June 2, 2013
Infant Jesus Parish, Woodbury Heights, NJ
I thank Fr. Szolack
for giving me this opportunity to preach at his Jubilee Mass. I consider it
an honor. The verdict is still out, however, on what he
will ultimately think of his choice
of homilist by the time I reach my conclusion.
We go back quite a long way—to 1979 to be precise. We met
while attending college as students at St.
Charles Borromeo Seminary. Put
together by some unforeseen Divine plan, we were two young men, among various others,
who entered the seminary right out of
high school. It was something rare
then; perhaps even more rare today. We seemed to hear a similar “call” from God to be His priest. He was a freshman,
and I, a sophomore; 1st and 2nd college
as it was referred to by those who attended Overbrook. I was glad to have another seminarian from
the Camden diocese studying at the same seminary as me, since so many of our
men were being sent to another seminary
at a different location for their
formation.
While I only spent my college years there, I think Fr.
Szolack really, really liked it at St.
Charles. Not only did he tirelessly
devote hours upon hours of sleepless nights not studying
there during his college years, but he remained there for four additional years
of theological study and formation. After
ordination, he returned to the seminary initially for three years, then again, by the most mysterious Hand of God, as Dean of Men for the Theology Division for
another six years. Seventeen
years in an institution—it explains
an awful lot, doesn’t it?
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As we pray and offer this Mass during the Hour of Divine Mercy, I remember being on
retreat several years ago at Trinity
Retreat in Larchmont, NY. The
retreat master, Fr. Gene Fulton,
told the priests a story of a newly ordained priest. He was giving his first priestly blessing to
the congregation after his ordination.
In the crowd was a rather famous Russian baroness, Catherine de Hueck Doherty, the foundress of Madonna House (Combermere,
Ontario) who is now being considered for sainthood. After receiving the priest’s blessing, the
baroness took the priest’s consecrated hands and began to kiss them. The priest then pulled his hands back. Looking directly him, she spoke something
quite forcefully in her thick Russian accent to this newly ordained: “It’s not for you!” It’s not for you.
I’d like to remind all of us that while we are celebrating
and honoring Fr. Szolack for his 25 years of priestly service, all of what he
has done and, with God’s grace, will
continue to do as a priest is truly about Jesus
Christ. Fr. Szolack is a priest of Jesus Christ. The priest is an alter Christus—another Christ.
Pope Benedict XVI tells us the following in a general
audience in St. Peter’s Square:
As an alter Christus, the priest is profoundly united to the Word of the Father who, in becoming incarnate took the form of a servant, he became a servant (Phil 2: 5-11). The priest is a servant of Christ, in the sense that his existence, configured to Christ ontologically, acquires an essentially relational character: he is in Christ, for Christ and with Christ, at the service of humankind. Because he belongs to Christ, the priest is radically at the service of all people: he is the minister of their salvation, their happiness and their authentic liberation, developing, in this gradual assumption of Christ's will, in prayer, in "being heart to heart" with him. Therefore this is the indispensable condition for every proclamation, which entails participation in the sacramental offering of the Eucharist and docile obedience to the Church. (June 24, 2009)
Additionally, the Catechism
of the Catholic Church reminds us that a priest acts in persona Christi (capitis)
when administering the sacraments. Jesus
continues His saving work among His people, among His Church, through the
working of His priests. When the priest
baptizes, it is Jesus who
baptizes. When the priest anoints, it is
Jesus who anoints. When the priest forgives sin, it is Jesus who forgives sin. When the priest says “This is my Body,” it is Jesus
who once again gives Himself to us in the Holy Eucharist. And Fr. Szolack, in fact every validly
ordained priest, embodies Christ to
the world.
Do we deserve this great honor, this most sacred
privilege? Certainly not. We are sinful, frail human beings “called”
nevertheless by God to do the most spiritual,
indeed supernatural actions. Pray for your priests. Pray for Fr. Szolack. Without your prayers and the Grace of God, I don’t know how any of us
could stand at the altar each day.
While we are aware that this day honors Fr. Szolack and his
25 years as a priest, let us not forget the solemnity that we celebrate—Corpus
Christi (The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ). The mysterious high priest and king, Melchizedek, in our first reading and
psalm offered gifts of bread and wine
in thanksgiving. This foreshadowed and
anticipated the sacrifice of Christ at the Last Supper. Jesus feeds the five thousand with five
loaves and two fish in the Gospel. Again
we see an anticipation of and a prefiguring of the Holy Eucharist in Christ’s action.
