Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin. ~Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish

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1 Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin. ~Blessed Teresa of Calcutta The VOICE of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish From the Pastor Dear Friends, The Year for Priests will conclude on June 11 th. The picture of Jesus the Eternal High Priest has been placed below the ambo at North Lake and upon the side altar at Monches over this past year. Hopefully, throughout the year you have prayed fervently for priests. My brother priests and I truly count on your generosity of interceding for us in your daily talking and listening to God. On May 21 st I celebrated my 39 th anniversary of my Ordination at St. Joseph Parish in Wauwatosa. I vividly recall the Friday evening that Archbishop William Cousins ordained me. At that time each deacon was ordained at his home congregation. My First Mass was Saturday, May 22, My parents, many of the concelebrants at the Mass, several relatives and friends have since entered Eternal Life. But treasured and often visited memories are still a joy to recall. Except for a three year appointment as the Associate Director of the Archdiocesan Renew Program, my whole priesthood has been as a parish priest. Over the years I have served in four counties of the Archdiocese: Fond du Lac, Milwaukee, Sheboygan and Waukesha. Another wonderful opportunity was having been elected to a term on the Archdiocesan Personnel Board (now the Priest Placement Board). It gave me the opportunity both to assist my brother priests and help parishes to prepare for new clergy or additional clergy. Today I still serve as a member of the Priests Pension Board. Thus, I have been involved with diocesan ministry throughout my years as a parish priest. CARA s (Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate: Georgetown University) national survey of men scheduled for ordination to the priesthood has been conducted annually since 2006 for USCCB Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations. This year s study was based on 339 responses or 77 percent of the 440 potential ordinands reported to be in their final year of preparation in theologates, houses of formation, dioceses/eparchies, and religious institutes. Respondents include 291 ordinands to the diocesan priesthood and 48 to the religious priesthood. Major findings from the study include the following: Age and background of seminarians The average age of ordinands for the Class of 2010 is 37. More than half (56 percent) are between the ages of 25 and 34. This is about the same as for the last five years. Eleven are being ordained at age 65 or older. Much has changed since I was ordained in May of In fact, most of my priesthood has been lived in transition at this time in the Church s history. Priestless parishes, merged parishes, cluster parishes are just a few new realities that were not part of the Church of Milwaukee in As difficult as change can be for all of us, it also presents the occasion to be able to adapt as best one can to new realities and circumstances. The challenge has always been to keep my focus of the Lord and through prayer and dialogue on several levels to discern God s Will at this time and this place (wherever I was). As the author to Hebrews says so eloquently, it is Christ who remains the same yesterday, today and forever. For a priest Jesus must become the heart of his priestly existence. To celebrate the Eucharist and other sacraments, to assist God s people in their joys and struggles, to preach and share the Holy Gospel are all privileges and responsibilities of the Priesthood. Throughout the thirty-nine years God has always sent wonderful mentors, laity and clergy, to help me in reaching out to others. Truly, our loving God is never outdone in generosity and grace to sustain us, forgive us, and send us forth in the Catholic Priesthood to serve in the person of Jesus Christ. For that I continually say Praise be Jesus Christ now and forever! Father Tony Introducing the Priesthood Class of 2010 Year of the Priest On average, diocesan ordinands lived in the diocese for which they will be ordained for 16 years before entering the seminary. Religious ordinands knew the members of their religious institute an average of six years before they entered the seminary. Seven in ten responding ordinands (70 percent) report their primary race or ethnicity as Caucasian/European American/white. Compared to the adult Catholic population of the United States, ordinands are more likely to be of Asian or Pacific Islander background (10 percent of responding ordinands), but less likely to be Hispanic/Latino (13 percent of responding ordinands). Continued on Page Two BLESSED TERESA OF CALCUTTA PARISH - MONCHES & NORTH LAKE JUNE 2010

