“I love sharing the faith,” he said. “I love teaching people how to pray, how to find God in their own heart.”
Traveling and seeing the faith through different lenses also encouraged Father Marquette toward the priesthood. During his second year at SJV, Father Marquette traveled to the Dominican Republic with fellow seminarians to serve at an orphanage. He also spent a summer in Mexico City, “encountering the poor, serving in soup kitchens.” As a priest, he hopes to go on pilgrimages “seeing the global Church” with parishioners.
Father Marquette is particularly looking forward to celebrating the Mass as a priest. “I’m just really excited, almost giddy, about saying Mass for the first time. And not just the first time, but the second time, and the third time, and every day for the rest of my life.” He prays “to sanctify the Church, the parish that I’m placed in, and the people that the Lord is entrusting to my care.”
Father Marquette hopes to bring his love of cooking and the outdoors into his ministry as a priest. “I look at the life of Jesus and what did he do? He took the disciples up the mountain. He took them out fishing and he gave them food,” Father Marquette said, adding that he seeks to follow this example, “getting people outside, and feeding them good food, and teaching them about God.”
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Father Zachary Ochsenbauer
By Dave Hrbacek
The Catholic Spirit
As a child, Father Zachary Ochsenbauer imagined becoming a pilot. A natural idea, considering his father, Tom, has been flying commercial planes for Delta Air Lines since before the 26-year-old seminarian was born.
“I thought of applying to the Air Force Academy,” Father Ochsenbauer said. “My oldest uncle, Dave, taught my dad how to fly. And then he (Tom) went on to the airlines. When I was growing up, I thought that’s what I would do. … I wanted to fly F-16s.”
But God had other plans for the young man who grew up attending St. Peter in Forest Lake with his parents and two younger siblings. Strong faith experiences and conversations with priests at his parish steered him toward a priestly vocation.
“I really started coming alive, probably in sixth grade, when I went to Extreme Faith Camp,” he said. “I started a regular prayer life, probably around eighth grade.”
A key part of his faith journey was praying the rosary, starting with one decade a day in eighth grade, then eventually praying the entire rosary starting in ninth or 10th grade. Connecting with Mary, his spiritual mother, helped him through the pain of losing his biological mother, Marcia, unexpectedly in 2005. “That was a tragic time for us,” he said of the days following his mother’s death.
Yet, the stirrings of a priestly vocation had begun and grew stronger, especially during his high school years. It culminated in a period during ninth grade in which the call toward the priesthood intensified.
“I was praying daily,” he said. “The thought of being a priest would keep coming up — kind of arise in my mind. It was something that wasn’t very strong, but it was persistent. So, for about a whole month, the thought of priesthood would keep coming to my mind.”
He listened, but there was a problem. “I was afraid,” he admitted.
Fortunately, the fear did not win out. Rather, “I knew it was from the Lord,” he said of the call to priesthood. Then, he chose to act on it by telling his father one night while the two were watching TV together.
“He was very supportive,” Father Ochsenbauer said of his father’s response. Even though he wrestled with the idea of becoming a priest through high school, he acted on the sense he received in prayer in ninth grade. He visited St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul and talked with
Father Paul Shovelain, ordained in 2014 and serving at St. Peter in Forest Lake at the time. In addition, he interacted with a NET Ministries team that served at his parish.
Still, during his junior year at Forest Lake High School, he contemplated his choices after high school.
“I looked at the application for the Air Force Academy and I looked at the application for the seminary,” he said. “I really wanted to follow what I thought was God’s call.”
The result? “I entered seminary, and honestly it was the best decision I ever made,” he said.
Although he entered the path to the priesthood, he did find a way to realize his dream of flying. With his father’s help, he took flying lessons and eventually earned his pilot’s license at age 17. He anticipates having opportunities to fly even after he is ordained. One blessing was being on a plane with his father as the pilot in January 2024, when a group of seminarians traveled to Rome. Tom Ochsenbauer flew the plane from the Twin Cities to Paris. “I went up to the cockpit for a little bit,” Father Ochsenbauer noted.
As he begins priestly ministry in the coming days, he will enter a spiritual cockpit — the confessional. It is an aspect of the priesthood he especially looks forward to.
“The thing I’m most nervous about but also really excited for is confession,” he said. “First of all, I’ve seen the grace and the impact that the sacrament of confession has had on my own life.”
He said he has “the strong desire to share God’s mercy that I’ve experienced with others. I know it’s a really powerful, profound, intimate moment of communion between God and the penitent. It’ll be really beautiful to be a part of that, and also to be able to impart God’s pardon and peace to others.”
“It’s such an important sacrament,” he said. “One of the texts that I always go back to in the Gospel is the resurrection account of Jesus meeting his disciples. I think it’s John 20 (verses 22-23). He breathes on them and says, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.’ ... And so that same spirit that Christ breathed upon the Apostles will be in my heart as well. I’ll be able to impart that same gift of pardon and peace to those around me. So going back to that fundamental text, which I love, gives me that hope and joy to be able to speak God’s words to the penitents.”
Father Randall Skeate
By Josh McGovern The Catholic Spirit
At a retreat during his sophomore year in high school in 2013, Father Randall Skeate realized the Lord had a unique plan for him.
In this knowledge, he felt peace and encouragement, said Father Skeate, who was ordained to the priesthood May 31 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.
“I could describe that as my first real encounter with Jesus,” Father Skeate said. “I was just really inspired that whole weekend, by other high schoolers or young adults from the parish who helped me.”
He felt this peace in his developing prayer life and in close friendships with other men at his parish, St. Patrick in Oak Grove, “who are around the same age as me and just encouraging each other in following the Lord’s call,” Father Skeate said on the May 16 “Practicing Catholic” radio show on Relevant Radio 1330 AM.
“I just had this very deep intuition in the midst of that, that I could choose all of these different paths in my life, but I knew that the one path that would bring me the greatest fulfillment and peace would be the specific plan that the Lord had for me,” Father Skeate said.
Father Skeate, 27, said he has a great role model in Father David Blume, who was pastor of St. Patrick for nine years, then vocations director for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, and now is pastor of St. Philip in Bemidji.
In his discernment journey, Father Skeate had the support of his friends and family. Something he struggled with was interior trust that the Lord would provide for him throughout the whole process of formation as a priest.
“But the assurance and encouragement from everyone from my whole journey of priestly formation, from spiritual directors, formation directors, brother seminarians, everyone in my life, they’ve given me the encouragement I’ve needed,” Father Skeate said. “We are going to find the greatest fulfillment in our life by stepping out in faith and in a sense, giving ourselves away.”
His advice for anyone discerning the priesthood is to give their whole heart to the Lord. A Vatican II document, “Guadium et spes” — Joy and Hope, the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in
the Modern World — stuck with Father Skeate during his priestly formation.
“The more I can give my whole heart to the Lord, the more he’s going to keep giving his own heart to me and be with me,” Father Skeate said.
Father Skeate noted that while discerning his call to the priesthood, he had a strong feeling that the Lord wanted to make him a great father. He initially understood this to be a father in a family, providing for his wife and children.
“But the more that he started planting little seeds very gradually after my confirmation and through the last couple years of high school, the more I realized that he was going to provide for his own people with a spiritual father,” Father Skeate said. “He wanted to make me a spiritual father for a whole flock. … It gave me a lot of peace and the more I just stepped out of my comfort zone, the more I got out of myself and surrendered my heart over to the Lord, the more he continued to be generous with me.”
Coming off a three-day retreat at Pacem in Terris, a retreat center in Isanti, Father Skeate said his heart was prepared for the weekend and ordination. Father Skeate celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving June 1 at St. Patrick. He is the first priestly vocation to come from St. Patrick since it became its own parish in 1973 after being a mission parish for St. Stephen in Anoka.
“The parishioners were the first witnesses of the faith for me with my parish as my spiritual family,” Father Skeate said. “I’ll be able to nourish everyone in my parish with the body and blood of Christ, with the same body and blood of Christ that I was nourished with when I was growing up in St. Patrick.”
