Over the last Christmas break, the seminarians of Albany got to make a pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi. It was a truly wonderful experience for all of us which will undoubtedly bear much fruit well into the future. Below is a little reflection on one thing I gleaned from the experience and what impact I think it might have on my current and future ministry in the diocese of Albany.
I had never really thought much about what Rome meant as the city of Ss. Peter and Paul, but after encountering Rome through this lens, I have a new perspective on the entire Christian life and its ultimate goal. I am struck by how these two saints almost seemed to see the culmination of their ministry of evangelization in preaching to the people of Rome. It's almost as if the Holy Spirit saw Rome as the most fertile ground to plant the seeds of these two martyrs' lives. As we walked about in the churches housing their relics and the relics of literally thousands of other martyrs who followed in their footsteps, all the while surrounded by the ruins of the city that their faith transformed, I was overwhelmed by the concrete masterpiece of God's providence.
In our seminary formation, much is said about the need for us to become ever more configured to Christ, the King who reigns from the throne of the cross. Our formators tell us frequently about the need to develop a spirit of self-sacrifice and endless generosity in order to be good priests. In principle, I have never disagreed, but as I reflect on what I have now seen with my own eyes in Rome, I realize that Rome itself is a proof that our hope in the Lord's grace is never in vain. When one considers the supreme sacrifice made by both Peter and Paul, the uncertainty and trauma that their deaths must have imparted to their fledgling churches, the thousands of people who would be inspired to follow in their footsteps over the following centuries, how those acorn churches they founded have grown into mighty oaks… there is indeed cause for rejoicing here.
I think this is the most important impact the pilgrimage will have on my ministry at home. It strikes me that people in our diocese have so little to look forward to. According to recent surveys, a majority of them are so unsatisfied with their lives in New York State, they would move if they could, but are tied to the area by inadequate finances, family situations, or lack of employment opportunities. The prospects our economy offers are grim, at best. Then, there is the very painful process of Called-to-be-Church which many have nick-named "Called-to-be-Closed," embodying the disillusionment of so many people who had always thought their parish church—with its own priest—would always be there waiting for them whenever they needed it. What I see my people facing at home, then, is a multitude of challenges to having real hope in Christ. There are so many occasions at home to become discouraged, cynical and skeptical about the future, but our people need to see that our hope in Christ's promises is never in vain. Before I would ever be able to impart that hope to my people, however, I would first have to be convicted in that hope myself; this is what the pilgrimage experience has done for me. As I look at the examples of Peter, Paul, and the countless martyrs who followed them, I can have hope that my devotion to the people of God in the Albany diocese will not be in vain, that it will actually be helpful and fertilize the seeds of faith others planted generations ago. In a way I could not before, I can now preach hope in Christ with my life.
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!
~J
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