2 Continued from the Cover article Introducing the Priesthood Class of 2010 Almost one-third of ordinands (31 percent) were born outside the United States, with the largest numbers coming from Mexico, Colombia, the Philippines, Poland and Vietnam. On average, responding ordinands who were born in another country have lived in the United States for 11 years. For each of the last ten years, between 20 and 30 percent of ordinands to diocesan priesthood were born outside of the United States. Most ordinands have been Catholic since birth, although one in ten (10 percent) became Catholic later in life. Four in five (83 percent) report that both of their parents are Catholic and close to two in five (37 percent) have a relative who is a priest or religious. Nearly one quarter (24 percent) of ordinands have five or more siblings. Conversely, only four percent have no siblings. The majority of ordinands have two to four siblings (52 percent) while twenty percent have one sibling. Education, Ministry, and Work Experience Before entering the seminary, three in five ordinands completed college (60 percent), with one in five receiving a graduate degree (20 percent). Among those who completed college before entering the seminary, seven in ten entered the seminary at the pretheology level and 19 percent entered at the theology level. One in three (34 percent) report entering the seminary while in college. Half of responding ordinands (49 percent) attended a Catholic elementary school, which is a rate slightly higher than that for all Catholic adults in the United States (42 percent). Ordinands are somewhat more likely than other U.S. Catholic adults to have attended a Catholic high school and much more likely to have attended a Catholic college (39 percent, compared to 7 percent among U.S. Catholic adults). Education, Ministry and Work Experience More than nine in ten ordinands (92 percent) report some type of full-time work experience prior to entering the seminary, most often in education. Fewer than one in ten have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Ordinands of the Class of 2010 have been active in parish ministries, with about half to three-quarters indicating they served as an altar server, lector, and/or Eucharisitic minister in their parish. One-fifth (19 percent) participated in a World Youth Day before entering the seminary. Two-thirds of ordinands report regularly praying the Rosary (67 percent) and participating in Eucharistic Adoration (65 percent) before entering the seminary. Vocational Discernment On average, responding ordinands report that they were about 18 when they first considered a vocation to the priesthood. About eight in ten (78 percent) were encouraged to consider the priesthood by a priest. Between percent report that friends, parishioners, or parents encouraged them to consider priesthood. Half of responding ordinands report that someone discouraged them from considering the priesthood. Respondents are more likely to cite a friend or classmate, or a parent or family member as discouraging them. Relatively few ordinands say that TV, radio, billboards or other vocational advertising were instrumental in their discernment. Two in five (42 percent) participated in a Come and See weekend before entering the seminary. Twice as many (85 percent) report that they have seen the Fishers of Men DVD published by the USCCB. Excerpt from The Class of 2010: Survey of Ordinands to the Priesthood, by Mary L. Gautier, Mary E. Bendyna, RSM, and Melissa A Cidade, March (Available on the USCCB website at Article reprinted with permission from The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), Georgetown Univ., Vol. 15, No.4, Spring New priests ordained! Four seminarians were ordained to the priesthood on May 15, 2010 at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. The Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki presided. One more will be ordained in July! Your prayers are integral as these five Saint Francis de Sales Seminary graduates begin their priesthood: John Burns, Mequon; Antony Primal Thomas, Racine; Erich Weiss, West Bend; Matthew Widder, Sheboygan Falls; Chuck Wrobel, Sheboygan. In addition to these five, 28 more are continuing in priestly formation signs of the Seminary s momentum and growth! Share in the excitement by celebrating this blessed time. Visit us at to learn more about each of our seminarians and view ordination photos. 2 Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish YEAR OF THE PRIEST

