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Feast of the Holy Family - Homily

12/29/2013

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A few months ago I went to my home church to do a daily Mass. When I got there my PP was finishing a Mass. It was a thanksgiving Mass for 10 years of marriage life. As I was getting dressed for the next Mass the wife and husband came up to me and said: “Father, can you remember that, on this day 10 years ago, you celebrated our wedding?” I cannot tell you how happy I was seeing them happy as husband and wife and introducing to me their little daughter. If it is appropriate to talk about a reward for a priest for his ministry, I believe that it is seeing the growth of the grace that passed through his hands onto others. That couple did make my day.
Sisters and Brothers! We are still in the Christmas mood which takes our thoughts to family life. For many people Christmas it is a family celebration and it looks that the Church supports that as a few days after the Nativity of the Lord we are having the feast of the Holy Family of Nazareth: Jesus, Mary and Joseph. The ordinary life they lived make them close to all families of the world but the Holy Family of Nazareth challenges all families on how important is to protect the presence of Jesus in each family. All the travels which they undertook, as we hear in the Gospel for this Feast, weren’t inspired by a desire to see new places, to find an easier life or to react to boredom. The Holy Family traveled for one single reason: TO PROTECT JESUS. As I look at young people getting married I ask myself how much they can sacrifice to ensure that Jesus has got the center place in their marriage and in their family. 
As we know Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist are sacraments of Christian initiation. They ground the common vocation of all Christ's disciples, a vocation to holiness and to the mission of evangelizing the world. They confer the graces needed for the life according to the Spirit during this life as pilgrims to our true homeland. However there are two other sacraments: Holy Orders and Matrimony, they seem to be so different but they are both called sacraments at the service of communion. They confer a particular mission in the Church and serve to build up the People of God. Both of them Priesthood and Matrimony.
          I am sure that we all agree that it is a disaster when a priest or a bishop forgets that his life is all about guiding others to heaven by his preaching and example of life. However on this Feast of the Holy Family of Nazareth I would like to bring up what the Holy Spirit teaches us that the vocation to being a wife, a husband is also directed towards the salvation of others. Matrimony is a sacrament at the service of communion because in this sacrament a man and a woman enter into a profound communion with each other and they dedicate the rest of their lives to ensuring the communion of their spouse with the Lord.
          A husband can say: “I have done well in my marriage” when his love for the wife made her grow in love for Jesus. A wife can say: “I have done well in my marriage” when her love for the husband made him grow in love for Jesus.
          Sometimes I hear that priests shouldn’t preach on family issues as they don’t know the family life. I disagree with that but it is not the time to argue the topic, what I want to say is that as a priest I feel as comfortable among wives and husbands as I feel among priests and the reason for that is that we priests and married people walk the same path to heaven: it is through the service to others. Wives, husbands and priests become saints by helping others to become saints. We will not become saints if we don’t help others to become saints.
          To those who didn’t know that all I can say is: Welcome to the club. That’s a good one.
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Błogosławionych Świąt.

12/25/2013

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Ogłaszam wam radość wielką:

Słowo stało się ciałem i zamieszkało między nami. I oglądaliśmy Jego chwałę, chwałę, jaką Jednorodzony otrzymuje od Ojca, pełen łaski i prawdy.
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Modlę się aby każdy z was miał wiarę żeby zabrać Jezusa do swojego życia i poddać Mu glębię swojego serca i duszy. On jest największym błogosławieństwem jakie może Was spotkać.
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W Dzień Bożego Narodzenia ofiaruję Mszę Świętą w Waszj intencji.

Błogosławionych Świąt.
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Blessed Christmas

12/25/2013

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I announce you news of great joy:

The Word was made flesh, He lived among us, and we saw his glory, the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
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I pray for you so that you may have faith to take Jesus into your life and to conform the depth of your heart and soul to Him. He is the greatest blessing that can ever happen to you.
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On Christmas Day I will offer a Mass for you and your loved ones.

