Archive for August, 2008
What is the Purpose of Work?
Sunday, August 31st, 2008
“The Aiken Standard”
By Rev. Jeff Kirby
Each year our country celebrates Labor Day. Its observance is a good time to pause and consider what the meaning and importance of work is for us and for our society.
Work is a large part of our day. It shapes our lives and the lives of our loved ones. But do we only work to survive and meet our material needs? Is there any other meaning to our work?
Perhaps many see work as only a burden and requirement of life. To many, it seems bizarre to think that there might be a greater meaning to our work. Within the Christian heritage, however, work is seen not only as a remedy to the consequences of original sin and as a way to provide for basic human needs, but work is seen as a real collaboration of the human person with God in perfecting the visible world.
Human work flows from those created in God’s image, and each person is called to extend the goodness of creation through his work. Work is meant to provide a dignified livelihood for the person and his family on the material, social and cultural level. But our labor is meant to go beyond that primary purpose.
In our work, each of us has a capacity to participate in the good of others and of our society, as well as consecrate the world and our workplace to God.
By doing good and respectable work, each of us can edify and build up our society and the world around us. Our work can give honor to our Creator and the talents we have received from him. Our homage to God should not be restricted to a house of worship or enclosed within an empty set of creedal statements. It should be reflected in a good day’s work.
Work is for the human person, not the human person for work. We are not meant to live for work, but we are called to work in order to fully live. Our labor is meant to give order and remedy to our lives, and to encourage solidarity with God and our neighbor. Work assists each of us in understanding our lives, human relationships, and the dynamics of society. If we allow it, work can foster a greater love and creativity within us.
As our country rests from its various forms of labor, it might be worth a few minutes to stop and consider what work means to us and how we wish to live as working people.
The Rev. Jeff Kirby, is the parochial vicar at St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church.
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In Praise of the Working Life
Sunday, August 31st, 2008
“National Catholic Register”
By Joseph Pronechen
Ah, Labor Day. A day to sit back, relax and soak up the unofficial end of summer. Push thoughts of the new school year aside? Maybe. Contemplate what our work means? Definitely.
“Work is meant to provide a dignified livelihood for ourselves and loved ones on the material level, but our work goes beyond that primary purpose,” says Father Jeffrey Kirby of St. Mary Help of Christians in Aiken, S.C. “By doing good work we honor our Creator, and we help edify and build up our society and the world around us. Our work is meant to give order and remedy to our lives and to encourage solidarity with God and with others.”
That purpose should propel us to honor God by doing an honest day’s work.
“Because we are made in God’s image we’re called to extend the work of God in the world,” continues the priest, who has clearly done his spiritual homework on work. “Pope John Paul II really stressed this collaboration and cooperation in his encyclical Laborem Exercens [Human Work]. We aren’t meant to live for work, but to work in order to fully live.”
Honest work, then, shouldn’t be seen as simply a secular burden or a spiritual punishment for original sin – even though work certainly has an element of fulfilling basic needs and redeeming the consequences of original sin. “Through our work, we participate in the good of others,” Says Father Kirby, “and we consecrate the world to God one cubicle at a time.”
Tom Spencer tries to do that both at home and as principal at St. Joachim Elementary School in Madera, Calif. Although he left secular education because he wanted to incorporate his faith into his work, he doesn’t think a person needs to be in a religious institution to appreciate the spiritual side of working.
“Work is difficult, and yet there’s value, purpose and meaning associated with it,” he says. “Even working around the house on common tasks can be fulfilling.”
The experts agree: Work is transformed when the worker sees his or her tasks as opportunities to align human effort with the building up of God’s Kingdom.
“We’re called to holiness through the ordinary, and that happens to be our work,” says Catholic business consultant, author and motivational speaker Dave Durand.
Durand, the Register’s “Working Life” columnist, adds that you know you’ve given an honest day’s work when “you can put your head on the pillow and say, ‘I gave everything I could as a good steward of the abilities God gave me.’”
Michele Spencer, Tom’s wife and mother of 11, knows the secret of finding supernatural satisfaction from work. The homemaker and home-schooling mom explains, “It’s something I love to do, so the yoke is easy. What we do, taking care of our children is building up the Kingdom of God, our society, the Church,” she says. “We forget our work’s true meaning because it seems so mundane. Making dinner and cleaning the house seems not that important, and yet, it’s the most important labor we can do. That’s why I enjoy most of what I do.”
