What do priests do all day?  That’s a question some of our younger religious education students were entertaining one day in class.  Their teacher instructed them to write down and draw a picture of what they suspected Father does the rest of the week after Mass on Sunday.  Needless to say, I found their responses very amusing!  Here are some of the things our kids wrote down that they perceive the priest (i.e., Fr. Burish) doing with the rest of his time: praying at home, going to basketball games, looking at the calendar for next Sunday/getting ready for church next Sunday, going to the gym, going to class, playing on his phone, playing games, going running, going for a walk, and going for a picnic.
 
While some of these responses are not entirely false, there is more that could be said.  I suppose our kids’ curiosity about what a priest does is not unique.  A lot of other people wonder about it as well.  I’ve found people’s perceptions of this to vary widely.  Some seem to think that after the morning Mass, the priest just goes back to the rectory to take a nap.  Others perceive the priest as being just so busy that he has no time for anyone, unless it’s an emergency.
 
As a pastor in a parish, it’s difficult to say what a typical day is like since my schedule can vary so much from day to day.  So many unplanned things may come up.  Funerals are the best example of this.  When I was an associate and high school chaplain in Marshfield, my days were much more regular and predictable.  Now that I’m a pastor, and no longer have that old priest at St. John’s bossing me around, things are different.  While things certainly vary, here’s a rundown of my day/week with the things that are fairly consistent. 
 
I usually get up at 5am, shower, pray Morning Prayer (Liturgy of the Hours), have breakfast and read the daily news online.  By 7am, I’m in church making my holy hour (prayer before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament… priests need to take time for daily silent prayer – it’s like spouses making it a point to spend time talking with each other each day, otherwise their marriage begins to crumble).  At 8am, I have my daily Mass in Auburndale or Hewitt.  At 11am on Tuesday and Thursday, I offer an additional Mass in Blenker.  Between Masses on Tuesday morning, I go to the hospital to visit and anoint any parishioners we may have there.  On Wednesdays once a month, I have an additional Mass at Bethel Care Center.  On the first Friday of every month, I spend the morning bringing Holy Communion to our homebound.  Periodically, I visit all of our sick and homebound, especially during Advent and Lent, and hopefully a couple other times throughout the year.
 
For me, most afternoons are office time – time for email correspondence, returning phone calls, meetings with people for various pastoral concerns, meetings with couples preparing for baptism or marriage, giving spiritual direction (I have about 3-4 directees with whom I meet monthly), preparing homilies and writing bulletin columns.  I also spend time daily meeting with our parish secretaries, going over things going on in the parish, signing checks, staying up on finance and maintenance issues, etc.
 
Evenings throughout the week are for parish meetings (pastoral and finance councils, other committee meetings.), religious ed., possible adult faith formation sessions, etc.  If my schedule is open later in the evening, I go to watch a basketball game or other sporting event at Auburndale.  There have been a few parishioners who have invited me over to their homes for dinner, and that has always been a treat.  By 8:30 or 9pm I like to be back in the rectory winding down, perhaps with a book or a bit of news on TV, and hopefully be in bed by around 10pm.
 
Of course, on the weekends are Mass and confessions.  Monday is the day I usually “take off.”  I usually go to my parents’ home in Wausau, or I visit friends/former parishioners in La Crosse, or I visit other priests, or they visit me.  If possible, I try to leave Sunday afternoon to have the night away.  If I stay at the rectory, I find that I’m more likely to just keep working.  As a priest in a parish, there is always plenty to do.  But my vocation is ultimately to be a father, and so I am happy to make myself available for my parishioners.  Just call and make an appointment… that’s the best way to make time in a busy schedule.  Being a part of people’s lives as we seek to grow closer to the Lord is a privilege and a blessing.

Praised be Jesus Christ!
 
Back in February, you may recall that Pope Francis made a visit to Mexico.  On his return flight back to Rome, he fielded various questions from news media reporters.  His off-the-cuff responses received an enormous amount of attention on a range of different issues including his thoughts on Donald Trump’s ideas on immigration, Catholic politicians voting in favor of same-sex unions, and the use of artificial contraception.
 
