ststephens – The Roamin' Catholic Priest

#Vancouver2017

June 12, 2017October 17, 2017akinstetter

Vacation…what an multi-faceted word. In one sense it means a break from the daily grind of life for a time and enter another world, in search of rest and rejuvenation. In another sense it means adventure, where we go out from our homes to a new place and explore the amazing things God created on the earth, in search of excitement. In yet another sense it means an inward discovery of oneself no matter where geographically a person finds oneself, in search of balance amidst the roller-coaster of life. This kind of experience is crucial to any well-balanced life, even in the priesthood, and so in May I took the opportunity to do just that: I took a vacation. Not a vacation from my vocation (as is often warned against; not a vacation from reality), but I went on a genuine vacation where I discovered God’s grace in my life in much deeper ways than I could have ever expected all the while being true to the man and priest God created me to be. Read more →

Be Who You Are and Be That Well

February 19, 2017August 17, 2017akinstetter

In the Gospel from this Sunday we are faced with a seemingly impossible command from Jesus, “So be perfect, just as your heavenly father is perfect.” On the surface this command seems absolutely unattainable, we are human beings after all with flaws and sins, so how are we supposed to achieve perfection? In order to get what Jesus is actually saying we have to understand that He is not using the word perfection in the same way that we use the word. The greek word used here is τέλειος, which is derived from the greek word τέλος, meaning end or goal. The τέλος of a thing is that which it is made for, its purpose. For example, the τέλος of a winter sleigh is to be ridden over snow pulled by a horse. So a perfect sleigh, using the word τέλειος, is a sleigh that is able to be ridden on snow well, regardless of whether the sleigh itself has physical flaws. It may have dents and scratches on it, but if the sleigh rides well, it is perfect; it is fully achieving its purpose of existence. So when Jesus is calling each and every one of us to perfection, He is calling us not to somehow correct all of our flaws to be perfect (even though this is a continual process in the moral life), He calls us to be the men and women He created us to be, to attain the goal of who we were made to be: saints. Read more →

God Has You and Me Right Where He Wants Us

February 6, 2017August 17, 2017akinstetter

Life is a constant journey. Just when you think you got it all figured out, you realize how far away you still are from having it all figured out. But before becoming discouraged, it is important to realize that it is okay to not have everything in life figured out. As we keep trucking on this road we call life, God continually places us in positions to keep learning, growing, and drawing closer to Him. Two years ago today, on February 6, 2015, I was ordained a deacon. It is hard to believe that it has already been two years, and I am quickly approaching my first year anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood in May. As I think back to my two year younger self, I could not have imagined then being where I am today. St. Stephens Indian Mission was not on my list of expected appointments as a newly ordained priest in the Diocese of Cheyenne, and yet here I am. I am not at all where I expected to be, but even so, I am exactly where God expected me to be. And even more, I am where God wills me to be. In His Divine providence, God placed me in the unlikeliest of places as a newly ordained priest in order to keep forming me into the priest He has called me to be and to keep drawing me closer to Him. He sent me a friend and brother, Deacon Bryce, to journey on this road together and through these past many months, I have continued to grow and learn more about the priest God is forming in me. It has been far from easy, but then growing in holiness never truly is easy because it requires a continual death to self, a continual giving of oneself with a love that is free and doesn’t grasp, which, in our broken humanity, is difficult. Read more →

What a Sleigh Ride Taught Me About the Beauty of Reality

January 4, 2017August 17, 2017akinstetter

On Christmas Eve I did something I had never done before, I went on a sleigh ride. It wasn’t just one of those sleigh rides you pay for as a tourist attraction in a quaint little Christmas-looking mountain village, but I went on an authentic Wyoming ride, with a sleigh, restored by Deacon Bryce and myself (with a little help from our friends) and Chief, the horse, whom Deacon Bryce had been training this past autumn to pull the sleigh. Now is typically the part where you would think I would describe the sleigh ride as “magical” or “amazing” or other such things, but I’m not going to. In fact the sleigh ride was a bit more mundane that I had originally thought…and yet, even so, the reality was more beautiful than any of the perfect, romanticized versions could ever be, and I loved it. Read more →

