Seminarians playing dodgeball!

I did not play at Conception seminary this last weekend because there were too many players already, but see in these videos Jaime Zarse (our newest seminarian) showing his great moves on the dodgeball court and Justin Hamilton (in application for seminary) also getting into the action. Please pray for our seminarians from KCK and those men in application!

Pope Benedict Arrives Safely - in Red Prada Shoes?

I think the Pope loves those slippers - wouldn't you? You can't see the slippers in this picture with Bush, but look for them during Benedict's public audiences. I am so glad he is here, and he has already said that the priest abuse scandal is an 'embarrassment' and that he would rather have good, holy priests than sheer numbers of priests. Amen to that! I am glad he did not shy away from the first question from the media. Way to go, Pope Benedict! I am looking forward tomorrow to all he has to say, and I can't wait to hear what he will say to seminarians and priests in NYC.

Royals lose 2nd in a row!

I could see the Royals slipping on Thursday night against the Yankees. It was almost as if they were saying - 'we've already won the series from the Yanks, and no matter what happens tonight, we'll still be leading the division' - and so it seemed like a mailed-it-in kind of performance. Handling success is a difficult thing, and this team has to keep the foot on the throttle while the other teams are having a hard time getting out of the gate to ensure that we will be there in September when it matters. It is like KU's early lead against UNC in the national semifinal last week - 28 points is great, but you have to keep your foot on the throttle as much as possible. And of course, the Royals do not have the luxury of a 28 point lead. Almost predictably, the Royals laid down last night against the Twins, and are now 1-3 against the only team in the division with comparable talent. We need to get these next two games if at all possible, so we can hit the road with some swagger. We left 8 on last night, and Jose Guillen had a bad strikeout with the bases loaded and one out, then Billy Butler missed his chance as well. Last night was a winnable game, as was the final game against the Yankees. I hate to see this team slip. By the way, if you are not following the Royals blog http://www.ranyontheroyals.com/ you are missing out - he does a great job! Go Royals - beat the Twins, please!!

Off to Conception, MO

I'm taking some guys to the Encounter with God's Call weekend retreat at Conception this weekend. This is the college seminary that the Archdiocese primarily uses, an apostolate of the Benedictine monks of Conception Abbey. The monks have a beautifully renovated Church of the Immaculate Conception under the patronage of the Archangels (http://www.conception.edu/) and they run the Abbey Press and gift shop as well. This will be a good weekend to spend time with our seminarians, Jaime Zarse, Trent Schmidt and Oswaldo Sandoval, and to introduce some guys to the seminary program in the hope that they will apply. We have traditionally not had that many guys enter college seminary for the Archdiocese, but I am hoping that will change in the near future, as there is a trend for younger seminarians and many college seminaries are filling up once again with candidates for the priesthood. If it were warmer I would throw in my fishing pole and golf clubs, but alas, it is snowing as I leave today for the Abbey. Oremus pro invicem!

The key to tonight's game!

No suprise here - Russell's defense on Derrick Rose, the best player in the tournament, will determine tonight's game, and here is one fan thinking that he is up to the challenge. North Carolina was a terrible team because Russell Robinson was on Tywon Lawson, and Memphis will not nearly be as good with Derrick Rose staring into the eyes of a defender who will be attacking him, not running away scared. Go Russell! Go Jayhawks! Beat Memphis! One Shining Moment!

Archbishop Keleher's 50th Anniversary of Priesthood

Today we had a Mass and luncheon at the chancery celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Ordination of Archbishop James P. Keleher. This year is also his 25th anniversary of election as bishop, so there will be more celebrations to come. I have the distinction of being the last priest ordained by Archbishop Keleher, who is now retired as serves as Archbishop Emeritus of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. As always, Archbishop Keleher was gracious and in good humor today, and gave a good homily that encouraged us.

Royals come home with a winning record??

The Royals were below average offensively today but prevailed because believe it or not, Brett Tomko did alright as their 5th starter. He had life on his fastball and got some double plays when he needed them. I hope the Royals saw something during Tomko's stint as a Dodger that everyone else missed - that they were not letting him pitch his game or something. Admittedly, Tomko is nothing better than a 5th starter right now, but his first start was better than the Royals have been getting the last 10 years from their fifth starters. I actually thought without looking ahead that the Royals would pitch Bannister today and pitch Greinke for the home opener, but I'm glad they did it this way. Bannister will have a better approach against the Yanks, whereas Greinke will hit them Wednesday with great stuff after getting a look at them Tuesday. What do you say we take 2 of 3 from the Bombers, who suddenly seem to have less power than the Tampa Bay Devil Rays! I think it would be great if the American League were just a bloody mess this year, with all good teams just hanging around .500 and the Royals hovering around there somewhere as well. Wouldn't that make for a great summer? I'll be at Opening Day, thanks to some great friends, but will miss the debut of the Powder Blue jerseys next Saturday since I am headed to Conception seminary for a retreat! It's great that the Royals are 4-2 with Guillen off to a slow start, and with Teahen, Buck and Pena being absolutely brutal offensively so far. Teahen looks stronger this year but seems to me to be popping everything up! Thanks to our pitching and defense however, there is less pressure on the offense so they can relax and get it going soon. I've never been a Joey Gathright fan, but he is slowly and surely winning me over. I think he strikes out way too much for an OBP guy, but boy did he make an awesome catch today in center that I'm not sure DeJesus makes. Get him in the lineup everyday and give Teahen or Guillen a rest from time to time.