Around these parts, it’s not unheard of for various dignitaries to come around.  Bishops come out to visit their men studying here.  Local bishops and the Cardinal Archbishop come to some of the bigger events here.  A few weeks ago, Cardinal Foley (from Rome) was here to celebrate the anniversary of his episcopal ordination with the seminary community.

After a while, it almost becomes ordinary.  An announcement will get posted that Bishop so-and-so is coming next week, or we hear that Cardinal X will be here on ___day for something-or-other, and it’s almost routine.  Obviously, it’s not, because a lot of people do a lot of work in planning whatever ceremonies will take place and to make sure they are well-executed, but for the rest of us it can seem rather normal.

For example, I’ve had the following things happen:

• While walking to the chapel, one of the Auxiliary Bishops of Philadelphia passes me heading the other direction.  He says hello, I say hello back, and we keep moving without breaking our strides.
• I was chatting with another seminarian on the sidewalk as we were getting ready to walk up to the other building.  While we’re talking, a bishop walks by, says hello to us, and keeps going.  We responded with a similar hello, nice to see you Your Excellency, and that was that.
• Cardinal Foley (from Rome) was visiting.  We had the big fancy Mass and dinner on Wednesday evening.  The following Sunday evening, I’m heading out of the cafeteria as he comes walking in to grab some dinner.  We weren’t close enough to exchange pleasantries, but we were still pretty darn close.

This past Friday, several seminarians got to attend some sort of fund raising dinner for the Catholic Leadership Institute where they were having an awards banquet.  Someone apparently donated some seats at this event for some seminarians to go.  At the last minute, one of the guys couldn’t make it, so I got asked to go.  There were quite a few VIPs in attendance.  We met up with two Auxiliary Bishops from Philadelphia, a couple guys got to meet Cardinal DiNardo, and the former Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Ambassador to the Holy See (one of the honorees) was sitting at the table next to us.

Tonight was yet another example.  Every Wednesday they have the “Rector’s Dinner” which is usually a fancier meal served family style (instead of cafeteria style).  Every week a few seminarians are drafted to help wait tables.  This week was my week.  I was assigned to the head table.   No biggie, I thought, since there weren’t any dignitaries coming this week, it should just be the rector whoever else got picked for his table.

Yeah.  Apparently tonight, Cardinal Bevilacqua (who lives at the seminary but rarely makes public appearances) decided to join us for dinner.  Guess who would be taking care of serving him?  It was fun, in its own way.  I got to serve dinner to a Prince of the Church.  I didn’t actually talk to His Eminence; all discussion took place with the rector as an intermediary, but still, it was an experience to be sure.

So anyway, in the short time I’ve been here, I’ve had my fair share of encounters with some VIPs.

Which leads me to my closing anecdote.  Two or three weeks ago on apostolate, we went to visit this older couple with the pastor.  The lady was beside herself with glee that a priest and two sems were in her house, and she tried to offer us every sort of hospitality.  We explained that we couldn’t stay because we had to head back to the seminary by a certain time.  The lady understood but jokingly asked Monsignor why he couldn’t write a note…he was a monsignor after all, and that has to count.  The pastor joked that around these parts, monsignors are a dime a dozen [not necessarily true -- but he's making a point] and you have to be at least a bishop to have any clout.

I guess this is how people who live in Hollywood feel when they go grocery shopping and Tom Cruise or Bette Middler are in the next lane at the checkouts.

http://catholicvoteaction.org/index.php

Just watch the video.

(P.S. Yeah, it’s been ages since I’ve posted.  Been busy.)

For those who aren’t channel surfing in the pre-dawn hours, every Sunday at 5:30 a.m., the Mass is broadcast on Channel 6.  I’ve watched this on several occasions, and frankly it’s not the best thing in the world.  I mean, it’s Mass, so of course it’s great, but, they cram the entire Sunday Mass into 30 minutes and so there’s a whole lot of shortcuts.  Really, if you’re homebound, you’re much better off waiting till 8:00 and catching EWTN.