Have a Blessed Christmas.
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Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord - Homily

12/24/2013

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A few days ago I was in the seminary of my order of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Yaoundé, Cameroun. What I would like to say at the beginning of this homily is what I saw every day during my stay there. Next to the seminary there is a well with fresh water. The people from the area keep coming to draw the water. However they don’t simply quench their own thirst but they take it home in all sorts of different containers. One day I saw a few teenagers carrying on their heads big cans filled with water and fallowing them there was a little boy, he was two or maybe three, he was still struggling to walk properly, but there he was holding a half a litter bottle of water on his head like his big brothers and sisters did.
          My Sisters and Brothers celebrating this Holy Day of the Lord’s Nativity!
The Baby-boy whom we adore in the manger today grew and when he was a grown man, once in a conversation with his followers he described himself as living water. It is the water that is not only good for us but it is necessary. That’s why the angels were so busy on that Christmas day. They didn’t sing quite hymns but they made big noise so that shepherds could hear them and be attracted to come to the place where the Baby Jesus was, and if the shepherds had troubles to understand that those angelic hymns meant to get them to the stable, the inhabitants of heaven told them plainly: “Go to Bethlehem and you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” The stable became like a well with living water. God’s mercy was revealed those days not simply by giving humankind the Saviour, our living water, but directing those first drawers to the place where He was to be found.
           As we gaze at the poverty of Jesus’ birth place let’s not feel sorry for him to born in such a place but let’s thank him that he was born in such an accessible place that only lack of faith and humility could stop from coming to him. If he was born in a comfortable palace only a few rich would have access to him. The stable in Bethlehem was accessible to all like the well in Cameroun I mentioned at the beginning.
People still make their way to Bethlehem to venerate the place where Jesus was born but it is not a museum it is still the place where Jesus, living water can be found as in the cave where he was born as Holy Masses are still celebrated there. Jesus who was born there 2000 years ago is still being born when Bread and Wine become his Body and Blood. This is the main reason for us to be here today. We can have beautiful Christmas trees at home, we can sing Christmas Carrols beautifully, or sometimes out of tune, at home too, but what makes this building special is that Christ is born here on the Altar, he fills our souls also through his Holy Word we hear. As we listen to his Word, as we receive his Precious Body and Blood new life enters into us, like new life comes into thirsty people when they drink fresh water. Here our faith grows, we become stronger Catholics, more committed to Christ. However sometimes I hear statements like this: “Father, I go to church, I pray, I listen to the Word of Christ but my faith is still weak, it is tasteless.” What I ask in return is this: “Do you pray with your children? Do you teach your children Catechism? Do you talk to your friends, relatives and co-workers about Christ?” Usually I meet surprised eyes which make me go on saying: “The Holy Scriptures tell us that faith grows stronger when it is passed onto others!”
When Crist was born Mary did not keep Him to herself but she offered Him to us. When the shepherds came they found their joy and peace but on the way from the Stable they became the sharers of the Good News which they found in the Newborn. They didn’t keep Christ they encountered to themselves but they were telling everybody about Him.
Some time ago as I was walking to celebrate morning Mass I saw a little boy jumping as he was being walked to school by his mum. When I got to them I said: “You seem to be very happy today.” He answered: “Of course that I am. Last night I had my first Reconciliation and all my sins have been forgiven by Jesus.” Another sharer of the Good News. The shepherds from Bethlehem, the little school boy were like the people I saw in Cameroun drawing water not just for themselves but for others too.
Let me finish with another scene. This one is taken from a movie I have seen lately. The movie is called Mary of Nazareth. In the movie there is a scene of shepherds visiting the Newborn Jesus. As they approach the manger, the first man stretches out his arms silently begging Our Lady to give them her Son. She does. The shepherd receives Him with such longing that can be only compared to a man dying of thirst when he is given fresh water. The shepherd cannot take his eyes off the Saviour but do you know what he does next? He passes Him onto the next shepherd and the Baby is traveling from one person to another.
Dear Friends! My Christmas prayer is that each one of us can continue this action not only this Christmas Day, not only in the New Year but for the rest of our life. That is the secret of the strong faith. Now it is not a secret any more. You've been to the well of living water - Christ the Lord, take Him on the way home.
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Christian Istanbul

