Beautiful Sacrament/Beautiful Milwaukee Church

In January of 2013 I wrote a blog post on the Seven Most Beautiful Churches in Milwaukee.  I know I missed a few in that list and that there are many more beautiful churches that I have not yet seen and don't know about, but now I can add St. Michael's Church on 24th and Vliet to that list and make it at least eight beautiful churches, until I have the opportunity to visit others.  

Although we are parishioners at Old St. Mary Parish, my son Jack was the only teen being confirmed from our parish this year, and several other east and north side parishes had small numbers of confirmands as well, so the celebration was combined and held at St. Michael's Church where seventy-five youth were confirmed by Archbishop Listecki. 

The newly confirmed, Jack Thomas, (right) and his sponsor, Joe, pose with Archbishop Listecki

Conversation with Archbishop Listecki while our pastor, Fr. Tim Kitzke, looks on.

Before the Mass began we were given a brief overview of St. Michael's Church which was built by German immigrants and is now home to a multi-cultural community of Laotian, Hmong, Karen, and Spanish members, among others.  The church interior is stunningly magnificent with much of its original beauty left intact, although it did seem as though some modifications and modernizations were made in the sanctuary.

The church was packed with people and excitement.  The music was a mix of both traditional and contemporary which added a joyful atmosphere of prayer during the three-hour-long Mass and celebration of the Sacrament.  Archbishop Listecki likes to speak individually to each confirmand during the celebration and those conversations were not amplified so the singing kept the little ones (and adults) from becoming restless during the long process of Confirmation.  During Jack's conversation with the Archbishop, he shared that he chose to keep his baptismal name, Thomas, as his confirmation name because St. Thomas the Apostle, much like Jack, was strong in faith but short on words, saying only "My Lord and My God" upon coming to believe that Jesus was truly risen. 

Jack was well-prepared, excited and eager to receive the Sacrament. We hope and pray that the Holy Spirit will bless his life and guide his every move forever.  

(For a fun gift that we hope will help him to remember the anointing he received each time he applies it to his budding facial hair, we gave Jack  Barbatus Catholic Beard Balm in both Chrism and Holy Smokes scents.)

St. Michael's Church, Milwaukee

St. Michael's, interior

The First Station of the Cross-Jesus is Condemned to Death

The Marian Altar

soaring stained glass

Pieta

smiling brothers

Cardinal Dolan: Who Do You Say That I Am?

my favorite photo of Cardinal Dolan-credit:  Sam Lucero-visit Inspired Images website

This past Wednesday, at daily Mass, Bishop Sklba shared a charming story about Cardinal Dolan.  It seems that Bishop Sklba spent some time in New York visiting the Cardinal and they decided to go for a walk to a museum that was about a mile away.  It was probably the longest mile they ever walked because Cardinal Dolan couldn't take more than two steps before people would recognize him and ask him to pray for them or would share their concerns with the good Cardinal.  Bishop Sklba said that he imagined that Cardinal Dolan has a good idea of what Jesus felt like in  the passage from Luke 4:38-44 where the people were all bringing their sick to Jesus and tried to preventing him from leaving their town because they were so pleased with all of the good he was doing.  Everybody just wants him to stay nearby.

It's clear that the people of Milwaukee are certainly pleased with Cardinal Dolan for all of the good that he does and we want him to stay nearby as well, as was evident by the crowd of 4000 people who showed up at the Milwaukee Theater to hear him speak at the tenth annual Pallium Lecture, the lecture series that Cardinal Dolan himself started when he was Archbishop of Milwaukee.

The evening's emcee was Fr. Paul Hartman, the president of Waukesha's Catholic Memorial High School.  On surveying the size of the crowd, Fr. Paul cracked that it was a normal size for Cardinal Dolan's typical Sunday Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral, the size of a symposium given in San Francisco by Bishop Sklba, and the size of Bishop Hying's fan club!  Cardinal Dolan commented that the crowd of 4000 was bigger than a normal Met's game!

Cardinal Dolan's topic was "Who Do You Say That I Am?  Encountering Christ and Responding to Christ through His Living Body, the Church."

Cardinal Dolan began his talk with these loving words:  "My seven years in Milwaukee were extraordinarily happy ones and I miss you."  Then he joked that four cardinals have come from Milwaukee, and one day Milwaukee will have it's own version of Mount Rushmore with the four cardinal's faces all engraved upon the Allen-Bradley clock tower!

He shared the story of how, when he was still an auxiliary bishop in St. Louis, he was called to the apostolic nuncio's office.  He was offered a cigarette and he declined because he doesn't smoke.  Then he was offered a drink, and he said no thanks, he'd wait until they went out to dinner.  Then the nuncio told him that Pope John Paul II wanted him to be the Archbishop of Milwaukee and to that the Cardinal said, "I'll take that cigarette and drink now!"

After the laughter subsided, Cardinal Dolan became dead serious about his topic for the evening.  He began by sharing the story of St. Paul falling from his horse and the Lord's question of him, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?"  He didn't ask, why are you persecuting my Church, but why are you persecuting me.  That's because Jesus and His Church are one, synonymous, a package deal.   St. Paul loved the Church and Jesus passionately because they are one.  He then quoted Henri de Lubac regarding the Catholic Church:  "For what would I ever have known of Him without Her?"  He said we can't call God our Father if we don't call the Church our Mother.

Cardinal Dolan spoke about the post-ecclesiastical world in which we live where we want the King without the Kingdom, to believe without belonging, spirituality without religion and Christ without the Church.  Impossible!  He quoted Archbishop Listecki who said, "There is no freelance Christianity.  Without the Church, there is no Christ."

In speaking of the many Catholics who refer to themselves as "former Catholics," those who have fallen away from the practice of the church, he suggested three possible roads as a model to bring those lapsed Catholics back to the fold.