Pope John Paul addressed exactly this point I his encyclical, writing, “Toil is…familiar to women, who, sometimes without proper recognition on the part of society and even of their own families, bear the daily burden and responsibility for their homes and the upbringing of their children.”
In those moments when she does not want to do a particular task around the house, Michele immediately remembers the Catechism’s teaching on how work sanctifies us, setting us apart for Christ. “Work honors the Creator’s gifts and the talents received from him. It can also be redemptive” (No. 2427).
For Tom, this includes the times he cuts the lawn, repairs the family car and helps Michele do the dishes. “Even when hot and grimy,” he says, “it’s fulfilling.”
Father Kirby points out, “I come from a family of mechanics. It was literally spirituality of the monkey wrench.” But today, he sees the contemporary world’s struggle with artificiality because it’s several steps removed from the sources of goods and services. People want their car fixed but can be turned off by the grease in the garage, and likewise with the dirt on the farmer or perspiration on the carpenter.
“Because we’re so far removed from that as a society, we tend to look at that type of work as less noble,” adds the priest. “Actually it’s that work, when done well, that builds solidarity in society and with God.”
He points out that St. Joseph was a carpenter while St. Paul supported his preaching ministry with a tent-making business.
Of course, not all work is honest and not every exertion honors God. It’s easy in the modern world to participate in efforts grounded in, or oriented toward, sin.
Durand cites as examples marketing that tempts people to indulge in their baser or most materialistic impulses and sales pitches that conceal the full truth about what’s being sold.
Work glorifies God when it helps us grow in virtue, he explains. Simply honoring the Ten Commandments in the workplace, moment by moment, can transform a “bad day at the office” into a saving and sanctifying experience.
“I know people who’ve been urged to fudge the truth and be comfortable about it, but they chose to stand up for what is right,” says Durand, “even when it meant being passed over for a promotion or risking termination.”
The Catechism teaches that “Work united to Christ can be redemptive” (No. 2460). John Paul told us how: by “uniting work with prayer.” Some people use the traditional morning offering. Tom Spencer turns to Pope St. Pius X’s prayer to St. Joseph, and he continues a practice he learned in grade school – writing “JMJ” at the top of a paper, as a reminder of the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, throughout the day.
“Christ waits for us in our work,” reminds Father Kirby. “He walks with us and labors with us.”
Staff writer Joseph Pronechen is based in Trumbull, Connecticut.
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Entry for Saturday, August 30, 2008
Saturday, August 30th, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
In our weekly parish bulletin, I’ve been writing a brief section on St. Paul, in honor of this special jubilee year. Some people have been encouraging me to publish the sections on this blog. I was hesitant, but let’s give it a shot:
The late John Henry Cardinal Newman wrote:
“Stephen’s prayer was wonderfully answered. He saw his Savior; the next vision of that Savior to mortal man was vouchsafed to that very young man, even Saul, who shared in Stephen’s murder and his intercession. Strange indeed it was; and what would have been St. Stephen’s thoughts could he have known it! The prayers of the righteous man avail much. The first Martyr has power with God to raise up the greatest Apostle.”
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Entry for Saturday, August 23, 2008
Sunday, August 24th, 2008
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man!
After the morning Mass at the parish, I headed to Columbia for a catechist training session at St. Joseph’s. There were about twenty people at the workshop.
My specific talk was on discipleship and the sacraments. The theme is more and more becoming one that is associated with me, and I periodically get requests for conferences on it. I certainly have some growth in my own understanding of this important theme, but I try to pass on what I already grasp (or think I grasp).
I think the question of discipleship and the sacraments cut to the core of the Christian message and the way of life it provides.
What does it mean to be a disciple? What is a sacrament? How are they related? How should they be related? What does one or the other look like if they are separated?
I suspect that the misunderstanding of their relationship is why we lose so many from the Catholic Church, and it’s in re-discovering their unity that brings so many back (or into) the Catholic Church.
It’s my hope to eventually write an article on this theme.
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Entry for Friday, August 22, 2008
Sunday, August 24th, 2008
Hail Mary, Full of Grace!
Today, the Church celebrates the beautiful feast day of Mary’s queenship. It’s a time to honor the privileged place given to Mary by her divine Son. We ask for her prayers.
This afternoon I had my first senior seminar at Cardinal Newman High School. I’ll be serving as an adjunct faculty member at the high school, teaching a senior seminar to the students.
I met the students of the seminar today. They seem to be an energetic and engaging group.