12/14/2013

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PictureIn front of Hagia Sophia
Although Istanbul has got a Muslim character these days I have come to this ancient city as a pilgrim of faith. The year of faith was brought to its conclusion a couple of weeks ago but I feel blessed that I am able to walk the streets of the city which has contributed so much to our Christian faith. Firstly, Byzantium which was the name of Istanbul before it was conquered by Muslims in 1453, has been the city of saints. It was home to some Church Fathers and influential bishops. Those people were not only holy in terms of their way of life but they were a gift to the early Church which had to defend and clarify her believes. Two names I would like to bring up St John Chrysostom and St Gregory Nazianus. Those bishops of Constantinople (another name for Istanbul) are among the Holy Doctors of the Church. It means that God gave them a special grace to explain the depth of our faith.
Istanbul also saw some ecumenical councils. After the first council of Nicaea in 325 another gathering of bishops was convoked. In 381, 150 bishops, all of them from the eastern churches gathered here to react to the heresy that taught that the Holy Spirit wasn’t God but it was something like divine energy. The participants of the First Council of Constantinople rejected such understanding and explained that the Holy Spirit is God. The fruit of their considerations, prayers and meditations is the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed which we recite every Sunday after the Homily. The Creed which was originally written at the Council of Nicaea was completed in Constantinople (today’s Istanbul) in 381. Particularly the sentence: I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets was included so that doubts and false interpretations were to be avoided in the future.
The highlight of my visit to the city was the time I spent in the church of Hagia Sophia. It was rebuilt by the orders of Emperor Justinian in 537 and until 1453 when the Muslims conquered the city it was the cathedral of the local bishops. Hagia Sophia means Divine Wisdom but the full name of the church is the Shrine of the Divine Wisdom. However the church isn’t dedicated to a quality of God but to God himself, Our Lord Jesus Christ. In a few days when the Church begins the Christmas Novena we will pray so called “O Antiphons”. One of them goes as follows: “O Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to salvation.” The Church is calling her Saviour to come and calls him Wisdom of God. That’s why the main feast of the Hagia Sophia, when it was still a Christian church was the Christmas Day. After 1453 the church was turned into a mosque, a four minarets were added to its structure, and it served in this capacity until 20th century when it was made a museum.
Visiting the church I focused on its Christian heritage. Although the liturgy cannot be celebrated here I found a little corner for myself near the section which used to be the sanctuary and quietly I celebrated the Liturgy of Hours. That’s a set of prayers which all priests pray every day. They are not simply prayers but the Liturgy which is always celebrated for the Church and in union with the whole Church. Even it a priest prays it individually it is still the Liturgy of the Church. For me it was a powerful moment when the quite prayer I said became part of the Divine Liturgy which was celebrated here in the early days of the Church.
After the Liturgy of Hours I went upstairs to the room which was used for synod meetings over centuries. There the bishops would gather to respond to the needs of the developing Christian faith. In the room I renewed my Catholic faith by reciting the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed and saying Our Father for the unity of all Christians.
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Between Europe and Asia

12/13/2013

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PictureBetween Europe and Asia
It was supposed to be a stopover on my way to Cameroon but Istanbul in Turkey has shown its temperament. First it was hard to leave Warsaw, not so much because of my feelings, but because of fog. The puffy blanket covered the area and upset many arrivals and departures, including mine. When eventually we managed to leave the Capital of Poland we had to brace ourselves for more to come. Our destination airport – Ataturuk in Istanbul was in the middle of a snow storm. A few failed attempts to land put all passengers into a reflective mood, everybody was just staring at the white chaos outside. Upon arrival I learned that all flights were delayed which made the place extremely busy. On the way to my hotel I was given a chance to “admire” the white, night, magical side of the city. Even the magical thing wasn’t magical enough to encourage me to go for an evening walk. I just closed the curtains, put the heater on the top speed and pretended that I am somewhere else where snow doesn’t exist.
Following day I had to stop pretending that I am in a warm country and after plucking up all the little remaining courage I still had after the eventful flight last night I stepped out to explore the city.
Istanbul is a unique city which spreads to two continents, a part of it is in Asia while the other part is in Europe. The Bosporus Strait which divides the city also separates Europe from Asia. Looking at the map it can be said that the city is also squeezed between two seas: Black Sea to the north and Marmara Sea to the south. Today Istanbul is one of the largest cities in the world.
It is also an ancient city. Its reach history can confuse a lot of people who may try to figure out who was ruling here and when.
Today no one can miss the Muslim character of the city. The mosques and their minarets are everywhere. Sultanahmet Mosque which is more commonly called Blue Mosque for its blue tiles stands out in the Old City. The sultan who built it was only 18 when he ordered to build the mosque. It is said that he himself was working alongside the workman. He didn’t have much time to enjoy the monument as he died at the age of 28. There is no doubt that it is a majestic complex, however the lasting impression I have taken from it is….. the smell of sweaty socks. The worshippers coming here to pray for centuries remove their shoes and the carpet of the mosque absorbed the smell of the socks of the faithful Muslims. My visit to the place was a brief one. You can understand why. Now even the six minarets of the mosque cannot impress me as they bring back the smell.
With a bit of resistance I made my way to another land mark of the town: Topkapi Palace. It was Sultans’ residence. Luckily for me the winter weather must have stopped lots of people from going out as the crowds were manageable. I have heard stories of the ridiculously long queues in front of the palace. When I came there was no queue at all. So without wasting my time I began exploring the place. I can tell that those sultans liked fussy stuff. It is hard to find a plain wall or floor. My ticket gave me access to all sections of the palace but because it is such a vast compound I am sure I missed some. I was also having difficulties to localize the Harem. There were plenty of staff around but I felt extremely embarrassed to ask: “Can you point out to me the way to the Harem?” Sounds so weird, doesn’t it? However after some time of wondering around I got to that. For those of you who are worried about my vocation I can assure you it is only museum these days.
As the sun was setting and the chill was getting worse I called it a day and went back to my cozy hotel.
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Immaculate Conception - Oblate Feast Day

