May 18, 2022

By Father William Muench
NCC columnist

Each year in the month of May, I again plan to celebrate another anniversary of my ordination as a Catholic priest of the Diocese of Ogdensburg. So, as I begin to write with a prayer of gratitude to the Lord, my God. I thank God for so many gifts and so many wonderful assignments during my years as a priest. I thank God for calling me to that day of my ordination, which has brought me so much happiness.

I truly believe that the Holy Spirit guided me in my youth to choose the priesthood of the Lord. Truly I was led by the Lord to my vocation. Each year, I celebrate this call on my anniversary, and I realize again how blessed I have been by the Lord.

I still remember the many ways that the Holy Spirit showed me the way – simple and surprising ways to choose the seminary and to accept my ordination. The Holy Spirit brought the right people into my life as a young person and continues to do so now. I remember so many of them; they held up the signposts for my way. I must admit that some of them touched my life for just a few moments – a day or two – and yet they brought the Lord ever so close to me. They truly showed me the way to follow Jesus.

I have been blessed. My life as a priest has been overflowing with so many unique opportunities for bringing the Lord’s message to others. As a priest, I have brought the Blessed Lord to others through the Holy Eucharist as a celebrant at the Holy Mass. In addition, I have had the opportunity to bring forgiveness of sin to so many through the sacrament of penance. I have been blessed to celebrate the other sacraments – baptism, marriage, the anointing of the sick and the dying.

I have stood with so many families in moments of birth, I have been with families around the graves of a loved one. I know that I have been called as a priest to be a member of so many families in so many parishes. I have had the opportunity to bring the Lord’s love and peace to so many families. I realize so well that I have been blessed with such great happiness.

I have been led by the Holy Spirit to a fraternity of priests throughout the world, a brotherhood that continues to enrich my life and give me so many opportunities to bring people the message of the Lord. As I remember at this time of another anniversary, I am continually surprised by the opportunities that have been mine. I have had the joy of helping to transform the lives of many as they find the joy of knowing the love of Our Savior and of discovering the Lord’s peace during times of difficulty.

Jesus has allowed me to be his apostle. Often, someone has thanked me for changing their lives. I know only too well it was because I was allowed to bring the message of the Lord to them. I still hear from former parishioners and former students offering their gratitude to me. The Lord put me in the right places with the right words.

So, another anniversary and another opportunity to offer my gratitude to the Lord for his call, my vocation that has given me so many years of happiness. “Turn your eyes, O God, our shield; and look on the face of your anointed one; one day within your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.”