Dear Friend,

Reflection by Dianne M. Traflet, J.D., S.T.D.

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. John of the Cross, the great Carmelite priest, poet, and mystic of the 16th century. A Doctor of the Church, St. John taught: “In the twilight of our life, God will not judge us on our earthly possessions and human success, but rather on how much we have loved.” 

It seems fitting that we consider that beautiful quotation, as we take another look at the photo from the Rorate Caeli Mass last Friday at the Chapel of Christ the Good Shepherd, Immaculate Conception Seminary. 

The celebrant of the Mass is Fr. Mariusz Koch of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, and a member of our formation faculty. Even without knowing Father, you likely can sense in this picture the reverential love he has for the Body of Christ.  He has been celebrating Mass since May 31, 1969, the day of his ordination. 53 years of priestly ministry.  What an inspiration!

The setting for Friday’s Mass was magnificent, and yes, awe-inspiring. But Father has celebrated Masses in other settings that do not readily evoke such sentiments, including a lecture hall at Seton Hall’s School of Law in the late 1980’s.   At the time, the law school had no chapel, and prior to Father’s arrival, no campus minister.  I met Father when I was a law student, soon after he was assigned as University Campus Minister.  At our first meeting, he assured me that he would be at the law school every weekday to celebrate noon Mass. I was grateful, but also a little nervous, explaining, “I don’t know that people will come to Mass every day.”  Father responded that even if only one person came, he’d happily make the trip from Seton Hall’s main campus in South Orange to the law school in Newark.  Indeed, even if no one came, he would be in that classroom Monday through Friday.  “If students know I’m coming every day, they might take the opportunity to talk with a priest.” 

I was edified by Father’s response, and later by the fact that more than one person always came, and sometimes quite a few. I remember that Father celebrated Mass so devoutly that I easily forgot my classroom surroundings and was able to concentrate on each word of the Mass, particularly the words of consecration, prayed fervently by Father.  I still treasure the memory of those Masses.

I wasn’t the only person who was grateful for Father’s presence.  Students did indeed want to talk with a priest.  I remember studying in the library and seeing the person at the next desk leave for a little while. When he came back, he said to me, with a bit of shock in his voice: “I just went to Confession.” He explained that he hadn’t been in many years, but somehow a talk with Father led him to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He was happy—and grateful.

I remember, too, how we gathered for Mass during times of shared suffering, including coming together to pray for a classmate’s sister who was viciously murdered. The classroom turned chapel was filled with students. We simply desired Mass, and Father was there for us.   I’ll never forget Father’s gentle words of comfort to my classmate, and then how he led us all in prayer and offered Mass.  His homily must have been difficult to write, but he delivered it with what seemed to be little effort, but a lot of love.

Father Mariusz is one of 40 priests who are part of the Priest Community here at Seton Hall.  I imagine that each of us has a story to tell of gratitude for the priest who encouraged us, prayed with us and for us, heard our confessions, brought us to the Eucharist, and reflected God’s presence. Let’s pray for those priests this Advent---and for many others who have been part of our spiritual journey from the time of our Baptism to today, and for those who will accompany us through our twilight years. Let us pray for the seminarians of Immaculate Conception Seminary who are preparing to be priests; may they be holy priests who inspire us to persevere in our faith and grow in love for our Lord.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, This Advent day, we come to you in gratitude for priests who by their loving commitment to fulfill their “yes” to you have shown us your great love. With love, they have brought us to you. We thank you for particular priests who have walked with us in joyful times and have consoled us during difficult days.  Please bless them for “how much [they] have loved.” Take care of these good priests, Lord; may they receive abundant blessings this Christmas for guiding us to you.  Amen.

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Dianne M. Traflet, J.D., S.T.D., Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Administration and Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology, earned a J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law, an M.A. in Catholic Theology and Pastoral Ministry from The Institute of Advanced Studies of Catholic Doctrine, St. John's University, and an S.T.L. and an S.T.D. from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (The Angelicum), Rome. Dr. Traflet is a key leader in the Center for Diaconal Formation, and she gives numerous lectures, retreats, and days of recollection, including some specific to wives of deacons and deacon candidates. She is the author of Edith Stein: A Spiritual Portrait (Pauline Media, 2008).