12/9/2013

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Oblate Madonna
Mary Immaculate, Mother of God and our Mother,
We come together to rededicate ourselves to you.
Through you we offer our persons,
our lives and our work to your Son,
Our Lord and Brother.
We call to mind the spirit of our first Missionaries,
who went forth to preach the Gospel to the poor,
to build the Church and to work for God’s Kingdom.
We remember their trust and confidence in your protection
and, united with them, we ask again
that you pray for us to our heavenly Father.
We are Oblates because God has favored us with his grace.
Through this grace,
men from all over the world have joined our ranks.
Together now, we recall the words of Eugene de Maznod:
“Every Oblate shall cherish a tender devotion to Mary,
he shall look upon her as his Mother.”
Mary Immaculate, model of our faith,
we ask that, like you,
we may be always open
to the promptings of the Holy Spirit
and constantly available for God’s work.
Mary Immaculate, Mother of Mercy,
we ask that you protect and strengthen our missionaries
and help the people we serve.
Mary Immaculate, most loving Mother
through your prayers and our efforts
grant that all people may come to believe
that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord.
Grant also that,
with you and all the Oblates who have gone before us,
we may forever praise the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception - Homily

12/9/2013

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As we begin our Advent Parish Retreat I would like to start with an event recorded by St John, Apostle. After Andrew met Jesus he was so excited that he went to a friend of him, Nathanael and said: “We have found him about whom Moses in the Law and the Prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael retorted: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Looks like the town didn’t have a good reputation at that time. Nathanael came from Cana in Galilee which was located very close to Nazareth so he must have known the situation well. That’s why Philip doesn’t want to argue about this and simply says: “Come and see.” When they approach Jesus Our Lord says: “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” “Where did you get to know me?” - asks Nathanael. “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.”- says Jesus. Nathanael replies: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel!”
          Dear Friends! What happened there between Jesus and Nathanael because it seems me missed something as we witness a change in Nathanael’s attitude, from a skeptic he moves to be a believer. If somebody told you: “I know what you had for breakfast or I know what a shampoo you are using.” would you call such a person a god? I don’t think so. So, what happened in the encounter we just saw? When Nathanael was talking to Jesus, he put together pieces of information about the promised Messiah who was to come. The Messiah was the figure who was awaited and longed for. Many generations of the people of Israel treasured prophesies from the Old Testament about the Messiah. One of those ancient prophesies was of the Isiah: “A soot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a brunch shall grow out of his roots.” Jesse was the father of King David who started the Royal dynasty in Israel. However in Jesus’ time there dynasty was long gone. King Herod wasn’t the descendent of David. The dynasty of David was like a cut tree with a dry, dead stump reminding of its former glory, but Isiah was saying that this dead stump of David’s dynasty will see a brunch growing out of it, the promised Messiah.
          As Jesus’ time was coming prophesies became stronger. One of the last prophets Zechariah wrote God’s words: “Listen, I am going to bring my servant the Branch. On that day you shall invite each other to come under your vine and fig tree.” and “Thus says the Lord: Here is a man whose name is Branch, because he shall branch out in his place and he shall built the temple of the Lord.”
