Fall 2010 Trumpet :: op-stjoseph.org

8/8/2019 Fall 2010 Trumpet :: op-stjoseph.org

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Dear Friends,

Whats thesecret? Howdid you ever getso big a novitiateclass? Or simply,Twenty-one?!

These are questions Ive been askedquite requently in the our monthssince I was elected Provincial othe Dominican Province o St.

Joseph. Whether at home or abroad,everyone seems to be a-buzz aboutthe vocation surge underway in ourProvince. I admit that I dont have asimple answer to these questions. Myreply usually begins, Well, there are alot o dierent actors Archbishop

Augustine J. DiNoia, O.P. speaks tosome o these actors in this issue.

God, in His Wisdom and generosity,has blessed us in abundance! Inaddition to the 21 novices there are38 young Friars in ormation at theHouse o Studies in Washington.My prayer is that we, as a Province,

will not squander these gits, andthat well be able to count on thesupport o you, our beneactors andriends, to join us in the great task oorming these outstanding men to beDominican preachers or the Churchand the world o today.

Sincerely in Christ,

Very Rev. Brian M. Mulcahy, O.P.Prior Provincial

Spotlight: Vocations

An Abundance

of VocationsThe year 2010 will stand as a remarkable year in the annals o the Province o St. Joseph. Lasummer, the Novitiate at St. Gertrudes Priory in Cincinnati welcomed a record number oNovices, 21 superbly gited and devout young men the biggest class since 1966!

An extraordinary grace is aoot in a community o Friars blessed with a growing number ovocations at a time when our society is becoming more secularized without any regard orGod or aith and when there has been a diminishment in vocations to religious lie and thepriesthood. Last year, the Order o Preachers counted 198 new vocations, with this Provincaccounting or a remarkable ten percent o that total.

The recent Provincial Chapter provided the occasion to ponder, in the words o ArchbishopAugustine J. DiNoia, O.P. Secretary o the Congregation or Divine Worship andthe Discipline o the Sacraments, and a Friar o the Province the signifcance o thisextraordinary grace: Why is God calling all these outstanding young men to the Order, toour Province, at this moment?

God is sending us these vocations

because the charism is urgently needed

in the Church today.

There is no doubt, the Archbishop said, that God is sending us these vocations because theDominican charism is urgently needed in the Church today. Unique in its way and aided bypowerul intercessors, such as Our Lady and St. Joseph, the Province survived the upheaval othe post-conciliar yearswhen many others lost confdence in their unique charism and soughto accommodate their way o lie to the ambient culture o the timeby preserving the historidentity o the Dominican Order. As a result, the Province must be confdent that it possessesa tradition to transmit as well as the practical wisdom to impart it to new generations o FriarsThat frmness o purpose and unwavering commitment to the Dominican tradition, are precisewhat attracts young people, the Archbishop argues. He defned that tradition as ollows:

(continued on pg.

TheTrumpeT Fall2010

A MESSAGE

From Our Provincial

Foundation

Dominican

DOMINICAN FOUNDATION: DOMINICAN FRIARS PROVINCE OF ST. JOSEPH


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The First 100 Days in the NovitiateBy Brother Antoninus Slonkosky

I am a novice in the Province o St. Joseph othe Dominican Order. This statement supplies

reassurance in moments o disbelie. I say it interiorly,but sometimes quietly out-loud. Such moments haveoccurred oten in the frst 100 days o my novitiate asthis new lie takes hold, and I let go o my old lie. Italways brings a smile to my ace when I realize, againand again, that I am here.

The frst 100 days, paradoxically, have transpiredboth quickly and slowly. Most days passslowly, but a week (or several) can go by with astartling rapidity. Is it really October already? Iattribute this sensation to my changing points o

reerenceprimarily, to change the central pointo reerence rom mysel to Jesus Christ.

The change began dramatically when we all received our religious habits and names. Itoccurred early, two weeks ater our arrival. The words said during the Vestition Rite arepowerul: In the world you were known as John Paul, in the Order you will be knownas...Brother Antoninus. With a new name comes a new lie.

Our daily schedule is the overcoming o many ailed attempts in the world to order mylie around God. We live a well-paced and human schedule, ramed by praying the DiviOfce and Mass, with the necessary activities o lie flling in the rest o the time. I ariseat 6 AM. It is such a delight to put on the habit o St. Dominic each morning. Ater

breakast, I enter the chapel or a silent hal hour o meditative prayer beore MorningPrayer, the frst o fve o the hours we pray in the Liturgy o the Hours throughout ouday. Silent prayer is difcult, but Jesus and my brothers are in the chapel with me, helpinme stay ocused and disciplined.