3 Justin Lopina St. Francis Seminary, Milwaukee The path that eventually led to my priestly vocation was something of an indirect one. Whereas many of my brother seminarians have possessed a lifelong call to priesthood, my faith and dedication to the church built up gradually throughout the years. In brief, Christ was always a part of my life, but I spent the first twenty years of it pursuing other interests. While those interests may have delayed my vocation, I've come into this community of seminarians with truly unique skills, talents, and knowledge rarely (if ever) used in conjunction with priestly ministry. If I must choose one specific moment to credit my discernment process upon, it would be a quiet afternoon in the spring of 2002: the second half of my sophomore year of college. Upon confirmation in high school, I found myself at a bit of a crossroads. For the first time in my life, I had the freedom to study religion on my own terms as opposed to in a classroom in front of a text book. For the rest of high school and my freshman year of college, I read, studied, and contemplated faith and religion. I came to deeply respect several of the world's faiths, and I ultimately made a concrete and free decision to remain Catholic. I take no pleasure in this order of events: I should have done such investigating before confirmation. Still, by the time I was twenty years old my faith had become an active and everpresent part of my life. I began to understand what transubstantiation really meant as the Holy Eucharist revealed itself to me in an immeasurably more complete way. Then, on that quiet afternoon in spring, I had my Eureka moment - that moment where everything comes into focus and an idea is permanently formed in one's mind. It took me a few days to fully grasp that idea in its totality, but when the process was complete, I wanted to be a priest someday. I was still two and a half years away from a bachelor's in physics and I still wanted to contribute to the scientific community first. I stuck with my physics major, and promised myself to the priesthood one day. The next few years of my life were rough. Don't listen to my mom: I'm not all that smart and I was a B student my whole life. Although I managed to graduate from college, it was clear that I was in no position to compete with other physics majors for graduate school positions or relevant jobs in the real world. For a number of reasons, I eventually found my way to the Peace Corps 18 months after graduating from Beloit College. Peace Corps is amazing for anyone serious about the commitment. It isn't easy and it isn't a vacation. Still, it has its own share of pleasures and there are few better ways to contribute to the real world after college. For me, I was immensely grateful for the experience because I was able to use my physics degree for something useful. When I realized that any proper research position had no need of me, I despised myself for having a practical and necessary degree which I was somehow unable to use. Peace Corps took one look at my application and declared me fit to teach grade school math and science in West Africa. Perfect. I may not be able to build a particle accelerator in my basement, but I can certainly pass on the fundamentals of scientific thought. For two years, that was my life. Naturally, people ask how Africa changed my faith after being surrounded by poverty and ignorance. My answer: not at all, thanks be to God! I learned a lot about my faith, the faith of others, the mission of the church, and any number of other things. Still, the heart of my faith? No change, and I wouldn't want it any other way. It is a great relief to know that my faith doesn't crumble when the going gets tough, and it's good to know that I have time for God even when life is comfortable and easy. Perhaps this is the result of faith tempered by reason and learning? My faith isn't bottomless or invincible or saint-like. What is it, then? It is stable. It is grounded in something greater and timeless than worldly events or conditions, or my current mood or immediate needs. Christ is in my life whether I'm filtering brown water taken from of a pump in the desert or eating an entire cheesecake by myself. Halfway through Peace Corps I decided that it was time to officially put Him first in my life, and I gave a call to the vocations office of Saint Francis de Sales Seminary. Father Lobacz and I had a few phone calls during my remaining year of Peace Corps, and I visited the seminary community for dinner on occasion once I got back home. The application process was lengthy, but not quite as painful as the Peace Corps' application. I was formally accepted into the priestly formation program about a year later and I began the Month Intensive Program in late July along with the other new arrivals. Reflecting on the past year, I can scarcely begin to describe all that's happened since I began my studies here. I can say this with confidence: it's quite amazing to think how quickly one adjusts to the lifestyle of a seminary community! At my best, I would attend Mass 3 times a week, but my average was closer to three times a month. I didn't pray the Liturgy of the Hours, and my private prayer time was