A Report by Robert R. Schwarz
The priest is a man anointed by
tradition to shed
blood, not as soldier, through courage, not as
the
magistrate, through justice, but as Jesus
Christ ,
through love. The priest is a man of
sacrifice; by it, each
day , reconciling heaven
and earth , and by it, each day,
announcing to
every
soul the primordial truths of life , of
death,
and of resurrection .
--Fr.
Henri-Dominique, O.P.
 |
| " God is everywhere and in all people. " |
Restoration Center)
On an April afternoon a decade or so ago, automobiles from most of the eastern United States were seen winding their way on a forest road somewhere between the Tuscarora and South Mountains of Pennsylvania, all heading to the remote St. Ignatius Loyola church built in 1795. The passengers were close friends, priests colleagues, nuns, several well-wishers and cousins of a priest they all called "Joey." They had been invited by him, Fr. Joe C. Carolin, to his 50th anniversary of priestly ministry. In various ways, Joey had blessed the lives of most of them. And for that, they really loved this man—and his humor.
On an April afternoon a decade or so ago, automobiles from most of the eastern United States were seen winding their way on a forest road somewhere between the Tuscarora and South Mountains of Pennsylvania, all heading to the remote St. Ignatius Loyola church built in 1795. The passengers were close friends, priests colleagues, nuns, several well-wishers and cousins of a priest they all called "Joey." They had been invited by him, Fr. Joe C. Carolin, to his 50th anniversary of priestly ministry. In various ways, Joey had blessed the lives of most of them. And for that, they really loved this man—and his humor.
" He talks to terminally ill patients who can neither respond nor hear , but I've seen them joyful just to be in the chapel during one of his Masses, " said friend Frank Penna. " He gives them hugs just to get them through the day. And these are people who are dying all the time. " Another friend at Joey's anniversary told me, "His great gift is to implement his deep religious philosophy with common people. "
When the cars were parked on higher ground and camera
shutters had captured the story-book scene of the immense countryside below this nearby small church tucked away in trees, the 180 guests walked slowly
to the church door; some paused to look at an outside statue of a young female Scotch-Irish settler, the only survivor of a Shawnee Indian attack in 1758.
On the altar that
day, "Joey"(everyone called him that) announced that his homily would be simple. This priest was mindful of a close friend in the congregation who was an agnostic, and also of several other friends of different faiths. (He had told them that they do not need to follow common Catholic rites at this celebratory mass.)
He expressed his love for Jesus and the love he
had for everyone there. After the Eucharist, everyone headed downstairs to enjoy home-cooked country food, robust band music, and the much laughter and rekindling of old friendships.
 |
| Some of Fr. Joey's family at his 50th anniversary |
"I can't
think of a more depressing job, " I was told at the dinner table by Frank Penna, a close friend of Joey's who shared with Joey
in the 1960's their mutual interest in social change programs supported by President Lyndon Johnson. Another friend, Sr. Maria Cieslinski, said, "I've known Father Joe for 49 years. He's kept me on the
straight and narrow. Sometimes it's been entertaining. He has a great sense of humor, but sometimes it got me aggravated,"
she chided. " I'll never forget when he asked me, while reaching for his own wallet, what I could do to help a family about to lose their mobile home."
 |
| South Mountain Restoration Center |
Joey for his 38
years here had a dynamic role. Most priests might dread his assignment,
especially in the early 1900's when the center cared for World War I victims of
mustard gas and patients with terminal tuberculosis. Clearly, the challenge when Joey arrived was huge and demanding. He was constantly moving from room
to room , ministering to an eventual population of 800 patients housed in a seven-story building. Surrounding it were other restoration buildings— now closed and
"in moth balls " , Joey told me during one of many of our talks. Their scrubby exteriors today are grisly reminders of patients who died there during the center's
early years . Today they still come to the center as old people without money , friends or family. They are feeble and physically and mentally ill. Joey's
job for almost four decades was to be their friend , pray daily for them and
give them hope and help them to have had a "good death."
