The swan song of a priest

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edward_george1

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So since everyone else is doing this, I will too.

I must first be grateful for CAF, given that I joined this forum as a teenager, and I can probably credit a lot of my growth in the faith to it.

I must also say that I am still astonished that after four and a half years as a priest, during which time I was on and off the forums, mostly on, at the level of disrespect which is shown to the clergy on here. I suppose such is life on the internet; everyone is an expert at everything. My greatest frustrations here were when people tried to tell me how to do my job. Trust me, I have parishioners who can do that.

But I must also be grateful for the friends I’ve made, the prayers that have been offered for me, and most of all, for the joy of knowing that I had some kind of influence on people. It’s a real privilege to serve, and gives me great peace knowing that God can use me to do so. And I have had opportunities for that here. I know that I may never see the fruits of the efforts that God allowed me to put forth, at least not in this life. But I pray that I was able to do some good, for those who would listen.

Goodbye, farewell, and Amen.
 
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I was only on CAF for less than a year. If I had known there were actual priests here I would have been ecstatic. I have always been intimidated by priests in awe of them actually. As a kid I read a lot of Lord of the Rings and imagined priests to be WIZARDS like Gandalf or Obi-Wan Kenobi. All the times I attended mass as a kid and as a young adult the priests would stay and talk with people in the main lobby of the church wearing WIZARD/JEDI ROBES (vestments) 😉 and I would be so SHY to say hello and once right before I came to China I went to mass with my Uncle/Godfather and he wanted the priest to give me a blessing. I was SO NERVOUS. Never shook a Priest’s hand before much less even exchanged hellos. Anyways don’t be discouraged by all the haters you see on the internet. There are also people like me who have the utmost respect and admiration for the clergy.
 
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Always grateful for our shepherds, who are especially chosen and entrusted to the care of souls. Peace.
 
I dont know what your deal is but I think you take things way too seriously. good bye to you.
 
Duke12VonFalkenburg said:
I know that. It’s a joke referring to a child’s awe of it. A joke. Have you heard of it? Relax.
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Well, I have to confess, it made me laugh.

I have been a priest now for a very long time. But I still try to be conscientious for that person who may be too shy to approach. Oh! And the funniest things people say when they are nervous! Looking at your user name…a member of one of the European royal families and I have traded stories in that vein – the funniest things nervous people have blurted out or acted out.

I was very touched by what you wrote – and I hope you are overcoming your shyness

No – I have been on the receiving end of real disrespect…the disrespect that comes from anti-clericalism and atheistic communism. THAT is not pleasant.

I remember the days, many years ago, when the servers at a parish referred to one of the chasubles as “Princess Leia’s outfit.” Don’t ask me which Star War’s movie it involved because I wouldn’t have a clue. Well…by the end, that was what I was calling it myself when I would send one of them to the wardrobe to fetch it.

Wizard robes…Harry Potter. One hears a lot…if you manage to live long enough.
 
I was in an antique shop one time, I think I was still a deacon, but I had just come from Mass and was still in my cassock. My cousin and I were walking around, and heard this kid giving his parents fits from three aisles over. When we walked past them finally, he stopped screaming long enough to look up at me and say IT’S THE BAD GUY FROM STAR WARS!!!
 
edward_george1 said:
I must also say that I am still astonished that after four and a half years as a priest, during which time I was on and off the forums, mostly on, at the level of disrespect which is shown to the clergy on here. I suppose such is life on the internet; everyone is an expert at everything. My greatest frustrations here were when people tried to tell me how to do my job. Trust me, I have parishioners who can do that.
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You were not alone in your astonishment. It was well justified.

I vividly remember one thread from years ago…we were three priests plus a lay canonist and this person was saying he was right and all of us were wrong! Of course, we all had given the same answer because it wasn’t even a difficult question – a student who had done Intro to Canon Law would have known the answer. But no…this man was the expert. It was absurd. To the point of being like Laurel and Hardy or Lucille Ball.

The number of people who wanted to explain – or argue – topics that I had taught for years.

The people who had absolutely no comprehension of the breadth, the depth, the scope and extent of what priestly formation actually is and entails.

One that I shall never forget were those who said, to me, “formation to the priesthood is broken; it needs to be fixed.” Oh, I would say, and what would you suggest? “It needs to be more intense and less laxed.” I see. Have you yourself been in any phase of formation? No. Can you explain the components of formation? No. Can you tell me its length? No. Can you compare and contrast the program in, let’s say, your country today as opposed to, say, 1980? No. Are you acquainted with the relevant directives from the Holy See on formation? No. Other than me, whom you are communicating with, do you know or have contact with anyone who is or was a formator? No. That makes having a meaningful conversation…challenging, to say the least.

The number of people who did not grasp the distinction between self-study and academic learning was also remarkable.

Having youth on your side, Father @edward_george1, was a great advantage, I think. You had much more patience and tolerance than I. I could only think: “Ah. If I had this person in my lecture hall, they’d be expelled and out on the street for this behavior.”

Once more…best wishes to you, Father.
 
edward_george1 said:
I was in an antique shop one time, I think I was still a deacon, but I had just come from Mass and was still in my cassock. My cousin and I were walking around, and heard this kid giving his parents fits from three aisles over. When we walked past them finally, he stopped screaming long enough to look up at me and say IT’S THE BAD GUY FROM STAR WARS!!!
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Oh! That brings back a memory! I was on the street, walking somewhere in my cassock and this young man comes up to me with friends and he is all excited and ebullient. He kept saying the word “Matrix” in our attempt at a conversation. Well it didn’t mean a thing to me. It took one of my young students explaining to me later what was then a new American movie and the characters, I gather, wore a cassock like garment. That helped me understand parts of the attempted conversation that had to do with gymnastics that, at the time, made no sense to me! I never saw the movie. But you would have thought they believed me to be the star of it.
 
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edward_george1 said:
I must also say that I am still astonished that after four and a half years as a priest, during which time I was on and off the forums, mostly on, at the level of disrespect which is shown to the clergy on here.
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Especially the poor Jesuits. A lot of people without knowing anything about the Jesuits were poisoned by the anti Jesuit ‘police’. I wish people would stop and ask questions about the source of this type of slander (?) rather than just get sucked into the baseless outrage. People lose so much when they rigidly reject Gods good servants without discernment.
 
edward_george1 said:
he stopped screaming long enough to look up at me and say IT’S THE BAD GUY FROM STAR WARS!!!
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We chatted with a byzantine priest wile traveling. He spent many years as a deacon, never expecting to be ordained a priest.

Anyway, he described coming home after liturgy and his wife snapping, “get that collar off. You look like a priest.”

His response was, “Wait a minute, the black dress doesn’t bother you, but the collar is a problem?”

🤣 😱 😜

After she passed, he was ordained. He said she never would have gone for it during her life . . .
 
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