1.  Family

The Church is my spiritual family.  Ninety-nine percent of Catholics are born into the faith.  It's in our DNA, our bones, our genes.  We might drift and get mad and be scandalized or confused by it.  So what?  Our spiritual family is just like our human family.  We get angry, scandalized and confused by our human family too.  "Have you ever met my brother Bob?" he joked.  But we never leave our family.  We are there at all of the pivotal moments-Christmas, Easter, births and deaths.  We're at the table every Sunday.  We're stuck with our last names whether we like them or not.  Catholics are marinated, seasoned in the Church.  The Church is my spiritual family.  It's my  home.

He shared an example from the book, "The Power and the Glory" by Graham Greene.  In it, a whiskey priest from Mexico was hiding in a barn, and a young girl who was helping him suggested that he renounce his Catholic faith for his safety.  The priest replied that it would be impossible, he could never do it.  And then the girl understood that the Catholic faith is like a birthmark, it is always a part of who you are.  You are born with it and it will remain with you forever.

2.  Apologetics

Apologetics is the art of credibly, convincingly presenting our faith.  It's not  in-your-face and brash,  but rather a humble, cheerful, rational, confident grounding in faith.  The Cardinal used an example familiar to every parish priest at this time of year.  A young man leaves home for college after a strong Catholic upbringing with regular Sunday Mass attendance and an education at Catholic schools.  At his first visit home he tells his parents that he doesn't go to Mass anymore.  Instead he is attending the church of his roommate.  The parents are filled with sorrow and question how this could have happened.  The answer is because the roommate was well-off in apologetics and swayed their son away from the Catholic faith.

The Church is necessary for salvation.  We have survived dungeon, fire and sword. Apologetics prepares us to defend our faith against those who would take it from us.  Those liberators might be late-night talk show hosts or writers of newspaper editorials.  We have to be strong in knowledge of our faith so that when they accuse us of worshiping the Pope, or of being cannibals, or of treating Mary as if she were God, we can remain strong.  We need to let them know that we cherish our Church and are prepared to care for it.  That is apologetics and we need it more than ever.

3.  Repentance

We need to fess up to the sinful side of the Church.  We need it.  People are shocked, saddened and sickened by acts of the clergy and hierarchy.  It's been said that the Catholic Church is clearly from God because no human organization that is run with such imbecility could have survived two weeks let alone 2000 years!

It was Flannery O'Connor who said, "Suffering for  the church doesn't bother me.  It's suffering from her that's hard to take!"  Blessed Pope John Paul II apologized fifty-five times during the Jubilee Year for the past sins of the Church and Ronald Rolheiser describes the Church as Christ hanging between two thieves.  But where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more.  After the resurrection, Jesus showed us that His wounds remained.  We are also wounded.

The Cardinal shared a story from Bishop Skbla about a parish in the northern regions of the Archdiocese that was being closed.  The parishioners came to accept the closing and after all of the sacramentals had been removed and only an empty building remained, it was decided to burn the building down as a sacred offering.  Everyone came to watch as the volunteer fire department set the blaze which burned so intensely that everyone had to back away.  The next morning, Bishop Sklba returned to find people with gloves on gathering up the thick nails that were stacked up along the foundation.  They were collecting them as souvenirs.  It was the nails that had held the church together.  It's the nails of Christ that hold the Church together.  We are a wounded Church and we love Her all the more for Her wounds.

When people say that they left the Church because She's so sinful, we say we cling to Her because we are too. St. Francis de Sales had a simple motto written on his tombstone:  "He loved the Church."  That needs to be our motto, too.  We believe in One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church and She gives us the answer to Christ's question, "Who do you say that I am?"

To learn more about the Pallium Lecture Series visit this link.  Photos below courtesy of Mary Anne Urlakis.  Thanks, Mary Anne!

Funeral Envy

Throughout my life, whenever someone has hurt or rejected me, I get even by fantasizing about my future funeral.  I picture scads of people talking about how much they love me and how wonderful I am, and there is the offending party in deep anguish, saying, "If only I had been nicer to her when she was alive!  If only she were here so I could tell her how much I love her and how sorry I am for having hurt her!"  It's my imaginary way of building up my wounded pride, I suppose, and I admit that I take more than a bit of comfort from it.  It's definitely a self-esteem booster.

But in reality, I really do have the perfect funeral planned out in my mind.  When I die, I want Roses for Our Lady to lead the congregation in the rosary right before the Mass.  Panis Angelicus, Ave Maria, and Pie Jesu have to be sung.  And years ago I made up my mind that I want three priests to concelebrate and they must all cry because when my aunt Monica died three priests all cried for her at her funeral.  I thought that was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

With each funeral that I attend, I add or subtract another element from my dream funeral. 

A few weeks ago I attended the funeral of Mary Ann Kitzke, the mother of  Fr. Tim Kitzke. Clearly,  Mary Ann was a warm and loving woman of strong faith who did much good in this world.  There were one thousand people, two bishops and 40 priests in attendance, all praying fervently.  It put my three priest dream right to shame, although I'm not sure that any of the forty priests were actually crying.  The funeral choir was outstanding, with all three of my required funeral songs perfectly performed.  I cannot fathom how a priest is able to say the funeral Mass for his own mother, but Fr. Tim was well composed, sharing humorous stories that he fondly recalled about his mother and his family life.  At the final commendation,  Archbishop Listecki mentioned that each priest present at the funeral represented a Mass offered on behalf of Mary Ann's soul.  I left that funeral thinking about how much I want to be the mother of a priest!  How I would love to know that there would be 40 Masses offered for my soul upon my death, all by priests who knew me personally.  And I am certain that my soul will need those Masses with all of the sinful spiritual avarice and funeral envy that dwells within  it!  It looks like I'm going to need a lot of help in getting to heaven!