Father Skeate said he is most looking forward to exercising spiritual fatherhood as a priest. He looks forward to having a flock to minister to, and to bringing the healing and merciful presence of the Lord. The Mass, he said, is the sacrament he is most looking forward to offering.
“The Mass is the greatest act of evangelization that we have,” Father Skeate said. “It’s the privileged place where we’re nourished by the words of the Gospel, and then we’re nourished by the Lord’s own body and blood that become present to us at the altar.”
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Jillian Anderson finds her musical home
By Christina Capecchi For The Catholic Spirit
Music and faith have always been linked for Jill Anderson, a member of St. Joseph in West St. Paul who graduated from St. Agnes School and the University of St. Thomas, both in St. Paul. She has performed with touring choirs, big bands, jazz ensembles and even a country band over the years, but the constant has been singing in church. One of her greatest joys is making the kind of music that people can pray at Mass or in adoration of the Eucharist.
That music took on a deeper meaning when the singer married Steven C., an accomplished pianist and recording artist. While the two can be seen taking the stage together in concert, they also play at churches across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
Now married one and a half years and living in Lake Elmo, life is busy for the musician who works in digital marketing by day and freelances in music on the side.
Jill and Steven will present a free concert of patriotic music, folk songs and hymns at 6:30 p.m. June 30 at St. Joseph. Learn more about their upcoming performances at stevencmusic.com.
Q You persuaded your St. Paul boy to move to the country!
A Ha, not quite. We had to give it considerable thought. There is a lot about St. Paul that is so well suited to us. The Cathedral and the Commodore truly feel like home to us. But we love our quiet street and neighbors and the spring peepers (a small, chorus frog). The piano room has a tall enough ceiling to record. Ceiling height doesn’t come into play when recording vocals, but it definitely impacts sound quality when recording solo piano.
Q What do you love about singing?
A I feel like I can express more of myself through music than I ever could in words. Especially if I’m singing something that holds significant meaning for me. The meaning could come from a place of nostalgia, because it’s something my grandpa used to sing, or it could come from a place of conviction, maybe because a lyric just grabs you. Through song, I can communicate much more than the text: The melody itself communicates something, the harmonies communicate something, and the manner in which you deliver these things all together really communicates something. Is it a quiet and tender expression of some element of our faith that you hold close? Or is it a big bombastic “Glory, Glory, Hallelujah” that makes you want to shout from the rooftops?
Q You met Steven as a college student at a recording session and went on to perform together many times, but it was nearly two decades before you started dating.
A I guess God’s timing really is the best timing! I always looked forward to getting to work with him, and he was my first call any time I needed a pianist, but yes, that is true. The friendship we formed years ago deepened when we both found ourselves single and were playing at some of the same places. We began grabbing coffee afterwards to catch up or talk music, and eventually it developed. I definitely didn’t expect it or see it coming. More than once I was asked how I had found the time to date, since I worked during the week and did so much music on weekends. My answer was that I didn’t have to find the time — he happened to be on the same crazy schedule!
When friends learned I was engaged to a musician, I was often asked who would play (at) the wedding. I laughed every time I got this question, because I had always thought that if I were to ever get married, I’d have Steven Anderson on piano. I never once in my wildest dreams thought he would be the groom!
Q Do you think your music took on a new tone once your longtime collaboration developed into more?
A It felt different on stage for sure. Lyrics hit my ear
differently or I’d catch his eye at a certain line, and we’d both smile. It is kind of fun to be up there with your partner.
Q Your partnership sounds so rich.
A It’s practical. It’s creative. It’s all the things. I’ll hear him developing a new melodic idea at the piano, because it’s in the middle of the house, and I’ll call out from the kitchen: “That sounds like …” And I’ll throw out a title. We have a lot of fun when it comes to song titles and lyrics. We’ll hear something and say to each other at the same time: “That’s a song! We should write that!” I love that creative space, and it is such a nice complement to my data-oriented full-time work, which isn’t artistic at all, but I appreciate a good spreadsheet!
Q What’s in store for you two?
A There’s a lot we’d like to do. We want to play live more and we want to record together, because people have been asking and it’s a passion project for us, too. I don’t know how we’ll do it all, but I just brought home the giant wall Post-it notes this week. We graduated from the little squares. I’ve got a music list, my work list, my weekend list. Some days I’m like: “Why didn’t we buy a condo? I don’t have time to weed!”
Q What’s it been like adjusting to Steven’s higher profile?
A I enjoy being on stage and love talking to people, but I’m also a pretty private person by nature, so the always-on element that goes into his work as an independent musician is an adjustment for me. It’s an area of compromise for us both. He tries to see things from my perspective, and I try to accommodate the element of the business where listeners want to connect with artists they add to their playlists.
Q How do you support Steven in action?
A I provide emergency snacks and make sure there’s adequate hydration that’s not coffee. The organizational piece is more my gift. He’s one of my favorite people to cheerlead for, because of the heart he puts into his music. The world needs more beauty!
Q What does self-care look like for you as a singer?
A Other singers are probably more disciplined with proper warm-ups and herbal teas. The vocal hack I put to use most often is the travel steam inhaler. It looks strange when other drivers pass us on the road, but nothing calls for it like the Easter Triduum! It’s like giving your voice a steam bath.
From a prayer perspective, I guard the Mass because I don’t want it to get to a point where it feels like I’m going to
work and not like I’m going to pray. That can be a risk with bigger liturgies, but that’s a small sacrifice I can make for the intentions I’m bringing with me. I often find myself relying on shorter bursts of prayer. In the sacristy of the Cathedral when we’d pray before Mass, Archbishop (Harry) Flynn used to say: “Come, Holy Spirit. Come, Holy Spirit.” He’d say it five times. That’s all he would say. If you were ever at Mass with him, you probably heard it, too. All these years later, that has stayed with me — that idea of invoking the Holy Spirit to settle the heart and mind.
Q I was just thinking about that! Archbishop Flynn gave us a lasting gift with that simple but profound lesson in prayer.
A Yes!
Q We’re on the same wavelength. We also share a love for St. John Paul II’s “Letter to Artists.”
A I’ve hung onto so much in that letter! His words really resonate when it comes to sacred music, where we hope to “stir hearts to wonder” so that the wonder can one day become awe.
Q As a cantor, you have a unique vantage point.
A You wouldn’t believe what we can observe! We’re not constantly in action like the clergy, and while we’re attentive to what’s happening on the altar, we have a direct line of sight to so many people in the pew. It always strikes me when I see older kids stepping in to help with the younger ones or intervening with troublemakers. I love seeing multigenerational families worshipping together on Sundays. And that front row in a funeral! Oh! If your eyes happen to land on that first row, you know you are witnessing a family having to say goodbye — talk about a moment of privilege, to be with them in that moment. It really puts in perspective the honor that I have, to serve that family right then. If I can somehow be an instrument that helps bring people to a place of prayer or closer to the God who can heal and comfort — good. That’s the goal. If something they hear from me helps them get there better, faster — great. My unofficial prayer before I cantor is always, “Lord, don’t let me get in your way.” I never want to detract or distract but to be a window to whatever God has in mind for his people.
Q What do you know for sure?
A I know that God is good and the Church is alive and well here in the archdiocese. I’m just grateful to be a part of it.
AND THE BEAUTIFUL | MADELYN REICHERT
Idols vs. the true God in new short story collection
“Ephphatha: Catholic Fiction for Modern Times” by Philip J. Martin. Full Quiver Publishing. (Pakenham, 2024). 213 pp., $14.99.
In the fourth short story of his “Ephphatha” collection, “The One Thing Necessary,” Philip Martin regales the reader with the story of a sibling relationship at odds: A surly older brother, forced to accompany his younger sister to the concert of a famous country-rock idol, simmers with resentment — that is, until a disenchanting encounter with the star himself leads to an unexpected reconciliation between the siblings. In his tale, Martin provides a striking description of the fictional musician, which in the best tradition of Catholic fiction is both intensely symbolic yet plausibly deniable:
“Nick was not as put together or handsome as he appeared on television. He stumbled to the bar and poured a drink. (...) His arms and chest were as golden as his hair, which was as golden as the drink he finished off before setting the cup before them on a coffee table.”
