Friday, August 10, 2012
"I give thanks to God always for all of you ..."
Three years ago I served as the assistant director of my
community’s undergraduate seminary at the University of Notre Dame. During a football weekend, one of our
seminarians hosted his uncle who was at that time studying for the permanent
diaconate. Don Longano joined our
seminarians for Mass before the game and he brought along his pastor who had
authored several books for our community’s publishing house. Later that morning at the seminarians’
tailgate party I had the chance to meet and speak with Monsignor Vaghi.
The rest, as they say, is history. Over the past two years, while I’ve been studying history at
Catholic University, I’ve had the privilege and pleasure of assisting here at
Little Flower Parish, all thanks to the connections I made during that football
weekend. But now, it’s time for me
to say goodbye as I move home to New York to begin doctoral studies at Columbia
University. I’m happy to have this opportunity to offer my heartfelt thanks to
all of you who have made my time here at Little Flower so rewarding …
First and foremost I am grateful to you the parishioners and
families of Little Flower Parish who welcomed me so warmly into this community
of faith and gave me the privilege of serving you in Word and Sacrament. In a particular way, I’m grateful to
Sr. Rosemaron, the teachers, students, and families of Little Flower
School. Being with the students of
our school was a singular pleasure, and I only wish my own studies didn’t
preclude me from more often joining them in their classes and assemblies.
I am deeply grateful to our I.H.M. Sisters for all their
support and especially for the fine witness they provided me of how to live
religious life with authenticity and joy.
I am grateful to Monsignor Kane and to Father Stuart for the warm
welcome they extended to me, and for the wisdom and wit they shared. These good priests made Little Flower into
a true home in which I could continue to grow into my vocation as a priest.
I am grateful, too, to have had such wonderful peers and
friends in Father Ivany and Father Lickteig, and indeed in all the deacons and
seminarians our parish has been blessed to host. The Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. is truly blessed to have
such holy and zealous young men, and I am blessed to call them my brothers and
friends.
I thank Deacon Longano and his family for the introductions
that made this all possible. And finally, and most importantly, I am grateful to
Monsignor Vaghi for inviting me to reside and serve at Little Flower, and for
all his support of my scholarship and ministry. Monsignor is a “priests’ priest” in the best sense of that
phrase: his commitment to priestly fraternity sets the remarkable tone for the
common life of our house.
I hope that my future exploration of American Catholic
history will often bring me back to work in the archives and libraries of our
nation’s capital, and I very much look forward to visiting Little Flower Parish
when it does. In the meanwhile, oremus pro invicem – let us pray for
each other!
This article appears in "The Clergy Corner" of this Sunday's bulletin at Little Flower Parish, Bethesda, MD.
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1 comment:
Father Stephen - I found your blog. We will miss you at Little Flower!
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