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Dear Friends.
Ten years ago, I was in Norway for a delightful two-week business trip during the most beautiful days of summer in the northern hemisphere. I had spent that past year working on a major engineering contract with a supplier, and our project team went to the factory for construction kick-off meetings. I was very happy with my job, but earlier that year I shared my intention to resign in August and enter formation for the priesthood with the Paulists. My team was moving to Norway for the construction phase of the project, but I did not feel committed enough to uproot my life for three years. And so, I realized that it was time to take seriously the possibility
of priesthood and enter the Paulist seminary.
My novitiate classmate and now Paulist Fr. Mike Cruickshank, CSP had a somewhat similar story. He was working for a bank in New York City and volunteering extensively at the Paulist parish of St Paul the Apostle. He served on the young adult leadership committee, but the pastor at the church was very strict about term limits. Once Mike’s term expired, he realized how much he missed serving in leadership and saw it as a sign that he may be called to leave his day job and dedicate himself to ministry as a priest.
Both Fr. Mike and I were blessed in our early careers, and we could have happily stayed in our jobs. But we had each recognized that if we wanted to live life more deeply, we would have to accept new challenges with their sacrifices.
I worked for a summer with Fr. Gil, the pastor at St Paul the Apostle, and I learned more about his insistence on term limits for all parish leadership committees and councils.
Term limits ensured a constant openness to new ideas and energy. Term limits also challenged his volunteers to not become complacent and grow in their faith by regularly trying out new ministries. In Fr. Mike’s case, term-limits also forced him reevaluate where he found his deepest joy in life after he had to let go of serving on the committee that he loved.
We are on the cusp of a major change here at St Austin with the opening of our new parish ministry center. I encourage everyone reading this to think about how you may be called to go deeper in service to others here at the parish. We have numerous opportunities to get involved, such as serving as a liturgical minister at Mass, teaching youth or adult classes, and serving our brothers and sisters in need with our charity programs. We also need people to bring Holy Communion to homebound and hospitalized patients after Sunday Masses and prepare our young couples for marriage.
To volunteer may mean that you will have to sacrifice some other activities you enjoy to make time. I have seen over and over the fruits of such sacrifices, both in the lives of those served and the volunteers' own growth. If you are interested in exploring opportunities to volunteer and don’t know where to start, please contact our Director of Parish Engagement, Lysa Kraft at lkraft@staustin.org.
God Bless,
From Fr Paolo
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