Indeed, golden calves of all sorts abound in “Ephphatha: Catholic Fiction for Modern Times.” Popularity, money and pride — among many others — all prove themselves unworthy gods, leading characters astray with their luster into consequences ranging from youthful folly to tragic disaster. In some stories the characters are let off easy, released by sudden mercy from their servitude to their small gods; in others, the cost of their sacrificial offerings is high. In “The Laying on of Hands,” for example, a father’s idolization of a particularly toxic perversion of masculinity puts his own children at risk,
and in “Memento Mori” a professor’s desperation to be taken (or take himself) seriously ultimately costs him more than just his marriage.
What is equally interesting, however, is how often the stories in “Ephphatha” don’t stop at merely making light of modernity’s false gods, but rather use the shattering of these idols as an opportunity for real grace to break through. This is more common in the collection’s comical stories — one might call them divinely comical — where the characters’ tendencies to make fools of themselves become the setups for a much kinder joke than the reader might have expected. Particularly outstanding in this category are the stories of “The Grove” and “Talitha Koum”; in both cases, an undeserved act of mercy leavened with humor allows some truly self-centered people to grow beyond themselves.
What is equally interesting, however, is how often the stories in ‘Ephphatha’ don’t stop at merely making light of modernity’s false gods, but rather use the shattering of these idols as an opportunity for real grace to break through.
Philip J. Martin
The collection is not perfect; there are one or two cases where a lack of subtlety in the metaphor ruins its impact — the witch in “Apathy,” for example, representing technology’s addictive hold over the minds of the youth, feels a bit heavy-handed. Likewise, the appearance of the literal hand of God in “Tohu wa Bohu” is frankly jarring in its execution. In the rest of his stories, however,
Martin’s talent truly shines; the characters are both compelling and alive, and their struggles — whether urgent or petty — are used by the author to distinguish between real relationships, virtues and priorities, and their false equivalents. In the end, both “Ephphatha’s” wry skewering of false idols and its moving scenes of mercy and forgiveness point the reader toward “the one thing necessary”: the one true God, and the only one worthy of our worship.
Reichert is publications administrative coordinator at The Catholic Spirit. She can be reached at reichertm@archspm.org
DAILY Scriptures
FAITH FUNDAMENTALS | FATHER MICHAEL VAN SLOUN
Vestments worn by priests
Editor’s note: This is the 12th column in a series on the priesthood.
Priests wear vestments for liturgical functions as a sign of their office. Vestments add beauty, elegance, reverence and solemnity to the celebration.
Amice. The amice is the first vestment donned by a priest. It is a square piece of white cloth with two white strings. It is worn over the neck and shoulders and tied in the front. Its function is to cover ordinary clothing and absorb perspiration to safeguard the cleanliness of the other vestments worn over it. Originally it was a hood, and it represents the helmet of salvation (Eph 6:17).
Alb. The word alb is derived from the Latin word albus which means “white.” The alb is a full-length white robe that covers the priest from shoulders to feet. The robe is a reminder of the baptismal garment, and the white color represents holiness and purity. It is worn under the chasuble or may be worn without a chasuble but with a stole for confessions, baptisms, preaching and other liturgical functions. Some are decorated with lace at the ends of the sleeves or along the bottom border.
Cincture. The cincture is a rope chord that is tied around the waist. It serves as a belt over the alb and keeps the stole in place. Usually the cincture is white, the neutral color that corresponds with the alb, but it is common to have cinctures available in all liturgical colors. The cincture conforms to Jesus’ instruction to his disciples to gird their loins (Lk 12:35, 37).
Stole. The stole is the primary symbol of the priesthood, and it signifies the priest’s authority to preside over the sacraments and his desire to take upon himself the yoke of obedient service to Jesus (Mt 11:29, 30). It is a long, narrow strip of high-quality cloth usually made of cotton, wool or silk. It is typically 4.5 inches wide, about 9.5 feet long, and may have a fringe or tassels at the ends. It is placed around the back of the neck and hangs down the front of the body in equal lengths on the right and left sides. It is worn over the alb and under
SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER ROBERT WOTYPKA
the chasuble or cope. Stoles come in each of the liturgical colors, white, green, red, violet and rose, and the color chosen corresponds to the liturgical season, the Mass of the day, or the sacrament being celebrated. Some stoles are plain while others are embroidered with spiritual symbols. Many stoles are designed as a matched set with the chasuble.
Chasuble. The chasuble is the outer vestment worn by a priest at Mass. It is a cloak with arm-length, rounded or curved sleeves. Chasubles come in each of the liturgical colors, and the color chosen corresponds to the liturgical occasion. Some chasubles are plain, but most are decorated with piping, artistic patterns, or distinctive sacred artwork. Another style of chasuble known as the fiddle back emerged during the 16th century. This garment stops at the shoulder and it has no sleeves, so the Eucharist can be seen clearly without interference and adored by the faithful at the time of the elevation.
Cope. The cope is a large cape-like cloak worn over the shoulders that flows from the shoulders down to the feet in the back, is open in the front, and is joined together with two clasps in the front at the top. It is worn for a liturgical celebration that is not a Mass such as a procession, Benediction, the Stations of the Cross, or a prayer service. Like stoles and chasubles, copes are in all liturgical colors. Some are unadorned, while others are richly ornamented.
Humeral veil. The humeral veil is a large cloth about 8 feet long and about 18 inches wide with a small ring and hook that are joined together when it is placed over the cope. It is used to hold the monstrance for Benediction, or the monstrance or ciborium for Eucharistic processions. The humeral veil comes into direct contact with these sacred vessels rather than the hands to give greater veneration to the sacred nature of the Eucharist. Many humeral veils and copes are crafted as a matched pair with the same color and artistic design.
Father Van Sloun is the director of clergy personnel for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
The room rarely matters; who is present does
With respect to Lin Manuel Miranda — and bearing in mind that a title cannot be copywritten — what or where is “the room where it happened” for you? The first reading and the Gospel for Pentecost (Acts 2:2; Jn 20:19) describe the descent of the Holy Spirit and its gifts upon our ancestors when they are gathered in a room. Can you picture the room: thick walls with high narrow windows, lit by candles and torches? What is the mood in the room — fear of persecution, in John’s description? Or despair, the kind of despair that sent Cleopas and his companion out of Jerusalem and on the road to Emmaus (Lk 24:21)? Have you noticed that Thomas is absent? Are you ready for what is about to happen? Of course not, no one is. It won’t be the last time we’ll be surprised by God.
This story comes from the desert tradition, some three centuries after the first Pentecost. Why didn’t I encounter it sooner, in all the years I was going from place to place seeking — what? I don’t know. Another room, another city, another chance? My mother says she has three pages in her address book for me. Here is the wisdom I was missing, from the sayings of the desert fathers:
A brother asked, “I have found a place where my peace is not disturbed by the brethren; do you advise me to live there?” Abba Poemen replied, “The place for you is where you will not harm the brothers.”
KNOW the SAINTS
When my oldest friend and his wife had their first child and carried him into the living room — the same room where we ate takeout Lebanese food and watched (again) some ‘80s movie to which we had formed an inexplicable attachment, to his wife’s bemusement (“You know all the dialogue, why are you watching it again?!”) — that was the room where I came to understand the miracle of life. Once we were two, then three, and now four — with every increase a blessing. In my second year in a brotherhood, arriving at the foothills of the San Raphael mountains in California for novitiate, having left behind my phone and laptop and music player, and seeing my small room with a single bed, a bureau, a desk, a lamp and a chair, I thought, “How am I going to make it through this year?” We had chapel four times a day and daily Mass; classes in the morning; chores in the afternoon; one day of recreation a week; and one day a week off campus for ministry, with every day beginning and ending in that room. At the end of the year I thought, “How can I leave this place of peace?” The Lord said, “Simplify, simplify,” and imagine that — God was right. I close with a revelation that I have long known and that I trust more and more as loved ones pass on, the promise from Jesus, that “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?” (Jn 14:2).
