So, It's been a little while since my last post, so I thought I had better end your suspense!
You know that feeling when you've just bought the latest CD, IPod or gadget, and you really want to hurry up and get home to try it out, and every little hindrance annoys the heck out of you?...
That was me after I left that Vocations Expo with a bag full of Pamphlets and prayer cards. I wanted to race home on the train, back to Liverpool, lock myself away like a hermit and look up these websites!
When I did eventually reach home, I high tailed it straight to my room, and flipped open my laptop. With all this anticipation building up I stumbled over my keyboard as I typed in my first address.
http://www.patricianbrothers.com/ [I know, mad subliminal message right?]
With my slow paced Internet connection, the page finally loaded, and I was greeted with!....
.... a basic, slightly out of date home screen ....
I was slightly taken aback by this. I was one who liked searching the web and getting all my information off flashy websites; Normally if I had come across a page like this, I would have clicked 'BACK' and looked for something else. But I knew there was something here.
As I poked my way around the website, I realised that there was actually quite a lot of content; lots of articles and photos, and seeing these Brothers in their long white/black 'things' with a green sash made it very exciting to think "I wonder what they are like in real life?"
I read a lot about their history, and it related to a lot of things that I had learnt at school but had never paid attention to. I saw their 'Necrology' page with all their deceased Brothers, and their long funny sounding names. I looked at the maps of where the Brothers were around the world, and was surprised to find it wasn't just Ireland and Australia, but P&G, America, India, Kenya and Ghana too!
Eventually I reached the 'Vocations' page, and in it was written a few paragraphs, but didn't really tell me what the process of actually becoming a brother was, but it did give me some contact details and after a little deliberation, I decided to send an email to the Brother who's info was given on the page.
... 5 days later, and still no response... didn't these Brothers take time off from prayer and teaching to check email?...
Each day, I'd go back to the website, and find some new information or article that intrigued me. Eventually I stumbled onto another website that gave me more information about different vocations and religious orders.
http://www.catholicozvocations.org.au/
By reading through this site, it allowed for me to really understand a little better what exactly a Religious Brother was, and most importantly, the CORRECT contact details for the Patrician Brothers.
Round 2...
So I contacted Br. John Verhoeven, the CURRENT Vocations Director for the Patrician Brothers (as opposed to Br. Paul who's name was on the website and was then serving in P&G, and who hadn't used that email address for years!). I wrote a long winded email to him, saying who I was, what I was doing and what I felt in my heart; that I really think I am being called to be a Patrician Brother.
The next day, Br. John replied to my message, but it wasn't really what I wanted to hear.
something along the lines of:
"Dear Luke, thank you for your inquiry, we would love to get to know you better, but at present we are celebrating our Bicentenary and are engaged in WYD activities. We apologize for this, and will contact you back as soon as things die down".
waiting.. waiting... waiting...
FINALLY, I received a message from Br. John, and over the next little while we kept correspondence through email, until we eventually decided it was time that we had a face to face meeting at a place that I saw fit. I decided to hold our first meeting at the Liverpool All Saints Presbytery, where I knew people were around, and the refreshments were free.
As I waited for Br. John to arrive, all these scenarios started playing through my mind; "what if he thinks I'm not capable?", "what if I'm not smart enough to be a Brother?", "I wonder if he'll wear his white/black 'thingy'?".
When Br. John came to the door, he looked like any other person; glasses, woolen vest, green shirt, grey pants and leather shoes, holding a brief case. Turns out that Br. John is a very down to earth guy, who loves movies as much as I do, and even made the 'Star Wars' reference to my name... like so many others...
He wasn't nearly as scary as I thought he would be, and we had a great first conversation and discussion about my vocation. We discussed more about who the Brothers actually were and what they did, and what I was hoping to do with myself.
After the meeting, we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I left with a feeling of complete excitement and enthusiasm. If you had asked me five years ago if I would ever consider becoming a Patrician Brother i would probably have just looked at you strangely, because I didn't know what that was, and after having it explained, walk off and laugh myself to death. But now, now I was on fire with the Holy Spirit. I felt so alive, like someone had breathed new life into me. Br. John advised me that I should really tell my Mum and Dad, so at leased they would know what I was thinking, and where I was going all the time for secret meetings.
