TheOliverOrder88 Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 The little vocation club I started, "The Saint Benilde Society", was hosted today by His Excellancy Archbishop Raymond Leo Burke. Yep. I have to say though, we might have bluffed him a bit. As of late, this year, we have had trouble getting together and the amount of people that showed up was a bit more than normal. Still... I enjoyed it, to say the least. Btw: I am completely finished with my application to Cardinal Glennon College Seminary...waiting for the letters of recommendation and the final call from Father Cronin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnificat Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 Awesome! Archbishop Burke is such a wonderful and holy man. Congrats on finishing your application...happy waiting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the lords sheep Posted December 16, 2006 Share Posted December 16, 2006 Congratulations on finishing your application. May God's will be done! ps- Vocation club = cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philosopher Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 ArchBishop Burke in the area = Explosion of Vocations =) I am very jelous Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnificat Posted December 23, 2006 Share Posted December 23, 2006 Sounds like your group made quite an impression on His Excellency! From the diocesean paper this week with an excellent plug for vocations: [quote]On Dec. 15, I visited with the members of the St. Benilde Society...a student organization devoted to the promotion of vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life through prayer and personal vocational discernment...The St. Benilde Society was founded by a student at CBC who is currently in his senior year and completing his application for admission to Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. Thirteen young men took part in the Dec. 15 meeting, in which Father Michael T. Butler, director of the Office of Vocations, and I participated. Throughout the meeting, I was impressed by the young men’s sincere interest in and enthusiasm for the priestly vocation. Not all of them are hearing the call to the priesthood or consecrated life, but all of them are asking the question regarding their own vocation. As you can imagine, it takes strong faith and character to be active in a club that prays for and promotes vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life. The hour that I spent with these young men filled me with new hope and new joy in carrying out my fundamental responsibility to assist those who are hearing the call to the priesthood and consecrated life. New priestly vocations My meeting with the St. Benilde Society at CBC is indicative of something happening throughout the archdiocese. God, in a most generous way, is inspiring many young men to consider the vocation to the priesthood. This past September, I admitted 11 new archdiocesan seminarians to the college program at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary, four to the pre-theology program and four to the theology program. In addition, three of our archdiocesan seminarians who graduated from the college program in May of this year entered a theology program, two at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary and one at the Pontifical North American College. While new men are beginning their priestly formation, Father Butler continues to help me in assisting other young men who are hearing the call to the priesthood but have not yet entered the seminary. Already, a good number of young men have expressed an interest in entering Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in the fall of 2007 in order to prepare themselves for priestly service in the archdiocese. Three have already completed their application process and have been admitted. It is certainly not just a question of the number of our seminarians. Through the process of application for the seminary and after entrance into the seminary, I am blessed to get to know our seminarians. I visit with them at length on walks which we take together and at other meetings, and I am with them as often as possible at our seminary. The quality of our seminarians is excellent. Many of you have witnessed the excellence of our seminarians through their pastoral work in your parishes or through their presentations, at this time of the year, inviting your support of the annual seminary collection. God is indeed blessing us. Priestly vocations and the birth of Christ Why do I write on priestly vocations just before Christmas? Because the call of young men to the priesthood is one of the outstanding signs of Christ’s faithful coming into our lives in the Church, since He first came at Bethlehem. In the call of priests, we see in a wonderful way the desire of Christ, as our Head and Shepherd, to be with us always and in every part of the world. The profound hope and joy which we experience in young men praying about and responding to the call to the priesthood has its source in the experience of the immeasurable love of Christ for us all through the ministry of His priests. Yes, the greatest sign of Christ’s faithful dwelling with us in the Church is the Holy Eucharist. Christmas is, above all, a eucharistic feast, for Christ was born in time, in order to sacrifice His life for our salvation on Calvary, the sacrifice which is ever new for us in the celebration of the Holy Mass. Our hope and joy at the new priestly vocations in the archdiocese is directly connected with the Holy Eucharist, for the heart of the priestly vocation and mission is the offering of the Eucharistic Sacrifice in the person of Christ. So many other encounters with Christ in the Church are directly connected with the priestly ministry. Christ’s gift of new priestly vocations is the gift of Himself to us in many and wonderful ways. Our grateful prayer and sacrifice Christmas, then, is a time when we pray for priestly vocations with special fervor. We pray for those who are hearing Christ’s call, that they will have the wisdom and courage to respond