As I celebrate 11 years of priesthood on Saturday, May 16, I think of the awesome privilege it is to be a priest of Jesus Christ.  Pray for Fr. Cameron Ferrell and all his classmates as they become priests of Jesus Christ that day as well.  One of the many blessings of being a priest is the amount of people who approach you and ask for prayers.  Most days, people share some reason to pray for them or their family.  And we do.  The usual response is: “I will pray for you.  Whatever you need, let me know.  I am happy to help in anyway.”

But recently, the roles got reversed.  The past week was one of the hardest weeks of my life.  On the Saturday of First Communion, we noticed my dad’s balance was not good and he seemed out of sorts.  Later, when he drove me to a muffler shop, he accidentally side swiped a car and his response was not like my dad.  So the next day my mom took him to Summa ER. They ran tests on him and found that he had an aggressive and growing Grade 4 Glioblastoma brain tumor.  It shook my soul and my family’s as well.  Since then, he has had a successful surgery and will be going through chemo and radiation in the months ahead.  While he has been given 6-12 months to live, I still have great hope in the days ahead.  When people hear this, I get the same response that I normally give: “I will pray for you and your family.  Just let me know what you need.”  After hearing this about 100 times, I took it to prayer, and Servant of God Rhoda Wise from Canton, Ohio came to mind. Rhoda was a deeply holy woman, and many healings were attributed to her prayers during life.  Now, a cause is open for her beatification.  If you could, please take a moment and pray this prayer to Rhoda Wise for her beatification.  It would be awesome for my dad to be healed from this and at the same time help Rhoda Wise to move further along the road to becoming a saint.

Heavenly Father, the love of Your Crucified Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, sustained the Servant of God, Rhoda Wise, in her many sufferings and made her by grace a strong woman of Faith. She led others to the Sacred Heart of Your Son, Jesus. She devoutly promoted daily recitation of the Most Holy Rosary. Prayers were answered. Faith was strengthened. May her Beatification come quickly as we ask for her intercession in this need… (Pause and add your intentions). We ask this through the Heart of Jesus Christ, Your Son, Our Lord. Amen.

So very grateful for your prayers,
Fr. Jeremy