Well Pleased

Dear friends,

It was the spring of 2001. I had just begun to think about a vocation to the priesthood as I was in Italy at the end of the great Jubilee of 2000. The priest in the parish set up a visit to Mount Angel Seminary in Oregon. I had never been to a seminary and had no idea what to expect. As we arrived, I presented myself to the attendant at the front desk, Br. Austin, and said who I was and that I was there to visit the seminary. He was a bit surprised and, come to find out, wasn’t expecting me. He did a pretty good job of hiding that fact and called the priest that at that time was the head of formation, Fr. Richard Paperini (who became the President Rector the next year). Providentially, he was not busy, or even if he was, he stepped out of his office and greeted me and gave me a tour of the campus. That visit left a deep impression on me, especially since I was not on the list of expected guests. One of the charisms or gifts of Benedictine monasticism is hospitality. This wonderful charism pervades the life of the seminary as well. From that day on I felt at home at Mount Angel and after I was accepted by Archbishop Brunett to be a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Seattle, he chose to send me to study there.

On that occasion of my first visit, I remember walking into the administration building, which at that time was Anselm Hall. Entering the big glass doors, immediately in front of you is an icon of the Baptism of the Lord. While I sat outside the reception area I stared at that image. It is striking and I had not seen an image like it before. The figure of Christ is central, standing in the Jordan River. John the Baptist is at his right with his head bowed down and hand extended over the head of Christ, baptizing Him. On Jesus’ left is an angel attending the savior and waiting with a red garment in his hands for Christ to rise out of the waters. Above the head of Jesus is the Holy Spirit, descending upon Him in the form of a dove. Outstretched from heaven, the hand of God, the Father Almighty, reaches down to bless His Only Begotten saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

I walked past this icon several times daily as I went from classroom to classroom in Anselm Hall. It always caught my eye and is a wonderful image to reflect upon as a seminarian. Christ is baptized and then is led into the desert by the Spirit to be “tempted by the devil.” Really? Yup. He was led into the desert by the Spirit to be tempted, as we all are on our journey after baptism. There are many worldly temptations distracting us from what is most important, distracting us from realizing our calling, our vocation in Christ as beloved children of God our Father. The desert is a place where one is tempted, is given direction and grace to sort out all those distractions. If one turns to God and seeks His counsel in the Church, one is led to realize the deepest and most wonderful truth of who we are, beloved sons and daughters of God. From this truth flows our vocation. Only in God will we find it. It is given to us as a gift at our baptism and then it is our duty to resist the temptations of the world, to focus on our relationship with Him, and to come to be who He has called us to be. Remembering our baptism, on that great day God said to each of us, “This is my beloved son/daughter, with whom I am well pleased.” Let these words echo in your ears all the days of your life.

St. John the Baptist, pray for us.

Fr. Jack D. Shrum