The August formation weekend is behind us, and for my cohort, that amounted to just Saturday, which was nice. We spent the day preaching to each other and going over the finer points of The Order of Celebrating Matrimony Without Mass and then preaching some more in the context of a wedding. Difficulty level: two hours of notice. It probably makes sense to adapt Alec Baldwin’s speech and Always Be Preparing (a homily).
Do you know what it takes to preach the Gospel?
[ holds up a brass rosary ]
Also on the to-do list: I need to write up a final self-evaluation and a petition to the bishop. My wife, for her part, will write a letter expressing her support and consent for the petition. Meetings with mentor and spiritual director. More upcoming practices in September, October, and November. Everything leads to December 20, but everything after that is a gigantic question mark. No idea where or what we’ll be assigned. At my home parish, I’m slowly sort of winding down current ministries in anticipation. OCIA kicks off tomorrow night (36 signed up!), and I’ll need to hand my notes and materials off to someone else. The finance committee met last week, and we’ll need to name a new chair and make some additional adjustments. And so on.