We have our community Mass at 11:30AM. Beore then, I have either choirpractice or a class, or even both. Wechant the Divine Ofce and sing at Massso choir practice is necessary to pursuethe beauty we want to render to God inworship. In the aternoons, I pursue varie

interests such as athletics, reading, choresaround the Priory, or maybe extra singinpractice. The evenings bring the Rosary,Evening Prayer, recreation, dinner, andthen study until 9:30 PM, when we gathor Compline, or Night Prayer, the fnalhour o the Divine Ofce.

As I walk up the stairs to my cell, I cannot help but be peaceul, no matter how hectic thday. We have just sung a beautiul hymn, the Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen). In prayeour Mother sends us o to sleep.

Did YouKnow?

n Dominicans are identifed bytheir distinctive habits. TheDominican habit consists o awhite gown called a tunic witha belt/cincture around the waist,with the rosary attached at thehip, in the place in which aknight would carry his sword.As a knight draws his sword in

battle, so too the DominicanFriar draws his rosary to engage inspiritual combat. Over the tunicis a white scapular (a long stripo cloth worn over the shoulders)with a white capuce (hood) ontop o that. Covering these is ablack cloak with a capuce calledthe cappa magna. The white parto the habit denotes purity o lie;the black denotes mortifcationand penance. Dominicans arealso known as Blackriars, aterthe black cloak and capuce that is

worn over the white habits.

nAll DominicanFriars wearthe samehabit Priests,CooperatorBrothers,StudentBrothers,Novices and eventhe Master of theOrder whichsymbolically

unite all the brethren in thisdistinctive garment that expressestheir unity of devotion to God.It is a mark of the commonfraternal life and links eachFriar to Dominicans both pastand present. It is the outwardmanifestation of his consecrationto a vowed religious life. Wearingthe habit is a clear sign to othersof their witness to Christ.

A Day in the Life

Novices Preparing a Meal.

2 Please visit us online at: www.DominicanFriars.o


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Optimism about the rationality and undamental goodnesso the natural order; an abiding certitude that divine grace andmercy are sheer gits, unmerited and otherwise unattainable;a healthy realism about the peril o the human conditionapart rom this grace and mercy; a determination to maintaina Gods-eye-view o everything that exists and everythingthat happens; an appreciation o the inner intelligibility oeverything that God has revealed about Himsel and us; awholly admirable resistance to all purely moralistic accounts othe Catholic aith; an unailing devotion to the Eucharist andthe Passion, combined with an unshakable confdence in theintercession o the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In addition, there is a zealous willingness to preach and teachabout all this, in season and out, because we are convinced thatthe world is dying to hear it and dying rom not hearing it;and, internally, a commitment to liturgical prayer, to study orthe sake o the salvation o souls, and to a capitular mode ogovernance in a common lie consecrated to God by poverty,chastity and obedience. This is a powerul combination, andthe Church really does need us to be true to it now more thanever, said the Archbishop.

However, Archbishop DiNoia noted, the Province is also in themidst o a huge transition. The coming generation o Friars, the

young men currently in ormation born in the 80s and 90s, havebeen radicalized by their experience beore entering the Order in

a way that older Friars were not. These 20- to 30-somethingshave experienced the moral relativism and eclectic religiosity

o the ambient culture and possibly o their own personalexperience and recognized it as a chaotic but radical alternative

to Christianity with which no compromise is possible, he said.

...there is a need for

a new Dominic

The new vocations have rejected the values o a culture whosehighest good is the personal quest or authenticity as defned bythe individual, he said, and rejecting all external moral guidelinessuch as those upheld by the Church as an immoral intrusion.

The young men who are being drawn to the Dominican Ordetoday rom God-knows-what kinds o personal and socialexperiences know that the post-modern culture o authenticitleads to moral chaos, personally and socially, and they want nopart o it, said the Archbishop.

In an era o moral relativism and doubt in the power o reasoto arrive at enduring, objective truths, there is a need or anew Dominic, said Austin Ruse, President o the CatholicFamily and Human Rights Institute and a ormer BoardDirector o the Dominican Foundation, in a recent salute tothe Province. St. Dominic entered the public square, travelinto the cities where men lived, and preaching the truth o GodKingdom, he said, adding that, in the process, he changedthe world.

the new Friars will be in an

extraordinary positionto transform the lives of their

peers and contemporaries at

home and around the world.

The Holy Spirit, said Ruse, is making it possible or theProvince o St. Joseph its intellectual and spiritual prowessanchored in the powerhouse that is the expanded DominicHouse o Studies in Washington, D.C. to continue thatmission today.

