It is an interesting feeling reflecting on these five years since I was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Charlotte. In a way, that blessed day in June feels like yesterday, and in another way it feels like a lifetime ago. So very much has happened, with ups and downs, intense joys and sorrows, regular routines and incredible occasions. After five years of priesthood, there is one word that seems to sum up well the life of a parish priest and it is the word "presence," and the following is an attempt to describe why.
I remember at the time I was completing seminary, something many priests would knowingly say to us newly ordained was the phrase "Love the people." This seemed so obvious, and the words of Pope Francis have only reinforced this sentiment as he has encouraged us in his idiomatic way to "smell like the sheep." Like in a lot of things, this loving the people entrusted to my care is demonstrated by being present – for better or worse, at times ordinary and extraordinary (and the day-to-day ordinary seems to be the most important). This time with them has proven to be the source of the memories I treasure so dearly, a part of the hundredfold Our Lord promised the disciples. On the flip side, being present has also proven a great source of sorrow as it is incredibly hard to say goodbye, a chore I have had to perform twice in these five years and one that I have found to be the most difficult part of the priesthood. With this sorrow real and present, I am continually reminded, though, that God does indeed provide, that He asks me to be present to another beloved group of the faithful, and though a painful process at first, He keeps expanding the number of lives in which I have the privilege of being a part.
The strength to faithfully remain with the people each day comes from being present to the Blessed Sacrament. It is absolutely essential that I take time each day to recognize that He is present to me, the Real Presence of God made man, in the Eucharist, right with us each and every day. Without that time, simply being present to Him who is present to me, life loses its flavor, the vocation feels more like a job, and the heaviness of the cross seems to outweigh the repayment that Our Lord promised one hundredfold.
These types of presence meet together each day. My time in prayer with the Blessed Sacrament, both privately and in celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, does more for me than I can express. Then, impelled by this loving presence, I strive not only to imitate the Good Shepherd by engaging in a day in the parish, but even more importantly, by my presence to the people as a priest, I strive to point those I serve out of love toward Him who is Love itself.
From those early days of my priesthood at Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro and Bishop McGuinness High School, to my years at St. John the Baptist Church in Tryon, and now in service of the people of Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury, this "presence" of the priesthood has provided me with the greatest five years of my life, and God willing, there will be many more to come. Praised be Jesus Christ!
Father John Eckert is pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury.
Pictured above: SALISBURY — During their morning assembly on June 5, students and faculty at Sacred Heart School gave Father John Eckert, pastor, lots of hugs and gifts including a painting of a cross they had made in appreciation for his fifth anniversary of priestly ordination. Presented to Father Eckert by Principal Frank Cardelle, the cross painting featured the thumbprints of all the students, with each class represented by a different color. (Bill Washington | Catholic News Herald)