He’s articulate, funny, insightful, and inspiring.
Two sayings that we used to have in the seminary come to mind. First, “These hands were made for chalices, not callouses.” This is the attitude of many priests unfortunately who were ordained to be served, not to serve. And frankly. serving is hard, growing in virtue is hard. No wonder the Latin root of virtue is “vir” meaning man. It takes toil to grow in holiness, in virtue – and this is what the priesthood is all about, growth in ones own virtue and helping others to do the same. It takes callouses to get there. Then there is “It is the cross, not the couch.” It is easy for priests and bishops to fall into a couch-centered spirituality. Heck, it is easy for me – I don’t like to suffer. But I know that this attitude leads to a softness, a weakness that is not fitting for a priest.
His internal links are not working but don’t miss the posts called “The Priest I Want,” “Vestments for Women,” and “A Priest Forever.”