with a totally generous heart. We pray also for our seminarians, that they will be granted the graces of purity of heart and perseverance in responding to Christ’s call. Fittingly, Christmas is also the annual time when I ask all of the faithful of the archdiocese to make a sacrifice from their means for the preparation of the future priests of the archdiocese. One of the greatest blessings God has given to the archdiocese is Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. Having received the gift of the seminary, it is our responsibility to make the sacrifices necessary so that it can continue its more than 175-year tradition of educating and forming men to receive priestly ordination and to exercise the priestly ministry on behalf of countless souls. Please be as generous as you are able, when the annual seminary collection is taken in your parish on Christmas. Be assured that you and your many intentions will be remembered in my prayers on Christmas, especially at Midnight Mass and Mass on Christmas Day, and throughout the Christmas Season. May God grant you a special measure of His joy and peace through our annual celebration of the Birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas! [/quote] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurkeFan Posted December 23, 2006 Share Posted December 23, 2006 [quote name='magnificat' post='1147693' date='Dec 22 2006, 11:34 PM'] Sounds like your group made quite an impression on His Excellency! From the diocesean paper this week with an excellent plug for vocations: [/quote] I cannot read that article and not hear Archbishop Burke's voice reading it in my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djc08 Posted December 24, 2006 Share Posted December 24, 2006 Archbishop Burke is a totally awesome man. Olive do you go to Chirstian Brothers? I was kind of introduced to their order as a possible vocation of mine. And the St. Benilde Society sounds awesome. I will remember to keep you all in my prayers. Oh and a definite congratulations on finishing the whole seminary application process. One of my friends said it was quite a nightmare in the good sense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOliverOrder88 Posted December 24, 2006 Author Share Posted December 24, 2006 [quote name='djc08' post='1148422' date='Dec 23 2006, 10:08 PM'] Archbishop Burke is a totally awesome man. Olive do you go to Chirstian Brothers? I was kind of introduced to their order as a possible vocation of mine. And the St. Benilde Society sounds awesome. I will remember to keep you all in my prayers. Oh and a definite congratulations on finishing the whole seminary application process. One of my friends said it was quite a nightmare in the good sense [/quote] Yes, I go to a high school "run" by the Christian Brothers. We have only a couple (about 4) that actually have anything to do with the school. Only about two teach.... They are barely surviving here in America, but I think there is a bit of a resurgence in the third world. Be careful though, alot of them (at least some of them that I have come across) are rather liberal. They don't have such of a sacramental outlook, but focus more on social justice issues. I do know most of them have a tremendous dedication to education. I think they have a Lasallian emergence program that is supposed to plant seeds of a possible vocation in young men that want to get into teaching. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littleflower+JMJ Posted December 24, 2006 Share Posted December 24, 2006 Wow, to get an archbishop to come must have been awesome! I"ve heard lots of great things about this Bishop too! Congrats on the successful meeting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurkeFan Posted December 24, 2006 Share Posted December 24, 2006 [quote name='TheOliverOrder88' post='1148494' date='Dec 24 2006, 01:13 AM'] Yes, I go to a high school "run" by the Christian Brothers. We have only a couple (about 4) that actually have anything to do with the school. Only about two teach.... [/quote] Wow, I probably know two of your teachers, well, teachers at CBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stlmom Posted December 24, 2006 Share Posted December 24, 2006 and Merry Christmas to all you St. Louis guys considering the priesthood! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOliverOrder88 Posted December 26, 2006 Author Share Posted December 26, 2006 [quote name='BurkeFan' post='1148838' date='Dec 24 2006, 03:40 PM'] Wow, I probably know two of your teachers, well, teachers at CBC. [/quote] And those would be? Brother David, Brother Bernard, Brother Chuck, and/or Brother Larry? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurkeFan Posted December 27, 2006 Share Posted December 27, 2006 [quote name='TheOliverOrder88' post='1149621' date='Dec 25 2006, 11:40 PM'] And those would be? Brother David, Brother Bernard, Brother Chuck, and/or Brother Larry? [/quote] Oh, two lay teachers, though I'm not sure if I should be giving out names. I'm not sure why I'm not sure, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnificat Posted December 28, 2006 Share Posted December 28, 2006 [quote name='BurkeFan' post='1147800' date='Dec 22 2006, 11:12 PM'] I cannot read that article and not hear Archbishop Burke's voice reading it in my head. [/quote] Haha! He does have a very distinctive voice doesn't he? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOliverOrder88 Posted December 29, 2006 Author Share Posted December 29, 2006 (edited) [quote name='BurkeFan' post='1150214' date='Dec 26 2006, 11:03 PM'] Oh, two lay teachers, though I'm not sure if I should be giving out names. I'm not sure why I'm not sure, either. [/quote] Its cool. I almost hesitated to post my previous post.... I would have PMed you, but nevermind then. If you look in the picture in the Saint Louis Review.... I am the one you can barely see on the near left with the long side burns... Just for a reference. Edited December 29, 2006 by TheOliverOrder88 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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