Lead me, O Lord, lead me.
Father Wotypka is parochial vicar of Pax Christi in Eden Prairie. He is a priest of the Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order.
Sunday, June 8
Pentecost Sunday Acts 2:1-11
1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13 or Rom 8:8-17 Jn 20:19-23 or Jn 14:15-16, 23b-26
Monday, June 9
Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of the Church Gn 3:9-15, 20 or Acts 1:12-14 Jn 19:25-34
Tuesday, June 10
2 Cor 1:18-22 Mt 5:13-16
Wednesday, June 11
St. Barnabas, Apostle Acts 11:21b-26; 13:1-3 Mt 5:17-19
Thursday, June 12
2 Cor 3:15 - 4:1, 3-6 Mt 5:20-26
Friday, June 13
St. Anthony of Padua, priest and doctor of the Church
2 Cor 4:7-15
Mt 5:27-32
Saturday, June 14
2 Cor 5:14-21
Mt 5:33-37
Sunday, June 15
Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity Prov 8:22-31 Rom 5:1-5 Jn 16:12-15
Monday, June 16
2 Cor 6:1-10
Mt 5:38-42
Tuesday, June 17
2 Cor 8:1-9
Mt 5:43-48
Wednesday, June 18
2 Cor 9:6-11
Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
Thursday, June 19
2 Cor 11:1-11
Mt 6:7-15
Friday, June 20
2 Cor 11:18, 21-30
Mt 6:19-23
Saturday, June 21
St. Aloysius Gonzaga, religious 2 Cor 12:1-10
Mt 6:24-34
Sunday, June 22
Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ Gn 14:18-20
1 Cor 11:23-26 Lk 9:11b-17
ST. ALBERT CHMIELOWSKI (1845-1916) Born in Poland, Adam Chmielowski was an artist drawn to helping the poor. His spiritual life deepened and he joined the Franciscan Third Order, giving up his painting. As Brother Albert, he aided those in need in Krakow, and in 1887 founded the Brothers of the Third Order of St. Francis, Servants of the Poor, known as the Albertines. He also began a women’s religious order. He was the subject of a 1949 play by a future pope, St. John Paul II, who as pope beatified and canonized his fellow Pole.
TWENTY
The gift of taking our time
As I write this, I am keeping company with a mama robin on our backyard balcony, so I’m treading lightly. Tapping, not pounding, the keyboard. Sliding, not slamming, the door. Basking in the breeze. We planted raspberries in the garden below her nest, where she is now incubating her eggs. Planting felt like a prayer — fingers pressed down into soil rather than upright in a pew. Will the birds hatch from the eggs? Will the raspberries grow? We water and wait.
We survived the jam-packed month of May, and I am still recovering. When baseball was rained out yesterday, I crawled into bed at 4:30 p.m. and took the most delicious nap.
I relish many of the roles in my life, but being Keeper of the Clock is not one. Start times, end times, drive times, deadlines. Coaxing and corralling. Life measured by minutes. All the while, our bodies keep score: shoulders hunched, neck strained.
The other day I felt the ticking clock bearing down on us, and a phrase sprang to mind that immediately halted it.
“Take your time,” I said.
Three little words — three syllables — yet so powerful. It felt good to say. Like an exhale. Like a hug. Like a permission slip. It’s OK to move at your own pace. It’s OK to be in the moment, to relish, not race. You’re doing just fine.
Now my goal is to say that loving phrase whenever I can — to others and to myself. To the kid sorting Lego pieces. To the 10-year-old knitting hats. To the preteen swinging. To the writer tinkering on the balcony. There are worthy pursuits happening here, and they cannot be rushed. Good things take time. This is a truth of the spiritual life.
Last month I met one of my heroes in the Catholic press: Brother Mickey McGrath, an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales. I had been pushing through an hour of traffic when I finally reached the blue two-story house in north Minneapolis that serves as a monastery for the Visitation Sisters. I spotted Brother Mickey, their dear friend, on the front porch. He looked just as I expected, and his presence struck me as both gentle and jovial.
Gateways of faith
There is a trail in Minnesota that extends for 18 miles from St. Paul to Stillwater called the Gateway Trail. It is called the Gateway Trail because it allows many modes of travel and opens a way from the city to the country and back again. It is a gateway because it connects with other paths, parks and nature. Gateways do that. They are entryways that connect people to other paths and opportunities. The whole path is a gate. I experienced another gateway when I recently traveled to St. Louis and visited the Cathedral Basilica near the Gateway Arch. St. Louis is known as the gateway city to the west because it was the entryway that settlers passed through to begin a new life in the untamed prairies and hills. St. Louis was also a gateway to the north because much of our early history in Minnesota is tied to St. Louis, including our local Church. Before we were a state or a diocese, we were considered part of St. Louis. The Mississippi River became our gateway for supplies,
There are worthy pursuits happening here, and they cannot be rushed. Good things take time. This is a truth of the spiritual life.
Now 68, the award-winning artist was enjoying his final night in Minnesota. He sounded reluctant to return to the demands of daily life back in Camden, New Jersey. Brother Mickey didn’t commit to a full-time art career until his late 30s, but since then, he has been prolific — which is to say, faithful.
We chatted about our work as I sliced strawberry-andcream cake. When I shared a goal that has eluded me, he had the perfect response: “There’s no rush.”
It was just what I needed to hear.
Creative work takes time, and I like to believe that some of my best ideas are still incubating. The process can’t be forced.
One of my favorite practices of the year has been slow
people and missionaries to move north. The river became our gateway to the world. The river itself is known as a gateway river because it gathers many waters and links many places and people.
As we mark the 175th anniversary of our Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, it is good to remember the people, places and events that provided gateways to faith in our region. We remember the early missionaries who came up the river to open the ways of faith here. We remember the early communities of religious sisters who came up the river to establish schools, hospitals and homes for the settlers, for children, for natives of the land and immigrants. We also remember the people who have served as gateways to faith in our lives. These are the ones who welcomed us, connected us and opened a way for God to reach us.
One image of the Church we read about during the Easter season is that of the New Jerusalem described in the 21st chapter of the Book of Revelation. The Church is like a city founded on the faith of the Apostles with 12 gateways facing out in every direction. An angel at each gate welcomes those who enter. These pearly gates recall the hope for the 12 tribes of Israel to come home from different paths and directions. In the New Jerusalem, the Church is to be like those gateways that lead others to Christ. Just like the first apostles and disciples who stretched themselves
reading. I pick up the same book each night and read just a page or two. I approach it as a compliment: This book is good enough to savor.
The objective is not to reach the last page, but to enjoy the reading, absorbing the parts that will enrich my mind, lingering over the most meaningful passages.
Summer invites us to do the slow, holy work of being human. Take your time.
The robin eggs have now hatched, and I can see four fuzzy heads and upturned beaks in the nest. Mama flies in every few minutes to feed them. Her waiting has paid off, and she is ready.
to follow the Holy Spirit’s call to make a way for Gentiles to enter, so we still need believers facing in every direction and working in every sphere of life, language and locale to be living gateways. We are like those angels at the gate, ready to offer good news, a word of welcome and ways to connect with those who are drawn to Christ by the Spirit moving in their lives.
People come to faith from so many different paths that lead to Jesus. The Holy Spirit is always moving all over the world. We should not hinder or become an obstacle to the work of the Holy Spirit in our time moving people to new life. We can live with curiosity and be ready to give the reason for our hope when someone comes to our door. We can be one of the many gateways to communion with God and his Church.