Steeped in the culture they are called to steer back to theLord and sustained by what Archbishop DiNoia calls thehumanistic breadth as well as the philosophical and theologicaldepth o the Dominican ormation a new generation o Friarso the Province will soon ollow in the Founders ootsteps.Encouraged by the witness and prayers o their elder Brothers who themselves are called to maintain a ervent Dominicanlie rather than a modifed version o the popular culturethe newcomers have let behind the new Friars will be in anextraordinary position to transorm the lives o their peers andcontemporaries at home and around the world.

Spotlight: Vocations

Our New Novices: Vestition Day

Arbp. Augustine J. DiNoia, O.P., Fr. Bruno Cador, O.P.,Fr. Brian Mulcahy, O.P. at the General Chapter in Rome

4 Please visit us online at: www.DominicanFriars.o


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A Friars Refection

Discerninga Vocation

By Father Giles Dimock, O.P.

I have taught young people or morethan 40 years and many have cometo me or help in discerning theirvocation, be it to the priesthood,religious lie or marriage, or perhaps thelay single lie.

The frst step I counseled was to prayto fnd Gods Will or ones lie. Such aprayer should come rom a prayerul lie

o keeping the commandments, regularly going to conessionand aithully going to Mass. This puts one in the best position

to discern Gods Will.

Secondly, one should not discount the good desires o ones heart.I they are good they come rom God and are to be listenedto. I one has always wanted to marry and have children andi that desire remains persistent and there are no confictingdesires then continuing on that path is most probablyGods Will or ones lie. I those desires confict with otherin themselves good desires or priesthood or the religious lie,however, then one must discern which desires are the mostpersistent and long lasting. That is a matter o time and patience.

I knew one ellow who was very torn between the priesthoodas a vocation and marriage. He and his girlriend came to askmy advice. He elt that he had to be a priest because it was thehighest calling, one so much needed given the present shortageo priests. However, it was clear that they were very muchin love and that they would make great spouses and parents.They were both much relieved when I told them that and,to this day, they ondly remember that conversation as thebeginning o their engagement.

Most people who would make good spouses and parentswould also make good priests and religious but the question

is what the major, persistent and long-lasting desire o theirheart is.

It is also crucial to seek the advice o those elders whosewisdom one respects and trusts, be it a priest conessor, a nunor sister, or a spiritually mature layperson. Then the challengeis to be ully open to their reliable advice. One ought not to gorom one to the other really just seeking the advice one wantsto hear. St. Benedict called monks like that gyrovagues thosewandering in circles, which is what happens to those who turnor counsel to too many experts.

Sometimes, the process o discernment is helped along notonly by the doors that open but by the ones that close. I kneone young man pursuing marriage who courted one youngwoman ater the other, but none o these relationships workeout. He had an extremely intense devotion to Our Lady. SoI suggested that since one romantic door ater the other hadslammed shut, and since he had such a antastic love or theBlessed Virgin, perhaps God was really calling him to thepriesthood. He made a retreat to discern that possibility and,sure enough, he is a priest today.

My vocation fits me like my skin

Finally, making the right decision will bring about anexperience o peace a secure sense that this is the Order Ishould join, or this is the right person or me to marry. One

vocation whether as layperson, priest or sister is not likesome ill-ftting suit that one tries on. It is the real me that onis called to become and ully live out. As the great Dominicantheologian Father Yves Congar, O.P. said, My vocation fts mlike my skin. This is so because God has a providential, lovinplan or each one o our lives.

Fr. Dimock, O.P. is the Prior of the Priory of the ImmaculateConception at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C

October 2010 Vocations Weekend with Fr. Benedict Croell, O.P.



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Father Jordan Turano (50) is Pastor andSuperior at the Dominican parish of St.Thomas Aquinas (founded in 1820) inZanesville, OH. Ordained in 2004,

he earlier served as Adjunct Professor ofTheology as well as Campus Minister atWalsh University in North Canton, OHand Associate Pastor at St. Dominics inYoungstown, OH. Compared to todays20-somethings, he was a late vocation,entering the Novitiate at age 37. Fr.Turanos story of overcoming seeminglyinsurmountable obstacles to joining theOrder is a dramatic and powerfulillustration of the crucial and very concreterole and collaboration of the laity in the

life of the Friars.

What prompted you to

consider the priesthood?

In my early 30s, I was not living myaith and then a relationship endedbadly. I looked to God and not theworld or answers or the frst time in avery long time. I began volunteering inthe parish. However, it would take meanother six years beore I began

seriously to consider the priesthood,looking into the local diocese as well asother potential avenues, including theDominicans. However, I thought that

the Friars were academics and I hadbeen out o school or 18 years. Thatwas not or me, it seemed.

