In August, seven young priests in the Diocese of Superior were blessed to spend 24 hours together in Bayfield and La Pointe. A challenge with busy pastoral schedules, the commitment to take time for fraternity is one they know they need as men, one that helps them be the priests they want to be. (Submitted photos)

Special to the Herald
Fr. Samuel Schneider

Getting friends together sounds simple — until you compare calendars. In August, the seven youngest priests of the Diocese of Superior managed to gather in Bayfield for about 24 hours.

I was home between Navy service and canon law studies in Washington, D.C. The others had to fit the trip around parish responsibilities and long drives.

Fr. Sare Sagar Rajesh and the Bayfield parishioners generously welcomed us to the rectory on the hill overlooking Lake Superior. We shared dinner in the evening. The next morning, a brother priest cooked breakfast while some of us slept before crossing over to Madeline Island where we celebrated Mass at St. Joseph Parish.

The La Pointe parish’s roots reach back to Jesuit missionaries in 1669. Fr. Frederic Baraga, later a bishop, re-established the mission in 1835, serving the Ojibwe and other Catholics. Nearly two centuries later, we stood together at the altar, sharing the same priesthood and continuing that mission to the people of northern Wisconsin.

The rest of the day was a little less solemn, filled with riding mopeds, swimming, laughing, talking about life and occasionally getting on one another’s nerves. That’s all part of being brothers. We need both the prayer that unites us and the ordinary time that helps us know each other and grow together.

That fraternity flexes around our diocesan Chrism Mass, ordinations, retreats and clergy gatherings, often over supper or after planned events end. In between these times together, calls and group texts help, but they are not a replacement. Protecting this time together is a challenge — especially when funerals, sick calls and parish responsibilities claim one planned day off after another.

A good life, like a good meal, needs variety. I love ministry and dinner with parish families, but spending time with my brother priests offers something particular – being with men who are living this vocation, too. I need brothers who know me well enough to celebrate my joys, recognize my struggles and challenge me when I need it. They share the same sentiment and needs. It’s a gift to be in community like this, even though it is from a distance most weeks.

The people we serve benefit from that support, too. Parishioners rightly expect a pastor they can count on, but the priesthood is a marathon, not a sprint. Prayer, rest and fraternity help us keep giving ourselves to our people, year after year.

Priests need to plan ahead, communicate well and respect your time. When Father so-and-so arranges an evening with his brothers, that may mean declining a parishioner’s invitation or choosing another time for a ministry meeting.

Where a pointed remark about his absence might make the next opportunity harder to take, hearing “I’m glad you could go” is a gift. Sometimes supporting Father means welcoming him to your table, and sometimes it means being glad he has an evening at someone else’s.

Parishioners deserve a priest who loves them. I believe we need brothers to help us become—and remain—that kind of priest.