Coffee at Jacob’s Well

December 15, 2016October 17, 2017akinstetter

Everyone loves coffee…well, almost everyone loves coffee…and if you don’t love coffee, you probably love the idea of coffee. The aroma of freshly brewing coffee, the earthy, crisp taste of the coffee itself, the hot cup that warms your hands in contrast to the cold weather outside, the deep conversations that spark between friends over coffee, or even just the quiet solitude of a hot cup of liquid as you contemplate life and pray in thanksgiving to God, there is something for everyone to enjoy in a good cup of coffee. Read more →

Trust and Follow

October 13, 2016August 17, 2017akinstetter

In my limited experience of priestly life these past five months, I would say priestly life is like being handed the keys to a 1953 Chevy pickup truck with manual transmission and no power steering and being told by God the Father, “You’re driving. Let’s go!” God sits shotgun and places an indescribable amount of confidence and trust in me, his beloved son, the driver, as I strive not to kill the truck amidst the fear that I will do just that. Ultimately, what is revealed to me is that God the Father’s confidence in me is justified, I just can’t see it in myself because of my fear of failing. God is guiding me each step of the way, not by driving for me, but by teaching me how to drive. Read more →

The Joy of Running … and Swimming

September 12, 2016October 17, 2017akinstetter

This past week I rediscovered something crucial to any life well-lived, exercise. Before priestly ordination, seminary life provided a mostly structured scheduled environment in which it was fairly easy to work in running to my weekly routine. During my time in seminary I ran 3 half-marathons and many other 5Ks, 10Ks, and 15Ks. Since priestly ordination, however, my life has been far from routine; with a bit of vacation, starting at St. Stephens Indian Mission, World Youth Day trip to Lithuania and Poland, and trying to get settled back here, I haven’t made the effort to get out and run…that is, until last week. What transpired was a rediscovery of the joy of running. I don’t mean that in a superficial sort of way, in truth, it hurt; my body was not ready for me to pick up running again and definitely let me know it wasn’t appreciative of the 3 miles I tried to cover. The joy consisted in the experience of getting out and away from everything for 30 minutes. It gave me an experience to be outside, with the beauty of God’s creation all around me, creating a sense of awe and wonder at the created universe. I also love to run with music so running allows me to jam out to my music and enjoy without worrying about anything back home. It’s a great stress-reliever, a healthy habit, and a spiritually uplifting experience (for our spiritual life and our physical life are intertwined: when our bodies are in a healthy place it aids our spiritual life and vice versa). Needless to say, I hope to keep up the running routine and check out some of the local races here in the area…I’ve noticed a Turkey Trot 5K coming up in November in Riverton. Read more →

A Portion of the Hundredfold

September 2, 2016October 17, 2017akinstetter

Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.” – Mk 10:29-30

One of the things that every newly ordained priest must face is the fact that he has in a very literal way, laid down his life for Christ. That means giving up a family, a stable home life, even a career. It also means living and ministering in places he possibly never thought he would. Being a priest means having one foot in the created world and the other in the spiritual world. He directs the people he ministers to an encounter with Christ and points everyone to their ultimate destiny, eternal life in heaven where we will all see God face to face. Read more →

World Youth Day Kraków 2016 – An Unexpected Experience of Fatherhood

August 5, 2016October 17, 2017akinstetter

Having never gone to World Youth Day before and being a newly ordained Catholic priest (May 20, 2016), I have to admit, I was a bit nervous going into this World Youth Day pilgrimage in Kraków, Poland. I wasn’t entirely sure what my role would be, what my purpose would be, on this pilgrimage. I have been ordained a priest for about two months, so I knew that I would be going on this pilgrimage as a priest, but even that didn’t reveal to me what my deeper purpose was going to be. Plus, with my life being hectic with the move to my new parish at St. Stephens, which occurred literally a week and a half before we left for Europe, my life was understandably upside down. I had almost no time to mentally prepare for this trip. Instead, I packed light and hit the road to join up with the rest of the group from Wyoming as we prepared to leave the United States of America with little to no expectations of what was to come. I think this complete unpreparedness was, in itself, a grace given to me by the Lord. Without any expectation of what was to come, the Lord moved me in ways I didn’t see coming and have been tremendously blessed by, and my not have noticed had I been actively expecting something else. Read more →