Still, I decided to take a summer classin philosophy at Providence College inProvidence, RI, to see i I could manage.Driving home rom class one evening,I heard, almost audibly, I want you tobe a Dominican. I didnt want to bea Dominican, I responded, but I wentahead and called the local vocationdirector. It was a Sunday, and I ullyexpected him to be away rom his ofce.That way, I could say that I at leasttried. But the Friar picked up the phoneand talked me into meeting him rightaway. Arriving at the college that day, Ihad a wonderul sense o peace I knewI was home.

Nonetheless, I argued that the academiclie was not or me but he counteredby saying that Dominicans are learnedpreachers. He persuaded me to sign

up or a Vocation Weekend at theDominican House o Studies. Oncethere, I was flled with the same sense opeace and joy o being home. That veryweekend I asked or an application tojoin the Order.

But you werent

entirely free?

There were some thousands o dollarso bills to pay. One morning at Massin my home parish in Westerly, RI, I

prayed to Our Lady, telling her ratherboldly: I your Son wants me to dothis, you have to help. Suddenly, a

woman rom the parish tapped me

on the shoulder and asked outright,How much money do you need? Forfve minutes, my pride kept me romgiving in, but she kept insisting, andfnally, through my tears, I told her thtruth. She told me to come back toMass the next day so that she and herhusband could give me a check or thamount I needed so badly. That is whhappened. Our Lady had answered mprayer by prompting this great womanduring her own prayer beore Mass th

morning, to come to my aid.Do you often tell

this story?

I have not told the story very oten,but tell it to those who are thinkingabout the priesthood but are strugglin

with fnances. I tell them that i theLord wants them there, help will beorthcoming. People are so generousand good.

A Special ThANkYouFrom a Grateful Friar!

We Friars preach for the salvation of souls. But our abilityto sow these spiritual seeds depends on sharing in the fruits

of your material harvest (1 Cor 9:11).

May we be as grateful as you our friends, benefactors, andtherefore collaborators have been generous: Thank you!

Fr. Bruno M. Shah, O.P.

Your Generosity Bearing Fruit

A Friars unlikely Jorney to the Priesthood

Ordination of Fr. Jordan Turano, O.P.

6 Please visit us online at: www.DominicanFriars.org


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Why We Named the Friars

in Our Will

For many years, John andMary have been faithfulsupporters of the Dominican

Friars of the St. JosephProvince. They believe it isimportant to collaboratewith the Friars andencourage their mission.

Why do you support the Dominican Friars?

John: Several years ago, Mary and I decided to support the Friars and in so doing,become a partner in the Provinces mission. The Dominicans are touching countless lives,

truly helping others through their many ministries. We are delighted that we can partnerwith them to make a dierence. For that reason, Mary and I have made many gits overthe years to the Friars.

What are some other ways a donor can assist

in the Mission of the Dominicans?

Mary:We know the Friars put our gits to good use, but we wanted to do more toensure that their work can continue as it has or centuries. John and I have been careulover the years and have accumulated some resources. We plan to be generous with amilyo course, but it is also important to us to leave behind a charitable git. Ater talkingit over, we decided to leave something to the Friars in our will. Our attorney took the

simple language available rom the Dominican Foundation and included a nice bequest.We are so pleased that we will be helping others through the good works o the Friars.

How would you like the Friars and their work

to benefit from your incredible generosity?

John: For many years, we have responded to the Provinces mailings and have otensent in prayer and Mass intentions as well. We pray or the Friars as they carry out theirministries in education, such as campus ministry, helping shape the minds and hearts oour nations youth. We are grateul to be able to help provide or the care o the Friars,in particular their healthcare, so that they can go on caring or others. We are very happyas well, through our support, to participate in their missionary work in Eastern Arica. It

gives us great joy that our giving can assist the Friars in these areas.

Mary:We would be happy i, when the time comes, our bequest would go to helpund the ormation o the new generation o Friars, such as the 21 new Novices, who areso important to the uture. They are important not only or the Church in the U.S. butor the Church as a whole. The Dominicans have deeply touched and strongly impactedour lives and our amily has been very blessed over the years to have known them.

Please note: John and Mary are an example of the many generous friends and supporters ofthe Dominican Friars and the work of the Province. We encourage you to send us your ownthoughts and comments by writing to [email protected].

PlannedGiving

Will You Remember Us

in Your Will?

According to recent estimates, nearly64 percent o Americans do not havea will. Without a will, however, youcannot ensure that your assets willbe given to your amily and lovedones or charitable causes whenyou pass away. The state will write

a will or you instead, which couldresult in accidental disinheritance andother unintended consequences.