As is so often the case, the Pope’s responses have been greatly misinterpreted.  Admittedly, some of them were very unclear to begin with.  On the issue of politicians voting in favor of same-sex unions (… and one could insert here any other issue that the Church teaches is morally wrong), Pope Francis stated that Catholic politicians “must vote according to their well-formed consciences.”  Some of the news media took this as “a break” from the teaching of the Pope’s predecessors.
 
There always seems to be a lot of confusion these days when “following one’s conscience” is invoked in response to various controversial moral issues – especially when it comes to who and what we vote for, and a number of issues surrounding sexuality, such as the use of artificial contraception.  Following one’s conscience does not, of course, mean just going with what subjectively feels right.  Pope Francis rightly indicated the importance of having a “well-formed conscience.”
 
So what does it mean to have a “well-formed conscience?”  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops lists these eight points for forming one’s conscience (see http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship/parishes-and-schools/upload/Conscience-Formation-bulletin-insert.pdf):

1. When examining any issue or situation, we must begin by being open to the truth and what is right.
2. We must study Sacred Scripture and the teaching of the Church.
3. We must examine the facts and background information about various choices.
4. We must prayerfully reflect to discern the will of God.
5. The prudent advice and good example of others support and enlighten our conscience.
6. The authoritative teaching of the Church is an essential element.
7. The gifts of the Holy Spirit help us develop our conscience.
8. Regular examination of conscience is important as well.

 
What can be an obstacle to forming our conscience well?  The Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph 1792) states this: “Ignorance of Christ and his Gospel, bad example given by others, enslavement to one’s passions, assertion of a mistaken notion of autonomy of conscience, rejection of the Church’s authority and her teaching, lack of conversion and of charity: These can be at the source of errors of judgment in moral conduct.”
 
While many of the Pope’s responses to questions on the flight back from Mexico were unclear, and the media seemed to indicate that there was a shift from traditional Church teaching, we should bear in mind that nothing the Pope states in such informal contexts could be ever construed as an infallible teaching.
 
 

Praised be Jesus Christ!
 
This weekend in our parishes our second graders will be receiving their first Holy Communion.  At their baptism, their parents made promises to raise them in the Faith and to help them develop their relationship with the Lord throughout their lives as they grow older.  Now, as they receive the Body and Blood of the Lord, they are invited to grow even closer to Christ and to be spiritually nourished by him every time they come to Mass.
 
Today is also the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.  Will you consider making a special effort to ask the Lord for more vocations to the priesthood and religious life?  Here are some simple things you can do:

1. Pray for the priests who have ministered to you throughout your life, both living and dead.
2. Keep our parish priests in your prayers throughout the week.
3. Encourage your children, grandchildren, or other young people to consider a vocation as a priest or religious brother or sister.
4. Pray a Rosary for more young men and women in our diocese and parishes to respond to God’s call.
5. Pledge to pray for vocations at the international website, www.invisiblemonastery.com.This was inspired by a call from Rome urging Catholics to “organize an ‘invisible monastery’ in which many persons, day and night, are committed to continuous prayer for priestly vocations.

 
When the Faith is practiced and nourished at home, children are better disposed to discern when God is calling them to a special vocation.  I have often felt that our current shortage of vocations is not so much due to God not calling young men and women, but that it is due to the fact that today many of them are not raised in homes and cultures of faith that foster vocations.  As a result, many young men and women are not well disposed to discern God’s will in their life.  Have they developed a relationship of prayer with God?  Are they able to hear him speak to them?  And do they trust the goodness of God enough to surrender their lives to him?
 
In my almost-two years at these three parishes, I have many times heard people express the concern that they have “a good priest” and keep him for more than just a year or two.  I understand the concern for stability.  It’s hard on a parish when there is no consistent pastor for a period of years.  But I also understand that such instability is connected to the fact that there are many parishes and fewer priests.  We as a community of parishes must likewise examine how we have supported and promoted vocations in our families.   The Faith must not only be practiced, but also lived generously so that our young people may have an example, and be well-disposed to hear God’s call.  Historically, there have been many vocations that have come out of our area.  But in recent decades that has not been the case.  What has changed?  What is the Lord calling me (and/or my family) to do differently?