Then I thought about my own parent's funerals, both lovely Masses, with lots of prayer and the rosary, and a delightful luncheon, but only one priest present at each.  Both of my parents, Elmer and Mary, were holy and prayerful people.  They had pre-planned most of the details of their funerals well in advance.  But most important to both of them was that there would be lots of Masses prayed for their souls after their death.  They knew that a period of purgation was inevitable before they could rest eternally in heavenly joy and peace, and they further knew that it would take a lot of prayer to help them get there.

And so ultimately, based on the example of my parents,  I know that whether I have one, three or forty priests at my funeral, whether the Ave Maria is sung off-key or Pie Jesu is omitted, whether anyone laughs or cries, whether I'm laid to rest in a mahogany casket or a cardboard box, all that really matters is that my family and friends who know and love me, band together to pray my soul from purgatory to heaven, offering Masses and rosaries as well as the joys and sorrows of their everyday lives.  With that promise of prayer I will have the richest funeral of all.  And to that end, why wait until I'm dead to ask for prayer for my soul?  Why not begin right now?  Here's a beautiful prayer for a good death.  Let's pray it together!

Eternal rest grant unto Mary Ann Kitzke, Monica Geiger, and Elmer and Mary Reindl, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.  May their souls, and all of the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

For a Good Death

O most merciful Jesus, I praise and thank Thee for Thy most bitter death, and I beseech Thee, by Thy death and by the breaking of Thy Heart, to grant me a happy death. When my soul leaves my body, may it be immediately delivered from all sin, set free from all debt, and mercifully received into eternal joy. I know, O Lord, that I ask of Thee a very great favour, and a sinner like me ought not to presume to ask it; but it is as easy to Thy goodness to forgive few or many sins. It is not, indeed, our merits, but Thy infinite mercy that procures for us even the least share of heavenly beatitude. In order to be made worthy and fit to receive this favour, grant, O good Lord, that I may now truly and completely die to the world and to myself. From this time forth, may all appear to me worthless that is not Thee. May nothing interest me but Thee alone. For Thy sake may I look on everything with contempt, and may I rejoice when I am despised for Thee. O good Jesus, may I ever be wounded with Thy most pure and fervent love; may all that is not Thee be bitter to me, and may all that is pleasing to Thee become dear to me. Be Thou, my Lord and God, dearer to me than all besides, or rather, be Thou truly all in all to me." 

~Dom John of Torralba, Ancient Devotions to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Letters to Jackie

I recently spent some time helping a friend organize his magnificent library of books, which includes a large historical section, when he came across the book Letters to Jackie, Condolences From a Grieving Nation in the stacks.  Knowing that I love to read personal letters, and having enjoyed it very much himself, he handed it to me and invited me to read it.  I am so grateful for that invitation because this book was fascinating!  And despite the fact that this was not the type of book that I typically read, that is, a spiritual book, I found that I was compelled to frequently stop and prayerfully ponder what I had read  more than I would normally do with most spiritual reading.

According to author Ellen Fitzpatrick, Jackie Kennedy received 800,000 condolence letters in the two months that followed President Kennedy's assassination on November 22nd, 1963, and within two years that amount reached over 1.5 million.  Most of the letters remained unread until 2010 when Ellen Fitzpatrick began to sort through them for this book.  After choosing 250 of the 200,000 pages of letters that are still stored in the National Archives to include in this collection, she then began the work of contacting the letter writers and includes a brief biography of each of the people who took the time to pen a note of sympathy to the former First Lady.  The result is a timely look at the compassionate heart of the American people.

Included in this collection of letters are the stories of the poor, the racially oppressed, veterans of war, widows who could personally empathize with Jackie's loss, those who voted for JFK as well as those who did not, those who loved him because of his Catholic faith and those who disliked him because of it, the elderly, the sick and even children.

Here is a segment of my favorite letter.  It was written by an 8th grade student at a Catholic Grade School in California:

"Dear Mrs. Kennedy,

...On the morning of November 22nd, our school of 750 pupils were at a requiem Mass for all the deceased of parish.  At the beginning of the Mass, we were told that our beloved president was shot.  I tried to tell myself he would be all right but somehow I knew he wouldn't.  I tried to control myself as I had to play the church organ but the tears wouldn't stop.  The slightly damp keys were hard to play but I offered it up that the President might live.

Though we didn't know it then but while 750 children with tear-streaked faces and slightly reddened eyes were receiving Holy Communion, the 35th President of the United States went to his eternal reward in heaven...."

Each letter is deeply touching, the writers sharing their personal experience of what President Kennedy had meant to them as well as how the loss of his life had caused them deep grief.  A common message was that of gratitude for the strong and brave countenance that the First Lady maintained during her entire experience of national and personal grief.

With the presidential elections only a few short days away, it seems like the perfect time to look back upon this tragic and important time in American history and to recall that regardless of the outcome of this election we are all united as Americans, we all share a common love for our country, and we are all created with a deep capacity for love and goodness.

In light of the upcoming election, I urge you to read these brilliantly written columns by Archbishop Listecki and Bishop Hying regarding the importance of voting for a candidate that will uphold the dignity of life and the value of religious freedom which can be found at these links:

Vote for Culture of Life by Archbishop Listecki

What is at Stake in the 2012 Presidential Election by Bishop Hying

Catholic Pride

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee is offering many special Fortnight for Freedom events where the faithful can gather to pray for our religious freedom during these times that try the soul.  Last weekend Archbishop Listecki offered a special Mass where he courageously proclaimed that we will not obey the government in following the health care mandate that refuses to allow us as Catholics the freedom to follow our consciences. He told us to "proudly puff out our chests and live our Catholic faith, not only inside of our church buildings, but freely in the public sector as well.  We are always Catholic, everywhere, not only when we are inside of a church, and we should always live our faith in all that we do.  We will not let the government try to redefine what it means to be a Catholic!"  His words had a profound effect on me and I everyong at Mass and we left the church with our heads held high.