"Saving His Soul" by Following His Vocation
I asked Joey about his early , life-defining events. " I was raised Catholic, was an
altar boy," he began. "My
grandfather prayed nine Rosaries each day . Mother was always empathetic, caring for the poor
and people with disabilities, and that gave me empathy for elderly and disabled people. I was always interested in the things of God,
but at first I wanted to be a physician. But
I remember what a priest said at a high school retreat I was on: 'It
would be harder to save your soul if
you didn't follow your vocation of what God wanted you to do . ' And that was pretty much when I decided to enter the seminary."
 |
| St. Ignatius Loyola Church |
Subsequent to his mother's death in 1979 was a "tough
time" for Joey. He remembers
his first two years at South Mountain as
a "really tricky balancing act
between being a parish priest and
also, then, as a college campus chaplain .
"I felt like a single parent of triplets. "
I asked if he then had a goal . "Yes, "
he said with a smile and one word added with irony: "Survival."
His smile , I thought, had been implanted by the
many times he had hugged and held hands of people who had nothing to give back, particularly
those with damaged brains and those disabled from childhood from abuse and
violence.
During our first interview many years ago, I had noted on Joey's resume
that his seminary instruction included religion studies in England and
Belgium; and so I inquired about his
theology. " Psychological understanding of human behavior has an interface
with spirituality, " he began. " But I don't think you can reduce spirituality to psychology, but if you ignore the emotional underpinnings, you're missing an important
understanding . The interaction of the church's theology with science helps
purify its understanding of how God is at work. The Gospel , as I try to
engage in it, is a vision ; but it's not
alive unless you try to incorporate it into the values of life as best you
can. Examine your beliefs and you'll get power and freedom. "
Does anything about the Catholic
Church bother him ? "The past sex abuses by priests , "
he replied." It was a powerful indictment…but I've know so many wonderful colleagues in the church. "
More About Fr. Carolin at Age 78
Three years after his 50th
anniversary as a priest, Joey and I had a long telephone conversation during his so-called retirement. I found him
still unmoved by flattering
words about him . He told me he keeps busy by attending "special
meetings" at the restoration center, where he also now teaches a Bible class and offers a monthly anointing ( healing ) Mass , which he says "is a real workout .
" On his weekday and Sunday task
list are names of various churches in
the area which have asked him to preside at a Mass. He jokingly refers to his presence at these churches as their soup 'd jour.
Any goals ? "Just to keep at it ," Joey replied. He misses face-to-face ministering as he did daily at
the restoration center, but adds, "I'm also relieved." Anything
sadden him? " All my good priest
friends who have died. " .
Joey admits that at age 78, holy
service work is now "harder " and that he's had a loss of energy and now has body balancing
issues. He no longer cooks dinner
( which often was spaghetti, his
favorite ) for a gathering of
friends in his countryside home . And fun?... This night he was going out with friends to a dinner theatre.
I had to ask: "Joey , what in the world has kept you
going all these years , work for which few humans would not have
the necessary fortitude ? " He gave
a typical Joey reply: " I just did
my duties. " He likes Pope Francis. "He's a very humble prophetic
man. He listens to people. " As for the American culture today, he commented, "There's a lot of good out
there , a lot of people who are Christ-like. If you are trying to help people, that
doesn't mean you approve of what they're
doing. "
 |
| Relaxing after the big event with his cousin, Mary Alice Davis-Schwarz, at whose marriage he presided 27 years ago. |
Now looking at his friends in the pews and restraining his emotion, Fr. Carolin said, "The memory of that reminds me so strongly of the
fatherly relationship each of us today has
with God ."
"Everybody who knew my cousin Joey also learned to love him, " my wife said. For the next three days, her words gave birth--thanks to the Holy Spirit, I believe-- to epiphanies about my faith life and God . They are truths, I must confess, which many people come to realize much sooner in life than I did. Here they are:
It's not about me but Thee and others, dear God.
The comforts I truly need come only from God, more so than the "pats on my back" I seem to require.
Accept the Biblical truth that Jesus, whom I love as a personal friend, gives me a love I must share with others, even those whom I think don't deserve it.
NEXT SUNDAY:
"A War Veteran Deacon Who
Left His Comfort Zone and
Learned to Love "
The End
All comments
are welcome at
rrschwarz777@gmail.com
©
2024 Robert R. Schwarz
No comments:
Post a Comment