Wake me up when September...
Well----September just FLEW by. It's already 9 days into October!!
The formation program in Rome is unique because unlike most US Seminaries, the NAC is able to dedicate an entire month to formation events because university classes don't begin until the first week of October.
As you remember from my last update, my parents came to Rome!!!!!!!!!! I still can't believe they were here and I was able to show them a lot of my daily walking routes and the city and building that will be my "home" for the next few years.
Though September 1 was Labor Day in the US, it was the start of workshops for the Second Theologians at the North American College. The first week we had a series of morning workshops (8:30-1 with a 30 minute coffee break) on priestly identity, and then a 1 day workshop on leadership styles based on a profile that we filled out in the spring.
During the week on priestly identity, we discussed many aspects of the priest: beloved son, chaste spouse, spiritual father, head/shepherd and finally healer. The follow week was our silent retreat in the mountains of Greccio, where St. Francis created his first Christmas creche. We had been there for our First Year retreat, so it was fun to return to a familiar place and already know the nature trails we would want to walk, or where we would want to pray/explore etc.
The retreat was so peaceful and brought so many graces. It was very interesting to sit with one of the Spiritual Directors who was also on my first year retreat, because as I was speaking he interrupted me and asked me to pause for a moment and think about where I was at this time last year, and then to see how far God has brought me...it became a great moment of grace for me to see how He has worked in me over the past year, and it got me fired up for what He will do in me this year.
The third week of workshops were on homiletics. We would spend the morning talking about different styles of homilies, different ways of approaching the art of preaching, and watching clips of famous and not so famous preachers. In the afternoons we were divided into small groups of 4-5 guys and given a faculty moderator and different situations on which to preach (e.g. a wedding, Sunday Mass in a large parish, daily Mass at our home parish etc) based upon the readings of the day or the given situation. The homiletic workshops definitely made me have a "WOAH!"moment, because it made me realize the closeness of ordination (God willing)---in less than 2 years I could be a transitional deacon!!!
The last week of our workshops were an continuation of priestly identity but also an intense focus on priestly celibacy. That week we had morning and afternoon workshops, so it made for a long day--and on Friday it was the end of a very long week. However, throughout the week every conference drew me deeper into what our presenters talked about, whether priestly identity or celibacy and continued to stir up within me the desire to become a priest after the heart of Christ.
The first week of October is "deacon week" here at the college. The workshops have finished, and hundreds of pilgrims--family and friends of our 4th year men--descend upon the Eternal City for a week of activities leading up to their loved ones ordination to the transitional diaconate at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica.
Though ordination is always a special event, this year it was SUCH a joyous occasion! I had a gigantic smile on my face watching the ordinandi process from the sacristy towards the Altar of the Chair singing "Laudate Dominum, omnes gentes..." (Ps. 117 "Praise the Lord, all ye nations"). I was smiling so much for a couple reasons: first--I'd spent the previous year with the ordinandi when they were third year men (opposed to when I had met last years deacon class 3 weeks earlier, and was still trying to learn their names at the time of ordination!), so it was awesome seeing what God was about to do in their lives, and second--I thought about where I was regarding Rome this time last year, and I thanked God for the growth that I went through last year, and for the blessing that the College has been to my vocational journey.
This past Monday, we entered our "normal" schedule at NAC because classes began!! Monday-Wednesday and Friday we have Morning Prayer and Mass at 6:15 am, followed by breakfast and then classes, apostolates, formation activities, study time etc. Thursday we have Morning Prayer at 7 am and an evening Mass at 6:15 followed by AMERICA NIGHT (kitchen serves "American" food for supper), formation night and then fraternity time (either by state or by diocese...we have MA Night because we are 3 for the Archdiocese of Boston, 2 for the Diocese of Worcester and 1 for the Diocese of Fall River)
It's surreal to have started Second Theology...my 4th overall year of priestly formation!! Not only am I excited about the fact that I now want to be here in Rome---I am very excited about the courses that I have first semester: Pauline Corpus, Ecclesiology, Canon Law I, Sacraments of Initiation, Fundamental Moral Theology, Theological Moral Theology, US Church History, a seminar which has yet to be assigned---and possibly an optional course called "The initiative of Charles Borromeo and the formation of the diocesan cleric".
Not many reflections in this post--just an update as to what's been keeping me busy. Speaking of busy--off to do some work then get some time in with my Beloved before evening Mass.
