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Encounters with the Greatest Generation

I had a wonderful encounter with a man of the Greatest Generation today. I presided at his funeral.

I walked into the chapel, and his family was gathered in a semi-circle in front of the casket. There were talking about him, their memories and all that he had accomplished.

This man was amazing! He was naval intelligence in the cold war, briefing Presidents’ Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon weekly.

He designed the hulls of Arleigh-Burke class Naval Destroyers.These vessels are the backbone of the Navy, with 74 currently in service, and nineteen more in production.

If that wasn’t enough, he also worked for NASA as a mechanical engineer. It was his idea in the 60’s to have astornaunts in their full EVA suits get into pools to simulate weightlessness.

He was involved in both the Apollo and Gemini missions, counting Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Gus Grissom and other space pioneers amongst his colleagues and his friends.

We need another Greatest generation don’t we? We need men and women who had a greater sense of self- civic duty minded, altruistic and willing to serve the greater good. So few of them left… without new people to stand up and replace them, I believe we will be in deep trouble in this nation.

May God continue to bless les him, and bring peace to his family.

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Where the hell have I been???

You know that’s a very good question.

It’s been a rough couple of years I started to get sick and didn’t have a lot of energy so I semi -retired from the church and just sort of lounged about working my day job and doing everything the doctors told me to do.

It all culminated in the end of 2023. I was living in the hospital, struggling from day to day. I received my liver in transplant in February 2024. This was a life-changing experience for me. we found out how close to death after transplant. My old liver was only functioning at 9%, they said I had less than 30 days before complete failure.

Not that I have a new liver I am in better physical and mental condition and it had been in a long time.

I’ve lost 170 pounds in 11 months… talk about a big difference! I weighed 340 when this odyssey started, 247 on the table, and 180 today. I feel the best I have ever felt in my life.

I’m back back in active ministry working a full-time job. The church is doing really well Church, growing vibrant and alive. We are striving to be the light in the darkness… because there’s so much darkness in this world now thanks to the government.

We are here for everyone and anyone who needs assistance a hug prayer or to laugh.

So that’s it! Thanks for taking a peek! There’s gonna be a lot more coming on a regular basis, so be sure to check in.

May God continue to bless you all.

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We are built for this

Funerals have a “season.” There are times in the year where there is an uptick is funerals, burials, and viewings. Even during the COVID pandemic we as a species are currently navigating, the funeral busy season has remained, and we are in the midst of the summer season now.

I mention this because I do a fair amount of funerals throughout the year. Here in the Washington DC many people come for careers in Government or related activities, and never establish a church relationship, so several funeral homes call me to perform the rites for the “un-churched.”

On occasion, this busy season can appear taxing to an outsider. As a “self-sustaining” priest, meaning I work a secular job (in actuality, 4 in total) balancing the needs of the faithful and my ability to self-care is a bit of a juggling act.

I am in the midst of such a time, which led me to a series of conversation, 1 with my husband, and 1 with my oldest son, Sam.

In the end they were good conversations. I cherish them both for being concerned about my well-being, and they were also good for my self-examen. They conversations reminded me that I was built for this!

It’s often said that the priesthood is a calling, not a choice. That God, who “formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jer. 1:5) chose me to carry out the work of His Son Jesus Christ, giving those called to priestly ministry little choice.. we were conscripted by God to do this work. We are obligated, and thus God built us this way and supports us in the manner to the that prophet of all nations the Jeremiah speaks of.

Priests are responsible for the souls entrusted to their care, and are obligated to teach, serve, and above all save them with the love of God that we are obligated to express. There simply is no mechanism in the Melchizedek priesthood for us to ignore, shirk, push aside, delay, or disregard that obligation.

So there are tied days ahead for me… and for us all. But Christ will hold us up, walk with us, and even carry us when we are too tired to continue. That’s because His love for His children is absolute just as the priestly obligation entrusted to his shepherds and prophets is.

