“Feed them yourselves”–Celebrating my 21st anniversary of ordination.
Father Pothin's Reflection for July 30, 2017
“Feed them yourselves” is what Jesus tells his disciples who are dealing with a hungered crowd that has been following them for days now (in the synoptic Gospels). “Feed them yourself” is what our Lord continues to tell each of us who vows to follow him.
This July 28, 2017, marks 21 years since I officially and publicly answered Christ’s call to “feed them.” This day also marks 30 years since I pronounced my first religious vows to consecrate my whole life to the glory of God and the salvation of His people.
Certainly, when I think of this anniversary I think first of all of the priesthood itself and only then of my years as a priest. When I told my father many years ago that I believed I might be called to be a priest, he told me: “If you’re going to be a priest, at least be a good one.” I have tried to be a good priest, and that is legacy enough, for me, for my late father, and for you.
Twenty-one years of service and I realize that I am just getting warmed up. Even after all this time, I am still humbled when I approach the altar to break the bread and to share with all of you the living presence of Christ. There is no greater adventure than the priesthood. There is no greater life. And on this day, I thank you for allowing me to serve you, to absolve you, to feed you, to preach to you, to anoint you, to love you, and for simply allowing me to be your priest.
I do not know how to be anything less than a joyful priest. Yes, there are days that I may be cross or in an unpleasant mood, but when I sanctify God’s people through the sacraments and especially in the celebration of the Eucharist, I must do it with joy. I do not know how to do it any other way. I became a priest because I felt this joy that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel. This joy that overwhelms our hearts and must be shared is a joy that I spend every day trying to pass on to God’s holy people of Saint Michael The Archangel, as well as to those I have the honor to journey with in the hospital, nursing homes, private residences or hospice house. I try to bring the same joy to the brave men and women of the military of our state of Maryland. If this anniversary can be a moment of new resolution to bring the joy of the Gospel to those who have turned from Christ or to those who never knew him at all, it will be an important moment in the history of salvation. I pray that it will be so each time I pray for each of you and our people.
Let us thank God together, as members of his church, for our vocation and our journey of faith. May all our hearts be filled with the joy born of gratitude for the gift of life and of new life in Christ.
–Father Pothin
