*Apologies for the delay in releasing this episode; it was just recorded this morning*
This week’s post turns out to be a bittersweet one, as it will be Father Jacob’s last podcast for a while. Earlier this year, he was invited to begin his final formation as a Jesuit priest by completing a months-long process called Tertianship.
In this episode, we discuss this unique part of a Jesuit priest’s journey; where he’s going to be for the next several months (hint: it’s overseas); how long, roughly, his Tertianship will last … and the fact that, once it is complete, he will be reassigned elsewhere in the Midwest. It only follows that we also end up discussing how laypeople can adjust when a beloved priest leaves and how they should look at it as an opportunity and not a loss.
In transparency, this was a tough episode for me to record. After talking with Father Jacob so regularly over the past year-plus, I have come to cherish his guidance and wisdom and realized about ¾ of the way through just how much I will miss having him so close by. In fact, you’ll notice some significant editing in the last minute of the podcast because I couldn’t quite make it through all the beautiful thoughts he was sharing without tearing up a bit.
That said, I cannot think of a more worthy man to continue on his priestly journey and am so thrilled he has been invited to move forward. This is a pivotal moment in his formation as a Jesuit and a huge – and well deserved - honor. He has already touched so many lives; I can only imagine how many more he will touch as he continues his vocation.
We are hoping he will be able to continue his visits to this podcast once he is reassigned to a new diocese. I will keep in close touch with him to make sure that we do all we can to make that happen!
In the meantime, I cannot thank him and St. Xavier Church’s Pastor enough for allowing him to speak regularly on this program and share so much of his wisdom and knowledge. Aside from the absolutely inspiring insight he shares at the end of this episode about Mary Magdalene needing to let go of Jesus after the resurrection, my two favorite takeaway quotes from this episode, bar none, are:
“If God asks you to do something, that’s pretty special, because God doesn’t need us to do anything.”
And, the title of this episode, which is a quote Father Jacob attributes to Mother Teresa:
“God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.”
*Father Jacob’s last Sunday mass in Cincinnati will be on Sunday, July 27th , 10:30 am at St. Xavier Church in downtown Cincinnati. I will be there! Hope you can make it, too -