Praised be Jesus Christ...
--KPL
The formation program in Rome is unique because unlike most US Seminaries, the NAC is able to dedicate an entire month to formation events because university classes don't begin until the first week of October.
As you remember from my last update, my parents came to Rome!!!!!!!!!! I still can't believe they were here and I was able to show them a lot of my daily walking routes and the city and building that will be my "home" for the next few years.
Though September 1 was Labor Day in the US, it was the start of workshops for the Second Theologians at the North American College. The first week we had a series of morning workshops (8:30-1 with a 30 minute coffee break) on priestly identity, and then a 1 day workshop on leadership styles based on a profile that we filled out in the spring.
During the week on priestly identity, we discussed many aspects of the priest: beloved son, chaste spouse, spiritual father, head/shepherd and finally healer. The follow week was our silent retreat in the mountains of Greccio, where St. Francis created his first Christmas creche. We had been there for our First Year retreat, so it was fun to return to a familiar place and already know the nature trails we would want to walk, or where we would want to pray/explore etc.
The retreat was so peaceful and brought so many graces. It was very interesting to sit with one of the Spiritual Directors who was also on my first year retreat, because as I was speaking he interrupted me and asked me to pause for a moment and think about where I was at this time last year, and then to see how far God has brought me...it became a great moment of grace for me to see how He has worked in me over the past year, and it got me fired up for what He will do in me this year.
The third week of workshops were on homiletics. We would spend the morning talking about different styles of homilies, different ways of approaching the art of preaching, and watching clips of famous and not so famous preachers. In the afternoons we were divided into small groups of 4-5 guys and given a faculty moderator and different situations on which to preach (e.g. a wedding, Sunday Mass in a large parish, daily Mass at our home parish etc) based upon the readings of the day or the given situation. The homiletic workshops definitely made me have a "WOAH!"moment, because it made me realize the closeness of ordination (God willing)---in less than 2 years I could be a transitional deacon!!!
The last week of our workshops were an continuation of priestly identity but also an intense focus on priestly celibacy. That week we had morning and afternoon workshops, so it made for a long day--and on Friday it was the end of a very long week. However, throughout the week every conference drew me deeper into what our presenters talked about, whether priestly identity or celibacy and continued to stir up within me the desire to become a priest after the heart of Christ.
The first week of October is "deacon week" here at the college. The workshops have finished, and hundreds of pilgrims--family and friends of our 4th year men--descend upon the Eternal City for a week of activities leading up to their loved ones ordination to the transitional diaconate at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica.
Though ordination is always a special event, this year it was SUCH a joyous occasion! I had a gigantic smile on my face watching the ordinandi process from the sacristy towards the Altar of the Chair singing "Laudate Dominum, omnes gentes..." (Ps. 117 "Praise the Lord, all ye nations"). I was smiling so much for a couple reasons: first--I'd spent the previous year with the ordinandi when they were third year men (opposed to when I had met last years deacon class 3 weeks earlier, and was still trying to learn their names at the time of ordination!), so it was awesome seeing what God was about to do in their lives, and second--I thought about where I was regarding Rome this time last year, and I thanked God for the growth that I went through last year, and for the blessing that the College has been to my vocational journey.
This past Monday, we entered our "normal" schedule at NAC because classes began!! Monday-Wednesday and Friday we have Morning Prayer and Mass at 6:15 am, followed by breakfast and then classes, apostolates, formation activities, study time etc. Thursday we have Morning Prayer at 7 am and an evening Mass at 6:15 followed by AMERICA NIGHT (kitchen serves "American" food for supper), formation night and then fraternity time (either by state or by diocese...we have MA Night because we are 3 for the Archdiocese of Boston, 2 for the Diocese of Worcester and 1 for the Diocese of Fall River)
It's surreal to have started Second Theology...my 4th overall year of priestly formation!! Not only am I excited about the fact that I now want to be here in Rome---I am very excited about the courses that I have first semester: Pauline Corpus, Ecclesiology, Canon Law I, Sacraments of Initiation, Fundamental Moral Theology, Theological Moral Theology, US Church History, a seminar which has yet to be assigned---and possibly an optional course called "The initiative of Charles Borromeo and the formation of the diocesan cleric".
Not many reflections in this post--just an update as to what's been keeping me busy. Speaking of busy--off to do some work then get some time in with my Beloved before evening Mass.
Praised be Jesus Christ...
--KPL
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