On the Vigil of the Feasts of St. Peter and St. Paul, Bishop Hying presided at a special rosary and Mass for a full church of faithful Catholics at Holy Angels Parish in West Bend, Wisconsin.  (Photo courtesy of and copyrighted by Eve Anna Urlackis.)  His words resonated deep within this Catholic heart.  He began his homily with a question: "What is it about the Church that is so threatening?  The answer comes in examining the life of Christ.  Jesus raises the most fear in others when he speaks of himself as the Messiah, because if Jesus is Lord, then no one else can be.   We proclaim that Jesus is Lord and if this is true then no civil leader can claim that title for himself."

He went on:  "There is a hidden grace in this current struggle to fight for our religious freedom.  Sometimes we have to make a choice and if we are faithful, the choice has to be for Him and for Her.  We are called to witness to our faith, not in a strident way, but rather, in a way that is serene but bold, convicted and courageous, loving and truthful."

Holding up St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More as examples of fidelity to the faith under tyrannical persecution by the government, he encouraged us to to follow their example in always putting God first in every situation.  He said, "St. Thomas More's daughter begged him to just sign the paper that would save his life even though it meant that he would have to deny his beliefs to do so.  She told him that he wouldn't have to mean it when he signed, that he could cross his fingers behind his back.  But his conscience would not allow him to do it.  And as he was led to his execution he said, "I die the King's good servant and God's first."

In light of the gospel passage  for the vigil of St. Peter and St. Paul (John 21:15-19) he explained:  "The crux of what it means to be a follower of Christ is found in reflecting upon the Greek definitions for love: Philia is the love of one friend for another, Eros is the love between husband and wife, and Agape is the love that Christ shows on the cross.

When Jesus asked "Simon, do you love me?"  it was the Agape love that He was asking for.  Yet Simon responded with Philia love, as in "Jesus, You know we're good friends."  But when Simon was crucified he recalled this moment with Christ, and it was then that he finally got it.  When he was hanging upside down it was the first time that he saw everything right side up.  He was finally willing to lay down anything and everything for Christ.

Do we want to live the Agape of love or do we just want to say, "Jesus, we're good friends?"

As he concluded his homily the hearts of everyone in the church were stirred and convicted by his words.  While the altar was prepared for the consecration, the church swelled with voices filled with love for Church and love for country as we sang "Faith of Our Fathers, holy faith, we will be true to thee til death."

For more information about upcoming events within the Archdiocese of Milwaukee for the Fortnight for Freedom, visit the Archdiocese of Milwaukee website here.  You may also be inspired by this powerful editorial written by Bishop Hying which was published in the June 27th Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Catholic Church does not conform to society

 

In his column "Catholic reformers may be out of luck," Bill Keller lamented the resistance of the Catholic Church toward the changing of her teachings (Crossroads, June 24). Such a stance reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the church's nature and identity.

The Catholic Church understands herself to be both a mystery and a sacrament, born from the wounded side of the crucified Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit. We do not generate the truths that we teach; they come to us as a revelation from God, mediated through the Scriptures and tradition. Keller seems to view the church as a political party that simply needs to rework its platform in order to stay current with contemporary culture.

When Catholics speak of reform, we start with Jesus and ask how we can change ourselves to conform to the ideals of the Gospel mediated through the teachings of the church. When Keller speaks of reform, he begins with the concerns of liberal United States culture and asks how the church can change herself to conform to those concerns.

Such vastly different starting points will never easily converge. The beauty, truth and goodness of Catholicism speak for themselves. One could only leave the church through ceasing to believe her teachings or not understanding them. May all of us be genuinely guided by the Holy Spirit.

Most Reverend Donald J. Hying
Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Milwaukee

Confirmed!

My son Justin received the Sacrament of Confirmation on April 14th through the hands of Archbishop Listecki. It was a blessedly memorable occasion to witness my son, after three years of preparation, being sealed with the fragrant Chrism which forever after marks him as God's precious and chosen son through the love of the Holy Spirit dwelling within his soul. The church was electric with Easter joy and the love of God during the three hour Mass. The word "heavenly" would be an accurate description of the atmosphere.

I was blessed to serve as a lector for the Mass and as I was standing near the altar during the Gloria and the sprinkling rite, the Archbishop didn't wave the asperger in my direction to bless me, instead, he put a bit of holy water on his fingers and then blessed me by making the sign of the cross directly on my forehead with the holy water. It reminded me of the many times I had made the same action of blessing my children with holy water when they were small and I felt like a little child again receiving a special blessing from my spiritual father.

My son Jack and my daughter Mary had been asked to serve at the Mass. Jack had served at the confirmation Mass last year when my son John was confirmed by Bishop Sklba but Mary had just been trained to be server last fall and has only served at Mass a handful of times so this was such an honor to be asked to serve for the Archbishop at this extra special occasion and she was very nervous. She was all wide-eyed and beautiful as she reverently attended to her duties at the altar for this very solemn occasion. I was so proud of both of my little servers.

Archbishop Listecki's homily was both entertaining and uplifting. He began by speaking about the importance of choosing a Confirmation name wisely. He shared a story of how his mother had wanted to name him Harry, after his father, but at his baptism the priest discouraged such a pagan name and told her to name him Jerome after that wise and knowledgeable saint. He said that he chose the name Lawrence for his Confirmation name so had he been named Harry he would have been Harry Edward Lawrence Listecki with the initials spelling HELL...o! Thank goodness my mom named me Jerome, he said, so now my initials spell JELL-o, and there's always room for jello!

Then he said that he was going to question the confirmands about their faith and he took one young lady by the hand and brought her up to the altar to question her. He said that one of the goals that many of the young people mentioned in their letters to him was that they hoped to become closer to God through the Sacrament of Confirmation. He told the young lady that as he reached for her hand he saw her look to heaven and say "Dear God, not me!" And her sponsor looked to heaven and said "Dear God, not her!" And everyone else looked up to heaven and said "Thank God it wasn't me!" So already you are all a little closer to God! Then he simply asked her to name the first Sacrament that a person receives and she correctly answered "baptism" and he then escorted her back to her seat explaining that the real questioning comes when they make their profession of faith.