At any rate, the TV Mass on Channel 6 is pre-taped, several weeks before it airs.  I don’t necessarily like that, but that’s the topic for another post.

The Seminary’s annual appeal is coming up, and so each year the Seminary gets to tape a Mass to discuss.  This took place the other day, and I got picked to be one of the ones in the congregation.  Further, I was selected to be in the offertory procession, so I should be quite visible on the broadcast!

The Mass will air on Sunday, 10/25  (at 5:30 am).   Tune in to see me!  (Or record it and watch it later).

As of about two hours ago, I am no longer a homeowner.  This past Saturday my family moved everything out of the condo and into my parents’ garage.  It was a rather sad day.  While I certainly didn’t experience any major milestones or events in that place (like a marriage, birth of a child, family Christmases) it was still home for five years, and seeing it completely empty and closing the door for the last time stung. Quite a bit.   I’m certainly happy here at the Seminary, and haven’t regretted my decision to enter, but I didn’t appreciate the breadth and depth of everything that I’ve given up until I watched it all getting carted out in boxes onto the back of a moving van.

So, early this evening was the closing.  I wasn’t there, but it went well.  The papers are all signed.  A young lady is now the proud owner of a 2 bedroom condo.  My keychain is now a little lighter.  My bank account will be a little fuller (Deo Gratias).  And for now until God-willing I’m ordained a priest, I am a nomad.

The next hurdle: figuring out what to do with two garages full of furniture and personal stuff before winter hits and my parents will want to park their cars in the garage again.

Every day, my junk e-mail account gets at least half a dozen spam emails, all from the same group of organizations.  The subjects are almost invariably the following:

• Find Christian Singles in your area now
• Great Work from home opportunities available
• Free trial of [insert whatever Oprah currently claims is the secret to great health and good looks]

Let’s get this clear.  I am a seminarian.  I have no interest in meeting singles in my area or any area.  I have no time for a job, and even if I did, I wouldn’t be allowed to have one.  And finally, I don’t care what Oprah thinks is the secret to a fabulous life.  I couldn’t afford it anyway.

So to you spammers out there, if you’re looking to grab me, try offering me discount clerical attire, or free spiritual books.  Thanks.

Have a bit of free time, so I guess I should put a post up here.  A few observations about seminary life so far:

1. It’s a busy life.  Between communal prayer, classes, eating, and meetings, there isn’t a lot of free time left.   It feels like there should be, but somehow there isn’t.
2. You change clothes often.  For the new guys, we have to wear a jacket and tie to most functions, and for the most formal of occasions we wear a black suit with a white shirt and a black necktie.  If you didn’t know any better and you saw us coming down the hall, you’d assume either (a) we were a bunch of funeral directors, (b) we were Mormons on a mission, or (c) we work for a secret agency that monitors and controls alien activity around the world and you’re about to have a portion of your memory modified.  For everyone else (and us after Cassock Day), we would wear clerical shirts or cassocks to class, chapel, and dining room and a cassock and surplice to Mass.  But immediately after such things, the guys tend to change into casual civilian attire.  And if they go to the gym, there’s another change.  Over the course of a day, you can change your outfit half a dozen times.  I should mention that the resident priests often do the same.  You can tell when they wear a different collar to dinner than they wore to breakfast.  Makes me wonder if all priests do this in real life.
3. I really need to learn how to absorb when I read.  I can pick up a paperback novel and read through it and remember most everything.  I pick up a textbook and read a page and I can’t tell you a darn thing that I just read.  If anyone has any ideas on how to improve this area, I’d be appreciative.
4. The seminarians are generally pretty nice.
5. It can be really hard to tell the difference between some of the older seminarians and the younger priests.  As a rule, only clergy are allowed to wear a suit jacket with their collars, so that’s usually a sign to say “hello Father.”  But if the priest is just wearing a clerical shirt, it’s not so easy.
6. Receiving postal mail is fun!
7. They already gave us a session on the upcoming Seminary Appeal.  We’ll be sent out to different parishes to speak after Mass some Sunday, and we went over the guidelines of what to say.  We have to write out our talk and have it approved by the Dean.  Not even here a week, and they’re already showing us how to ask for money.  I suppose if this were a Protestant seminary, they would have done that the first day.

