Sounds like another fantastic movie I haven't seen!
Actually, "Airplanes and Chinatown" abstractly defines my imminent return to Boston for my third year of seminary formation. I'll fly a 1-stop flight from Los Angeles to New York's La Guardia, and then hike to Chinatown NYC to catch a bus to Boston's Chinatown, a solid 20-minute walk from home at St. Clement's. If you see me after this ordeal, ask me about it!
I am excited to go back. I'm told I often hide my excitement, so here it is in writing: I'm excited! It has been an incredibly busy summer, with lots of work and lots of get-togethers, and I've enjoyed being busy. But the time has come, as inevitably it does, and now I must return to the seminary in Boston.
In one sense, I haven't left - keeping most of the Liturgy of the Hours over the summer months is a constant reminder of the community I belong to. And I've kept in touch with my brother Oblate seminarians, hearing of their adventures and sharing mine. In another sense, I have definitely been away. The type of work I was doing (technical writing, computer programming, and various technical labor) was inconsistent with the work and study of a seminarian, and the spectrum of social interactions I was a part of during the summer are not typical of seminary life per se.
This discord or discrepancy is, at least, an opportunity for discernment. Seeing the contrast, to which lifestyle am I being called? What elements of each am I called to combine, and are they altogether compatible with one another? This is by no means science built from matrices of experimentations, most of which yield no result. But in our humanity, these questions can begin to frame our discernment.
For me, general sentiments have played a large part in my discernment so far. Noticing how I feel as I begin to consider one state or option is so very important - is this situation troubling me and how? How would I characterize my discomfort in considering this option - do negatives rightfully deter me from it or are perceived negatives actually positive challenges I am called to face? This is at the heart of St. Ignatius' discernment of spirits - understanding that for a soul in a particular state, the good spirit may either challenge or encourage, and the bad spirit the same, but we have to train ourselves to recognize and follow the possibly painful good, always.
So off I go, with good material for meditation, and with plenty of time to do it! I greatly appreciate and humbly request your prayers for me and my brothers, and offer mine for you. As Fr. Jeremy articulated this morning, your prayers bear the fruit of men and women being open to hear God's voice calling to them, and being open to his strengthening graces to respond to that call.
As always, let us place our lives in the hands of our Blessed Mother and beg her to offer us to Her Son!
Love the Immaculata!
Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca
Prayer I learned at St. Maria Goretti's, which is prayed daily before their chaplet/rosary:
ReplyDelete"Father, in every generation you provide ministers of Christ and the Church. We come before you now, asking that you call forth more men to serve our Archdiocese in the ministerial priesthood.
Give us priests who will lead and guide your holy people gathered by Word and Sacrament. Bless us with priestly vocations so that we can continue to be a truly Eucharistic Church, strengthened in our discipleship of Jesus Christ, your Only Son.
Raise up, we pray, men who are generous in their service, willing to offer their lives and all their gifts for your greater glory and for the good of your people.
We make our prayer in the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, through Christ, Our Lord. Amen"
"Daily Prayer for a Seminarian
Until his Ordination to the Priesthood
(Used by the Curé D'Ars Prayer Group Members)
O Jesus, Eternal High Priest,
I offer You through Your Immaculate Mother Mary,
Your own Precious Blood, in all the Masses throughout the world, as petition for graces for all seminarians, Your future priests, especially for......
Give them humility, meekness, prudence, and a burning zeal for soul. Fill their hearts with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Teach them to know and love the church, that they may always and everywhere speak, act, and think with her, the glorious spouse of Christ.
Teach them generosity and detachment from wordly goods; but above all, teach them to know You and to love the One and Only Eternal Priest. good Shepherd of Souls, hear this my prayer for saintly priests.
Amen."
It all starts with Mary. Love the Immaculata! :)
Good luck in your third year formation. I will keep you in my prayers. Hail Mary, full of grace!
ReplyDeleteisn't it cheaper to fly directly to boston? the chinatown buses to boston are cheap but i've read that they go very fast and not too safe.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is cheaper to fly directly to Boston, but I was locked into flying a certain airline that does not fly to Boston due to changed flight plans for another trip earlier this year. The bus was fun, but I'd rather not book such a hectic trip again. Retreat this week, starting in a couple hours - see you on the other side!
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