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Frankly, it’s none of our Business

I awoke today to the news in catholic circles of a resignation. Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill, who until today was the General Secretary of the US Conference of (Roman) Catholic Bishops. Generally considered the highest ranking Roman Catholic cleric (who isn’t a Bishop) in the country. The position he vacated coordinated the Roman Catholic message and mission of all the bishops serving in the US.

He was forced to resign today due to a blog post on an ultra-conservative catholic website that, somehow, obtained access to data from a gay dating / “hook up” application called Grindr.

They purport that they were able to track him via this data to frequenting a gay bar in DC; that he was on the app daily; and even tracked him to a gay “bath-house” in Las Vegas, NV.

The website, and accompanying webpage (which I will not link here) seems to be on the fringe of what most would consider “responsible journalism,” so many in Catholic circles find it to be dubious at best.

If these accusations are true, that is sad. However, it is far from what many consider “scandalous.”

He allegedly frequented a gay bar: Does that mean he engaged in activity that was against the Roman Church’s teaching? No, it does not. It’s no different than going to a sports bar to watch the game or just to socialize.

He allegedly used Grindr: Not everyone on Grindr is there for sex. Many are there to find friends and dates- there is no evidence that he had sexual relations with someone from the app.

He allegedly “frequented a bath-house” in Las Vegas: While those establishments are primarily for sexual encounters, there is no evidence he engaged in it. Maybe he didn’t know what it was. Bath Houses are common in many parts of the world and have nothing to do with sex.

In at statement from the Bernardin Center at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, Steven Miles said “I am a sinner. So are you. So is Msgr. Burrill. Not one of us has a personal life that would withstand the sort of scrutiny the Pillar has applied to Burrill.”

The owners of Grindr stated that their data “… is not for sale and infeasible from a technology standpoint.”

In the end, and here is what is important, this priests life is over. Regardless of his true sexual orientation, and whether this is all true or not, he most likely will never be a pastor again. He may end up tucked in some office in the diocese that has little to do with and minimal contact with the faithful. They may also ask him to retire, resign, or laicize him, leaving him without any identity at all.

All of this information is not a matter for the court of public opinion. If Monsignor Burrill broke his vow of celibacy, its a matter between him, his confessor, and God.

Frankly, it’s none of our business.

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Blessed Michael McGivney

Happy 139th Birthday to the Knight’s of Columbus, founded by Blessed Father Michael Joseph McGivney in my home town of New Haven CT.

He founded the KofC to assist the immigrant poor and their families, especially at the time of the loss of the family wage earner.

Blessed McGivney- pray for us that we may open our hearts to compassion for the immigrants that are at our Nation’s door.

May we greet them with the same love and care that you demonstrated as Christ commanded us in Matthew, 25:35 “For I was hungered, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty and ye gave me drink, I was a stranger, and ye took me in.” Lest we also forget, the Book of Hebrews 13:2 “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained Angels unawares.”

Amen

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Happy Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone…

To my friends who are single- remember God loves you and so do I;

To those who are in long time relationships- remember today why your heart sings when you look across the table at the person chosen for you;

To those who are in new relationships- capture that passion today and never let it go. That funny feeling in your chest is your heart leaping at the sound of the one you are matched with.. enjoy it!

To the one who makes my step lighter, my smile brighter, and always makes my world warm, safe, passionate, exciting, love filled, Christ centered, sweaty, funny, kooky, serious, focused, driven.. My heart is yours yesterday, today, tomorrow and through to the next life, I love you always…

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The last Utterance

Catholic Priests & religious throughout the world pray five times a day. Whether you are a nun or the Pope, five times a day, we pray the same prayers. It is one of the many things that unites us as Servants to the Body of Christ.

The last prayer of the day is:

May the all-powerful Lord grant us a restful night and a peaceful death.

Thankfully, God continues to grant me the former, and not the latter!

It’s such a simple, and yet powerful moment, this the last utterance of the day. I have been saying this prayer since Seminary, twenty-five years so far, and it’s meaning and power are never lost on me.

It is an amazing experience! Every day, my sister and brother clerics and I are so willing to bear our souls so completely to God’s will and direction. Whether we wake up here to serve another day or wake up in Heaven, in God’s warm embrace- that we welcome the outcome without reservation.

