Pastor experiences 'catholicity' of Church in his parish

By Father Robert A. Grattaroti
Special to The CFP

The first use of the word “Catholic Church” (literally meaning universal, or everyone) was employed by the sainted Church father, St. Ignatius of Antioch, in his letter to the Smyrnaeans in 107 A.D., when he writes: “Wherever the Bishop shall appear, there let the multitude of people also be; even as where Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.”
I have been so delighted to experience this reality, as I witnessed this summer, in a profound way, the “catholicity” of the Church. Serving with me here at St. Joseph Parish in Charlton is Father Charles Omolo, a priest of our diocese whose family is rooted in Kenya. This summer we were blessed with the ministry of Seminarian Peter Bui, whose family roots are in Vietnam. My own family is rooted in immigrants who came from Italy.
This “catholic” gathering of ministerial shepherds struck me one day as I was preaching, and could see before me families from Sri Lanka, Puerto Rico, Africa, and people whose family backgrounds were Polish, Irish, French and Canadian, Italian, German, Swiss, English, and others representing various countries.
“Go out into the whole world,” said the Lord, “and proclaim the Good News.” It seems that has been happening across the ages for many centuries.
Our rectory lunches and dinners were the occasions of many uplifting conversations, wherein we tried to solve all the problems of the world (as if that were possible). The sense of fraternal brotherhood I experienced, and still share, was a “healing balm” for me. The challenges of the coronavirus this year, the isolation and lack of free movement that it engendered, as difficult as they were, gave way to a real sense of deeper sharing in the rectory.  And, I must say, that has been very beneficial.
To say that we had a “happy house” was to reflect on the truth of what was happening. Seminarian Peter, with his constant smile, and Father Charles, with his deep wisdom, were a boon to my constant “busyness.” And every so often they would push my buttons, which led me to expound and pontificate as if I knew it all (which in my head I may still falsely believe).
One of our special moments occurred when I shared a recent letter from our bishop, encouraging the parish to reach our Partners in Charity goal. We spoke of the benefits of the Appeal to our Diocese, recalling that the vocations ministry of Father Donato Infante, St. Joseph’s former associate pastor, and the education of seminarians, are funded by Partners, as well as priests’ retirement and Catholic Charities. I reminded my colleagues that one of our parishioners, Hank Camosse, is president of the Catholic Charities’ board.
After our discussion, we each went our own way. Within a half hour, Seminarian Peter came to me with an envelope containing $40 for Partners. My surprise was obvious as I said to him, “Peter, you are not a wage earner and have no steady income. Are you sure you want to do this?” 
“Yes,” he responded, “I want to be part of the solution.”
This is the spirit with which I was blessed. (And that week we did reach our goal.)
Father Charles, willing to do whatever is asked of him, impresses me with his astounding awareness of things – the political scene, the teachings of the Scriptures and of the Church. As we were all discussing hell one day, Father Charles shared that in Pope Benedict’s, “The Faith” (Chapter 10) he admits that the phrase “descended into hell” was problematic, confusing, and based on mythological language. Pope Benedict concludes that if Christ indeed went there, he could have done nothing but undo the place.
These and various other concerns and topics were our daily fare, pretty much, and the discussions which they produced were rather lengthy at times.
Perhaps the most touching experience of all, for both Father Charles and myself, was the visit of Seminarian Peter’s folks when they came to help him move out, in preparation for return to Theological College this month. As we were sharing a meal after Mass, Peter’s mom and dad told us of a miraculous experience that happened to Peter a week after he was born (his birthday is March 19, the feast of St. Joseph). It seems that he became seriously ill, running a very high fever. Mr. Bui went to the pharmacy to pick up medication for the child. As he attempted to get Peter to swallow it, Peter started to choke, and had difficulty swallowing. His parents were quite afraid and felt that it was almost too late to call an ambulance. It would never arrive in time. Mr. Bui took the child in his hands and offered him to the protection of St. Joseph before the statue of the Holy Family: “I give my son back to the Lord, and I ask you, St. Joseph, to be his father,” he prayed. Within several minutes Peter began to cough up what was stuck in his throat, and the fever broke!
I share these thoughts to say that wonders never cease – and I have come to believe that another name for God is “Wonder.”

– If you want to be part of the solution: Visit Partners in Charity at www.partners-charity.net