We reviewed the possible topics of the seminar. The ones I provided to the group included: Justification: By faith or works? ; Jesus of Nazareth: Lord, Liar, or Lunatic? ; Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary: Instrument or Idol? ; One Truth, But Many Religions? ; Witness – Yes – Public Witness – Uncertain? ; Discipleship and Sexuality – Really? ; Self-Determination and the Care of the Poor – Is there a Balance? ; Prayer and Spirituality – Are they Possible? ; From Auschwitz to Abortion: Does the Human Person have Dignity? ; The Natural Law and Public Discourse – Can we Talk? ; Suffering and Evil – Where is God?; Protology and Evolution: Where Did We Come From? ; The Human Person and the Environment: Are we Responsible? ; Truth and Conscience: How Do We Make a Decision?
There were several choices.
The students, however, narrowed them down to three: One Truth, But Many Religions? ; Self-Determination and the Care of the Poor – Is there a Balance? ; and, Suffering and Evil – Where is God?
From these three, the group chose: Self-Determination and the Care of the Poor – Is there a Balance?
I was surprised but encouraged by their choice. This was one of the more philosophical and social of the choices given. My task with them this year will be to explore this topic. We’ll be meeting every Friday afternoon for the Fall semester.
Maybe it’ll take a group of seniors in high school to solve one of our pressing social questions. We pray…
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He Finally Had to Say Yes or No
Sunday, August 24th, 2008
“The National Catholic Register”
August 24, 2008
Page C2
By Joseph Pronechen
For some, thoughts of a vocation come early. “Probably the first time I thought of being a priest was in fourth grade,” Father Jeffrey Kirby, 33, parochial vicar of St. Mary Help of Christians in Aiken, S.C., distinctly remembers. “My mom was picking me and my sister up from fourth grade, and I was wondering what girl in the grade would be my girlfriend. Then I thought: ‘Well, I’ll just become a priest and I can love them all.’ Now I look back and see
God was fashioning my heart for celibacy and faithful priesthood.”
More fashioning came during other childhood events in the Kirby household of dad Alan, mother Fran, and Father Kirby’s older brother and younger sister.
“When I was a kid, my dad built us a clubhouse, and I turned it into a church. I preached and kids would come – probably more for my mom’s cupcakes than my preaching,” says Father Kirby. “Obviously, I had things like a
desire to share on my heart.”
Because he desired to be a good Christian and wanted his faith to be part of his education, he went to the Franciscan University of Steubenville. Studying history, he planned to go to law school and work in human rights. During his last year of graduate school at Franciscan, everything was going right in his life, and his future looked bright.
“But I felt things were going wrong,” he explains. “Spiritually, I felt so heavy and melancholy, and I couldn’t understand it.”
He visited a priest for counsel. “There’s one question, and until you answer this question and say Yes or No, your life will always be ambiguous,” he was told.
“I was lukewarm at the time and thought I had my plan – when he really put it there right in front of me,” Father Kirby says. He then realized in prayer that God was calling for that Yes or No.
“Vocations are very simple,” Father Kirby explains. “The Master turns and says to his disciple, ‘Follow me.’ And it’s just a matter of saying a generous Yes. He asks for a generous Yes – not, ‘I’ll think about it.’ The rest is history.”
After priestly formation and studies in Rome, he was ordained in July 2007 for the Diocese of Charleston, S.C., by Bishop Robert Baker, now ordinary of Birmingham, Ala. Father Kirby was one of six new priests, the largest group ordained for that diocese since the 1950’s.
On his first anniversary, people asked Father Kirby several times if the priesthood was everything he thought and expected. He had the same answer for everyone. “No, not at all. It is so much more than I could have ever expected – and I had high expectations. It’s so much more than what I could have imagined in the celebration of the sacraments, pastoral ministry, preaching the Gospel. The priesthood is a beautiful gift Christ has given the Church. For some reason, God has decided to share the gift and give that vocation to me.”
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Entry for August 20, 2008
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
Yesterday was the first day of school for our parochial school. It was great to see all of the smiling young faces again. They may not want to admit it, but I think the students were also happy to be back.
This year, I’ll be teaching religion again to the seventh grade students. Our task will be to walk through salvation history. My goal is to let the students really “walk through” salvation history in skits, small group activities, prayer, etc.
Anyone who seeks to teach religion must make the connection with the students and show them why these truths are essential to our lives. I can’t imagine how people can teach the truths of faith without excitement and zeal.