quite brief by any standard. In no time at all, it felt perfectly natural to begin my day with Morning Prayer and Mass (about 45 minutes in all) before breakfast and class, and end my working day with evening prayer followed by dinner. All-in-all, I found this structure very purifying, like a spiritual form of exercise for my grossly out-of-shape prayer life! And of course, that sort of spiritual formation is exactly what the priestly formation program is for. As a pre-theology student, I had a few classes of religious study along with a selection of fundamental philosophy courses. These classes will provide the preparatory groundwork for my proper theological education beginning next year. While some have limited respect for the pre-theology program, I loved exploring the disciplines of philosophy from a distinctly Catholic perspective. I don't have to try very hard to envision this material used in a pastoral way in a few short years. That said, I eagerly await my first year of theology out of four. Continued on Page 4 3 THE VOICE JUNE YEAR OF THE PRIEST

4 Continued from prior page Justin Lopina Finally, I should end with the people in my life the most important part of any community. Among my fellow seminarians, we had a delightful mix of backgrounds and discernment. About half of us were fully diocesan, with the other half belonging to the Franciscans or The Community of Saint Paul. A portion of the seminary community comes from Colombia or Africa, and the rest of us are drawn from all over the diocese of Milwaukee. It's a good mix. As for the faculty, it's a great blessing to live in the same building as the priests, with whom we share our day in prayer. As one might imagine, a priest needs the fraternal support of fellow priests in his life, and those lifelong connections start today at the beginning of our vocations. Even now, with 86% of my formation program ahead of me, I can see that the seeds of true friendship within Christ's ministry are beginning to take root in my life as well as the lives of my fellow seminarians. That can be an easy blessing for any of us to take for granted. Closing Celebration for the Year of the Priest Join Archbishop Jerome Listecki in honor and appreciation for the Priests of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Friday, June 11, Basilica of St. Josaphat, Milwaukee 6:30 pm Rosary; 7:00 pm Concelebrated Holy Mass with Archbishop Listecki as Homilist. Reception to follow in the parish hall. All priests of the archdiocese are invited to concelebrate. This is a free event and tickets are not needed. Go to for more information. There is still much more to say about our lives here at Saint Francis de Sales, as well as exactly how I ended up here. Father Tony will be happy to pass on my contact info to anyone with further questions, and we delight in having visitors especially for Wednesday night evening prayer and dinner. If you're curious about what life's like here please come and pay us a visit! Welcome New Parishioners Leah Arndorfer Susan Butler Katherine Durand Judy Genthe Geno Smith Jake Trimberger Sandy Westphal Born Into God s Family Rylee Grace Witt daughter of Steven & Michelle Witt Married in Christ John Selthafner & Maia Terashvili Born to Eternal Life Mary Smith Viola Malone Marie Andrews Margaret McGrath Norman Catalano Kathy Hackett Erna Kaiser FAITH JOURNEYS Secrets of Successful Marriages (50+ years) By Cornel Rosario Catherine and Bill Hansen have been married to each other for over 70 years! They were wed on December 2, 1939 by Father James McCarthy at (old) St. Jerome s Church in Downtown Oconomowoc. They have two sons, two daughters, nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. When asked about the secret to their marriage longevity, Catherine responded: You need to take the marriage vow seriously. In my opinion, you forgive and forgive and forgive many, many times. Or you drive yourself crazy! YEAR OF THE PRIEST Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Parish 4

5 Greetings Blessed Teresa of Calcutta fellow parishioners, As I told you in my last update, I am currently a deacon candidate enrolled in the newly revamped Diaconate program for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Having successfully completed the Discernment process and year of Aspirancy, I am now beginning my third trimester of Year One in the actual Diaconate program. There are twelve men in the Diaconate class for the whole Archdiocese. Our school year for this program runs from September through July, divided into three trimesters. Our classes meet every Tuesday evening for approximately four hours, as well as all day every other Saturday, with breaks over Christmas and Easter. As a first year diaconal candidate, my studies this year have included Hebrew Scriptures, Ecclesiology, Moral Theology, Synoptic Gospels, Social Analysis, Pauline