Sort of brings me to ground. Reminds me that, regardless of where I am or what I am doing, at the end of the day, it’s up to God what happens next.

Sometimes, we need that reminder. Often a hard thing to admit- that we can so easily get ahead of ourselves, forgetting our true nature- our purpose driven life, and focus on ourselves- who we think we are, and all too often- who we want other people to think who we are.

A self-serving life is not a life of sacrifice and service to others.

Grant me a peaceful death takes on new meaning.

Grant me the peaceful death of my self-serving ego; my consumerism, and my self-centered ideal.

Grant me the peaceful death of my self-portrayal of personal importance, my self-aggrandizing, and my poor behavior.

We should all beg for the death of that person within us, so what when we awaken after the restful night we prayed for, we can be renewed, wiped clean, and ready to be Servants of God… and each other.

Grant me a peaceful death.

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My Funny Hat

14 years ago today, I laid prostrate in front of the Altar of God. When I rose, I was a successor to the Apostles- a Bishop in Christ’s One Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church.

Have I done a good job? Maybe… I won’t know until I see our Lord face to face.

Have I tried my best? Yes. Have I failed? You better believe it.

Am I done? No. Is God done with me? Doubtful.

The best part of being a Bishop is all of you. Your work is the church! Without each of you, there would be no flock for me to shepherd.

If that were the case, I’d just be another old man sitting in a field, wearing a funny hat.

Thank you all for keep me from looking like an idiot… Although, God does protect the foolish!

God Bless you all.

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Oh, Gregorio!

My all time favorite ancient piece of Sacred Music is “Miserere Mei Deus” written by Gregorio Allegri . It was written in the early 1600’s for performance only in the Sistine Chapel, with an imposing threat of excommunication of anyone who attempted to make a copy.

In 1770, Mozart was in the Eternal City. Heard the piece performed twice, and in his brilliance, transcribed it note for note, word for word, all 14 minutes of it. The first unauthorized copy of the piece – he left with his Catholicism in tact.

This work is generally considered a prime example, and one of the most recorded pieces of late Renaissance music. It is based on Psalm 50, and is always sung in the presence of the Holy Father on Maundy Thursday.

This isn’t a song for a community sing along! In fact, it takes 2 choirs to sing it.

Why the music history lesson? Well, I was so pleasantly surprised on Ash Wednesday while attending Noon Mass at the Basilica that their choir, split in two and placed at different places within the Great Upper Church sang this amazing piece for us.

When I saw it in the worship leaflet, I leaned over to my son and said “be prepared for tears.” I cannot hear this song and not cry.

It bring me to a profound sense of the divine. My mind takes flight, brings me to a place where I focus only on prayer and supplication- to a place where, my soul resonates with the music.

Good music should be heard by the ears, processed by the mind, and sung by the soul, thus joining us to the choir of Angels in Heaven. Well written, expertly performed with instruments only finely tuned by the hand of God, music should always move us to a sense and awareness of the Creator, His Son and His Mother.

Music makes us better people- and better Christians.

In the 1700’s, playwright William Congreve, in his play The Mounring Bride, coined the phrase, “Music has charms to sooth a savage breast.” True words from British Neoclassical Period.

Music does sooth us! We meet through music, we fall in love with and through music, we breach divides with music, music engages our soul, mind, and heart. Music provides a background of sorrow and celebration for our lives.

And most of all, we sing prayers of thanksgiving to God through music.

Oh Gregorio! Thanks for helping me sing to God.

Amen

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40 days, 40 nights

Ash Wednesday is upon us, signalling the 40 days of Lenten reflection, which leads us to the celebrations around the Resurrection of Our Savoir, Jesus Christ.

Tomorrow we are marked with ashes as a reminder of the struggles and denials we experience as children of God.

Ashes also remind us that, even through our striffe, God loves us, gave us His Son, and will watch over us until we go home to the reward promised.

Be prayerful during Lent. Be mindful of our personal and corporate sacrifice’s, our denials, and the reward that awaits us.

Peace