Please pray for the young people of our Church.
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Entry for August 18, 2008
Monday, August 18th, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
This past Friday and Saturday, I was in Myrtle Beach with a group of about 30 young people from throughout South Carolina.
The group is called the E-Team, short for the Evangelization Team. They’re a dedicated group of young people who assist with diocesan conferences for younger grades and their peers.
The group was extremely impressive, both in their desire for holiness and their outgoing personalities. Truly, they will help many encounter Christ and hear his call in their hearts.
The experience reminded me of Pope John Paul II’s letter, “On the Mission of the Redeemer.” In it, he wrote: “Today, as never before, the Church has the opportunity of bringing the Gospel, by witness and word, to all people and nations. I see the dawning of a new missionary age, which will become a radiant day bearing an abundant harvest, if all Christians, and missionaries and young churches in particular, respond with generosity and holiness to the calls and challenges of our time” (#92).
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Entry for August 13, 2008
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Praised be Jesus Christ!
The other day I was going through some old things and I ran across a quote from St. Francis of Assisi. I first read it while I was a student at the Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio. It had a powerful effect on me then, and it was a grace to come across it again now.
The quote reads:
“We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way.”
Is there any greater summary of the Church’s mission in the world?
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First Year: Newly Ordained Adjust to Life as Priests
Thursday, August 7th, 2008
“The Catholic Miscellany”
By Christina Lee Knauss
The day-to-day lives of Catholic priests are often unpredictable, with new challenges and assignments that arise without warning. Parishioners need guidance or counseling, a Scripture study class needs a teacher, a baby needs baptizing.
This was true of the first year of service for four of the priests ordained for the Diocese of Charleston on July 27, 2007. In interviews with The Miscellany, they described working with youth groups and senior citizens, studying abroad, writing articles for parish bulletins and leading classes.
One common thread carried through as they reflected on their first year. All said they feel gratitude and humility at the opportunity to celebrate Mass, to spread the Gospel and to serve Catholic communities around the diocese.
Father Bryan Babick, 30, said the first months of his priesthood meant hitting the books. In residence this summer at St. John the Beloved in Summerville, he recently returned from studying at the Pontifical University of St. Anselm in Rome, where he earned a licentiate in sacred liturgy.
“St. Anselm is a Benedictine school that is a subsection of the Pontifical Institute of Liturgy founded by Pope John XXIII,” he said. “We studied the sacraments, the different liturgical rites and how they developed. It was a tremendously enriching experience.”
Father Babick said one of the most memorable aspects of studying in Rome was the chance to visit the city’s many holy sites and attend Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. He said some of this classmates actually concelebrated Mass with Pope Benedict XVI. Father Babick celebrated Mass at other historic churches in Rome.
In Summerville, he helps out however he can. He celebrates the liturgy, hears confessions and does other work around the parish.
Celebrating the Mass each day for me is the most life-changing and moving experience, and just connecting with people as a Catholic priest is very moving… I’ve been receiving support from everybody I’ve come into contact with, whether on an airplane or in Rome or here in Summerville,” he said. “People are so supportive and encouraging, and that’s been incredibly confirming for me as a new priest.”
Father Timothy Gahan, 63, learned to adapt to change during his first year, as he moved from a large parish in the state capital to one in a bustling tourist community.
His first assignment was at St. Joseph in Columbia, where he worked with Father Richard Harris, pastor and diocesan administrator for vocations. While at St. Joseph, Father Gahan did everything from teaching Scripture to working with the students at St. Joseph School.
In January he was assigned to St. Andrew Church in Myrtle Beach, where he served as administrator pro tem until Msgr. Joseph Roth was appointed administrator later in the year.
He said it was challenging to learn the ropes at parishes of similar size that serve very different congregations. Both parishes have many long-time residents and young families, but St. Andrews also caters to retirees, “snowbirds” who spend a few months a year on the Grand Strand, and thousands of Catholic tourists who visit Myrtle Beach each year.
“At St. Andrew, we get the beach traffic – from families to bike week, we get it all,” he said. “That’s the principal difference between the two parishes. They’re alike in most respects, especially in that they’re both wonderful faith communities.”
Challenges are not new to Father Gahan. He is a widower and father of two grown children, as well as a retired colonel from the U.S. Marine Corps.
At St. Andrew, he helped organize and celebrate Holy Week and the parish’s traditionally huge Easter Masses, which are held at the Palace Theatre and draw more than 2,000 people. He recruited a friend and fellow priest from New York to help him celebrate Masses that week.