He then went on to speak about the saints that the confirmands chose to be their lifetime guides and special friends by choosing their names for Confirmation. He said that many of those saints have died for the faith. He asked the confirmands if they are willing to die for their faith. He hoped that they would be willing to do that but more than that he wanted to know if they are willing to live for their faith.

At the end of his homily he stressed the importance of the cross as the sign of unconditional love and said that he wants everyone to retain the knowledge that no matter what happens to them in their lives God will always love them unconditionally. Then he thanked the parents of the confirmands for instilling the gift of faith in their children and for being willing to fight with their children to make sure they attend Mass each week and follow the teachings of the Catholic faith. Finally he thanked the confirmands. He told them that with their "yes" to Jesus they have enriched the Catholic faith for everyone.

At this point my husband Paul noticed me scribbling furiously in my journal during the Archbishop's homily and he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Why don't you ever take notes when I talk to you?" :)

As each of the 66 confirmands approached the altar for the Sacrament, Archbishop Listecki took his time speaking individually to each of them asking them about the name that they have chosen for their confirmation and quizzing them with questions such as "Is St. Michael a male or a female?" The answer was neither since St. Michael is pure spirit without a gender. And for those who chose the name James he wanted to know if it was for St. James the Lesser or St. James the Greater. It was evident that he was enjoying the Confirmation process as he could be seen laughing all the while he was confirming the teens. The Archbishop did all he could to make sure that being confirmed in the faith would forever after be a life-changing and memorable Sacrament for those who received it.

And now my Justin is confirmed in the faith and he is so grateful to have received the Sacrament that has sealed him with the gift of the Holy Spirit. One more soul for the Lord! I rejoice and praise the Lord!

Ordination 2011

Have you got your tissues handy? (Thanks to Fr. Kevin McManaman for the link to this video!)

Apostleship of Prayer

My sisters and I spend the first Wednesday morning of every month helping stuff envelopes with the Pope's monthly prayer intentions at the Apostleship of Prayer. The thousands of letters are sent out throughout the United States and beyond, so I was delightfully surprised when I began to recognize some of the names on the envelopes that I was filling on the most recent volunteer day...I had the box of envelopes that were addressed to recipients in the Milwaukee area! In fact, I was able to simply reach across the table and hand deliver one of the letters to Julie, my coworker! But the biggest surprise was when I drew an envelope from the stack that was addressed to Archbishop Jerome Listecki! I offered an extra prayer for him as I placed his letter inside the envelope, but thought of it too late to stick an additional note inside letting him know that his envelope was filled with more than the letter alone, it was also filled with my prayer!

What follows is my most recent contribution to my parish newsletter-an informative piece about the Apostleship of Prayer...

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“O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world. I offer them for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart: the salvation of souls, reparation for sin, and the reunion of all Christians. I offer them for the intentions of our bishops and of all Apostles of Prayer, and in particular for those recommended by our Holy Father this month.”

The above prayer is the traditional morning offering of the Apostleship of Prayer, an organization that seeks to encourage Christians to make a daily offering of themselves to the Lord. “The Apostleship of Prayer began in France in 1844. At that time Fr. Francis X. Gautrelet told a group of Jesuit seminarians who were eager to work on the missions: "Be apostles now, apostles of prayer! Offer everything you are doing each day in union with the Heart of our Lord for what He wishes, the spread of the Kingdom for the salvation of souls." (From the Apostleship of Prayer Website)

Through uniting ourselves in prayer to Christians every where, and giving every occurrence of our daily lives to the Lord, our entire lives and our complete selves become a Eucharistic prayer of love and sacrifice. In this way, each moment you spend working is a prayer for all of the apostles of prayer throughout the world, each kind word spoken with love is a sacrifice for the Pope and his intentions, each hardship or difficulty which you undergo can be used by God to unite all Christians, and each joy or happiness that you experience can benefit the souls of others and atone for our own sins and the sins of the world. It’s so simple, and that is what makes the Apostleship of Prayer so beautiful! A few words prayerfully whispered from the heart at the beginning of each day can change the world! How very powerful we become when we allow God to use us in this way!

Since 2003, the United States office of the Apostleship of Prayer has been under the guidance of Fr. James Kubicki, SJ, whose office is in Milwaukee. With the help of a small staff and several volunteers, the National Office of the Apostleship of Prayer sends out thousands of letters each month, letting all of the apostles of prayer throughout the United States, and many in other countries as well, know about Pope Benedict’s specific prayer intentions for the month. The Pope’s prayer intentions change monthly but are always sure to include a general intention as well as a mission intention each month. In keeping the Pope’s intentions in our daily prayer of offering, we are truly uniting ourselves to the universal Church.



The Apostleship of Prayer is an organization which is very devoted to the most Sacred Heart of Jesus. In 1673, St. Margaret Mary Alocoque, a Visitation Sister, had visions of Jesus who asked her to promote devotion to His Most Sacred Heart. St. Claude la Columbiere, a Jesuit, was chosen to be her confessor. In a later vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary, she was asked to give her message to the Jesuits to spread it throughout the world, and thus the Apostleship of Prayer has always been under the direction of the Jesuit order and they have always promoted devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Won’t you become an apostle of prayer and unite every moment of your day to the Sacred Heart of Jesus for the good of our universal Church?

For more information about the Apostleship of Prayer please visit their website at: http://www.apostleshipofprayer.org/ or contact them at:

Apostleship of Prayer
3211 South Lake Drive, Suite 216
Milwaukee, WI 53235
Phone: 414.486.1152 (9:00 AM to 4:30 PM CST)

Fragrant Spirit

"For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing." (2 Corinthians 2:15)

Archbishop Listecki leaned over each jar of Chrism, sweetened with the earthy fragrance of balsam, breathed in deeply and then released his breath into the fragrant mixture of oil and perfume thereby calling the Holy Spirit to enter into the Chrism making it holy.