Easter is a season for renewing faith. Jesus promised that he and the Father “will come and make our dwelling with him” (Jn 14:23). The Spirit of God dwells within us and will continue to teach us and open our hearts to his way. Let us embrace our call to be living stones … living gateways of faith ready to give the reason for our hope to those who knock at our doors.
Deacon Friesen is director of the Center for Mission, which supports missionary outreach of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. He can be reached at friesenm@archspm.org.
Capecchi is a freelance writer from Grey Cloud Island.
SOMETHING | CHRISTINA CAPECCHI
BRIDGING FAITH | DEACON MICKEY FRIESEN
My personal hope for Pope Leo’s pontificate
Pope Leo XIV has been in the Petrine office for less than a month, but that hasn’t stopped tons of people from expressing their hopes for how the American-born pontiff can improve the Church and the world.
For instance, there’s excitement about his intention to tackle the challenges posed by artificial intelligence, or AI. Others have noted that Pope Leo’s American roots may allow him to effectively interact with U.S. government officials and positively influence American society. And still others are eager to see if his reverent style of celebrating Mass leads to a liturgical revival.
These are all good things to hope for. But there’s another area that I am especially hopeful that Pope Leo XIV can help revitalize, in society but also among Catholics: the centrality of community.
Pope Leo is a religious, and not just a member of any order. He is an Augustinian friar. And for the Augustinians, community and friendship are essential.
This is in large part due to the theological views of their spiritual patron, St. Augustine. The fifth century bishop emphasized that the Triune God — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — was a communion of love, and that human community should mirror this divine unity in love. The very first chapter
HOLINESS | KATE SOUCHERAY
of the Rule of St. Augustine, which Augustine himself wrote for a group of women religious in the 400s, stresses that all community members “should live together harmoniously, having one mind and one heart intent on God.”
When the Augustinian order was formed in 1256 A.D., they put their patron’s theology of community at the heart of their life. Friendship for the Augustinians is not seen as optional but as an essential means to becoming holy. Through community life, one is drawn out of oneself, and encounters Christ in others.
Pope Leo XIV knows this. When he became a cardinal in 2023, he described friendship as “without a doubt, one of the most wonderful gifts that God has given us.” And when he visited the Augustinian order’s headquarters on May 13, he said “the communal life we share as brothers has shaped my heart to serve the Church with humility and love.”
Why is this a big deal?
Because America, and much of the world, is experiencing a crisis of community. We suffer from individualism, which in turn leaves us isolated, anxious and often depressed. Twenty percent of single men report having no close friends, according to 2021 data from the Survey Center on American Life. Seventynine percent of Gen Z members say they are lonely, according to a 2020 report published by the data platform Statista. And nearly 60 percent of Americans say they only know some of their neighbors, according to 2018 data published by the Pew
The Holy Spirit: What does he mean for us?
The Trinity is the most powerful entity in the universe. It is capable of doing anything and can fulfill any prayer request. The life-giving Holy Spirit is the outpouring of love between the Father and the Son and is lavished upon the Earth in abundance.
Catholic theologian Catherine Mowry LaCugna refers to the Holy Spirit as the “bond of love” between the Father and the Son. There is no scarcity of gifts that the Holy Spirit imparts. Any scarcity lies in our thinking and willingness to trust and ask, not in the Spirit’s ability to fulfill our requests. It is our lack of trust in the ability of the Holy Spirit to hear us and respond in the way he sees most fit that is often the barrier between the miracle we seek and the reality we live. We often hesitate to ask for what we need, perhaps so we are not disappointed by what transpires. And yet, Jesus told us to ask and believe we will receive, to knock and trust the door will be opened for us, and to receive the answer he knows is best for us (Mt 7:7). Our trust in the Spirit’s power
and insight must ignite our prayers and our responses to his answers.
Even as we revel in the Easter season, the 50 days between Easter and Pentecost, we might find ourselves in a mindset much like that of the Apostles as they absorbed the truth of Jesus’ resurrection. We, too, might have doubts about who Jesus says he is and how his actions will impact us. We might be overwhelmed by his presence and personal touch, knowing each one of us for exactly who we are and loving us right there. And like the early followers of Christ, we might be surprised and delighted by the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Experiencing the risen Christ still requires faith and the belief that we will experience his presence by discerning and trusting his word.
There are times in our marriage when we must rely on the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and presence to bring us through difficult experiences. It could be a health situation, an unexpected employment change, or even an accident to one of our children or grandchildren. When we face situations like these, we must remember we are never alone and the Holy Spirit’s comfort and accompaniment will be the anchor in the storm.
5 ways to prepare for Mass
Most events in life require preparation. When you go on a trip, you get to the airport early so you can get through security. When you go to a concert or sporting event, you arrive early to find your seat. When you host a party, you make sure you have all the right food and supplies.
Preparation is important for a successful day at work, at school or even at the gym. Getting in the right mindset, anticipating what might happen and setting goals for what you want to achieve is a recipe for success. It helps you feel a sense of security, readiness and satisfaction.
The same holds true for Mass.
For some people in the parish, taking time to prepare for Mass is absolutely essential. Your parish priest prepares a homily. Lectors spend time reviewing the readings. Music directors
Research Center.
Furthermore, it sometimes seems like even Christians disregard the importance of community. This happens when we reduce our religion to a relationship solely between “God and me;” others are relevant insofar as they aid that private relationship but aren’t really important in their own right. But communal life is essential — the Christian community is the body of Christ, and it represents a meaningful place of his presence among us today. How can we be friends with Christ if we downplay human friendship?
Pope Leo XIV understands that. And his deep Augustinian sense of community and friendship is already evident. A well-timed homily or even apostolic letter on the importance of Christian communal living could spark a revolution in the Church — prompting bishops, theologians and ordinary Catholics to reconsider the importance of community in our lives and to take steps to put it into practice — be we lay or religious.
Expectations are already sky high for Pope Leo XIV. But I’m confident that he’ll help more of us experience the fruitfulness of Christian community — in part, because he’s already experienced it so richly himself.
Liedl lives in South Bend, Indiana, and is senior editor for the National Catholic Register.
There are common sensory experiences of the Holy Spirit, one being chills or goose bumps. Jesus said, “When two or more are gathered in my name, I am in your midst.” It is not uncommon for two or more people to share stories of faith and experience a chill as they recognize something profound has been said. It is not uncommon for Christians to have insights to troubling dilemmas or feelings of well-being, joy and warmth, as if they occurred out of nowhere. If you have experienced any of these, you may have had an encounter with the Holy Spirit. If you have not, ask the Holy Spirit for a sign that he is speaking to you and for the grace to recognize it when it comes.
Jesus told his Apostles he was sending them a helper, an advocate, the Paraclete to be with them after his time on Earth had ended (Jn 14:16-17). He assured them he was not leaving them but would be with them in a new way.
We should not be surprised, in this troubling time, that the Holy Spirit works in tangible, concrete ways. For our part, when we recognize and welcome the Spirit’s presence in our lives, just as he was in the lives of Jesus’ first followers, we, too, will experience the indwelling Spirit as a gift.
select hymns that tie into the readings. The choir practices. The sacristan readies the vestments, the hosts and the wine. Liturgy committee members make sure altar linens are pressed, banners are hung and flowers are arranged. Staff members make sure bulletins are ready for distribution. Someone cleans the church. Most Catholics would agree that these kinds of preparations are important for a prayerful liturgy. But what most Catholics don’t realize is that it is also important for the people in the pews to prepare for Mass.
Here are five simple things you can do to prepare for Mass. They aren’t difficult or time-consuming. But they are guaranteed to help you enter more deeply into the celebration of the Mass and achieve a more intimate union with Christ and the other members of the worshiping community.
The Father and the Son are very present to us in the form of the Holy Spirit. It is to our benefit to invite the Spirit’s wisdom into our lives with hope and a sense of mission. Jesus’ mission molds us and he renews his Church through us, his people. We are invited to respond with enthusiasm and eagerness, allowing others to witness our joy in the Holy Spirit’s presence. Jesus is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Soucheray is a licensed marriage and family therapist emeritus and a member of St. Ambrose of Woodbury.
