As a Father to His Sons

DAVID NOWICKI ‘24, DIOCESE OF LA CROSSE

I’m often asked by friends and family back home if I’ve met Pope Francis in the two years I’ve been at the Pontifical North American College. As it turns out, I have only seen him from a distance— in the back of crowded rooms and massive gatherings. So when the College was invited to a meeting with the Pope and the seminarians in Rome last fall, I was more than a little excited. At last, I would be able to get a front-row seat at a meeting between Pope Francis and seminarians, not to mention that it would be a great photo-op.

Naturally, I severely underestimated the number of seminarians that would be at the event in the Paul VI Auditorium in the Vatican. Rather than hundreds, attendance quickly rose into the thousands. By the time we had made the trek across Rome from our morning classes, we found ourselves two dozen rows away from the stage where Pope Francis would address us. So much for a prime photo-op!

And yet, the atmosphere of anticipation for the Pope was electric. Between the coronavirus and various surgeries, the Holy Father has had fewer opportunities to interact with the faithful over the last couple of years, which made this occasion all the more special. The seminarians hailed from all corners of the globe; each of us responding to the calling the Lord impressed upon us to serve him and his Church. When Pope Francis finally arrived, there was a great standing ovation for the 265th successor of St. Peter.

Immediately Pope Francis greeted us as that of a father with his sons.

Equal parts lighthearted and serious in tone, we found ourselves laughing with the Holy Father as well as leaning in for every word he spoke. We had the opportunity to submit questions to the Pope in advance, and although there wasn’t time to answer the two hundred that were written, ten of them were selected to be answered. They covered a variety of topics pertinent to priestly life— everything from guidance on spiritual direction to encouragement in remaining close to God, our bishops, our fellow seminarians, priests, and the people of God.

Perhaps the most memorable remark of Pope Francis concerned a distinction between “equilibrium” and “harmony.” The Holy Father said that often we have a tendency to want our lives to be balanced, in equilibrium. Yet, Christ offers harmony. I found this to be so striking, as our lives as disciples of Christ can often seem “outof-balance” as far as the world is concerned. Jesus doesn’t guarantee an “equilibrium”—he invites us to conversion, to change.

When we receive the love of Christ and his gift of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we may feel “out-of-balance” because we are the ones who undergo the change of conversion in order to love Christ and his Church all the greater. This is quite poignant for all of us seminarians and priests, as our lives have been changed quite drastically by the Holy Spirit. Had I desired to remain in my own “equilibrium” when I was studying engineering in college, I may have never entered seminary. And yet, there is a beauty to the harmony of the Holy Spir- it, which Pope Francis also mentioned. Harmony isn’t a balance sheet—it’s the marvelous way in which God beckons us to greater union with him in the midst of our chaotic lives.

While I was much farther from the stage than I had hoped, when the Holy Father shared these reflections on the harmony of the Holy Spirit and the call to conversion, I couldn’t help but feel as if he were speaking personally to me— paternal words of encouragement and exhortation for my vocation to the priesthood. Maybe I have yet to meet Pope Francis in the way most people expect, but all of us from around the globe certainly felt like we were encountering the Holy Father in a way far more impactful than a good photo-op could ever provide. n

Frank Parater was a seminarian for the Diocese of Richmond, who studied at the North American College and died in Rome on February 7th, 1920. He is buried at the College’s mausoleum in Campo Verano. The Holy See declared him a Servant of God in 2001. These are excerpts from his writings while living in Rome.