Dont let this happen to you! You cancreate a plan for the future, whichis much easier than you think. Abequest is one of the easiest and mosttangible ways to have a lasting impacton the people and organizationsthat mean the most to you. Acharitable bequest for the DominicanFoundation is a bequest written inyour will or trust that stipulates thata gift is to be made to the DominicanFriars when you pass away. This is alsoan effective way to lessen the burdenof taxes on your family and estate.

We rely on the generosity o ourdonors. Even a small share o ones

will, remaining ater amily and lovedones are properly taken care o, canmake a real dierence or the worko the Friars. Leaving a Legacy Gitor the Dominican Foundation willbeneft, in turn, countless othersthrough the Friars many good works.

I you are considering rememberingthe Friars in your will, please be sureto visit our website:

www.op-st.joseph.org/plannedgiving.

And, o course, you are alwayswelcome to call (212) 535-3664 orwrite to us at [email protected].

Thank you and God bless you!



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Dominicans Yesterday and Today

St. Martin de PorresFriend of the Poor and Sick

Juan Martin de Porres was born inLima, Peru then under Spanishrule in 1579, the son o a Spanishnobleman and a ormer Panamian slave.The amily neglected by the ather,St. Martin de Porres grew up in abjectpoverty but his mother noticed that,even as a child, the uture saint managedto share what little he had with thepoor o the city. His extraordinaryspirit o charity was wedded to medicalskills when he, at age 10, became anapprentice o a barber/surgeon. He

was just 15 when he petitioned oradmission to the Dominican Convento the Rosary.

The Friars allowed him to become a servant boy and later on gave him the task odistributing alms. It would take many years and much evidence o his sanctity beore the convents Superior allowed him to become a Cooperator Brother. Ordinarily,according to Church custom at the time, a person o mixed race could not join theOrder. At age 24, he took up permanent duties in the infrmary where he would serveuntil his death at age 60 at which time his renown had spread through the entire city.His body was exhumed ater 25 years and reported to be ound intact and ragrant.

Reports abound of miracles attributed to St.Martin. When an epidemic struck Lima, sixtyFriars fell ill, most of them novices kept apart in aremote, sealed off part of the convent. Numeroustimes the saint was said to appear by the side ofthe sick, having passed through locked doors, as

well as appearing in the presence of regular Friars without the doors having been opened.

St. Martin managed to use alms to eed 160 poorpeople on a daily basis, as well as inexplicableby ordinary standards regularly distribute

money to the indigent. The saint is also said tohave appeared in missionary territories (Arica,China, Algeria and Japan), though he never letLima in his lie. Pope John XXIII canonized St.Martin de Porres known as the Father o thePoor in 1962.

Dear Friends,

May the peaceand grace o ourLord Jesus Christbe with you andthose dear to you.

On behal othe Province o St. Joseph and theDominican Foundation, I am veryhappy to introduce you to the frstissue o the redesigned and expandedTrumpet. Along with a contemporarydesign, there now is room to share

with you a greater variety o writingand inormation about the lie andmission o the Friars, as well as thevital work o the Foundation withyou, our beneactors, playing such a

crucial part on both ronts.

This maiden issue is devoted tovocations in recognition andprayerul celebration o thegrowing number o outstandingyoung men the Lord is sending us.It is now the Provinces privilegedtask and happy challenge to provideor them materially, intellectuallyand spiritually. To help us meet this

wonderul challenge and to sustainthe Friars many ministries wehumbly turn to you or support.

Please send me your comments asyou read these pages. I am very eagerto hear rom you.

Be assured o the prayers o all theFriars or you and your loved ones.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Dominic Izzo, O.P.Director

Dominican Foundation

Give, and it will be given to you;good measure, pressed down, shakentogether, running over, will be putinto your lap. For the measure you givewill be the measure you get back.

Luke 6:38

A MESSAGE

From Our Director

TheTRuMPeTis a quarterly printed newsletter of the Dominican Foundation: Dominican Friars, Province of St. Joseph.

141 East 65th Street, New York, NY 10065 Tel: (212) 535.3664 Fax: (775) 542.5511 Email: [email protected]

Sculpted by Fr. Thomas McGlynn, O.P., a Friar of our Province,this statue is located in the Holy Name Building in NYC.

Located in the Memorial Shrine of the Dominicanparish of St. Vincent Ferrer in NYC, this is

a replica of the bronze original depicted above.All rights reserved. Permission o the Thomas McGlynn Collection,Providence College, Providence, RI USA.

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