More observations and such later on.

Rob pointed out this article and indicated that it deserved a good fisk, and then suggested me as the man for the job.  The original source can be found here.  Following the lead of Fr. Z, I’ve added my own emphasis and [comments].  I include some information that can be found by poking around this website in my own commentary, and recommend people take a gander for more information.  Article and commentary can be found “below the fold.”

Inquisitions aren’t things of the past for the Vatican

According to my nun and ex-nun friends [which are apparently so numerous that they make a valid cross-section of consecrated religious to make the following generalization], Catholic sisters chose to think and act on what they believe God and Jesus calls them to do, rather than relying on male [those pesky men] authorities (who are often out of touch), to tell them how to guide their religious practices.   [This is "Spirit of Vatican II"-speak for "we no longer want to subject ourselves to the legitimate authority Christ gave the Church."  In other words, a rejection of the authority of the Church in favor of  their own personal, or collective, autonomy. 

But, let's look at this objectively for a moment and not evaluate from any sort of moral perspective.  At some point circa Vatican II, societies of sisters around the country made a choice to do something different with their lives.  From 1965 to 2000, the Catholic population increased 47% while the population of religious sisters DECREASED 54%.  There were 239 Catholics per religious sister in 1965; in 2000 this number was up to 761, a 218% increase.  Maybe some "out of touch" male authority figure in Rome thought there was something fishy about those numbers and thought it should be researched.  Why are there so fewer sisters when there are so many more Catholics?  Why is it that orders that were seedbeds for vocations for decades are literally dying away?  Seems like a logical question for the Congregation that oversees religious life to ask.  Now, correllation is not causation, but it might be worth looking into if this paradigm shift has resulted in the decrease in numbers.]

A second investigation instigated by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith [Oh come on, Ms. Falconer, you forgot "formerly known as the Inquisition"]  is to study the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. [N.B. Different Dicastery.  The first is the Congregation for Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, which has oversight over religious institutes.  The CDF is for doctrinal issues.]  The LCWR, extremely diverse in its membership, is composed of the heads of various sister communities which “assists its members to collaboratively carry out their service of leadership to further the mission of the Gospel in today’s world.” [There are two main leadership organizations in the USA for sisters.  The LCWR, and the Council of Major Superiors of Women religious.  Both have websites.  They're worth a look.  Oddly enough, there isn't a doctrinal investigation going on for the latter.]

Cardinal Levada has been appointed to initiate a “doctrinal assessment” of the LCWR. The investigation is based on the Vatican’s assumptions that the LCWR accepts homosexual love, the ordination of women, and the view that God accepts people of many faiths or of no faith.  [It would appear that Ms. Falconer is in support of all three of these things.  Her argument is that Rome thinks the LCWR supports these (in her mind) good things, that Rome does not support them, and so that's why Rome is cracking the whip.  It is impertive to support assumptions with facts.  Ms. Falconer is accusing Rome of making assumptions, but she does not present any evidence that this is what Rome thinks.  Is it an assumption by the CDF?  Do they have nothing better to do?  Or has the LCWR perhaps said or done something(s) in the past that have been brought to Rome's attention?  I think most dicasteries have enough on their plates that they don't have to go hunting based on assumptions.  A cursory google search showed some sites that suggested some events at a conference back in 2001 led to concerns about this group's theology that have been bubbled up.]  To quote Mary E. Hunt of Religious Dispatches, “The mind boggles … with war, economic inequality, ecological concerns, immigration, the well-being of women and dependent children, anti-racism work, and health care (to name just a few concerns occupying the vast majority of active nuns), makes this narrow agenda of Vatican concern morally embarrassing.”  [To whom?]