St. Paul echoes the words of Christ in his first letter to the
Corinthians: “This is my body that is for you. . . this cup is the new covenant in my
blood.” We hear the words that the
priest continues to speak at each Mass.
The priest is so completely tied into the offering of the
sacrifice, to the Mass itself. Pope John Paul II reminds us:
The Second Vatican Council recalled: "Priests act especially in the person of Christ as ministers of holy things, especially in the Sacrifice of the Mass" (PO 13) and that without a priest there can be no Eucharistic sacrifice. However, it emphasized that those who celebrate this sacrifice must fulfill their role in intimate spiritual union with Christ, with great humility, as his ministers in the service of the community . . . In offering the Eucharistic sacrifice, presbyters must offer themselves personally with Christ, accepting all the renunciation and sacrifice required by their priestly life--again and always, with Christ and like Christ, sacerdos et hostia (priest and victim). (June 9, 1993)
Fr. Szolack has faithfully offered Mass essentially every day
during the duration of his priesthood.
Whether with his parish congregation, privately, on vacation, on a cruise
ship, in a hotel room, on an island, or in a private home, he has prayed and
offered the sacrifice of Jesus for the People of God. Together with his Divine Office (Breviary
or Liturgy of the Hours) he has been
faithful in praying for himself and for those whom he is called to serve.
I don’t know exactly who is aware of it but one of the things
that Fr. Szolack did after he became pastor was to establish a small chapel in
the rectory so that he could reserve the Blessed
Sacrament there for prayer. I guess
that he was in tune with something else Pope
John Paul II reminded priests:
To priests the Council also recommends, in addition to the daily celebration of the Mass, personal devotion to the Holy Eucharist, and especially that "daily colloquy with Christ, a visit to and veneration of the Most Holy Eucharist" (PO 18). Faith in and love for the Eucharist cannot allow Christ's presence in the tabernacle to remain alone (cf. CCC 1418). Already in the Old Testament we read that God dwelt in a "tent" (or "tabernacle"), which was called the "meeting tent" (Ex 33:7). The meeting was desired by God. It can be said that in the tabernacle of the Eucharist too Christ is present in view of a dialogue with his new people and with individual believers. The presbyter is the first one called to enter this meeting tent, to visit Christ in the tabernacle for a "daily talk." (June 9, 1993)
On Friday, Fr. Szolack called me and asked me to wear the
vestment that I currently am wearing. He
informed me that he had been given a similar one by his mother. The vestment is in honor of Our Lady of Czestochowa, reflecting our
common Polish heritage. We had visited
the shrine in Poland together where the sacred icon is revered by
multitudes. I know that he and I have
entrusted, consecrated our priesthood
to the care of Our Lady. She who is the Mother of the Great High Priest, Jesus Christ, continues to intercede for us, to watch over us and
to lead us to Jesus, her Divine Son. Fr. Szolack and I have a tremendous love for
Our Lady, her rosary, her scapular as did the Pope that we both greatly admire,
John Paul II.
With a new Holy Father Pope
Francis now leading us, I conclude with a few of his words in reference to Mary, Our Mother:
Jesus from the Cross says to Mary, indicating John: “Woman, behold your son!” and to John: “Here is your mother!” (cf. Jn. 19:26-27). In that disciple, we are all represented: the Lord entrusts us to the loving and tender hands of the Mother, that we might feel her support in facing and overcoming the difficulties of our human and Christian journey; to never be afraid of the struggle, to face it with the help of the mother. . . The mother teaches us how to be fruitful, to be open to life and to always bear good fruit, joyful fruit, hopeful fruit, and never to lose hope, to give life to others, physical and spiritual life. (May 4, 2013)
May Our Lady, Our Mother, continue to assist you
and all of us priests in our ministry.
May she be revered as a loving Mother for all the faithful. May she lead us all to Jesus Christ, the Great High Priest.
I mentioned earlier that priesthood itself is
essentially not about you, Fr. Szolack.
However, I think that I speak for all here and for all the people who
have seen you trying to live out your priestly vocation by saying “thank you”
for responding to the call of Jesus and becoming His priest. Thank you for your many years of dedicated service
to the People of God. May God give you the
health and the strength to serve many, many more years as His priest at His
sacred altar.
Ad multos annos.