ACTION STRATEGIES
• Do not be afraid to move into your faith more deeply and welcome the Holy Spirit into your life. He is ever-present and capable of any miracle we ask of him.
• Enter the season of Easter with joy and anticipation that the Holy Spirit will make his presence known to you.
1. Know why you are there. The Mass is a liturgy. The word liturgy comes from a Greek word meaning “the work of the people.” You come to Mass not as a spectator but as a participant. You join with other members of the parish community in prayer, worship, thanksgiving and communion. You are no longer just an individual. You are an important part of the body of Christ. Take a few minutes each week to think about your place in the body of Christ. It will give you a deeper appreciation of who you are. It will help you recognize the unique gifts and talents that you were given. It will give you a deeper appreciation of the other people in your parish community.
2. Reflect on the readings. Set aside a few minutes on a specific day each week to read the first reading, the psalm, the
COMMENTARY | FATHER RALPH W. TALBOT JR.
SIMPLE
PREPARE FOR MASS
CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE
second reading and the Gospel for the following weekend. Let the words penetrate your mind and your soul. How do these readings apply to your life? What is the Lord saying to you in these readings? Is there something that you are being asked to do? Is the Lord leading you in a new direction?
Finding the weekly readings is easy. You can purchase a Sunday Missal, or subscribe to a magazine like “My Daily Visitor,” “Magnificat” or “The Word Among Us.” You can also check out readings in many online sources, among them usccb.org
As you become accustomed to reviewing the readings ahead of time, you will begin to look forward to going to Mass. During the Mass you will have a deeper awareness of how the introductory prayers tie into the theme of the readings. When you hear the readings proclaimed and listen as the priest gives the homily, the insights you receive will be more profound, and you will have a heightened
spiritual awareness.
3. Think about your offering. When you come to Mass, you bring everything that you are to the altar as an offering to the Lord. It’s a good idea to spend a little time throughout the week thinking about what you will offer to the Lord.
What joys will you share? What sorrows would you like to unburden? How have you used the gifts that you have been given? What anxieties or tensions are troubling you? Do you want to offer up any pain or suffering you have experienced? Do you have questions or doubts that you want to give to God?
Think also about the state of your soul. Are you ready to give yourself to God entirely? Are you holding anything back, carrying any anger or resentments? Do you need to forgive someone or seek the forgiveness of someone you hurt? Do you need to seek the Lord’s forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation?
It’s also a good idea to think about what you want to ask God. Is there something or someone that you want to pray for? Do you need guidance in some area of your life? For what are you grateful?
4. See yourself as part of the community. Your experience of the Mass begins the moment you arrive at church. Plan to get there a little early.
Outside of the church, smile and speak to the other people who are arriving, keeping in mind that everyone in the parish community is part of the body of Christ. You might take a moment in the parking lot or vestibule to introduce yourself to someone you don’t know. A friendly hello makes everyone feel wanted and welcome. As you enter the church, bless yourself with holy water. Making the sign of the cross with holy water is a reminder of your baptism, which made you a part of the body of Christ. It is through your baptism that you can participate in the fullness of the Eucharistic celebration. You might try sitting in a different pew every once in a while. It will give you a new view of the altar and a chance to interact with different people. Be sure to genuflect or bow before entering your pew. We do this as an act of reverence and an acknowledgement of God’s presence.
5. Enter into God’s presence. Spend some time in silence before Mass begins. Quiet your
mind. Let go of any tensions or anxieties that you brought with you.
Think about how you purposely avoided food for an hour before Mass. One reason for this fast was to create in you a feeling of hunger for the Eucharist. Allow your soul to yearn for the Lord. Ask God to fill all of the empty places inside you.
Invite the Holy Spirit to speak to you in the readings, the music, the homily, the prayers of the Mass and your Communion meditation. Everything that you think and do in these final moments before Mass instills in you a joyful anticipation for your encounter with the Lord. When you take the time to prepare for Mass, your attitude begins to change. The Mass becomes much more than something that you do every weekend. Your mind discovers a deeper appreciation of the mystery that you experience during the liturgy, your heart becomes more open to God’s love, and your soul becomes more receptive to the graces that God is bestowing upon you.
Father Talbot is pastor of St. Hubert in Chanhassen. This commentary first appeared at OSV News.
FWHY I AM CATHOLIC
JIM BITTNER
or most of my life, I have been more of a cultural Catholic than a practicing Catholic.
I gave my life to the Lord at a very young age, but I never learned a lot about my Catholic faith. This was true even through my confirmation, which I completed in the sixth grade. I am of the generation that our religious education classes were focused on “God is love” and not very much on how God teaches and forms that love in us through the sacraments of the Catholic Church. As my wife and I raised our children, they participated in faith formation classes in our parish, but we never had the more recent formation ourselves. That began to change when a friend invited me to pray with the Liturgy of the Hours almost 20 years ago. I started to read letters from the fathers and doctors of the Church. This continued to evolve when our children started to have Catholic doctrine classes in their school, which was a Christian nondenominational school. Through conversations with our children about what they were learning, our desire to learn more about the faith we claimed started to increase. We became more involved in our parish life. I became a lector and an extraordinary Eucharistic minister and have been serving in these roles for more than 15 years. I served on our parish council for eight years. Through that time, I have been learning more about the grace, blessing and richness of our faith tradition and sacraments.
I began to realize that when I engaged in discussions about faith and religion, I was embarrassingly unable to explain why I am Catholic. When I was pressed with questions about why I believe confession to a priest is necessary, why infants are baptized, why confirmation as a young adult takes place over a two-year formation, and whether the Eucharist is truly
the body and blood of Jesus, I would flounder to give a good answer. I would often ultimately say, “It is what I believe to be true.” I started to think about reading apologetics but never made the time.
When my wife and I listened to “The Bible in a Year” podcast, this deepened our understanding of the tenets of our faith — for example, why we do what we do to celebrate the Mass and the meaning behind different parts of the Mass. We started listening to “The Catechism in a Year” podcast, and the desire to discuss this with others became overwhelming. Therefore, my wife and I decided we should finally participate in The St. Paul Seminary Catechetical Institute in St. Paul. I wanted to better understand why we (Catholics) worship God the way we do. I want my faith to be from the depth of my heart, not simply mechanics that have been passed on to me. This experience has led to greater understanding of the sacraments.
We have authority and responsibility to live in apostolic mission, proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. That is why I am Catholic.
Bittner, 56, is the parish administrator and a parishioner of St. Bonaventure in Bloomington. He and his wife, Christine, have been married for 36 years. The Bittners enjoy Sunday “Family Day” visits with their five children and 11 grandchildren and outdoor activities including hiking in the mountains and long walks.
“Why I am Catholic” is an ongoing series in The Catholic Spirit. Want to share why you are Catholic? Submit your story in 300-500 words to CatholicSpirit@archspm.org with subject line “Why I am Catholic.”
PARISH EVENTS
St. Mary’s Church Rummage/Bake Sale –June 12-14: 5-8 p.m. June 12, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. June 13, 8 a.m.-noon June 14 at 4690 Bald Eagle Ave., White Bear Lake. Household goods, clothing, books/CDs/DVDs, electronics, sporting equipment and bake sale. $5 bag day June 14.
St. Bernard Pilgrimage to the Cathedral –June 14: 8:30-11:30 a.m. at. St. Bernard, 187 Geranium Ave. W., St. Paul. A walking pilgrimage from St. Bernard to the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul. We will begin with Mass at 8:30 a.m. at St. Bernard and then process to the Cathedral with rosaries and hymns to receive the plenary indulgence for the Jubilee Year and ask a blessing of the archbishop.
