I didn't write last week. I was away - and more present than I've been in a while.

New Orleans

Sunday through Wednesday I was in New Orleans for the International Catholic Stewardship Council Conference. It was my first time attending, and I went with our diocesan Catholic Stewardship Foundation team.

I thought I'd have time to carve out for the blog and email. I didn't. I was too absorbed in what was happening.

The sessions were strong - not just tactics, but the spirituality underneath stewardship. How discipleship, stewardship, and sacrifice all tie together. How giving flows from identity, and identity is formed in worship. How the offering of our lives is connected to the offering of the Holy Mass.

I came home with more to think about for my preaching than I expected.

But beyond the sessions, what struck me was the people. Foundation leaders, parish leaders, diocesan development teams - all doing the same kind of work I've been doing for our Foundation and a few others. The conversations validated the need for this work and opened more doors. The Church needs people who can build systems and journeys that form generous disciples - not just run annual appeals.

Wednesday Night

I flew home Wednesday evening. When I walked in the door, 20 seminarians were about to arrive by car from New Orleans.

They were staying in Granite City for two nights - ten with us, ten with another parishioner - so they could attend the Sheen Beatification on Thursday. Seminarians from all over, on the road together, making their way to St. Louis to witness something historic.

We had great conversations with the men staying with us. Wonderful guests. Over coffee Thursday morning, we talked about the Church - where she's been, where she's going, what they're seeing in formation, what they're being prepared for.

They see it too: A Church that's continuing to grow into what she actually is, especially finding her footing again in this modern era.

The Beatification

Thursday was a remarkably special day in the life of the Church - especially here in St. Louis.

Some 50,000 faithful gathered at the Dome at America's Center for the Mass of Beatification of Blessed Fulton J. Sheen.

Matthew, Joseph, Andrew, and I had an amazing day together. Close to 1,000 priests. Close to 1,000 seminarians. Around 100 bishops. Around 300 deacons. One parishioner who was there clocked the opening procession alone at 45 minutes.

The actual reading of the declaration - the moment Fulton Sheen became "Blessed" - was incredibly touching. To be there as a deacon, in that moment, was a blessing and an honor.

I wore my "4 Evangelists" stole - the one I wear on Sunday evenings for our parish Holy Hour. They had asked us to wear white. Mine was a bit more gold. But with Sheen's devotion to the Holy Hour - he made one every day of his priesthood - I figured he would appreciate it.

Saturday Evening

The week kept building.

Saturday evening, about 40 parishioners gathered at St. Elizabeth for "Re-Learn the Mass" - a dinner talk I've been preparing for months. Two hours diving deep into what we do when we gather for the Eucharist and why. The structure of the Mass. The prayers. The postures. The theology underneath it all.

Lex orandi, lex credendi - the law of prayer is the law of belief. How we pray shapes what we believe. And if we don't understand what we're praying, we start to lose what we believe.

People stayed after to ask questions. They wanted more. They wanted substance.

Sunday Evening

And then Sunday evening: our first teen youth group meeting of the year.

New faces. Returning faces. Young people showing up to go deeper in their faith.

I kept thinking about those seminarians at our kitchen table, and about what Fr. Longenecker wrote this week - that young people aren't looking for a church that imitates the culture. They want liturgy that shows what it means. Teaching that has substance. Formation that takes them seriously.

That's what we're trying to build.

Meanwhile, in France

While all of this was happening here, Pope Leo was in France.

800,000 people packed the Champs-Élysées for Mass at Place de la Concorde. The first Pope to pray in the restored Notre-Dame Cathedral since the 2019 fire. A torchlight procession and Rosary at Lourdes. Church bells ringing across France for seven minutes when he arrived.

The theme of the visit: "That the world may have life."

"From this beautiful city of Paris," Pope Leo said, "I pray fervently that the living water of the Holy Spirit may flow throughout France."

And to the crowd gathered in the rain: "You are the saints of France!"

The first papal visit to France in 18 years. The largest crowds Paris has seen since the World Cup. In a country that prides itself on official secularism.

Something is happening.

What Sheen Understood

I've been thinking about why 50,000 people showed up in St. Louis. Why 800,000 showed up in Paris. Why 40 parishioners gave up a Saturday evening. Why teenagers showed up on a Sunday night.

Sheen trusted that people wanted substance. He didn't water things down. He taught the faith - clearly, winsomely, without apology - and millions watched. He believed that if you gave people something real, they would come.

He was right then. He's still right now.

Father Dwight Longenecker wrote this week about the surge of young converts entering the Church. They're not looking for a church that imitates the culture. They want liturgy that shows what it means. Teaching that has substance. Formation that takes them seriously.

The seminarians I talked to over coffee see it. The 50,000 at the Dome see it. The 800,000 in Paris see it. The young people filling OCIA classes across the country see it.

The Church is growing into what she actually is.

This Weekend

I preach this weekend. The readings are about the vineyard - the vineyard of the Church, and the vineyard of our souls.

How do we keep both in order? How do we tend what's been entrusted to us?

I'm still turning it over. But after this week - surrounded by stewardship leaders, seminarians, 50,000 faithful in St. Louis, 800,000 in Paris, 40 parishioners diving into the Mass, and teenagers showing up on a Sunday night - I have a lot to draw on.