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If you had asked me back in the days of yore which Institute of Consecrated Life i would join, you would have been disappointed. Very. There was no pius ambition; no holy desire to work in the Vineyard. Drinking a glass of wine was the closest i came to any vine. So, how did i wind up consecrated, ordained and commited to a country (Ukraine) as familiar to me as chopsticks? It probably all started with a housing shortage. Being a freshman at a miniscule school, i was packed, sardine-like, into on campus housing made for two - with three others. Two were seniors who had recently converted to the Catholic Faith. "No. 4"was a very smart, long-haired, big-time-rock-n-roller who had a peculiar weed growing in his modest living space. While "Rock-n-Roll" and i disected (dead) cats together, i really tended to sympathize more with our Catholic Elders. They had a joy and depth which i - crade Catholic - did not. So what did they do? They read St. Thomas Aquinas, prayed the rosary, and found inspiration in the Mass. I was way to concerned playing the intellectual to lose time with such fanatical practices. Yet, they were young, smart, and had a good time without sin. So, when no one was looking, i tried their recipe, and bang! i got a spiritual life! Pity apologetic answers, and devotions with divine promises, were magnetic for me. While others planned career strategies, i hankered for a short, neat, painless, stainless, jump to holiness. I went from the Great Books of the Western World to the Good Book of the next world. Logic was on my side. If i was happier giving more time to the Source of joy, then i would happiest when i was closest to Him. Thus began my odessey through pamphlets, visits, books and spiritual directions to find my vocation. Each path seemed to have good and bad. Pluses included: eucharistic adoration, fidelity to the Pope, the rosary, a nifty habit, an orthodox education; Minuses meant divided communities, rebellion against the Magiesterium, tepidity towards Mary, loneliness and a superficial formation. I used to consult Our Lady with the latest pluses and minuses, and asked her to put me where she wanted. Then i met Miles Jesu and, after myriad questions on both sides, i decided to give it a try. That was 22 consecrated years ago. Here i found what was good elsewhere while avoiding the problems - and much more... one example is education. When i was deciding to join, i needed one year more to finish a college degree in Arizona. Trusting in our Generous God, i joined not having finished university. God gave me not one, but 5 years of education at a Pontifical University in Rome and ordination by Pope John Paul II. Mary led me here, and took care of everything after that. To be saints by whole-hearted availability and fidelity to the Church is our goal. That's why i would say to whoever is seriously commited to living the Gospel - in Mary's Heart - "Come and see!" Don't wait for a housing shortage. |
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