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I had something really special happen to me the other day that I just had to share about.
If there’s one group in society that my heart goes out to the most, it’s priests. It’s no secret – I’m Catholic. And frankly that’s a hard group to claim these days. Given the societal climate surrounding catholicism and all the horrible scandals that have come to light in the past year, I’d say the only thing more difficult than being a catholic in 2019, is being a snowman at the beach.
But it makes me so sad, because the vast vast majority of priests are good and holy men. Selfless men who have given their lives to the church, willing taking on a life of singleness and celibacy. Bearing the humiliation and judgement brought on by the horrendous actions of a small handful of evil men in their vocation.
But the truth is, they’re not all monsters. And, contrary to what the mainstream media will tell you – Catholic priests are not all predators and corrupt deviants. In fact, they’re incredible humans. But their stories — the silent majority — aren’t the headline grabbing tales that fit snuggly into the Left’s narrative they’ve so manipulatively crafted.
Allow me to set the scene here –
When I first moved to NYC, I can still remember my first mass. I was down in this beautiful parish with lots of young people. And there was this really hip priest. He was a former surfer – young guy. Not your typical “gray haired, Santa Claus- esq” man of the cloth.
I just remember sitting there, watching him preach from an iPad, and thinking to myself — 1) Wow, what a cool priest! and 2) I am *definitely* not in Ohio anymore!
But anyways, after a few months he was transferred to another parish, and I thought that was the end of the story.
Well – fast forward 8 years to this past January. If you recall, I went to the SEEK conference, presented by FOCUS ministries.
Well, there were literally thousands of priests there, in attendance. It was the coolest thing. And wouldn’t you know, but I bumped into that very same hip, surfer priest at a private cocktail party for the benefactors.
You would have thought I saw a rockstar, I was so excited.
I like, tapped my mom on the shoulder and said, “It’s the iPad priest from New York!” Because, of course I had told her about how terrific his homilies were, and how he made the energy in the parish come alive.
SO. I mustered all my courage, and struck up a conversation with Father! I bumbled on about how I always referred to him as the iPad surfer priest, and how grateful I was that when I first moved to the city, his parish made me feel so welcome, at home, and on fire for Christ.
And we continued talking for probably 20 minutes or so. Chatting about our mutual friends — the catholic circle is a small one! He shared what pilgrimages and ministries he has going. And in that time, I actually told him about my past with anorexia – and my blog. But it was a great conversation, and he really made me feel like I was doing meaningful work.
Anyways. Fast forward now, to just this past month.
I go home to visit my family, and my dad pulls me into his office, and says, “I have something for you.”
And he hands me a little package. A hand written card and a beautiful wooden rosary.
Hip iPad sufer priest had sent me a rosary that he got during his trip to the Holy Land, and he blessed it with water from the Jordan River.
I mean, wow. What an incredibly thoughtful and special gesture.
(So, if for some crazy reason you’re reading this – thank you Father.)
He was doing exactly what the Lord put him on this earth to do: be a father to his parish, and to share the Father’s love and goodness with those in his flock, whom he shepherds.
But I wanted to share this tonight, to just highlight all the wonderful priests there are, who are the silent majority, with their heads down, doing the Lord’s work.
The humility and generosity to remember just this random parishioner, and then send her such a blessing — it just goes to show — you never know the power of a simple act of kindness.
It goes a long way. A long way.
In this world where everything is digital, and everything is so “throw away” and impersonal — a text message, an email, a “tag” on social media — nobody picks up the phone anymore. No body goes out of their way for any body else.
And you know what? That needs to change. If we all just made one small little gesture — a letter, a phone call, a small care package — imagine the difference that would make.
Because here’s the thing: it communicates that you care. It communicates to the recipient that they matter. And I’ll tell you what, in today’s society, that is a rare message. Too rare.
So thank you to all the good and holy priests out there. Your work is not unnoticed.
“This is what the Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.” Ez 37:5
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BeautyBeyondBones 
I can agree with you that the vast majority of priests are good men. My husband and I were also cradle Catholics with 28 years of Catholic education between us. However, I cannot give these good priests a pass for the misery that has been caused by bad priests and Catholic practitioners. It has been reported that, in many cases, the actions of these men was common knowledge. If this was common knowledge, where were the good priests? Decisions were made to cover the bad behavior because it was more important to maintain the wealth and power of the Catholic Church than to protect children. In this time of changing attitudes about gay men and women throughout the world, hip priests seek out gay men like me to join their congregations to show how cool they are. I’ve fallen for that trap before. A new bishop takes over and you’re thrown out like yesterday’s garbage. As long as the good men promote a church that treats so many men and women of Faith with a total lack of respect, I’m unable to accept that they’re “good enough” to provide me with moral guidance. I’m sure there were good priests in Germany that watched their Jewish neighbors being marched off to death camps. Good is not always “good enough”.