One evening, when Mum and myself were the last ones awake, I asked her to come sit down, because I had something I wanted to share with her. In the past, this normally meant something bad, but I said to her something like: "Mum, you know how involved I've been with Antioch and Church and stuff?.. well, during World Youth Day, I had such an amazing experience, and It made me think of so many great things, and It's led me to think that God might be calling me to be a Religious Brother...". She really was taken by surprise, and questioned me, 'how do you know?', 'Why a Brother, not a Priest?', 'you know it's going to be hard?', etc. I filled her in on what I had been up to, and answered all her questions. I didn't quite know how to tell dad, as we had never really had a very deep conversation, let alone one about religion. So Mum broke it to him, and he was very accepting of my decision and supported me 100%.
After some a few more meetings at Liverpool, Br. John asked if I was interested in coming along to a Patrician Bicentenary Dinner at the Liverpool Catholic Club. I jumped at the opportunity! ... but wait... it's going to be me, alone, in a massive room full of people who I didn't know. For those of you who knew me well back then, I had a hard time just going to the supermarket alone... let alone have to make conversation with strangers!
When the evening came, I was SO nervous. Br. John came to my front door, and off we went in his car. On the way, we chatted about random things and made good conversation. I asked a lot of questions about who would be there?, what exactly was it about?, what do I have to do?, but he just said to be myself and enjoy the evening, and that It is a great chance for me to meet all the Brothers and their Affiliates.
When I walked into the Ball Room, the place was packed with people, and surprisingly I recognised a few of my old teachers and Principal, and a few people from my parish. Br. John introduced me to many people, most of whom had heard about me...(was that a good thing?)... and were happy that I could come along. I met most, if not all of the Brothers who were present, and they each greeted me with firm handshakes, and a warm Irish welcome (some, not so Irish).
The evening was great, and I did come out of my shell a lot. The people at my table were great conversationalists, and had a lot to ask this young person who was thinking of joining the Brothers.
I left feeling relieved, and happy knowing that this journey was beginning, slowly but steady.
And so this concludes Part 2 of my story. I hope you have been enjoying it thus far, and be sure to tune in next time when I continue the Journey; talking about my first time visiting monasteries and coping with telling friends and family about "this".
Thanks for reading!
God Bless!
Postulant Luke.
p.s. The Patrician Website is a lote more up to date now! Check it out!
Wednesday, 9 March 2011
Monday, 21 February 2011
Why would you do such a thing?
So, I guess to start this blog off, this post should really be about... WHY!?
Most of you would be wondering, why would this young 20 year old, with such a bright future and so much potential give up having a wife, children, money, ...sex? and why would he want to go and get himself shipped off to live with a bunch of religious oldies!?
Well, to explain all this and more, "Let's start at the very be-gin-ning".
I was raised in a seemingly ordinary family. My Mother is Anglo-Indian and my Father is Canadian (eh!). Mum is Catholic, and Dad is Lutheran by name. I was Baptised Catholic, went to Catholic School my whole life, and we attended Church on a Sunday for, well, most of my pre-teen life. I was cared for by my Nan and Pop, while my parents went to work, and Nan was who I clinged to; she has been and always will be a huge influence in my life, and taught me the basics of what it meant to be Catholic. I was involved with the local Youth Group for quite a few years.... But somewhere along the lines, I became misguided.
I became, I guess you could say, bored with the whole church thing, and didn't really know what I believed in anymore. To make matters worse, my family became so busy with sport and other commitments, that our going to church became neglected. I prayed sometimes, but it was mainly when I wanted something stupid, or if I had a test the next day, and I would beg God to give me all the answers so I wouldn't have to study. I still went to Youth Group and was in the Band for 5pm Saturday Mass, but that was really the only reason I kept going, was for the music; I stopped getting anything out of it, and Youth Group just became something for me to do on a slow Saturday evening.
School was going well, and I had done great at the School Certificate in year 10. But apart from Curriculum and Sport, my school, which was Catholic, didn't give us much opportunity to be engaged with faith on a personal level; we went to a school mass maybe 3-4 times throughout the year, and had the odd feast like 'St. Patrick's Day'.
During this time, I was dealing with a lot of teenage angst, and going through that 'awkward stage' of life - not knowing where I belonged, thinking the whole world was against me. This caused me to feel 'incomplete' and life seemed to drag on.
The transition into Senior School made things a little easier, as our school went from being all boys to co-educational. I befriended a lot of the girls, and the guys seemed to straighten their act out (most of them, anyway). Things were getting better, but I was still unconcernedwith faith and God.
One day a girl, who was from my Youth Group, approached me at school and handed me some forms for this retreat we had all been invited to go a long to. RETREAT? I didn't 'do' retreats. I much rather preferred to stay at home in my own bed, with my own T.V and luxuries; i didn't want to be shipped off to some brainwashing seminar where we would all hold hands and sing happy clappy songs.
Once at home, I read over the forms and saw that the retreat was actually being held at my school by the youth of the local parish. That was OK... but I still wasn't going. Then I heard that some of my close friends in and outside of my current Youth Group were going too... but I still wasn't going! THEN I found out that a few school mates were going too... oh all right... what's the worst that can happen, if I don't like it, I'll just leave, I only live around the corner...
I stayed in that Youth Group for 5 years.
Something changed within me over the course of that weekend. God went from being this external 'thing' in the clouds who I didn't know or trust, to the real core of my being, the internal warmth and true essence of my soul.
Through this Group, I was able to grow more spiritual and more in love with Christ. It lead me to get more involved at school and later uni; It allowed me to actually have a social life; It gave me reason to live again! It also lead me to be a bigger part of my new Parish, and to go to World Youth Day in Sydney 2008.
I was in my first year at the Australian Catholic University studying a Bachelors in Teaching and Bachelors in Arts (Secondary Humanities) - Basically, High School History/Geography Teaching. The whole Sydney Archdiocese had been counting down to World Youth Day, and in the lead up, we were so blessed to encounter the WYD Cross and Icon of Mary and Child Jesus. I had 3 occasions where I was blessed to have intament moments with these two amazing relics.
Sitting quietly in the Church, venerating and focusing my prayers to these symbols of Heaven, something stirred within me. Looking into the eyes of Mary and Jesus, they seemed to pierce my entire being. A great warmth grew in my heart, like I had just been given a mission. - But I didn't quite know what it was.
This internal burning continued to grow, and I knew it was leading me to something, but what? WYD08 finally came, and I took this as my chance to find answers.
I attended many amazing talks and met even more beautiful people from all around the globe. It was a good time to be alive and Catholic, and the entire city of Sydney had been hit by the atomic bomb of faith and spirituality. When I heard it mentioned that some of my friends were thinking of going to the 'Vocations Expo' I jumped at the opportunity (keeping in mind I still hadn't told anyone what was going through my heart).
I went from stall to stall, secretly stuffing my backpack full of religious shrapnel and continuing along the isles. Nothing seemed to really click with me, and that internal burning told me to "keep going!" so keep going I did.
Then BANG!
It hit me like a ton of green bricks.
The Patrician Brothers!
It all seemed to make sense finally! I had gone to a Patrician Linked school (but unfortunately there were no Brothers there when I attended, so I didn't know 100% what they were at the time); I'm studying to be a teacher (and this is a teaching order); I knew I loved Christ, and knew also that just being a normal teacher wasn't enough for me or Him; I didn't feel called to the priesthood; and even better, I loved the Irish and the colour green!
All these things led me to have a quick, inconspicuous chat to the Brother who was at the stall, and to once again, steel a copy of everything from the table of goodies.
I went away from that Vocations Expo feeling like I had found the answer. I knew from then, in my heart, that the Patrician Brothers was where I needed to be for the rest of my life.
So this ends Part #1 of my Vocations Story, I hope it has been interesting to read, and maybe even slightly inspiring on some level. Please keep me in your prayers, and I'll keep you in mine. Stay tuned for #2, where I will continue my story from when I made first contact with the Patrician Vocations Director (Oooooooooooo dum dum DUM!).
God Bless!
Postulant Luke.
Most of you would be wondering, why would this young 20 year old, with such a bright future and so much potential give up having a wife, children, money, ...sex? and why would he want to go and get himself shipped off to live with a bunch of religious oldies!?
Well, to explain all this and more, "Let's start at the very be-gin-ning".
I was raised in a seemingly ordinary family. My Mother is Anglo-Indian and my Father is Canadian (eh!). Mum is Catholic, and Dad is Lutheran by name. I was Baptised Catholic, went to Catholic School my whole life, and we attended Church on a Sunday for, well, most of my pre-teen life. I was cared for by my Nan and Pop, while my parents went to work, and Nan was who I clinged to; she has been and always will be a huge influence in my life, and taught me the basics of what it meant to be Catholic. I was involved with the local Youth Group for quite a few years.... But somewhere along the lines, I became misguided.
I became, I guess you could say, bored with the whole church thing, and didn't really know what I believed in anymore. To make matters worse, my family became so busy with sport and other commitments, that our going to church became neglected. I prayed sometimes, but it was mainly when I wanted something stupid, or if I had a test the next day, and I would beg God to give me all the answers so I wouldn't have to study. I still went to Youth Group and was in the Band for 5pm Saturday Mass, but that was really the only reason I kept going, was for the music; I stopped getting anything out of it, and Youth Group just became something for me to do on a slow Saturday evening.
School was going well, and I had done great at the School Certificate in year 10. But apart from Curriculum and Sport, my school, which was Catholic, didn't give us much opportunity to be engaged with faith on a personal level; we went to a school mass maybe 3-4 times throughout the year, and had the odd feast like 'St. Patrick's Day'.
During this time, I was dealing with a lot of teenage angst, and going through that 'awkward stage' of life - not knowing where I belonged, thinking the whole world was against me. This caused me to feel 'incomplete' and life seemed to drag on.
The transition into Senior School made things a little easier, as our school went from being all boys to co-educational. I befriended a lot of the girls, and the guys seemed to straighten their act out (most of them, anyway). Things were getting better, but I was still unconcernedwith faith and God.
One day a girl, who was from my Youth Group, approached me at school and handed me some forms for this retreat we had all been invited to go a long to. RETREAT? I didn't 'do' retreats. I much rather preferred to stay at home in my own bed, with my own T.V and luxuries; i didn't want to be shipped off to some brainwashing seminar where we would all hold hands and sing happy clappy songs.
Once at home, I read over the forms and saw that the retreat was actually being held at my school by the youth of the local parish. That was OK... but I still wasn't going. Then I heard that some of my close friends in and outside of my current Youth Group were going too... but I still wasn't going! THEN I found out that a few school mates were going too... oh all right... what's the worst that can happen, if I don't like it, I'll just leave, I only live around the corner...
I stayed in that Youth Group for 5 years.
Something changed within me over the course of that weekend. God went from being this external 'thing' in the clouds who I didn't know or trust, to the real core of my being, the internal warmth and true essence of my soul.
Through this Group, I was able to grow more spiritual and more in love with Christ. It lead me to get more involved at school and later uni; It allowed me to actually have a social life; It gave me reason to live again! It also lead me to be a bigger part of my new Parish, and to go to World Youth Day in Sydney 2008.
I was in my first year at the Australian Catholic University studying a Bachelors in Teaching and Bachelors in Arts (Secondary Humanities) - Basically, High School History/Geography Teaching. The whole Sydney Archdiocese had been counting down to World Youth Day, and in the lead up, we were so blessed to encounter the WYD Cross and Icon of Mary and Child Jesus. I had 3 occasions where I was blessed to have intament moments with these two amazing relics.
Sitting quietly in the Church, venerating and focusing my prayers to these symbols of Heaven, something stirred within me. Looking into the eyes of Mary and Jesus, they seemed to pierce my entire being. A great warmth grew in my heart, like I had just been given a mission. - But I didn't quite know what it was.
This internal burning continued to grow, and I knew it was leading me to something, but what? WYD08 finally came, and I took this as my chance to find answers.
I attended many amazing talks and met even more beautiful people from all around the globe. It was a good time to be alive and Catholic, and the entire city of Sydney had been hit by the atomic bomb of faith and spirituality. When I heard it mentioned that some of my friends were thinking of going to the 'Vocations Expo' I jumped at the opportunity (keeping in mind I still hadn't told anyone what was going through my heart).
I went from stall to stall, secretly stuffing my backpack full of religious shrapnel and continuing along the isles. Nothing seemed to really click with me, and that internal burning told me to "keep going!" so keep going I did.
Then BANG!
It hit me like a ton of green bricks.
The Patrician Brothers!
It all seemed to make sense finally! I had gone to a Patrician Linked school (but unfortunately there were no Brothers there when I attended, so I didn't know 100% what they were at the time); I'm studying to be a teacher (and this is a teaching order); I knew I loved Christ, and knew also that just being a normal teacher wasn't enough for me or Him; I didn't feel called to the priesthood; and even better, I loved the Irish and the colour green!
All these things led me to have a quick, inconspicuous chat to the Brother who was at the stall, and to once again, steel a copy of everything from the table of goodies.
I went away from that Vocations Expo feeling like I had found the answer. I knew from then, in my heart, that the Patrician Brothers was where I needed to be for the rest of my life.
So this ends Part #1 of my Vocations Story, I hope it has been interesting to read, and maybe even slightly inspiring on some level. Please keep me in your prayers, and I'll keep you in mine. Stay tuned for #2, where I will continue my story from when I made first contact with the Patrician Vocations Director (Oooooooooooo dum dum DUM!).
God Bless!
Postulant Luke.
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