John and I, seated in the front of the church, were finally able to see the actions at the Chrism Mass for the first time after many years of only finding seats in the back of the crowded Cathedral. We were so close that I could actually smell the sweet perfume. Every sense in my body was intensely aware of the holiness of the moment, and I fondly recalled the year that I had the great honor of carrying the Chrism home from the Cathedral for my parish. I couldn't sleep that whole night because the scent of the oil in the box on my dresser kept me awake with excitement over the awesome thought of having those holy oils in my own house until the morning when I must reluctantly deliver them to the director of liturgy at my parish.

I looked at my son sitting next to me, my son who will be receiving that consecrated Chrism smeared firmly onto his forehead by Bishop Sklba at his Confirmation this Saturday. It will be rubbed so thoroughly and deeply into his skin that it will penetrate through his pores and soak into his soul, forever penetrating his very essence with the Holy Spirit breathed into that oil by Archbishop Listecki. In that moment I saw, not a fine young man on the cusp of full and joyful acceptance into the Catholic faith, but instead, a little baby dressed in a white baptismal garment, nestled in my arms as I breathed deeply and was overcome with that fragrant scent with which he was covered for the first time, that aroma that lingered on his sweet brow for days. How quickly that time has passed from the moment when Paul and I brought our innocent first babe to church for the Sacrament of Baptism and professed our willingness to bring him up in the faith, until now, the moment when John will profess his own desire to remain in the faith and live his entire life in the Spirit of the One and Only loving God.

And how fitting it is that my son, born on October 16th, the date that Pope John Paul II was elected Pope, and christened "John Paul" will now be Confirmed into the faith on the eve of that same Pope's beatification. John has declined to choose a new name for himself as he is confirmed and has chosen instead to reaffirm the name chosen for him in honor of that good and holy man for whom he was named.

I pray that on April 30th, when the Holy Spirit descends through the crowded church and penetrates the foreheads of each of the youth being confirmed in their faith, that all will be moved to embrace an active Catholicism-one of faith, hope and love-through both prayer and action , for the remainder of their lives.

And might I just send a nod John's way and invite you to pay a visit to his own blog, Writings of a Boy Discerning God's Call, for his own take on the excitement he feels over his upcoming Confirmation and his experiences during the Triduum just past?

Love One Another

"I love the church! I love the church! I have been in love with the church since I was a small boy!" Archbishop Jerome Listecki






















(photo by Darren Hauck/Getty Images North America)

The final speaker at last weekend's Women of Christ Conference wasn't really there as a speaker, but rather, as one who would lead us all in prayer and worship. In saving the best for last, the conference organizers delivered a gem with Archbishop Listecki as the presider at Mass! His homily was outstanding! That holy man, who ends every single one of his columns and newsletters with the capitalized and bold words LOVE ONE ANOTHER, is himself, a perfect example of the Christian love to which we all strive.

I have searched in vain to find the source of Archbishop Listecki's list of "Reasons to Raise Children in the Catholic Faith" which he shared in his homily, so I am assuming that the list originated with him. Here is my attempt to share his words of wisdom from the few notes I quickly jotted down.

"Why to Raise Children in the Catholic Faith"

1. To give them rules to reject as teens.
2. To give them rules to reconsider when they have kids of their own.
3. To give them values to cherish.
4. To give them something to hang on to in hard times.
5. To have a raggedy "good news" bible to read when older and much more interested in reading the bible.
6. To learn that everyone wears the face of Christ in a different way.
7. To have faith in community.
8. To learn that Christmas is about the gift of love in our hearts.
9. To understand that Jesus' death and resurrection means that life is more than suffering.
10. To understand that heaven begins on the spot where they are standing, that they are here for God and that God is always with them.

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In addition to these words of wisdom from that very holy man, and to the uplifting words I have previously written about from Fr. Larry Richards and Immaculee Ilibagiza, there were many more little moments of grace throughout the day:

~during the course of the day I gave out over 500 fliers promoting the Monthly Prayer Request for Priests and encouraged quite a few women to add their names to my email list so that I might send them information about the apostolate from time to time. My greatest joy was when Vicki Thorn, one of the conference organizers, the founder of Project Rachel and the emcee for the day, mentioned that if the devil wanted to hurt the Church he'd go after our priests, therefore, praying for our priests is one of the most important and loving things that we can do for our Church. As she spoke those words, I was standing on the side of the conference hall filled with thousands of women and I realized that I had quite a few fliers with me in my purse. While everyone roared out thunderous applause at her words, I took advantage of the situation and worked the crowd by handing out my fliers. For me, that was a moment of great fun and joy and I am very thankful to Vicki Thorn for conveniently and unknowingly handing me that opportunity!

~meeting a woman who had been pregnant 22 times, gave birth to 15 children and breastfed for over 30 years! Until she told me that she and her husband had recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, I had thought that I was speaking to a woman who was in her 50's-she looked that great! When I told her so, she gave the credit to all of those pregnancies and the years spent breastfeeding her children-she said that all of those hormones in action have been very good to her! She said that her only regret in life was that although she has eight sons, not one of them is a priest. When she shared this sorrow with a priest who happens to be a friend of hers he told her that she and her husband were their own undoing in this case: they had such a beautiful marriage that all of their children wanted to aspire to that as well!

~watching one of the conference organizers, my friend Julie Sarnowski, in action. Seeing her moving about throughout the large conference hall in her efforts to keep things running smoothly during the event, I was amazed by her energy and inspired by her faith. I am so very grateful to her and to all of the conference organizers for putting together a day filled with grace for so very many women in the Milwaukee Archdiocese, a day which I will long remember and rejoice over!

My Beloved Child

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17

Sitting at Mass today, looking around at those who were sitting in the pews surrounding me, I was swept over by a warm feeling, a peaceful feeling like I hadn't known for a long time.

