Wisdom from a Priest-to-be

by David O'Brien

A young seminarian for the Archdiocese of Mobile, Stephen Vrazel, who was ordained a Deacon this past October recently reminded me of the greatness of our Catholic faith in the blog (http://keytarcatholic.blogspot.com) he is keeping while he studies in Rome. This entry, from the day after his ordination to the diaconate, beautifully captures this young man’s enthusiasm for our faith and his call to be a priest: The first time I proclaimed the Gospel was with my family during the scavi tour at St. Peter’s. The scavi are the excavations below the Basilica that delve down around and into the tomb of St. Peter himself. Our tour guide, a seminarian from the great Diocese of Brooklyn, usually reads a passage from Gospel at the end of the tour, in the presence of the bones of Peter. He was about to start when I asked him if I could do it, since I was just ordained a deacon and had not yet proclaimed the Gospel. He said sure. St. Peter's Tomb So, I began (and this was cool), "the Lord be with you." That was the first time I had said those words and the people (my family!) responded. Then I went on, "A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John" and proclaimed the story of Jesus and Peter on the seashore. I almost couldn’t finish the reading. I don’t know if those present understood why, but I was moved to tears for so many reasons. It was the first time that I would proclaim the Gospel of Christ, the very thing which had been handed over to me the day previous (at my ordination to the diaconate) by Bishop Hebda. (He told us): "Receive the Gospel of Christ, whose herald you have become. Believe what you read, teach what you believe, practice what you teach." I was, in that moment handing on what had been entrusted to me. But that wasn’t what did me in... Remember, we were there at the tomb of Peter, which itself is very near the spot where he was crucified. Here I was proclaiming the words of Jesus to Peter prophesying the events that would later take place right where we were standing. At the words, "but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands," I started to crack. When I read, "and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go," I had to stop speaking for a second and attempt to regain my composure. Not 24 hours prior to this, I was upstairs in (St. Peter’s) Basilica being dressed by someone else. (New deacons are vested by someone else for their ordination.) I’ve always felt a strong connection to St. Peter, but never like it was at that moment. St. Irenaeus says, "the glory of God is man alive." This means that when we are truly living, when we are who we were created to be, this gives glory to God. Peter, who the night before Jesus died denied Him, later gave over his living completely to God and the Church, glorifying God by his holy death. Peter’s death was a witness to and a joining in the suffering of his Lord and Brother Jesus Christ. And there we were right where Peter was crucified upside down. There I was, hoping to glorify God with my life as well, proclaiming to my family the story of one who had glorified God. Love for life did not deter them from death. Martyrdom is not just a sacrifice of one’s life for others; it’s not just an instinctive falling on the grenade, however noble and good such an action is. Martyrdom is nothing short of entering into the Glory that Jesus Christ, the Son, gives to the Father. Peter asked to be crucified upside down because he rightly considered himself unworthy/incapable of doing what Jesus did. But I wonder if in that moment Peter realized that we would see what he did and see in it the Glory of God. Everything came into sharp clarity at that moment. I was given a glance into the whole reason why anyone would come to Rome, dig around in those humid tunnels and build such a huge church above them. In moments of such intense clarity, I don’t think I can but weep. David O’Brien is the Associate Director of Religious Education for Lay Ministry for the Archdiocese of Mobile. His column Everyday Faith, appears regularly in the Catholic Week. Email David at dobrien@mobilearchdiocese.org.