The Easter Vigil was the biggest challenge, he said.
“There’s so much going on during that Mass, it’s not the sort of thing you do all the time, and I’d never done it before,” Father Gahan said. “But the faithful were here and they were very good to me and they helped me out, so it all went well.”
Father Gahan said he’s been lucky to work with pastors who encouraged him to learn about all aspects of parish ministry.
“Both Father Harris and Msgr. Roth are like-minded about new priests – they believe they should get involved and learn about virtually everything that goes on in a parish, from the school to the different organizations and clubs,” he said. “They’ve both been very helpful, encouraged me and answered my questions…It’s just been a marvelous, amazing year, more than I could ever describe.”
Two of the other new priests spent the past year spreading the Gospel across generational lines. Father Jeffrey Kirby, 33, learned to minister to both high school students and families during his work at St. Mary Help of Christians in Aiken.
“The priesthood has been much more than I ever expected,” he said. “The first year in any vocation is spent kind of figuring things out, and I’ve received nothing but confirmation of my own vocation. I’ve learned lessons in pastoral ministry that I hope will only make me a better priest.”
He spent his first three months after ordination serving at St. Andrew Church in Clemson and its two missions: St. Paul the Apostle in Seneca and St. Francis in Walhalla.
He was scheduled to return to Rome for further study, but asked to remain in the diocese to learn more about working in a parish.
In October 2007, he was assigned to the Aiken church as a parochial vicar. There, he joined the parish’s active youth program, including its vibrant Life Teen community. He became so popular that young people from St. Mary’s showed up at a diocesan youth conference in March wearing T-shirts with the slogan “Kirby’s Krew” in his honor.
“That’s a grace of being a young priest – it’s a great chance to reach out and kind of connect with young people and show them how the faith is helpful and relevant,” Father Kirby said, “I’ve only been out of high school for 15 years, but I can’t even imagine the differences, the stress high schoolers are under today. There are good and bad opportunities for young people out there, and I want to show them how the Catholic faith can be helpful to them in their struggles for identity.”
Father Kirby was one of the keynote speakers at the conference.
Speaking at the youth conference caused some anxiety, but it was great to be able to talk [about] someone I love, God, with the young people who also want to love him,” he said.
At St. Mary’s, Father Kirby also works with the parish’s popular “intergenerational ministry” program, where adults, young children and teens all study the same aspect of Catholic faith in age-appropriate groups, and then go home to discuss the topics as a family.
In addition to celebrating Masses, Father Kirby makes hospital visits, celebrates Mass at area nursing homes, and teaches seventh-grade religion at St. Mary Help of Christians School.
“The priesthood is a lot of work, which I love,” he said. “Every once in a while a friend or someone will say ‘you look tired,’ and I consider it a blessing to be tired from doing something you love.”
Father Andrew Trapp, 27, said working with young people at St. Gregory the Great in Bluffton has been one of the most fulfilling parts of his vocation. He has served there as parochial vicar since shortly after his ordination. He works with Msgr. Martin T. Laughlin, administrator for the Diocese of Charleston, who is also pastor at the church.
The steadily growing parish currently lists membership of more than 2,400 households.
Father Trapp helps teach religion classes at St. Gregory the Great School, which has about 181 students in pre-K through sixth grades. He also visits classes and celebrates Mass for the students.
“One of the things holding me back from becoming a priest was the thought of giving up being a husband and a dad, so it’s very fulfilling to be able to work with kids now that I’m a priest,” he said. “That’s been the most fun aspect of this year.”
One of his main projects is collaborating with the church’s youth ministers to build an active youth group.
“We have several hundred high school age youth here at the parish, and we’re trying to get them organized and involved,” Father Trapp said. “I’ve really enjoyed working with the youth.”
Father Trapp said he finds the greatest spiritual fulfillment in the sacramental life of the parish.
“It’s been such a joy to celebrate Mass every day, and to celebrate the other sacraments, especially hearing confessions and ministering to the sick,” he said. “That has been a very humbling and joyful experience.”
Some of the young people he comes in contact with have decided the new priest has a celebrity look-alike.
“Both the high school kids and the little kids often tell me I remind them of Peter Parker in Spiderman,” he said. “I’ve told them without hesitation that if I had a choice of being a priest or being Spiderman, I would choose being a priest. It’s been amazing.”
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