I realized that all of the other people present at Mass are beloved by God, just as much as His own Son is beloved by Him, and I offered a prayer of Thanksgiving for these beautiful people whose only desire is to draw closer to His loving heart and to carry a bit of that love in their own hearts throughout the coming week.

I thank you, God, for:

~the man who was sitting in front of me with his three children, the man who has given so much of himself to teach Christian formation to the children of our parish for so many years, as he bowed his head into his hands and wept while we listened to a recording from Archbishop Listecki explaining how the recent announcement that the Archdiocese of Milwaukee has declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy can be a sign of hope for us all.

~for our Deaf community, and our deaf Deacon, gathered week after week in the front rows of church where they can easily see the interpreter, joyfully signing the Mass responses.

~for the little girl with down's syndrome who smiles and hugs everyone around her, easily drawing us all into her joy.

~for the girls on my daughter's basketball team, many of whom were present at Mass today with their families.

~for my long-time friend who was the lector at Mass.

~for the young boy prodigy, not more than ten years old, who is learning to become an organist at Mass, and who plays with so much talent!

~for the entire community present at this Mass, who filled the church as if it were Christmas Day, many of them friends, more of them strangers to me, but all of them beautiful.

~for Fr. Dave, who took this occasion of the Baptism of Our Lord, to remind those who are seeking the Sacrament for their children, of the lifelong responsibility that Baptism requires of parents.

~for my son, John, who had attended Mass on his own the evening before because he is working on weekends, and for my son, Jack, who stayed home from Mass because he is sick with the flu. Both of my sons suffered in missing this Mass, Jack, simply because he was ill, and would much rather have been at Mass, and John, because he so enjoys lectoring, cantoring and singing with the choir at Mass and now, because of his job, those opportunities of service are much more limited.

~for my loving and wonderful husband, who is always by my side at Mass, worshiping the Lord with my children and I, setting the example of how a beloved child of God is to return to our Father all of our gifts at the weekly hour of worship.

Thank you, Lord, for blessing us all with peace. Amen.

Vigil for all Nascent Human Life

What a blessing it was to honor the request of Pope Benedict XVI by joining in a worldwide vigil of prayer for all nascent human life! In the Archdiocese of Milwaukee the gorgeous St. Anthony Parish had graciously hosted the Evening Prayer, Rosary and Benediction with Archbishop Listecki. I was so pleased to see that the large church was packed with those who wished to join their voices with their brothers and sisters in Christ in one united prayer for those who are unable to speak for themselves.

In Archbishop Listecki's homily, the following words resounded in my heart and I will forever remember them. He asked: "Why do we do this? We are people of love. We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us and we share that love with our unborn brothers and sisters."

He closed the service with these words: "Our Lord Jesus Christ has won the victory, and now we must engage the battle!" How strange it seems that the victory is already won, yet we continue to fight. Yet, how right it is! For until everyone accepts the victory of Christ, until everyone defends the innocent lives just waiting to born like Christ waited to be born from the womb of the Virgin after her resounding "yes!" we must continue the efforts without tiring, to bring the justice of life to those sweet beginnings of new life. What better time to unite our efforts for those who wait to be born from the wombs of their mothers than during this season of Advent while we wait for Christ to be born once again in the hearts of all the world.

Seminary Summer Camp

It’s time once again for Seminary Summer Camp. This year three of my sons with be spending a few days and nights at the Seminary of St. Francis de Sales to pray and play with other boys and to get a feel for daily life at the Seminary in an effort to help them discern whether or not God may be calling them to a priestly vocation. My son Jack is participating in the camp for Junior High boys in the early part of the week, and John and Justin will spend the latter part of the week at the camp for High School boys. John has participated in the camps for the past two years and enjoyed it so much that Justin and Jack thought that they might like it as well and decided to participate this year.

This is Jack’s first time away from home with the exception of few sleepovers with friends. He and his little sister Mary are very close. After I had left Jack at the Seminary and returned home, Mary started to cry profusely. “I miss Jacky!” she cried, and the tears just fell and fell. I suggested that she get her pet guinea pig, Benny, and play with him for a while until she felt better. I promised her that Jack was probably missing her just as much, but he would only be gone for two nights and the time would go fast. Still, when bedtime came around, she decided to sleep in Jack’s bed instead of her own so that she would feel close to him.

At 11:00, several hours after I had gone to bed, I heard the phone faintly ringing and I heard my husband ask, “What’s wrong? Do you want to talk to Mom?” It was Jack. He was crying and said he wanted to come home. Without pressing him further, I told him that I would be there within thirty minutes. Paul asked our son Joe to go along with me, since he was still up and I was grateful for the company on the long drive.

When we reached the Seminary, we found Jack and a chaperone standing in the doorway, waiting for me. Homesick. Jack had his bag packed and was ready to return to family and house full of the comfort of the known. Susi, the chaperone, said that Jack was welcome to come back the next day for Morning Prayer followed by Mass and breakfast with the Archbishop, and then a day filled with games, sports, work and prayer. She also mentioned that Jack had signed up to serve at Tuesday morning’s Mass, so she was really hoping that he would be there for that.

I knew that serving at Mass was something that Jack would not want to miss. Ever since he was trained as an acolyte earlier this year, assisting at Mass has been one of his favorite things to do. In fact, one of our sweet, elderly parishioners has been serving at the daily Mass three days a week. It’s getting to be a bit much for her, and she asked if one of my boys might take one day a week during the summer months. That night at dinner, I mentioned this to the boys and asked if any of them might like to help sweet Mrs. B out. Joe said he prefers to sleep late in the summer months. John and Justin who have both served at the daily Mass in the past, complained that serving at daily Mass is much harder than at Sunday Mass as the daily server is required to set up the altar and has more responsibilities. Jack piped up that he would like to take a weekly Mass to relieve Mrs. B from some of her work. Both John and Justin told Jack that he couldn’t handle it. In their wiser big brother ways, they told Jack that if they found it to be too hard, Jack certainly would not be able to manage it. But Jack firmly insisted that he wanted to serve and he would do just fine. Sure enough, that smart little boy took notes when Mrs. B trained him and he is confidently doing just fine serving at the Morning Mass. It is a treat to watch him grinning that huge smile of his the entire time he serves. And his delight is not lost on the elderly parishioners who are regulars at the morning Mass; his joy spreads to their hearts as well leaving everyone with a warm and loving feeling as morning Mass is over. I was certain that he would want to be there on Tuesday for the honor of serving at the Seminary.

