From Father Steven - February 4, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Please see the letter below from Fr. Gabriel about his experience at the retreat we recently had in Italy. God Bless, Fr. Steven ———————————————- As Father Steven mentioned in his last bulletin entry, he and I have returned from a wonderful retreat in Italy, where we were together with about 800 priests from the Redemptoris Mater seminaries of the Americas. I would like to take the time to also share a bit of my experience. The first day we arrived at the Airport in Rome, but the retreat was to take place in Porto San Giorgio, Italy, which is located on the eastern coast of the country. This presented me with the opportunity to visit Assisi on the way to the retreat house which was precisely what I was hoping to do during my travels. The Pope has named this year the Jubilee of Saint Francis as this October 4th, we will be celebrating the 800th anniversary of his passing, so there was no better time to visit. I am fond of saying that it is the saints who often choose us, inviting us into a friendship with them, which has been the case for me in a special way with Saint Francis. During the retreat, I reflected on how the spirit of Saint Francis has accompanied me most especially throughout my seminary formation, with the presence of our late franciscan spiritual director, Fr. Roderick Crispo O.F.M., the time spent with Cardinal Sean, learning from the example of his prayer life, and the honor of being the last class that was ordained by him and also being ordained on Padre Pio’s birthday. Reflecting on all of this led me to ponder the words that the Lord spoke to Francis at the beginning of his conversion, “Rebuild my Church.” Sure enough, Francis’ Jubilee in the background and those words spoken to him resounding in my heart, it all fit perfectly into the theme that threaded our entire retreat; the readings that were proclaimed each day were all taken from the Prophets calling on Israel to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem after the exile. The first day we heard from the Prophet Haggai, “be strong, all you people of the land...and work! For I am with you...and I will fill this house with glory.” These words felt very personal, that God is calling me in my ministry to participate in the rebuilding of his Church. Nevertheless, I also remembered that Saint Francis initially took the Lord’s words too literally and started rebuilding an actual Church, when in fact the Lord was calling for a spiritual renewal, not the reconstruction of a building. This also was important for me, because I have asked myself again and again in these past two years as a priest, is what I have to offer enough for this mission? Am I doing enough? The words of the retreat reoriented me to look inwardly and see that before I help anyone else, God desires to rebuild me by granting me a renewed experience of His love for me. This I saw clearly during the 2 by 2 mission that we did during the retreat, announcing the love of God as the apostles and Saint Francis did, without food, money, or cell phones, leaning entirely on the Lord’s providence. I was sent north of Rome to a port city called Civitavecchia where their Cathedral, the first Church we visited, happened to be dedicated to Saint Francis. One night during the mission, my companion and I were welcomed by a couple from the cathedral who had three teenage sons. When I entered the apartment I spotted three skateboards under their beds and proceeded to ask who of them skateboarded, two of them responded emphatically that they did. When I mentioned that I also grew up skateboarding, they were eager to take me down to the central plaza to skate together. It was moving to share that joy with them. One of the boys, Simone, at some point said, “I’ve never met a priest that skateboards.” Back at their house, I felt compelled to tell their father that I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them had a vocation to the priesthood. Their father responded saying, “as a matter of fact, the other day, we were asking them what vocation they would like to have when they were older and Simone told us ‘but if I become a priest, I won’t be able to skate anymore,’ and see now how God has sent you to us.” At that moment I saw how God was showing me that He knows my heart through and through, and that He uses my life as an expression of His tenderness toward this family and all of you that I minister to; that in serving you as a priest, you discover God’s love for you, but I also discover the Lord’s love for me and it is in this way that the Church continues to be built up. God Bless, Fr. Gabriel