10 minute read
Lake Charles Hurricane
< Rev. Andy DeRouen '20 (Lake Charles) stands amid the rubble while assessing damage in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura. Photocredit: Chris O’Brien, WUFT Gainesville
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REV. ANDREW DEROUEN ’20, DIOCESE OF LAKE CHARLES
We all knew we were signing up for suffering; it’s inseparable from the priesthood. When we boarded the exodus flight home last
March after four years in Rome, we realized God was inviting us to begin priestly ministry with abrupt detachment— from things, from friends, and from expectations. And while the isolation leading up to ordination forged hearts of zeal for the Lord and his Church, the detachment he would require of us was far from over.
On August 27, exactly two months after my diocesan brothers and I were ordained to the priesthood, Hurricane Laura made landfall in our diocese as a category-four storm, the strongest to hit Louisiana in over a century. After sustained winds of 150 miles per hour lashed and shredded every upright structure for nearly seven of the darkest hours of late night and early morning, we would wake up to the news that it would be years before Lake Charles felt and looked normal again. The Diocese alone took on upwards of $80 million in damage, and several parishes were deemed entire losses. Little did we know that as we began to pick up the pieces, Hurricane Delta would make landfall only six weeks later, twelve miles away from the spot where Laura came on shore. One hurricane is enough to send anyone spiraling into a pit of despair. But two… in the middle of a pandemic? We are no strangers to hurricanes down here on the bayou, but like many friends, this hurricane season was the first I ever weathered as an adult, much less with hundreds of parishioners entrusted to my care!
This year, I have lived in ten different places—if you define “living” as “picking up the things you still have, and moving.” Three of those places have since been destroyed by the storms. Without the sacraments, it would be utterly futile to take on my three priestly assignments. But the flexibility demanded of me since March is something I am only able to offer
because of my formation in Rome. From day one at the College, we learned to expect the unexpected. We could not simulate a natural disaster (although there were earthquakes), but we learned the frustration of a language barrier suddenly rendering words useless. We could not launch a daily citywide feeding of the masses, but we could prepare to feed one hungry person on the way to school. We could not invite youth groups to every liturgy at the College, but experiencing those liturgies as a seminarian would become the cornerstone for teens around the Diocese rebuilding the community by their devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. One thing has become increasingly clear: Jesus wants priests who are willing to walk on the water toward him amid the storms of life. St. Peter could not do it without asking, nor could he sustain himself without grace. The same is true for priests today. No amount of perceived stability in this world could ever suffice for a life of true devotion. When we need (which is always), we must ask. Ask for help when your parish does not have a roof. Ask for help when you need to communicate details about food and supply distribution to 5,000 people without the internet. Ask for help when your weariness makes it next to impossible to pray. There is nothing like widespread tumult to shake the heart from its lethargy, remind it of the presence of God, and move it to cry out, “Lord, save me!” In that regard, I have been blessed as a young priest with the constant reminder that God has not abandoned us. On the contrary, his abiding presence, extended to us like a hand to a sinking Peter, is an invitation to suffer with him till the storms of destruction pass by.
For all of you who have helped us by your prayers and support, thank you! If you would like to make a contribution to our relief efforts, please visit our website: www.lcdiocese.org. n
VOICES OF NAC
Who is a person in your life that you are thankful for? What role has this person had in bringing you to this moment and helping you answer God’s call?
I’m grateful for my best friend since childhood—my sister! Blair has shown me how to be generous in showing love to others. Since arriving here in mid-August, I’ve already received from her two heartfelt letters and a package full of American comfort foods, all while she finishes an intensive dental hygiene degree and plans her wedding. Blair’s example reminds me that taking the time to appreciate those I love is uplifting for both them and me. Her caring witness not only strengthens my vocation, but also shapes it to love others as I have been so well-loved by her. God continues to work through my little sister to make me a holier man.
Bryce Baumann ‘24, Diocese of Dallas
"I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:3-6
I am thankful for Alice and Morrie Leuthner, a married couple who have been there for me since before the beginning. Alice is the woman whom my grandmother called when she was thinking about converting to Catholicism to marry this nice Catholic farmer in Waconia, MN. Alice is the one who cared for me and my siblings during the day when I was just a baby. Alice and Morrie prayed for me daily during my time in seminary (I was one of the beads on their rosary for seminarians, and I have now been transferred to their rosary for priests). They generously supported me with substantial financial contributions during my time in seminary. Their witness to Catholicism stirs me to greater faithfulness to our Gospel call, and their witness to a loving faithful marriage truly is an icon of God’s love for us.