There is even more to contemplate: Nazareth in Hebrew means branch. When Nathanael was talking to Jesus he was putting together the pieces of that ancient puzzle. He knew prophesies of the old like all his country people did. Jesus words: “I saw you under the fig tree” didn’t mean that he spied on Nathanael and saw him a few hours before but Jesus was speaking about the future. The fig tree it was Our Blessed Lord himself. Nathanael under the fig tree meant that the man was to live in a closeness to Jesus. He was to have a close faith relationship with the Lord. That’s why Jesus described Nathanael as free from the power of sin because that nearness to Jesus was to set the Apostle free. When Nathanael came to Jesus Nathanael was a sinner but Jesus was seeing the future of the man. It must have been something that Nathanael wanted to experience in his life because he stuck with Jesus from then.
          My Sisters and Brothers!
          The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary resembles the event from the Gospel of John. I am over the moon that our Polish Bishops have decided that the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception isn’t moved to Monday but is to be celebrated on the day. I am saying that not simply because I am an Oblate of Mary Immaculate and I love this feast but because the feast holds a powerful message for us. So what are we celebrating today? First let’s look at some dates. We will start with September 8. It is the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. If we go backward 9 months as it is the length of pregnancy we are arriving at December 8. Today the Church remembers the day when a baby girl was conceived in the womb of her Mother St Anne. The baby girl was to be known as the Virgin Mary. What was so unique about her conception? Mary was conceived without original sin. She was free from the condition that makes it easier for us humans to do evil then good, to reject God than to serve him. That’s why the one who’s Immaculate Conception we are celebrating this Sunday didn’t commit any sin in her life either. Using the event from st John we can say that God saw Mary under the fig tree which is the image of Jesus Christ in such closeness that there was no room in her for sin. God saw that many millennia before even her parents were born. That’s why Mary Immaculate is depicted crushing the head of serpent- Satan. He didn’t harm her by leading her into sinning.
Dear friends! Jesus who looked at Mary and preserved her from sin, Jesus who looked at Nathanael and saw him overcoming sin, the same Jesus is looking at us today and he sees us under the fig tree too. He sees us very close to him and that’s why St Paul in the Letter to the Ephesians wrote to Christians: “Before the world was made, he chose us, chose us in Christ, to be spotless, and to live through love in his presence.” The eyes of Christ have nothing to do with eyes of some people who look at the elderly, terminally or mentally ill and say that the solution for those people is euthanasia. They even claim that the sick and elderly want to be euthanized. But I am asking: “Why do they want to be euthanized?” Because the eyes of those around them say very clearly: “You are an obstacle for our society to be beautiful and perfect. You look bad, you smell bed. You should die. You don’t feet to our nice society.”
Jesus could turn away his eyes from us as there is so much sin and weakness in us. However he has never done that. He looks at us and talks about our future or more precisely he proposes us this future: “I saw you under the fig tree.”
Let us pray so that Immaculate Mary could intercede for us so that we could stay in this closeness to the Lord that has been offered us.
To finish this talk I would like to show you a small statue of our Lady. It is a copy of the statue which St Eugene de Mazenod blessed on August 15, 1822. At that time St Eugene was suffering a lot. The Order of Missionaries he founded a few years earlier was going through some difficult moments. Lots of people were against St Eugene. That day after the blessing he was praying in front of the statue and the statue became alive, Mary smiled to Eugene. At instant new life entered the man. His hear was filled with grace to look beyond difficulties and to focus on working for Jesus.
If today your heart is hurting because of your sins or because of some problems and issues that overwhelm you look at the Immaculate and may you find faith to see beyond these things that cause the pain in you. Jesus saw you under the fig tree, that’s your future don’t allow anyone to convince you otherwise.
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Oblate Madonna, blessed by St Eugene de Mazenod on August 15, 1822
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Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, Illinois, US