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Hi Kerry, thank you so much for sharing your heart on this. You’re right – there’s a lot of unclear and underground information that is cause for concern. Grave concern. I’m sorry that you feel as though you’ve been set in a trap before, that’s not right. I think that every person should be welcomed and respected, no matter what. We need to raise the standards bar — Jesus instructed us to love. Period. i appreciate you stopping by. big hugs xo
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Thank you for this! I agree, so much negative publicity about priests, hiding the wonderful good men who are beautiful Godly examples in their life-roles as priests. And even though I am not a Catholic Christian, I love your loyal dedication to your Catholic faith. We must stand up for what we believe in to show it is worth it. Love you ❤
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Hi Mindy, thank you so much for sharing your heart on this. you’re right – stand up for what we believe in to show it is worth it — AMEN!! so glad you stopped by! big big big hugs to you dear friend!! xox
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We look to the priest or pastor for encouragement in a hard world but your example is a great way we can be an encouragement to them.
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you’re so right about that – they need encouragement too! big hugs to you! xox
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I love it! Thank you again. 😊
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Thank you so much Stephen!! 🙂 so glad it resonated with you! big hugs xo
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My spiritual director has been the most important person in my life, it’s thank to him that I’ve managed to recover from my eating disorder! And I can name at least 3 more priests who have been absolutely fundamental for me. I know lots of good ones, and also some bad ones, like with any group you may name. I would love to have a priest son 🙂
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Hi Paola! oh wow that is just so awesome. I’m so glad you have that person in your life. Amen – they are such a blessing to their congregation. They truly are spiritual fathers. Like you said — with any group, there are the outliers and bad apples, but far and away — to give your life to the priesthood shows such a depth of character — it makes me get choked up to even think about. big hugs to you xo
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I’m still in awe at the sacrifices genuine people like priests go through for the Lord, His work and for humanity. It’s really humbling. May God continue to encourage and keep them till the end. Great post here always. Thank you.
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Thank you so much Tito — you’re so right – their sacrifices are just incredible to think about. humbling indeed. thanks for stopping by and for your encouraging words. big hugs xox
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You posts are great. I have nominated you for the Sunshine Blogger Award🙂
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Hi Chris! Oh my gosh, thank you so much!! i am so honored by that!! you rock! hugs xo
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You’re welcome
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✨💛✨
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Beautiful! What a great testimony to a wonderful man!
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A well-written and an important blog entry!
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Thank you so much!! I appreciate you taking the time to read! Hugs and love xox
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Thank you for sharing. Around the country, in different walks of life,some of life’s positivity is overshadowed because of the actions of a few. This goes far beyond the acts of a certain priests, and we witness it over and over with other types of people.
We all must remain prayer warriors!
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Thank you so much! You’re right about that – prayer warriors indeed! Hugs and love xox
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Thank you Carolyn. You inspired this:
I do not think I have even spoken about this before.
http://familytreeourstory.com/2019/06/07/the-old-bag-and-the-catholic-priest/
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Thank you so much, i look forward to reading it.
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Love reading your stuff. I didn’t realize you were from Ohio. I grew up just outside Columbus. Keep up the great work you are doing in these posts. And again if you ever find yourself in Orange county CA, I would love to meet you for a coffee!
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thank you so much William. Yes! OH-IO! 🙂 aw that’s kind of you to say. hugs xo
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Does that mean you’re a buckeye fan??? OH…
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IO! yes!
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Enjoyed the post, it is not every day you find a blog discussing priests let alone in a positive light.
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Thank you! You’re on a reading roll! I really appreciate you stopping by! hugs xox
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I am late getting here, but wanted to thank you for this affirming story.
As the dad of a young man who is about 2 years from ordination, I have become very aware of the challenges faced by “the good ones” (meaning most of them) as they get stained by the acts of the predators.
These young men (and women who enter religious life) are heroes who have a difficult life ahead of them. God bless them!
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Hi JP! Wow that is so awesome that your son is becoming a priest!!!! I will keep him in my prayers 🙂 you’re so right about that – THEY ARE HEROES!!!! Hugs and love xox
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