Rev. Clayton Forner ‘20, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis
The number of people who have influenced my life, particularly in the discernment of my vocation, is probably far greater than I can remember. In particular, my former pastor comes to mind, Msgr. Patrick Garrity, who was assigned to my parish as I transitioned from high school to seminary life. In many ways, he exemplified to me the joy of the priestly life. He was always ready with a smile and joke to raise the spirits of everyone around him. He was a kind man and a competent leader, who oversaw many changes to the parish while keeping the community content and cheerful. He is the example of the priest I hope to be in the parish, a person able to guide others to Christ through his actions and example. I will always be grateful for the influence he has in my life.
Rev. Mr. Matthew Donahue ‘21, Diocese of Knoxville
I was on FaceTime with my nephew Wade and his family, pointing my phone up at the sky, trying to show them the full moon above the roof of the College. Wade is in second grade and was having trouble comprehending that it could be nighttime in Italy while the sun was still out in Indiana. He is naturally curious, and kept asking questions until he could understand it. As a Christian, I believe that it is important to keep this childlike curiosity about God and his Church. Motivated by love for God and a desire to serve his people, we seminarians in Rome are asked to take that curiosity and further our studies, so that we might grow in the love and knowledge necessary to serve as holy priests. Just as the moon is the same over Roman hills or Hoosier fields, so Christ reigns the same in both Italy and Indiana. Thank you, Wade, for the reminder.
Keith Hart ‘24, Diocese of Evansville
Interview with Fr. Cush: The How-To Book of Catholic Theology
THE EDITORIAL TEAM OF ROMAN ECHOES
Could you give us some background on what inspired you to write The How-To Book of Catholic Theology? For the past several years, I had been writing articles on theology and life for The National Catholic Register. I received an e-mail from Ave Maria Press to begin a book which would serve as an introduction to theology for beginners. Eventually, Ave Maria Press was kind enough to turn the project over to Our Sunday Visitor Press, who were incredibly helpful to me in editing this text.
What was your goal in writing the book, and how do you hope it affects your readers? Basically, my hope is that this book will help readers to love theology. I want them to fall in love with Christ in his Church and to really embrace a spirituality of study.
Rev. John Cush '98 C’15 (Brooklyn) and Paulo Salazar '24 (Brooklyn) pose for a photo after the New Man Banquet at the beginning of the year. How did your experiences as academic dean at the College contribute to your work? I am so grateful to serve as the academic dean of the College. This ministry affords me the opportunity to engage in the intellectual life daily. I have to keep up with what the seminarians are learning at all their various universities in order to properly do my job. Therefore, I can spend the time reading and learning daily, which is a true blessing for me as a priest and as a professor. Basically, this book is the first-year seminar that I am blessed to teach for the seminarians of the College for the first year of theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Teaching this class over the past few years has been one of the highlights of the week for me and I have had some great experiences with the students. In fact, in my acknowledgements, I thank each of the seminarians who have served as my “beadle”" over the past few years: Deacon Joseph Mominee (Toledo, ‘21), Deacon Stephen Yusko (Albany, ‘21); Oscar Marquina (Salt Lake City, ‘22); and Jose Lim (Metuchen, ‘24). This year, the class beadles are Aaron Salvan (New York, ‘24) and Paulo Salazar (Brooklyn, ‘24).
Who were some of your major influences in preparing this book? I would have to say many of the influences come from theologians like St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Bonaventure, Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI, Bishop Robert Barron, Fr. Robert Imbelli, Msgr. Richard Liddy, and the Servant of God, Matthias Joseph Scheeben. However, a great part of my theological influences come from some of my professors whom I had here in Rome as a seminarian and as a student priest: Fr. Jared Wicks, SJ; Fr. Gerald O’Collins, SJ; Cardinal Timothy Dolan (‘76); Msgr. William Millea (‘80, C’89); the late Fr. Joseph D’Amecourt, OP; Fr. Carsten Barwasser, OP; and Fr. Joseph Henchey, CSS.
As a prolific writer, do you have any advice for priests and seminarians on how to remain active in the intellectual and theological life amid the busy schedule of diocesan priesthood? My advice is fairly simple—keep reading! Have the desire to learn not just as a curiositas (a curiosity), but as a desire to fall more in love with the Lord and his Body, the Church. Let your study move you from a mere desire for scientia (knowledge) to sapientia (wisdom) to a real sanctitas (holiness).