12/8/2013

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PictureOur Lady of the Snows
On the day of my departure from USA I was given a blessing of visiting the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. I think that I couldn’t have a better day to go there as………. It was snowing. Right now there is a severe ice storm passing through the country. Anyway the shrine is nicely heated but it took me some time to convince myself to step out of the church.
The devotion to Mary under the title of Our Lady of the Snows is tied to the legend about a marvelous snowfall in Rome in the 4th century. Mary indicated in a dream to a Roman couple that she wanted a church built in her honor and the site for the church would be covered with snow. On a hot summer day, Esquiline Hill was covered with snow. The place where it happened is known for the magnificent Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, which is one of the four papal basilicas in Rome. The beginning of the devotion to Our Lady of the Snows in Illinois, US is connected to the faith and work of Fr Paul Schulte OMI, the renowned “Flying Priest of the Arctic” and Fr Edwin Gild OMI, founder of the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. Fr. Paul Schulte, O.M.I was a pilot who brought medical aid and supplies to remote Oblate missions, particularly north of the Arctic Circle. He developed a strong personal devotion to Our Lady of the Snows while working in the Oblate missions, and built a small chapel in her honor. Fr. Paul Schulte, O.M.I., commissioned the famous artist, J. Watson Davis, to paint a picture of Our Lady of the Snows. Davis depicted an Oblate missionary and his airplane on a sick call to an Inuit (Eskimo) mission with Our Lady appearing surrounded by rays of the Northern Lights.
Following his ministry in the Arctic, Fr. Schulte came to reside at St. Henry’s Seminary in Belleville, Illinois. The painting of Our Lady of the Snows was hung in the seminary chapel. In April of 1943, the perpetual novena to Our Lady of the Snows was begun.
This shrine shows how Our Lord works through various obstacles. Fr Schulte who was German wasn’t allowed to travel around North America during War World II. The local authorities ordered him to stay in one place as they feared that he was a spy. Although restricted to St Henry’s Seminary, he didn’t give up on working for Jesus. He started his humble ministry for the honour of Our Lady of the Snows which started bringing more and more people. Eventually it grew so big that it became a shrine. Fr Schulte’s approach shows that we, as followers of Jesus, cannot stop doing evangelization ministry.
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The image of Our Lady of the Snows commissioned by Fr Paul Schulte OMI, the Flying priest of the Arctic
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Oblate Novitiate in Illinois, USA

12/5/2013

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PictureThe house of the Novitiate
18 years ago Eugene de Mazenod, Founder of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and Bishop of Marseille, was canonized by Pope John Paul II. It was Sunday, December 3. I remember the date well because I was in the Novitiate at that time. Now after 18 years I was given an opportunity to go celebrate the anniversary of that event in the Novitiate too. It wasn’t the same house but the spirit reigning in the house is the same. The Novitiate house of the USA Province of the Oblates is located in the state of Illinois at the outskirts of a small town called Godfrey. The vast woods surrounding the house created a perfect environment for this unique house. The Novitiate is the most crucial time in the formation of our future religious. It lasts usually 12 months and is dedicated to establishing a strong and profound relationship with a candidate to the Order with Jesus Christ. Most of the Catholics can easily picture religious priests, brothers and sisters working in schools, hospitals, orphanages, parishes, foreign missions etc. but all these activities flow from one fundamental thing and it is the relationship with Jesus. When someone wants to be an Oblate we don’t focus on preparing him for the ministry but we ask the man to “waste” 12 months first in the Novitiate. These 12 months are designed for growing in prayer, for embracing other members of the community as family members, for developing faith that enables the candidate to see Jesus in ordinary events of life, for strengthening the desire to give to Christ all aspects of one’s life. The Novitiate program isn’t rewarded with a certificate or a degree but it leads to taking first vows of Chastity, Poverty, Obedience and Perseverance for one years. These for vows we the Oblates take unite us closer with our Lord and Master who has called us to this way of life like he did with St Eugene de Mazenod. The Novitiate lays foundations for the rest of our life. To ensure that the Novices aren’t disturbed in this sacred year we have our Novitiate Houses located in some remote places which supports this contemplative climate needed for the spiritual growth. The men who are in the Novitiate in Godfrey live a very simple life in the middle of the woods on the banks of the Mississippi River. There are four of them. I guess that it is more challenging for them then it was for me to handle a limited access to TV, the Internet, phones etc. During the year here they will not visit their families either and the visits they can receive are very restricted. However they have got an unlimited access to the chapel where Jesus Christ can shape them into his Oblates. The view from the terrace overlooking the River is a powerful reminder that with Jesus there are no limits for them in this World and in the World to come.
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