Knights of Columbus
Archbishop Neale Council, No. 2279
Instituted 19 June 1920
Chaplain
Rev. John Reutemann
My Brother Knights,

On the Feast of Sacred Heart of Jesus, June 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated the beginning of the International Year of the Priest. This opens a special time for all Christians to make an intensive and a sound reflection on the missionary identity of the priest and his mission to sanctify, teach, and govern. Hopefully, this is going to be a time for inspiring growth, transformation and development of an effective ordained ministry and life in the church.

The life of the Church - the pope said in his address- is inseparable from the ordained ministry of those who serve among us as priests.  The pope reaffirmed that the priests’ authentic vocation and their intensive spiritual life are centered on Christ and modeled after his apostles. In this perspective, priests are called to be actively and visibly present at the heart of the church’s mission which includes culture and charity.

The International Year of the Priest marks the 150th Anniversary of the death of the Cure’of Ars – St. John Vianney. This 19th century priest is widely known to Catholics as a humble and a holy parish priest who won over the hearts of his villagers in France by visiting with them, teaching them about God and reconciling people to the Lord in the confessional.  During this year Pope Benedict XVI will proclaim St. John Vianney “Patron of Priests” and will publish a new Directory for Confessors and Spiritual Directors. The year-long celebration will conclude with a World Meeting of Priests on June 19, 2010 in St. Peter’s Square.

How can Knights of Columbus participate in The International Year of the Priest? We can continue to help priests in our local parishes in their work and mission. We can go on in supporting seminarians individually or as a group through Knights of Columbus Councils. In Sacred Heart parish we can get involved with our families in the "Elijah Cup Program", participating in a continuous prayer for priests and new vocations to the priesthood and the religious life. We can "adopt" spiritually, a priest, and offer for him our time spent in prayer in the Perpetual Adoration Chapel. We can talk to children, particularly to our youth about becoming a priest as an option for a happy and meaningful Christian life.

Because the Eucharist is the true font of life for priests and the Church in the world, we can offer our Holy Communion for the intentions of the priests along with sacrifices of our daily lives. But we also realize that, in addition to our sacramental life, our Christian identity is grounded in an appreciation for the history and context of our faith. Knights of Columbus have a special role in maintaining this identity and thanks to their own history they add an affirmation of both the universality and diversity of the church. With this in mind we should especially pray for the beatification and canonization of the Venerable Servant of God, Father Michael J. McGivney, the American priest and founder of the Knights of Columbus, so that his holiness rooted in love of God and people may be more recognized around the world.

Fr. Jerry
The entrance to the Nativity Basilica in Bethlehem is about 4 feet high. It is said that the opening was made this way in medieval times so the horseman could not ride disrespectfully into a church. What ever the reason in the past, today pilgrims have to bow before entering. Next, steps on the tour of the Basilica of the Nativity lead into a crypt of Nativity through yet another narrow and low doorway while descending on a winding stone staircase.
It could make you think that one can not enter the mystery of the Nativity with unbowed heart. This could be something to keep in mind as we celebrate Advent season. This is a special time of reflection on coming of Christ not only in the past at Bethlehem, or in the end of time but also in the present in our personal lives. 
Advent is a time for a renewal of our relationship with God when we bow our hearts before the mystery of the Son of God becoming a man. A bow is a sign of respect. It could also signify a gesture of a humble submission. In this gesture Christians reflect humbleness of the Lord for Advent reminds us that Jesus “humbled himself to come among us as a man … to open for us the way of salvation.”  The eighth century Evening Hymn for Advent reads:
At your great Name, O Jesus now
All knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
All things on earth, with one accord,
Like those in heav’n, shall call you Lord.
Advent can be a truly valuable time preparing us for Christmas celebration of God’s boundless love with contrite hearts. After Advent spent on renewal of our relationship with God we will be blessed with a solemn blessing at the end of the Christmas Mass.We will hear a deacon giving the invitation: “Bow your heads and pray for God’s blessing.” Then the priest will extend his hands and the threefold prayer of blessing will fill our minds and hearts:
May the God of infinite goodness scatter the darkness of sin and brighten your hearts with holiness.
May he fill you with joy and make you heralds of his gospel.
May he give you his peace and good will and fellowship with all the heavenly host.
Chaplain's Christmas Message
In Bethlehem A low and narrow entrance into the Basilica of the Nativity.
In Bethlehem. A painting from the Basilica.
In Bethlehem. A silver star on the floor in the Crypt of the Basilica of the Nativity marking a site where Jesus Christ was born.
Photos I took on my visit to Bethlehem.
Click on the thumbnail photo for
a larger view with captions.


Dear Brother Knights,

There is a place where people say Jesus was buried. It is called a Holy Sepulcher, a small shrine within a bigger church in the heart of an old town of Jerusalem. It is a crowning point of pilgrimage to Holy Land. Those who went there write diaries, memoirs, to capture their experience and to put it in words for others to read. A pilgrim, Jerry Ryan wrote in his article "The Tomb of Christ":

"As I knelt in the tomb of Christ, prayer came spontaneously. I left everything there: all those whom I know, have known and will know, asking mercy for us all, giving thanks for all we have received and entrusting all to the power of the Resurrection. I returned several times. On benches facing the tomb of Christ, I spent many hours in silence, in the shadows. ... pilgrims gathered around in front of me and began to sing quietly, in English, what I think were antiphons from Holy Saturday, a peaceful and powerful chant. They sing of myrrh-bearing women hastening to the tomb, the angels amazed at the burial of their creator, the Virgin lamenting her only begotten, as though these mysteries were frozen in time.”

The mysteries are frozen in time indeed. But even better, they are timeless and could be found alive from generation to generation. They are source of faith and piety. They are mysteries engaging our lives.  As Knights of Columbus we want to continue our formation in faith so that the mysteries of our salvation stay in the center of our lives in this generation. I believe that forty days of Lent and the Holy Triddum provided an opportunity for the renewal of our lives. We had a chance to reflect on the meaning of Passion of Christ in our life.  Now, the significance of our accomplishment lies in our ability to maintain a spiritual atmosphere.  One way to do it is through more faithful participation in the Eucharist.

A couple years ago, I attended The Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. The last scene, when Jesus was placed in the tomb, was concluded with a prayer recited by the congregation. It professed a belief that the story of Jesus did not end in the tomb. But what I found inspiring in that scene was that the altar was used as a tomb of Christ. It was a fortunate choice pointing out to the very place from where Jesus continues his story. It is the Eucharist where he remains with us till the end of days. In words of the pilgrim, mentioned earlier: 

“The empty tomb is itself a sign of the Eucharistic presence - even its source. Somehow, out of the obscurity ... of the Holy sepulcher there shines forth the feeble, fragile light that illuminates the ages."

During the Easter Season we are all invited to reflect on the Mystery of Resurrection in our lives. The Eucharist gives us the best opportunity to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord as God’s family.  In faith we gather every Sunday to praise God for all the works of Christ and we bring to the celebration our joys and sorrows, our happiness and our worries. To pray- like that pilgrim- for those whom we know, have known and will know, asking for mercy, giving thanks and entrusting all to the power of the resurrection.

Alleluia! Let the life of the Risen Christ reign above all else in our hearts, homes, and parish! May the Risen Lord, Jesus Christ, bless you, and your loved ones, with the hope and grace of the Eternal Spring in the Kingdom of God!
Easter Reflection