40 Hours of Adoration – June 19-21: 8 p.m. June 19-5 p.m. June 21 at Ascension, 323 Reform St. N., Norwood Young America. A special 40 hours of adoration, starting with a Mass and Benediction June 19, and ending with an evening Corpus Christi Mass June 21. Sign up for a time online: ascensionstbernardparishes.org
St. Boniface Annual Rummage Sale –June 19-21: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. at St. Boniface, 8801 Wildwood Ave., St. Boniface. Join us for our annual St. Boniface Rummage Sale. Bag day on June 21. For more information email: office@saintboni.org. saintboni.org
WORSHIP+RETREATS
June Women’s Mid-Week Retreat – June 1012: Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 Saint Francis Lane, Prior Lake. Enter into prayer, reflection and learning. Four conference talks; guided prayer; spiritual direction; Holy Hour; free time for personal reflection, confession and rest. All meals are cooked on site. franciscanretreats.net
June Silent Weekend Retreat –June 19-22: Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 Saint Francis Lane, Prior Lake. Enter into silent prayer, reflection and learning. Four conference talks; guided prayer; spiritual direction; Holy Hour; free time for personal reflection, confession and rest. All meals are cooked on site. franciscanretreats.net
OTHER EVENTS
20th Annual Northeast Eucharistic Procession – June 8: 1:30 p.m. at Holy Cross, 1621 University Ave., Minneapolis. Procession begins at Holy Cross Church and continues to All Saints by way of several other Northeast churches. A shuttle will run between All Saints and Holy Cross before and after. ourholycross.org
Prenatal Partners for Life (PPFL) 18th Annual Benefit Dinner – June 12: 5 p.m. at Leopold’s Mississippi Gardens, 9500 W. River Road, Minneapolis. Join us for an inspirational evening featuring keynote speaker Katie Buck and Master of Ceremonies Matt Birk. PPFL offers hope and support for families facing an adverse diagnosis of their children. prenatalpartnersforlife.org
Pilgrim Longing Encounter (an Eden Invitation event) – June 14: 4-9 p.m. at St. Peter, 1405 Sibley Memorial Highway, Mendota. Eden Invitation is a ministry headquartered in the archdiocese that strives to accompany individuals who might identify as LGBTQ+ and who desire to live in fidelity to the Church’s teaching on sexuality and the human person. An evening of talks and prayer includes a catered dinner, Mass at 5 p.m. $30 per person; registration closes June 4. Minors must be at least 16 and accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. For questions, email contact@edeninvitation.com . More information and registration at tinyurl.com/mp2fmsm5.
St. John the Evangelist Watchmen Hog Roast – June 17: 6-8:30 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist, 2621 McMenemy St., Little Canada. All men are invited to join us for our annual Hog Roast Watchmen meeting on June 17. The meeting format will be a 6 p.m. walking rosary and 6:30 p.m. hog roast food service, featuring guest Watchmen speakers and concluding with the Divine Mercy Chaplet. sjolc.org/watchmen
“The Matchmaker” – June 19, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28: 7 p.m. at St. Agnes, 530 Lafond Ave., St. Paul. Catholic community theater Missed the Boat Theatre presents “The Matchmaker” by Thornton Wilder. Enjoy this lighthearted, familyfriendly farce about finding love, adventure and community in 1880s New York. missedtheboattheatre.com/matchmaker
Archdiocesan Marriage Day Celebration –June 21: 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. Celebrating the beautiful mystery of the mutual self-gift between a man and woman in the sacrament of holy matrimony. Those celebrating their silver and golden anniversaries in the 2025 calendar year will be honored in a special way. For more information, contact Sonya Flomo at flomos@archspm.org , 651-291-4488
SINGLES
Singles Group – Second Saturdays: 6:15 p.m. at St. Vincent de Paul, 9100 93rd Ave. N., Brooklyn Park. Gather for a potluck supper, conversation and games. 763-425-0412
ONGOING GROUPS
Catholic in Recovery – Sundays: 7-8 p.m. at St. Mark, 2001 Dayton Ave., St. Paul. Catholic sacramental recovery and fellowship for those seeking freedom from addictions, compulsions, and unhealthy attachments. We overlap Scripture reading, liturgical themes and 12-step recovery topics. Questions? Call Eileen M. at 612-4832973. catholicinrecovery.com
Calix Society – First and third Sundays: 9-10:30 a.m., hosted by the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. In Assembly Hall, Lower Level. Potluck breakfast. Calix is a group of men, women, family and friends supporting the spiritual needs of recovering Catholics with alcohol or other addictions. Questions? Call Jim at 612-383-8232 or Steve at 612-327-4370.
Career Transition Group – Third Thursdays: 7:30-8:30 a.m. at Holy Name of Jesus, 155 County Road 24, Medina. The Career Transition Group hosts speakers on various topics to help people looking for a job or a change in career and to enhance job skills. The meetings also allow time for networking with others and opportunities for resume review. hnoj.org/career-transition-group
Secular Franciscan Order: St. Alphonsa Fraternity – June 29, July 27, Aug. 24, Sept. 28, Oct. 26, Nov. 23, Dec. 14: Church of the Epiphany, 1900 111th Ave. NW, Coon Rapids. Membership meeting of Secular Franciscans. We welcome all who are interested in living the Gospel Life to Come and See how we follow in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Clare. Meeting is held in the Hearth Room. Contact Jean
DUPLEX UNIT FOR RENT
Available in Cathedral area: tinyurl.com/Albans55104
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
LOTS
Resurrection: 4 graves; Market: $2300/ea. Price: $8000 for 4. Text: 317-903-2737.
Cemetery: 5 graves; Section 13, Block 25, Lots 19, 20. Value: $2365/ea. Price $2000/ ea. 612-710-8697
Resurrection Cemetery: 2 lots. Value: $2250/ea. Price: $4300/pair. 651-462-3794.
Part-time Law Office Typist in West St. Paul, Minnesota: Produce legal documents including Wills, Trusts, Briefs, Pleadings, and Reports. Administrative support to attorneys and paralegals. In addition, a paralegal or legal assistant is also needed with similar duties but expanded to include research and composition of documents and other related duties. QuickBooks experience preferred. Contact John Trojack 651-451-9696 or complete “Contact” on our website: TrojackLaw.com
at 763-496-9369. queenofpeaceregion.org/ coon-rapids-st-alphonsa
Gifted and Belonging – Second Fridays: June 13, July 11 and Aug. 8: 6:30-8 p.m., at Harmon Park, 230 Bernard St., West St. Paul. Meet at the corner of Bidwell and Bernard. GAB in the park! Gather on the second Friday of each month this summer for Catholic fellowship with young adults with disabilities seen and unseen. giftedandbelonging@gmail.com
Natural Family Planning (NFP) – Classes teach couples Church approved methods on how to achieve or postpone pregnancy while embracing the beauty of God’s gift of sexuality. For a complete list of classes offered throughout the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, visit archspm.org/family or call 651-291-4489.
Quilters for a Cause – First Fridays: 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at St. Jerome, 380 Roselawn Ave. E., Maplewood. Join other women to make quilts to donate to local charities. Quilting experience is not necessary but basic machine skills are helpful. For more information, call the parish office: 651-771-1209. https://tinyurl.com/3fx64unf
Restorative Support for Victims-Survivors –Monthly: 6:30-8 p.m. via Zoom. Open to all victims-survivors. Victim-survivor support group for those abused by clergy as adults – first Mondays. Support group for relatives or friends of victims of clergy sexual abuse – second Mondays. Victim-survivor support group – third Mondays. Survivor Peace Circle – third Tuesdays. Support group for men who have been sexually abused by clergy/religious – fourth Wednesdays. Support group for present and former employees of faithbased institutions who have experienced abuse in any of its many forms – second Thursdays. Visit archspm.org/healing or contact Paula Kaempffer, outreach coordinator for restorative justice and abuse prevention, at kaempfferp@archspm.org or 651-291-4429.
Secular Franciscan Meeting of St. Leonard of Port Maurice Fraternity – Third Sundays: 2:15-3:45 p.m. at St. Olaf, 215 S. Eighth St., Minneapolis. General membership meeting of Secular Franciscans who belong to the Fraternity of St. Leonard of Port Maurice. Any who are interested in living the Gospel life in the manner of St. Francis and St. Clare are welcome.