Theology, Christology and many other workshops. Besides my classes, currently I am involved in Societal Ministry Immersion which takes me to the Waukesha County Jail where I will experience jail ministry over the next several months. My wife attends several of the Saturday workshops along with the other deacon candidates wives, since the program stresses the importance of involving the whole deacon couple in this process. We also attended a Marriage Encounter Weekend this year as a requirement of the program, which helped to strengthen our commitment to each other during this challenging process. I want to thank you for your continued prayers and support as I continue on this spiritual journey. I feel fortunate to have been blessed with this opportunity to deepen my faith in God and to be able to serve Him in this way. I also wish to thank Fr. Tony for his prayers, guidance, and support. See you in Church, --Allen Olson Allen Olson Diaconate Program Brian Romportl Son of Tom & Mary Jo Romportl Pontifical North American College in Rome The years of seminary formation are a supremely privileged time. With the Church taking care of so many of our temporal needs, a seminarian is free to explore the "compelling beauty" and "beguiling truth" of God, both in the structured things (liturgy, class, ministries) as well as our own personal initiatives. The Lord certainly does not miss His opportunity to form, cajole, challenge, and ultimately encourage a man in his preparations for priesthood. Roman-trained seminarians are especially blessed to live and study in close proximity to the Pope. This proximity typically generates in the seminarian a great love for the Successor of Peter his person, his office, and his teaching. Also, having been exposed to so much of the Universal Church, I can say I am unabashedly proud of our particularly robust and resourceful American brand of Catholicism. Catholic parents with young kids should be confident that religious life is a good life. A Vocation Director once commented to me, "If young people out there knew how fulfilling this life is, they would be beating down our doors to get in." After four years (with the "honeymoon period" long past), I still heartily agree with that. Dear Fellow Parishioners, As the Year of the Priest comes to a close we have all hopefully become more aware of the special calling of the Priesthood. We should continue to thank and support those dedicated men who minister on a daily basis, bringing the Lord Jesus to us in so many ways. As the parent of a seminarian, I would ask that you please keep all priests in your prayers, along with those young men who are preparing for priesthood. Seminarians have answered that same special call from God, and most spend an additional six years after college going through the necessary preparation. The culmination is the beautiful celebration of Ordination, followed by a lifetime of ministering to others as Jesus did. St. John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and for our priests and seminarians. Amen. Mary Jo Romportl 5 THE VOICE JUNE 2010

6 RETURN ADDRESS REQUESTED Blessed Teresa of Calcutta P.O. Box 68, North Lake, WI Volume IV # 2 June 2010 NEWSLETTER STAFF Rev. Anthony T. McCarthy... Pastor Greg Budzien... Proofreader Joe & Dorothy Becker History/Did You Know Maria Neddersen... Writer Cornel Rosario....Writer Guest Writers: Justin Lopina, Allen Olson & Brian Romportl Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 2 North Lake, WI Articles, photos or other materials are due to the parish office by the 2 nd Tuesday of the month prior to the publication month. Please to: Neddersen@hotmail.com September Deadline: Aug 10, 2010 Parish Office: (262) Workcamp Golf Outing Saturday, June 5, 2010, 1:30 pm Silver Spring Golf Course 18 holes of golf, Cart with GPS, Driving Range services, Locker Room access, Buffet Dinner & Silent Auction. $109 per person or $400 per foursome. Attend Buffet Dinner & Silent Auction Only! The Silent Auction will be open throughout the afternoon. Dinner will be at 6:00 pm. Attend the dinner only. $25 per person. Call to register by June 1. Loaves and Fishes Meal Sunday, June 6, 2010 On Sunday, June 6, we will serve a meal of baked chicken, vegetables and desserts through the Cooperating Churches of Waukesha Country Loaves and Fishes program. We need your help with baked chicken (in pieces, at least two chickens), a homemade dessert, or help serving. We also need financial assistance for supplies. Sign-up sheets are in the back of church, or Shaun Pavlic at sapavlic@wi.rr.com. is preferred. You can also call her at and let her know how you can help. Please bring the donations by 11:00 am on Sunday, June 6, to the lower level of the North Lake church. There are refrigerators to keep the chicken chilled, and tables for the desserts. Thank you for any assistance in this ministry.