Regardless of their ceaseless good works, the Superiors of Mother Houses are required to answer questions. [There's those out-of-touch men weilding their authority again.  Mother Superior was going to go and feed 1000 starving lepers today, but she's gotta fill out this dang survey instead. ]  For instance: “Is daily mass a priority?” [Shouldn't it be?  The Eucharist is the source and summit of everything after all.]  “Is the Eucharistic Liturgy according to approved form?” “How do you deal with sisters who do not follow the authoritative teaching of the church?” [That's easy, we make them mother superior....]  “How do you live out the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience?” 

These inquisitions are obviously a way to control a group of women, who place more emphasis on spreading love and justice in their communities [rather than the Gospel?  Remember in John 6 after the loaves and fishes, Jesus rebuked those who came to believe simply because their physical needs were met.  Spreading love and justice is good, but that's not the totality of the Christian message] than adhering to some rules demanding strict obedience [then why did so many take a vow of obedience] set up by a group of cloistered men.  [If you want to spread love and justice and not adhere to a bunch of rules you disagree with, that's all fine and dandy.  Go ahead and do it.  But if you're going to call yourself a Catholic Religious Order, then there are certain rules you need to follow.  You want to use our name, you gotta play by our rules.  Imagine if a bunch of McDonald's franchisees decided not to follow the corporate rules because the owners felt that they were more interested in spreading cheap food and obesity rather than following some rules established by stuffy corporate types we were out of touch with reality.  And so a dozen restaurants start selling Whoppers instead of Big Macs, another dozen abandon the golden arches, a few more get rid of hamburgers and fries and instead start selling pizza and tacos, and on and on.  Eventually, you will end up with pure chaos in the fast food marketplace.  If you want to run a McDonald's restaurant, you have certain menu, design, advertising, branding, and price requirements.  Otherwise, you can start your own burger joint.  If you want to abandon daily prayer and authentic doctrine and focus on hugging trees or being a social worker, okay, but you've started something that's not part of the Church.]

Does it not seem odd that these “visitations” started in the wake of the worst and most expensive scandal faced by the Catholic church hierarchy? [Ho hum.  When you're done using nasty words like "inquisition" just bring up the sex scandal.  Which, you know, was big news 8 years ago and has calmed down considerably.  Clearly this was an attempt by the hierarchy to shift everyone's eyes to the repressed women so that those cloistered out-of-touch men can get back in touch -- if you know what I mean wink wink -- with their altar boys.  Yep.   Oh wait, there was that whole visitation of all the seminaries a year or two ago to crack the whip and get them on track.  Wonder who the evil men were after with that little inquisiton?  I read of nuns risking and sometimes losing their lives to fight for civil rights in Latin America, Africa and other Third World countries [and no priests have ever done this...just pay no attention to Oscar Romero, Maximilian Kolbe, Pope John Paul II], but never to amass material gain. I see their obedience to the gospel in their work in hospitals, as social workers, and comforters in prisons, but never to become famous. I am told [by whom?] that nuns are more highly educated, many with doctorates, than are most priests [maybe.  Can you provide some data for this?  And what does this have to do with whether the sisters are actually authentically living the consecrated life], but they are not allowed to teach in Catholic universities [Apparently all the IHM sisters on the faculty at Immaculata and Marywood Universities never got the memo]. Yet, I have never heard of a nun sexually abusing children.  [maybe not.  That's not to say it hasn't happened.  But let's not forget the physical and emotional abuse many sisters subjected their school students to in past generations.  That doesn't excuse priestly sexual abuse of course, but let's not think all sisters are completely innocent of any wrongdoing.  We are ALL sinners.]

