I started reading the book, “Behold the Man: A Catholic Vision of Male Spirituality,” by Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers, and just the first couple of chapters paint an alarming scenario. He states it very clearly in the first line of the book, “The Catholic man is an endangered species.”
Wow! Talk about not beating around the bush. His archbishop, in the Introduction of the book, says that “we are at war.” It is not just with the larger culture around us. Rather, Catholic men are destroying themselves by their choices. As Deacon Harold puts it, “We choose spiritual sloth and laziness over witnessing to the truth of our faith with passion and conviction. We’ve become timid. We’ve stopped leading.”
This has a significant impact on the future. Currently, about 60% of the people at Mass on Sundays are women, and 40% are men. Research indicates that if mom and dad attend regularly, 34% of their kids will attend regularly. If mom goes regularly and dad goes irregularly or not at all, that drops to 2% or 3% of their kids who will attend regularly. If dad goes regularly and mom irregularly or not at all, the percentage jumps to 38% or 44%! So contrary to what many people think, it is the father who should be the primary leader in their children’s faith development.
I have not finished Deacon Harold’s book, but I already know it is a complicated problem, with no easy answer. But recently I brought this up to our Holy Name Society, a confraternity of men in the parish, and they decided that we need to do something.
So, ATTENTION MEN OF THE PARISH, here is your opportunity to get inspired by one of America’s future saints. Servant of God Fr. Emil Kapaun was an ordinary man who became an extraordinary priest and Army chaplain, inspiring the men he served on the battlefield and in an enemy prison camp. Join the men of the Holy Name Society as we journey to explore the virtues that made Fr. Kapaun such an inspiration. The Holy Name Society will be hosting the Kapaun’s Men Virtue Series starting on January 24, 2019. This is a 7-part series; we will do one part each month through June (we might have to combine the last two parts). Each session will begin with a prayer, then a brief introduction to the virtue being discussed, a short video presentation, and discussion. Each session should be about an hour. We will meet at 7:30 PM in Room 5 of the Parish Center. Come for fellowship with other great men of the parish to become the men God made you to be! Contact me or Rich Lacey for more information.