A Leaven In The World… 25th Ordination Jubilee Solemn High Mass And Celebration

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK

(Editor’s Note: The staff of The Wanderer congratulates Fr. Cusick on his upcoming 25th anniversary of Ordination.)

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Thank you for reading my column so faithfully over the years and for all that you have done to support the apostolate of The Wanderer. As we mark the 25th anniversary of my June 6, 1992 Ordination I invite all our readers who are able to attend the events at the parish which will mark this spiritual milestone.
The parish celebration will take place on Sunday, June 4, with Masses at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. at St. Francis de Sales Church, 7185 Benedict Ave., Benedict, MD, 20612.
The latter Mass will be a Solemn High Traditional Latin Mass, followed by a finger food reception on the church lawn. I have asked all those joining me that day for the gift to me and all priests of prayer by taking part in a 2-3 p.m. holy hour, asking that all priests may have zeal for the salvation of souls.
Following that all are invited to a celebratory dinner at the parish hall, beginning at 3:30 p.m.
We look forward to the talent of an opera star who will assist the schola at the High Mass, Jessica Stecklein, the sister of a priest and a faithful Catholic wife and mother, as well as many other beautiful graces which will mark the day. I look forward to seeing again many of the faithful Catholics who have blessed my ministry throughout my years in the Navy and in the archdiocese, from places as distant as Florida and New York.
I have served as a priest in Maryland, the District of Columbia, North Carolina, Virginia, Italy, Greece, Florida, South Carolina, and many other places around the world while deployed on the aircraft carrier USS IKE.
If you are unable to join us that day in person please do so in spirit by offering Masses and prayers for all of our priests celebrating Ordination jubilees of 25, 40, 50, and 60 years. The kindness of your prayers and those of all our Catholic faithful are most deeply appreciated. May the Lord reward you for your love and support of the holy priesthood as only He is able.
Every opportunity to give great thanks to Almighty God should find us always ready to do so, thus making His glory better known in this world. The Ordination of a priest is a moment in the life of the Church pregnant with hope that many souls may be saved through the ministry which brings His grace to those in the Church.
With a deep sense of serenity, I look back now at God’s work throughout my life and affirm the beautiful gift of the Church through which we are accompanied on our journey. Faith is conversion. Conversion continues to grow more deeply for priests as for all of our people. The Church is the privileged place of faith where we are accompanied throughout our lives that we may be saved.
I thought that when I returned from deployment to Iraq that I was converted. No doubt I was. I thought that when I reported nearly seven years ago to my parish as pastor that I had been converted. Yes, that is certainly true. But wisdom has made clear that to me that to live as one of faith is to be converted in a deeper way throughout life.
All of us deserve the opportunity in God’s mercy for the chance to convert and so be saved. God desires “that all be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.” Some become saints early in life, even experiencing conversion at a young age as did Therese of Lisieux. Some, however, have hardened hearts or simply go through the motions of being Catholic without taking to heart that grace to be effective must engage the intellect and the will.
We have all known people who forgave us, loved us despite our faults, were patient with us and gave us the chance to grow and learn. As cradle Catholics, we sometimes feel we deserve the many beautiful gifts that come to us through the Church, above all through the sacraments.
It is Jesus Himself who comes to us through the Church. There is no one more humble than God Himself. No one therefore comes to us with greater humility than Jesus Christ under the signs of bread and wine in the Holy Eucharist. He can thus be very easily overlooked or even neglected as a result.
Faith seeks to proclaim Him and make Him known. Our reverent worship, genuflections, kneeling to receive Him, and making a visit to our churches outside of Mass — these and so many other means enable us to both acknowledge Him with the love and worship due to Him as well as proclaim faith and invite others to believe.
Now, of course, when we are children we have the faith of a child. As we grow we must leave childish things behind as the Scriptures teach. Growth in faith is the purpose of God’s gift of the Eucharist. We receive the Eucharist repeatedly throughout our lives so that faith may grow through cooperation with the graces of Baptism and the Eucharist, becoming a “fountain welling up to Eternal Life.”
Whether a marriage, an Ordination, or any other vocational anniversary, every milestone of life affords us the opportunity to look back in gratitude for God’s patient and loving mercy that brought us through every one of life’s circumstances into a strong faith today.
I spoke to an editor of our diocesan newspaper who interviewed me for an article in relation to the jubilee. I shared with him that standing at this point in my life and looking back in reflection fills me with gratitude that draws me closer to the Lord who has made so many graces possible. Just as when I returned from deployment to Iraq, so now I quote the psalmist who wrote, “You brought us through fire and through water, but then you gave us relief.”
We all experience the fires of life in this world, whether that of suffering physical or spiritual pain or temptation. We sometimes carry crosses with others in compassion for them. Perhaps we discover through wisdom that a cross we are carrying is of our own devising and we are challenged to make a choice which enables us to lay it down.
Self-control, virtue, and the call to holiness work together to eliminate the barriers that prevent the work of the Lord from being accomplished more perfectly in our lives. This is the “relief” the psalmist describes. Just like a cool glass of water in the midst of a desert, so God’s goodness and love promise to support and strengthen us in every circumstance.
This world is a desert because our union with God is not perfected here. Though He is truly present in the Eucharist and gives Himself completely as only God can do, our ability to receive Him is limited.
Our human capacity to love requires constant work in cooperation with God’s grace which enables our growth as He desires, in His image and likeness. Confessing our mortal sins completely in Confession with a sincere desire to amend our lives by avoiding future occasions of sin is necessary. Walking humbly with God and others in this vale of tears makes our journey more faithful and keeps us away from danger.
Receiving the Lord always in a state of grace and with sincere devotion of worship and love completes the movement from repentance through Confession to renewed union with Him.
Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever.
@MCITLFrAphorism