The Capuchins: A Daring Adventure to Love By NADIA POZO
CS&T Staff Writer
“It’s daring — especially in a world that is like ours — so sexualized and sensualized. You have to accept that it is a daring adventure that is both exciting and challenging, but it’s all about God’s love,” said Father Paul Dressler, O.F.M. Cap., about answering the call to religious life, particularly to the Capuchin way of life.
The Capuchin Franciscans are an international order of friars who are committed to living a life of simplicity and poverty in the spirit and manner of St. Francis of Assisi. They fully live the Gospel of Jesus Christ by serving their brothers and sisters, especially the poor, the sick, and the underprivileged.
Father Paul was attracted to the Capuchins by their balance between the contemplative prayer life and ministry.
“As outgoing as I can be, I also feel the need to be very prayerful. I was attracted to the prayerfulness of the Capuchins and the emphasis on that prayerfulness along with the simplicity of the lifestyle.”
The sudden death of his father at the age of nine set Father Paul on a spiritual path that led him to the Catholic Church. For Father Paul, the many riches of the Catholic faith appealed to him, including the theology, the sacramentals, the fellowship, and most importantly the Eucharist.
“Ultimately it was the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist that attracted me. It’s Jesus at the center of our worship and our life, whereas, in a Baptist church, typically the center is the sermon. Everything builds up to the the sermon, the words of a man. In a Catholic Mass, the sermon is only at the service of the Lord. The climax, if you will, is the Eucharist, the Lord Himself made present under the forms of bread and wine. It’s an awesome reality.”
Touched deeply by the biography of St. Francis, Father Paul chose this special saint as his confirmation name. He identified with Francis’ resistance to his father’s materialism — an experience he went through with his own stepfather. Father Paul found in St. Francis a companion, a friend, and a kindred spirit, marking a second turning point.
“Coinciding with my call to the Catholic Church was a tug toward ministry and towards the priesthood,” he recalled. “In my mind, although I felt this attraction to the priesthood and to religious life, I also had a strong urge to be a family man and to be a husband. I struggled with my call to celibate love.”
Although he developed a deep Catholic faith, the struggle to answer his call lasted for 14 years. Finally at 31, after almost getting engaged, he seriously discerned his calling. By 32, he entered the Order of Friars Minor, Capuchin.
“I really played tug-of-war with God because I was afraid essentially that God’s will would be to my undoing. It was only when I came to a peace and a decision that God’s call isn’t for our undoing, but for our life, that I was able to answer my call. ”
For Jim Mungovan the moment of conviction came when the sex scandal of the Church was exposed.
“I was really frustrated with the way the Church was being attacked. I know that 98 percent or more of the priests out there are really good and are really committed to what they’re doing,” explained Mungovan. “I felt the way I could defend what I loved the most was to be a part of it.”
A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Mungovan is in his first year of postulancy with the Capuchins and finally at peace.
Coming from a large devout Catholic family, Mungovan has always had a great love for the Catholic Faith. Looking back he realizes that the base for a religious vocation was always there. Yet, he ignored the gentle calling of God for many years.
After leading a life of success and wealth, Mungovan left it all behind to spend two years as a missionary in Papua, New Guinea at a Capuchin missionary.
His experience in Papua exposed him to the Capuchin way of life. It gave him a greater appreciation for the simple life and for silence to hear God.
During that time, his engagement to his hometown girlfriend ended. He had changed and the world he came back to was different but the same.
He got sucked into his old way of life, landing a successful job and starting his own business, but the same feeling came back. God was calling him. When the scandal broke out in the Church, Mungovan was finally convicted to take action.
He sold everything again and left his old life behind to follow God on a daring adventure of love at the age of 39, proving that you are never too old to answer the call of God.
“Fear and indecision seem to be the greatest obstacles to answering a vocational call, whatever that might be,” said Father Joseph Mathew, a Capuchin priest from India.
“People seem to be so selfish and self-centered that they don’t want to give themselves up for others, so they don’t want to commit themselves to married life or priestly life. They want to discern but never decide. For a vocation we need to have faith in the One who calls. And then march forward, ” said Father Mathew.
His advice? Make a decision at this moment — a relative absolute decision.
“Today what I’m deciding is absolutely true and right. I must march forward. Tomorrow, because I’m growing — my knowledge grows, my understanding grows — I might change my decision, but that doesn’t mean that the decision I made yesterday was wrong and the one I’m making today is right. That was right yesterday and today my decision is right for today. This is what I’d call relative absolute decision.”
Although Father Mathew had felt the calling since he was young and entered the Capuchin order when he was 17, he reveals that he still must recommit himself to his vocation every day.
“There were many times that I doubted my vocation and I haven’t always been consoled in my priestly life. There’s a human element in me that questions whether I’m worthy, whether I’m doing it right, or whether I’m on the right track. So those questions, those challenges will continue to be with me until the end. But at the same time there is a conviction in me that I must go forward.”
The question, according to Father Paul, is whether you believe God is calling you to a love that is for many — a love that is really focused on Jesus — and a love that is consecrated to his people.
“Ultimately our discernment is to find out how God is calling us to love. The real reason anyone should be a priest is because they discern that they will love the world better that way.”
Father Jim Menkhus, a Capuchin for more than 30 years has this advice: “Vocation is a question of all three things being there at the same time — you, God and the [religious order]. If you have a sense of the calling, pray and then come and see. Don’t just think about it. Are you willing to try it? That’s what our postulancy program does. Learn to trust.”
To learn more about the Capuchins, contact Father Thomas Betz at (215)739-0291.
Contact Nadia Pozo at (215) 965-4614 or npozo@adphila.org
Order of Friars
Minor Capuchin CHARISM: Contemplation overflowing into evangelical action.
PREPARATION:
CANDIDACY: Three to six months discernment period
POSTULANCY: One year in in-house program at friary
NOVITIATE: An intense year of appropriating the Capuchin lifestyle through prayer and contemplation; classes and ministry to the poor.
POST-NOVITIATE: Three years minimum with studies including theology.
TEMPORARY PROFESSION: A novice professes his vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience for three years (may be renewed for a total of six years).
FINAL VOWS: After three years of temporary profession, a friar is eligible to make his final profession of vows for life.
BRIEF HISTORY: Inspired by the ideals of St. Francis of Assisi, the Capuchins were founded as a reform movement in 1528. Our strength is derived from a heritage of prayer, preaching, and caring for those in need.
PRESENCE IN THE ARCHDIOCESE: St. John the Evangelist Church; Holy Redeemer Church, Chinatown; Thomas Jefferson University Hospital; Wills Eye Hospital; and the Office for Youth and Young Adults.
Vocations Director: Father Thomas Betz, O.F.M. Cap. Contact Father Betz at (888) 2-OFM CAP or (215) 592-7552 or email come-and-see@capuchin.com. The Web site is www.capuchin.com. Padre Pio Friary, 3224 Belgrade St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19134.
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