HEALTH CARE
THE FAMILY CLINIC, LLC
Direct Primary Care • Functional Medicine 651-400-1554 • info@mnfamilyclinic.com
PAINTING
For painting & all related services. View our website: PAINTINGBYJERRYWIND.COM or call (651) 699-6140.
Michaels Painting. Texture and Repair. MichaelsPaintingLLC.com. (763) 757-3187
PRAYERS
NOTICE: Prayers must be submitted in advance. Payment of $8 per line must be received before publication. REAL ESTATE
www.AJClancy.realtor
Roofing, Siding,
Delegates visit archdiocese to celebrate 20th anniversary of Kitui partnership
By Josh McGovern The Catholic Spirit
Like Moses striking the rock and water pouring out, Father John Mbua Mwandi of the Diocese of Kitui, Kenya, said the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, in partnership with his diocese, struck their ground in Africa and water poured out.
Father Mwandi was one of 12 delegates — including seven priests, one nun and four laypeople — from Kitui who visited the archdiocese from May 13-19 to learn how the archdiocese operates and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the partnership.
Father Mwandi didn’t just draw the comparison of spiritual water pouring out on the diocese, but literal water, as the archdiocese, through donations, helped bring clean water to Kitui. Before 2004, residents of Kitui walked miles, carrying gallon jugs on their backs or on the backs of donkeys, to bring clean water back to their town. Now, through sand dams and rain gutters, clean water is readily available.
Because of these new resources, the Church is able to provide water to people in areas away from the diocese. Water becomes available for crops and for animals, which helps these small communities prosper.
“You came to Kitui and you struck hard, dry soil and water came,” Father Mwandi said. “The people are celebrating in Kitui your generosity and love, which you have shown to the people of Kitui. We still keep on remembering you, praying for you and pray for God to give you more, because of the generosity which you have shown to us and the love which you have shown to us.”
Deacon Mickey Friesen, director of the Center for Mission, which promotes and coordinates mission activities of the archdiocese, said, “The wisdom of this is that it is not a partnership between the bishops or between the chanceries. It is a partnership between the dioceses (themselves). And so, the relationship is bigger than any individual.”
The guiding principle of the partnership is the idea that both the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the Diocese of Kitui are equal in baptism, and the partnership is mutually beneficial.
“It is out of (God’s) love that you have made a difference in Kitui, which is arid and dry, and many people are living without water, and you have provided water to the people in Kitui,” said Father Mwandi during a homily at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center (ACC) in St. Paul while presiding at Mass in the chapel.
In a three-year cycle, delegates from the archdiocese visit the Diocese of Kitui. The following year, delegates from Kitui visit Minnesota. In the third year, both dioceses implement goals and strategies discussed and discerned during their two visits.
Father Mwandi said water is one of many fruits to come from the partnership. During this year’s visit, delegates were taken to see a food shelf at St. Thomas Becket in Eagan. They noticed that the Church in Minnesota is keen on volunteering, and the delegates considered implementing food shelves back home in Kenya.
Father Mwandi said the Church is called to help the poor, but when people live without necessities, such as food and water, the challenge to help the poor
becomes bigger.
Other fruits are spiritual gifts. Deacon Friesen said that though Kitui is a dry and arid place without the same resources available in Minnesota, their churches and seminaries are filled.
“In some ways they seem more at peace and joyful in their lives than we are,” Deacon Friesen said. “Our needs are maybe not financial.” Deacon Friesen said that when Kitui delegates have visited, they have suggested, “we look tired. Our Church looks a little tired. When we talk about sharing gifts, we’re talking about biblical gifts, gifts of the Holy Spirit. Gifts of faith, hope, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness.”
“It is because of the love of God that has brought us together, people from many miles in the world,” Father Mwandi said. “We are coming together as one family because of this love of Christ, which has made us brothers and sisters, without counting the difference of culture, without counting any other difference which we have. But that makes us one thing, and that’s what the Gospel is telling us. Being in Christ, you shall have happiness. Wherever you are, you shall find brothers and sisters who love you and who experience the love of God.”
A packed schedule allowed the delegates to visit archdiocesan offices and departments, parishes and schools, communities and organizations.
On May 15, Father Mwandi and Father Julius Muthamba visited St. Helena Catholic School and DeLaSalle High School, both in Minneapolis, and St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights. Both priests said they were impressed by St. Helena’s ability to provide resources to students.
Steve Cunningham, associate director of educational quality and excellence for the archdiocese, guided the two priests through the three schools that day. Cunningham noted that in Kitui, the diocese is in an arid area with challenges around water and
electricity.
“They have to be very creative in how they address those kinds of things, which of course lends itself to their schools,” Cunningham said. “How do you serve your students when you know you may not have some of the means by which to carry out even basic necessities?”
Cunningham said that Father Mwandi and Father Julius Muthamba were impressed by seniors at St. Thomas Academy who said Catholic education provided important experiences in their lives.
“One thing that is different here is you’ve got lots of different options for families, and that’s a good thing,” Cunningham said. “You have charter schools, you have other Christian schools, independent schools, public schools. There (are) lots of options.
I think they (Father Mwandi and Father Muthamba) got the sense that that puts you in a position where you really have to be well-defined about what you hope to achieve as a school. That’s where the admissions directors at DeLaSalle and St. Thomas Academy did such a great job in speaking to what their specific charisms are that make them special and unique.”
On the Minnesota side of the partnership, Cunningham said that students, administrators and teachers who visited with Father Mwandi and Father Muthamba were able to witness an aspect of the universal Church.
“The Mass here is the Mass in Africa, and it’s the Mass in Europe, and it’s the Mass in North America,” Cunningham said. “It’s that sort of friendship and faith that binds us. It’s so powerful and important for the betterment of the Church as a whole.”
Father Mwandi spoke of the same excitement in seeing the universal Church.
“The Church is Catholic, the Church is one and the Church is holy,” Father Muthamba said. “We might be different in terms of nationality, in terms of race, but
when it comes to faith, realizing that all of us are God’s children, and we are created in the image of God, it brings about the new image of the global solidarity and the aspect of journeying with one another.”
Father Muthamba, who stayed at Archbishop Bernard Hebda’s residence while visiting, commended the archbishop for his hospitality and pastoral care.
“The Holy Father, Pope Francis, used to say that the shepherd needs to be with the flock,” Father Muthamba said. “The days we have been here, we have seen Archbishop Bernard Hebda is a shepherd of the flock. … He works almost 24/7, and that’s a very big example of sacrifice in how we need to work for selfless giving so that we may create a better world.”
Both Father Mwandi and Father Muthamba said they look forward to seeing the partnership continue to grow in the future. One of the focuses, Deacon Friesen said, is partnering between the schools by sending seminarians to Kitui. Another consideration is having Kitui priests serve at parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, but this option would have to be coordinated by the bishops.
The partnership, Deacon Friesen said, has no end in sight. But the goal isn’t to reach an end, to accomplish a goal, or to fix the world. It is a mission to “make Jesus Christ known and loved” and to express the Catholic faith through two dioceses partnered in the universal Church.
“I don’t know whether we should feel grateful or sad, but most of these partnerships that started 20-plus years ago ended,” Deacon Friesen said. “We’re one of the few that’s still going. It’s not just going, it’s going strong. I think one of the reasons these things sometimes fall apart is because they either get too focused on personalities or they get too focused on projects. ... When there’s no relationship undergirding the project, it becomes like another collection. ... We just don’t look at it that way.”
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Father John Mbua Mwandi of the Diocese of Kitui, Kenya, right, greets George Mutua, left, May 11 at St. Gerard Majella in Brooklyn Park following a Mass to celebrate the 20th anniversary of a partnership between the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the Diocese of Kitui. Another member of the delegation from Kitui was Father George Marete, center.