Is it possible that this whole inquisition of women religious is designed to mask the “sins of the fathers?” [These last two sentences are a cheap parting shot.]  What group should the Vatican be investigating about the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience? Certainly, not the nuns. [Well, since consecrated religious are the only ones who take those vows, who else?  But I guess Ms. Falconer doesn't know that.]

Sylvia Falconer is minister emerita of the Greeley Unitarian Universalist church. She served as a minister in Alaska, Illinois and Colorado. She is a freelance writer, an artist and a grandmother.

*************

Someone is very angry.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, and it’ll probably be a while before I post again, but I had to share this story.

First, the backstory.  In the past few weeks, I’ve seen a few episodes of Touched By an Angel on the Hallmark Channel.  I occasionally watched the show years ago before it went into syndication but wouldn’t have called myself a follower or fan.  But in one episode, I saw the Cadillac convertible that Tess drove, and noticed some unique features about its appearance (compared to a variety of other cars I’ve seen).  Still can’t say I’m a fan of that show, but I’ve seen a few episodes here and there so it’s been on my mind.

Today, I was driving off to meet some folks, and as I turned from my complex onto the main road, I saw an older gentleman sitting on the grass across the street.  Not exactly a place where you expect to see someone sitting.  Next to him was a bicycle, which was standing up and propped up by its kickstand.  I didn’t have too much time to assess the situation thanks to the traffic, but a few seconds later I wondered if everything was okay, or if this guy may have needed some kind of help.  I was thinking maybe he fell off his bike and broke a bone or something or may have been suffering from the intense heat.  By then, alas, it was too late for me to pull off and ask if he was okay.

So, I said a prayer to my guardian angel that he would go and check that everything was okay and, if the man needed help, to do whatever necessary to get the guy the help he needs, and if he could, to let me know everything was alright so I wouldn’t worry too much.  Then I said my usual Our Father/Hail Mary/Glory Be combo and hoped for the best.

A few seconds later, I turned the radio back on, and a song was just wrapping up.  The DJ came on, and it turns out her name is Angel something-or-other.  Meanwhile, pulling out from a cross-street was a red convertible.  I don’t know much about cars, but this car pulling out had the exact same distinguishing features as the one from the Touched by an Angel show.

So, at the same moment, around a minute after I said a prayer to my guardian angel, I see a car that looks just like the one driven by Tess the angel in Touched by an Angel, and I hear a lady on the radio whose name is “Angel.”

You can call it a coincidence.  But I sincerely think that it was a sign from my guardian angel or from God that all was (or soon would be) well with the cyclist.

God is good.

I just got a letter in the mail from the Vocations Office.  Mentioned in the letter is that this year there are 12 men entering the seminary for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia this year, with 3 others still waiting review.  This is apparently a record in recent years, which is great news!

Please pray for them (us), especially during the next month as opening day approaches.

Pope Benedict suffered a fall while on his annual Summer vacation.  Looks like he ended up with a fractured wrist, and required surgery at a local hospital.  What’s particularly interesting, at least to me, is that while he was in the hospital, he refused any preferential treatment and waited his turn behind all the other patients.  I think that’s wonderful.

Though I don’t know how I’d feel if I were in the ER and one of the people ahead of His Holiness in line.  I’m sure His Holiness wasn’t just sitting in the waiting room like all the other patients for security reasons, but still, I can see myself trying to convince the triage nurse that I was fine and let the man in white go ahead.

Two more comments.  1) clearly this is an example of the last shall be first and the first shall be last.

2) Maybe this can be a lesson for some of our own political elite here in the USA.  They’ve got their private doctors and get rush treatment for everything.  Maybe if a few Senators or Presidents had to wait in line at the local ER, we’d get better solutions to our health care problems.

In any case, let’s say a prayer for the recovery of the Holy Father and one of thanksgiving that this fall wasn’t any more serious.