It’s amazing how God weaves our lives together, how He
influences who we are through the people He places in our lives, how our
vocations affect others’ vocations.
During Vocations Awareness Week, I’m offering a tribute
to all the holy priests who have served at St. Columbkille by
reflecting on how some of them have formed my personal faith. I
invite you to do the same.
A beloved priest from another parish once commented on how
priests tend to come and go at churches, often leaving us just as we are becoming
so attached to them. Each priest has “a song to sing,” he said.
After the core of his message is imparted, it’s time to move on and spread
that message elsewhere. In yesterday’s Gospel reading, Jesus tells His
Apostles: “Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there
also. For this purpose I have come.”
My family has been part of the parish for more than 20
years now, and we have been blessed by so many priests. Some I have had to
reluctantly omit in this reflection, but their influence, too, remains in
our hearts.
The late Father Robert Steinhausen:
He was pastor when my husband and I moved to the parish and were
newly married. Father Steinhausen, who had been at St. Columbkille for many
years, instructed us in a baptism class and brought the first of our
children into the Church. I had the privilege of worshiping at his
last Mass. It seemed like a typical Mass. Priests like Father Steinhausen
faithfully offer us Mass day in and day out. The next day I was surprised to
learn of his death.
The late Father James Bartek: He
was an associate pastor here for a short time who had a special calling to
minister to the sick. He counted how many hospital visits he made; I
believe it was in the thousands. He ministered to our family when we had a
newborn daughter in the neonatal intensive care unit at Children’s Hospital. He
looked so natural holding our baby in a rocking chair in the NICU.
The nurses there knew him; he was acquainted with all the special procedures
for visitors. Father Bartek baptized our baby, gave her
the Sacrament of the Sick and even Confirmed her.
Some time after that, he commented to me on the two
types of women he had a special compassion for: those who wanted to have
children but could not, and those who wanted to breastfeed but could not. I was
amazed at how a celibate man could begin to understand those struggles.
Father Steven Stillmunks:
One of my young kids called him “Father Chipmunks.” Father let that slide,
given the age of the offender. Father Stillmunks was an industrious
man who had a long tenure at St. Columbkille. His legacy is visible.
His building campaign included the Steinhausen Center and an
addition to the school. I consider Father Stillmunks one of the reasons
St. Columbkille is blessed with so many deacons, because he invited men
to consider the diaconate. The way Father contributed to my personal faith was by
introducing me to a prayer, the “Anima Christi,” which he prayed aloud
after Communion at weekday Masses. God continues to bless me through that beautiful,
rich prayer. Here is the version I recall:
Soul of Christ, sanctify me.
Body of Christ, save me.
Blood of Christ, inebriate me.
Water from the side of Christ, wash me.
Passion of Christ, strengthen me.
O Good Jesus, hear me.
Within Your wounds hide me.
Separated from You let me never be.
From the evil one protect me.
At the hour of my death, call me
And close to You bid me
That with Your saints
I may be praising You
forever and ever. Amen
Father Francis Nigli: Father
Francis’ holiness was visible and inviting. He drew young and old alike into a
deeper faith. Because of his example, several young men
were prompted to enter the seminary, including my own son. His bold
faith made him unafraid to correct us when we needed it.
I was inspired by watching him among children, especially
the young ones he would embrace. That image reminded me of photos I
saw of Blessed John Paul II holding and welcoming little ones. Then
it struck me: that’s how Jesus must have looked when He gathered children
to Himself.
Father Vitalis Anyanike:
He was our missionary priest who came from Nigeria to evangelize us, and
in turn, invited us to share in his missionary work abroad. I loved his
relaxed, happy demeanor. His bold proclamations made me think he was a
prophet.
Father Damien Wee: Another
holy, zealous, foreign-born priest who arrived not long after
ordination. He was our Marian priest, who showed us a path to Jesus’
Sacred Heart through the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He had an amazing ability
to remember names, a wry sense of humor, a knack for photography and a sense of
urgency in spreading the Gospel. I owe a special debt of gratitude to Father
Wee for inviting my son, and many other young men, to investigate a
vocation to the priesthood.
Father Damian
Zuerlein: Father Damian has been
leading St. Columbkille for several years and is improving our
worship by improving our worship space. As pastor, he calls us to change
our hearts. From the start, Father Damian has focused on transforming us
into Christ’s disciples. All else is secondary. Or useless. As for holiness . .
. for a long time my youngest child thought Father Damian was actually Jesus. I
can’t give Father a better compliment.
Father Kevin Vogel:
What first struck me about Father Vogel was his angelic voice. He has been
teaching us that reason and faith are not opposites but that reason leads us to
faith. Father’s own faith and intelligence prove his point. Father also
illustrates how God doesn’t wait for His faithful to grow old to shower
them with wisdom, grace and holiness.
Father Steve Emanuel:
I think Father Steve was sent to proclaim God’s immense,
unconditional love for us. Somehow that message of love has trouble
penetrating into my heart, no matter how many times I hear it. So I’m thankful
to Father Steve for his steady reminders, for his holy example, and for
his insightfulness and compassion in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Inspired
by this Year of Faith we will be posting columns like this from Susan Szalewski about exploring
and/or deepening our faith. Watch for it on
Thursdays.