As Jack and I climbed into the van and drove down the Seminary’s long tree-lined drive and back home, Joe asked Jack what it was that upset him so much that he didn’t want to stay at the Seminary.

“Well,” Jack replied, “during Benediction I started to miss my family and it made me sad.” Fr. Peter asked me why I was crying and when I told him, he said that he knows what that’s like to miss somebody that you love. And Susi told Jack about how much she misses her cat when she is away from him. Still, their words were not able to offer him the comfort of a night at home. He said he definitely wanted to go back in the morning for Mass and to spend the day, but he wasn’t sure that he would want to stay overnight the following night, either.

When we got home, exhausted Jack found Mary sleeping soundly in his bed, so he curled up on the floor next to his bed with a pillow and a few blankets and instantly drifted off to sleep. I thought of how much Mary had missed Jack, and here he was, right beside her and she didn’t even know it. Isn’t that just like God? When we really feel lonely for Him and need Him the most, He is right there beside us but we rarely realize it. And maybe, when we miss the people we love the most, they are also right beside us in spirit, missing us as just as much as we miss them. I prayed that Mary would feel comforted by Jack’s presence in her sleep, even if she wasn’t aware of how close he was to her.

Early the next morning, I woke Jack and we returned to the Seminary, while Mary continued to slumber in his bed. When we arrived in the chapel, I was feeling a bit intimidated and uncomfortable. I wondered if the other kids would look down on him for having left and if the staff were worried that he wasn’t quite ready for this experience.

My worries were soon allayed as Deacon Kevin greeted me and said “I heard you had a rough night last night. Thanks for bringing Jack back today!” I realized that this warm and welcoming group would do their best to make Jack feel as if the Seminary were his home away from home. I stayed for Morning Prayer and Mass and was so grateful to be part of such an intimate group in the Seminary Chapel. There were 21 boys staying at the camp, three Seminarians who were helping, Susi, the Rector and his assistant, the Vocations Director and his assistant, and the Archbishop, who said Mass. For me it was a real pleasure to be at that very special morning Mass, and as I quickly whispered goodbye to Jack after Mass, he smiled and said, “I think I’ll stay all night tonight,” and I left for work, tired, but joyful and confident that Jack would have a wonderful experience for the remainder of his time at Seminary Summer Camp.

The Death of Baptism

Last weekend, my niece Jenny and I were blessed to attend a “Lord Have Mercy” Conference here in our Archdiocese. We were so excited to hear words of wisdom from wonderful speakers Dr. Scott Hahn and Matthew Kelly. Yes, they were both wonderful, but even better, in fact, FAR better, was our own dear Archbishop Listecki. His homily at the opening Mass was OUTSTANDING! I’m hoping to find a copy of it somewhere, but in the meantime, I want to share some of his opening remarks with you. I wish I had a video of it to share, because the expression on his face and in his voice really made his words stand out, but for now, I offer you my memory of his words.

While presiding at an immersion baptism, then Fr. Listecki, lifted the naked little boy up and…(“No, mothers, it’s not what you’re thinking! No, mothers, that didn’t happen!”)... just as he was about to lower the babe into the waters of baptism, his four-year-old sister called out loudly “Don’t do it Father! Don’t drown him!”

Of everyone at that baptism, including the adults, it was that little girl who got it right. Everyone was looking at that baptism as a removal of original sin and a welcoming into the church, but that little girl, she saw it for what it really was…a death. Baptism is a death to the old life and a birth to new life in Christ. It was only the four-year-old who could really see that.


Cast aside my fear of death, Lord.
Wash me in Your Holy Water and cleanse me for new life in You.
Refresh my soul so that all I will feel is Your life within me. Amen.

Good and Perfect Gifts

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17
















I was overcome by sin, shaking inside and out
from the mess I had made of my life
and He offered me the Sacrament of Reconciliation
with the promise of a celebration in the end.
"Go have an ice cream cone for your penance"
the priest said.

I was feeling insignificant and invisible
looking for a little affirmation to draw me
out of my self-pity.
Father stopped and thanked me
for being a role-model by
faithfully bringing my children
to Mass each day. Those words lifted my spirits
and opened me to pay attention to others
who may be in need of a bit of praise.

I was looking for something new,
feeling worn down by the familiarity
of my faith.
He drew me to a Holy Hour
where enchantingly beautiful girls
covered their long hair with lace mantillas
and dressed in modestly long skirts;
where incense filled my nostrils and my
ears were delighted by prayers in Latin.

I wanted peace and quiet
after too many hours of frantic
weekend activity, racing from one place
to the next at a dizzying pace.
I found it in a Taize prayer service
where the hush of silence in glowing candlelight
punctuated by harmonious chants
stilled my weary soul.

I needed a smile to start my day and God blessed
me with a husband who remembers the fun of childhood,
and loves to amuse me in the most joyful of ways.
I sat behind the steering wheel of the van, ready to begin my day
and smiled at the prayer card of Archbishop Listecki that was
looking back at me-a visual sign from my husband
that he had been in the van before me and wanted to
cue me into his presence.
What he didn't know was that was the day of the week
which I had signed up to pray the rosary for the good Archbishop,
and my husband's little prank
was a pleasant reminder to do just that.

God always knows what I need-whether it be
forgiveness
a little praise
a unique way to pray
peace and quiet
a smile
or a reminder to pray for others-
He always makes sure that I receive it!

Praise be our God who cares for us so well!