Praised be Jesus Christ!
 
Several weeks ago, this was one of the petitions that St. Mary’s and St. Kilian’s parishioners heard at Mass: “For an end to gun violence in our nation, and for an end to the suffering and loss caused by the use of guns, let us pray to the Lord.”  This petition, like most of our parishes’ petitions, came from one of the publications that our secretaries use in preparing the intercessions for each weekend Mass.  When I heard the petition at Mass (not having looked at it in advance), I wondered what people in the pews might be thinking.  As you know, gun control has long been an issue of contentious debate in our country, especially following various school shootings and acts of terrorism over the last few years.  While I’ve not really spoken much with parishioners about the gun control topic, living in a rural area in which hunting is a popular sport, I suppose I could make a few guesses about most people’s feelings on the matter.
 
Perhaps some of you have wondered if the Catholic Church takes a stance on the issue.  Well, yes, the Church does have a response to the issue of gun control… but it’s not exactly a simple black and white response.  Basically, the Church puts forth a set of moral principles that are for to us to apply to specific situations.  As to how they may apply to specific situations is where people may disagree.  Just a couple weeks earlier, I came across a very interesting article that seemed to demonstrate the complexity of Church’s position and show where there may be room for legitimate debate.  If you are interested in learning more about this topic, I’d recommend you check out the article from the National Catholic Register, entitled “Does Catholic Faith Dictate a Position on Gun Control?”  You can read the article at: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/does-catholic-faith-dictate-at-position-on-gun-control/
 
There are a few paragraphs in the Catechism of the Catholic Church that seem to serve as the fundamental guiding principles for the Church’s teaching.  Paragraphs 2264-2265 speak about the right one has to defend his or her own life (or that of another), even if one is forced to deal their aggressor a lethal blow.  They also speak of the necessity of defending the common good and the right to use arms for those who have legitimate authority in defending the civil community.  Paragraph 2316, on the other hand, speaks of public authorities having the right and duty to regulate the production and sale of arms.  It is this last paragraph that seems to lay the foundation for much of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop’s (USCCB) support of greater gun control in our country. 

Praised be Jesus Christ!
 
This Sunday is Divine Mercy Sunday.  Today I would like to take the opportunity to tell you about a great devotional prayer in the Church with which I have found many people to be unfamiliar: the Divine Mercy Chaplet.  In 1935, St. Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun, received a vision from the Lord to pray for those in need of conversion and the mercy of God.  She heard these words interiorly: “Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world; for the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us… and on the whole world” (Diary, 475)  After hearing those words, she recited this form of prayer almost constantly, especially for those people who were dying.  Further revelations (authenticated by the Church) stated the following about this prayer, which was later called the “Chaplet”:
 
“Encourage souls to say the Chaplet which I have given you (1541).  Whoever will recite it will receive great mercy at the hour of death (687).  When they say this Chaplet in the presence of the dying, I will stand between My Father and the dying person, not as the just Judge but as the Merciful Savior (1541).  Priests will recommend it to sinners as their last hope of salvation.  Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if he were to recite this Chaplet only once, he would receive grace from My infinite mercy (687).  I desire to grant unimaginable graces to those souls who trust in My mercy (687).  Through the chaplet you will obtain everything, if what you ask for is compatible with My will. (1731)
 
I have begun offering the Chaplet at the bedside of persons who are dying.  I also like to pray it for those who are away from the Church.  I encourage you to pray this devotion as well in similar circumstances.  It is powerful because it serves as an intercessory prayer that extends the offering of the Mass.  It’s also appropriately prayed at the 3 o’clock hour, the hour of Divine Mercy, when Jesus died on the cross.
 
Here is how to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet:
(Optional Opening Prayer)
You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls,
and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy,
envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.
(Repeat 3 times) O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of Mercy for us, I trust in You!
Our Father, Hail Mary, and the Apostle's Creed
For each of the five decades (On each “Our Father” bead of the rosary, pray)
Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your Dearly Beloved Son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.
(On each of the 10 “Hail Mary” beads, pray)
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
Concluding prayer (Repeat 3 times)
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
(Optional Closing Prayer)
Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself.