Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1505021
37 DENVER CATHOLIC | AUGUST 2023 1 To begin again. In the words of Venerable Bruno Lanteri: "Though I fall a thousand times, each time… I will rise again as peaceful as if it were the first, knowing my weakness and knowing, Lord, your great mercy...if I should fall even a thousand times a day, a thousand times, with peaceful repentance, I will say immediately, Nunc coepi [Now I begin], my God, my God!" 2 The Eucharist has been my strength and my song. There is no place I would rather be. 3 A whisper. For me, God speaks in a still, small voice. I am still learning to be quiet enough to listen. 1 It's not really what I learned, but how I changed during formation. And that was all built on prayer. Looking back, when I started formation, I can say now that I really didn't know how to pray. Learning that prayer is an intimate conversation with God and practicing and experimenting with different st yles and methods of prayer has led to a deeper awareness and practice of the presence of God in my life. 2 The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that the Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life. My experience bears that out; the Eucharist is the foundation of my vocation to the diaconate both in Holy Communion and Eucharistic Adoration. Both provide an opportunit y to encounter God in a profound and intimate way. Both are God's response to the desire of our hearts as expressed in Psalm 63. 3 It started with a whisper. Early in our marriage, my wife Debbie and I had an opportunit y to get to know Deacon Chuck Lamar at Light of the World. That planted the seed. The seed was watered through the years by the witness of Deacons Rich Boyd, Glenn Allison and Mike Daly at Our Lady of Fatima. I know that God was leading me to take on certain challenges and responsibilities in my career and once I had met those challenges, the thought of the diaconate became a constant voice in my head calling me to formation. ⊲ Deacon Joe Donohoe Deacon Rick Montagne Deacon Mark Wolbach In Gratitude to God for your Loving & Faithful Service to The Church and Our Parish Deacon Joe Donohoe Deacon Rick Montagne Deacon Mark Wolbach The Priests, Pastoral Staff & Parishioners of Light of the World Roman Catholic Church In Gratitude God for Loving & Service The Church and Our Deacon Joe Donohoe Deacon Rick Montagne Deacon Mark Wolbach The Priests, Pastoral Staff & Parishioners of Light of the World Roman Catholic Church In Gratitude God for your Loving & Faithful Service to The Church and Our Parish Deacon Joe Donohoe Deacon Rick Montagne Deacon Mark Wolbach Deacon Jesse Taitano In Gratitude to God for your Loving & Faithful Service to The Church and Our Parish The Priests, Pastoral Staff & Parishioners of Light of the World Roman Catholic Church ank you Deacon Ron for your many years of faithful service to St. Anthony, St. Catherine, and Sacred Heart parishes. Welcome Deacon Bernie to our parishes. We are happy to have you join us. D E ACO N P H I L M CN U LT Y Notre Dame Parish in Denver D E ACO N A S H L E Y L E S S A R D St. Mary's Parish in Littleton