Réquiem ætérnam dona ei Dómine; et lux perpétua lúceat ei. Requiéscat in pace. Amen.

Yesterday, one of the greatest popes the Church has ever seen was granted rest from his suffering.  The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II was not one of the greatest popes because he wielded enormous power, or because he wrote many, many encyclicals and apostolic letters, or because he conquered Nazism and Communism in Poland, or because he travelled all over the world visiting the various centers of Catholicism.  He did do all these things, which makes him a great leader in the eyes of the secular world.  But the real thing that made Pope John Paul II the man he was was his devotion to Christ in his Church, and the humility displayed in doing so.  I am overwhelmed by the fact that despite his suffering on Friday, he awoke to participate at Mass, and then appointed new bishops to lead the Church.  I dont know about you, but I would be laying in bed thinking of my end, but his mind was not on his own end, but on the Church.  His dedication despite enormous suffering is an example to me as I study for the priesthood, but also to all people of faith, Catholic or non-Catholic alike.  Let us pray that the Lord grant him his just reward for his beautiful work on earth, and that like him, we may faithfully follow the Lord wherever he leads us, through suffering and joy, with an undivided heart. 

Lent is over!  Easter is here!  Christ is risen!

Happy Easter to all, I am sorry I have not posted in 40+ days, but I had decided to put off posting until after Lent.  The Triduum was really cool, and nearly brought me to tears several times.  I went to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis on Holy Thursday for the Chrism Mass, in which the Holy Oils are blessed by the bishop.  All the priests were there, and the music was awesome.  After lunch with the priests and a brief nap, I went to the Cathedral rectory to have dinner with Archbishop Burke and the rest of the St. Louis seminarians.  It was really neat, as I got to chat with the Archbishop for quite some time.  Following that, we had the Mass of the Lord's Supper, in which I participated by having my feet washed by the celebrant, which happened to be Archbishop Burke.  WOW!  What a sign of his humility and love for his seminarians and the people of God!  After washing and drying my feet, the Archbishop kissed them as a sign of the love of Christ.  This was quite a moving experience for me, and I am happy that I could participate.

On Good Friday, I spent most of the morning sleeping in and hanging around the seminary, but later went to the Good Friday service at the Basilica.  Again, I had the opportunity to witness to my love for Christ, today in the form of the veneration of the Cross.  Again, I was almost moved to tears, especially as the Archbishop nealt down and embraced and kissed the Cross, including the relic inside of it.  I had the opportunity to do the same, which was very emotional.  Good Friday is one of my favorite days in the calendar (ironically, the only day without Mass!), and I have a lot of memories of Good Fridays from the past, both happy and sad.  Needless to say, this was another marker in the memory books.

On Holy Saturday, I went to morning prayer at my parish, which was a lot different from the Office I pray every day.  Anyway, afterward, Don and I practiced with the servers for the Easter Vigil, for which we were Masters of Ceremonies.  The only problem was that the pastor had become ill, so he couldn't tell us what to do.  We had to go entirely on the Sacramentary and the script given to us!  It wasn't the best liturgy, far from it, that I've seen, but to put it like a visiting priest, "It was valid." 

On Easter Sunday, I again went to the Cathedral Basilica for Mass, in which I was given the opportunity to be a vimp, or as my parents say, the Holy Hat Holder (I bore the Archbishop's miter).  It was a great experience, and I am happy that I could go.  The music added a lot to the Mass, including the Alleluia Chorus by Handel featured in the Messiah.  Later that evening, I ate with my family and my cousins, which was really neat.  Overall, I would say that I had an awesome Easter break, and am looking forward to the Easter Season here at the seminary.  That is the brief of what happened, but I might expand on a few of these events in the next few days. 

Thanks to Jeff Geerling for the use of his picture of the Washing of the Feet at the Mass of the Lord's Supper.  I am the one having his feet washed in this picture, somewhat obscured by my friend John and the podium.  If you want to check out more pictures from the Mass, etc., go to Jeff's Website.

Sorry for a lack of posts lately, but it was a pretty tough week for the College Seminary.  Now that we're rolling into a new week, I've just been elected the Vice President of the Seminarian Council for the College.  I pray that I will be able to represent the quality of men in the college to the best of my ability.  Anyway...

Yeah, I know it's Valentine's Day, but since that's not real big in the seminary for obvious reasons, happy commemoration of Sts. Cyril and Methodius!  Again, a powerful example of dedication to the people of God, Sts. Cyril and Methodius, who were brothers, translated the liturgy and some Church documents into Slavic and ministered to the people within the area.  They were called back to Rome, but St. Cyril died shortly after arriving.  St. Methodius, after mourning his brother's death, was consecrated as the Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia. 

What comes to mind in thinking of the devotion of Sts. Cyril and Methodius are the bishops of the Church today.  Often, they draw a lot of fire for their work toward truth, and sometimes they are divided on topics of great importance for the Church.  On occasion, the bishops do things that we don't necessarily agree with, but we must recognize that the Christ has appointed them as the leaders of the Church, and therefore, they should be respected.  I am very greatful and thankful to God for the gift of Archbishop Raymond Burke and his service to Christ, myself, and the Archdiocese.  He is probably the most humble man I know, and he is a great example for anyone aspiring to the priesthood.  He doesn't always do what the St. Louis Post Dispatch thinks is right, but he understands that the preaching of the Truth, that is the preaching of Christ, will often get him into trouble, and in my eyes, that makes him a greater model than any sports figure or political figure ever could be.  So today, ask for the intercession of Sts. Cyril and Methodius (and St. Valentine if you want) and pray for the bishops of the world, and especially in the United States, that they might lead their flock with courage and devotion to Christ and his teaching.  Have a great day!

Today, if you forgot (how could you really?), is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent.  It is a season of self-sacrifice for the Kingdom, especially through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.  I'm pretty pumped for the season, because I think the songs, the attitude, and the visual signs of Lent, especially during Holy Week, are some of the holiest days of the liturgical year.  Watching the suffering Christ as his ministry unfolds is very powerful for a vocation dedicated to sacrifice out of love for God and neighbor, so if you are considering a religious vocation, or even if you're not, try to make Lent a holy season.  You can do this through prayer like the rosary (especially the Sorrowful Mysteries) or the Stations of the Cross, abstaining from meat at least on Fridays, fasting or not eating excessively, and giving some money to the poor or doing something that can help the less fortunate.  Through these actions of love for Christ and his people, we can come closer to Christ and form ourselves to His likeness.  Have a holy Ash Wednesday.