Ep 184 Revisited: Saying "Yes": A Raw Vocation Story Every Catholic Man Needs to Hear

James Caldwell: Hello all, welcome back to the Manly Catholic. This is James, your host. And before we start this episode, I just want to let you know that we are going to take a break for the summertime due to the craziness, the beautiful weather. But ⁓ we Jeff and I have decided to take a step back and just spend more time in family, focused on our time with our family and just recharging and being refreshed. But yeah, just want to give you guys didn't want leave you guys without any episodes. So we're gonna be playing replaying some of the more popular episodes that we've had ⁓ over the last five years. Can you believe we've been doing this podcast for five years. So thank you all so much for your support, your prayers. We really appreciate it. ⁓ yeah, I just wanna keep the podcast rolling and we'll be coming back in the fall with some new interviews, new episodes, and I can't wait to share that with you all then. Well until then, go out there and be a saint. This is the Manly Catholic, the podcast that calls you out of the shadows and into the fight. Here we forge men into warriors for Christ, husbands, fathers, and leaders who refuse to kneel to the modern world's lies. No more passivity, no more excuses, no more lukewarm faith. This is your battle cry, your call to arms. The time for weakness is over. It's time to fight. Welcome to the Manly Catholic. Let's get to work. Hello all, welcome back to another episode of the Manly Catholic. This is James, and with me we have Father Dom. Hello. Father, how you doing? I'm doing well. How are you? I'm wonderful. Fancy. And who's this fine young gentleman next to you? This is this is the the newly minted transitional deacon. Fresh off the press. Logan Logan McCain. Fresh off the press. So we're blessed with his presence here. And they paired him with you. They did. ⁓ yes. So God God help him. Yes. I will extra fasting. Hopefully he he won't run away. So but he's here. He'll give a he'll give a little brief intro of what a transitional diakonate is. And yeah. So excited. Yeah. Good good to have him here. Before we dive in to your story and background, Deacon. Father, can you leave us in prayer, please? Absolutely. Amen. Pata nostr cuya sincele, santi pecheto nomituum. Adveniat regnum tuum fiataluntas tua secret in chelo atenter. Panam nostrum coteriano danobisodia. Etamiti nobis debita nostra. Secret nostibus debatoribus nostris and a nos dukas in tentacionum. Sed libernosa malo amen. Amen. Andomipatris petusanti amen. Amen. So transitional deacon, so you have to excuse my ignorance, I grew up Protestant. So these terms are a little foreign to me. So transitional deacon, can you do you mind explaining explaining that? And don't feel bad because many Catholics ask me, What are you talking about? All right, okay, I'm on the same boat with many cradles. All right. Yeah, no. ⁓ so yeah, Logan McGann, ⁓ born and raised up in Cedar Springs, so really ⁓ got placed right here at OLC, right in my hometown. Wonderful. Pretty much. ⁓ but I'm a transitional deacon for the Diocese of Grand Rapids, ⁓ Michigan here and That means that ⁓ I'm on the way to priesthood. ⁓ every priest is ordained a deacon first and I am now part of the new guinea pig class that we have, the diaconal synthesis program. ⁓ the PPF six ⁓ program for priestly formation, the sixth rendition of it. ⁓ you're looking at sixth version. The inaugural. Yeah. Inaugural of the sixth. Yes. Of ⁓ at least through ⁓ Mundline the seminary the I studied at ⁓ we implemented it ⁓ my year, so we know just craziness. But ⁓ the joy of that is that we get to have six months ordained a deacon. ⁓ Char Deacon Charlie Lydell, Deacon Hunter Asapovich, and myself weredained on the twentieth of this month. Okay. And then we will be ⁓ deacons for exactly six months and be ordained on the twentieth of June ⁓ down in Saint Andrew's cathedral. Wonderful as priests. As priest, yeah. So is the synthesis program is it just like a more condensed version? Or what is the Yes, the whole changes? The whole idea is in in the last ⁓ PBF five and before you were ordained a deacon and then you were a deacon for a whole year. Mm. That that was me. Yeah, I do remember that St. Roberts. But you go back to school and you're at ⁓ you know, studying and then on the weekends go out to the parish and do your deacon thing. Yeah, the deacon thing, whatever that I'm still figuring out whatever that is. Four days, man. You got you got some time. ⁓ but then for but as in the decon diaconal synthesis, we'll be in the parish, you know, living and breathing the life of the parish as a deacon, ⁓ baptizing babies, marrying people if they don't want father, which I probably won't marry people. But I can Like that's a tough cookie, absolutely he's tough. Hey, you know, I mean, how bad do you want it? You know? Do you want do you want the hundred percent or do you want the discounted deacons or do you really want to get married or should I just throw your deacon over there? He can do it, you know. I mean i it gets you d it gets you down the road. That's right. You guys are all on the same track. Yeah. Yeah. No, the synth the synthesis program, ⁓ the bishop selected four of us priests in this diocese ⁓ to join a cohort and it's it's it's this is the first rendition of this this program. So there's a lot of moving pieces to it, and so but there's also a lot of self discovery as to what this program really is. So the we're sent to Mundaline, which is just north of Chicago, it's the major seminary Along with all of their guys around the country, all of the priests around the country and sa sprinkling around the world too, because the the whole seminary program, the whole seminary system around the world wants to hopefully adopt something like this, where when you are ordained a transitional deacon, the six months you're at parish. Right? And so that said priest who takes a transitional deacon, he's trained. So so the bishop picked four of us and he's been sending us for the past year and a half to get trained there. every so often, like a week, every two months or three months or something, right? And so they the the the program for priestly formation and the in the the US C C B they they they they put something together and they're training us in this. But at then at the same time, we who are going through it we're we're also ⁓ providing, you know, ⁓ critiques or ⁓ yeah we're the guinea pigs, right? So that's we're we're helping them build the program as well too. But I mean, essentially all it boils down to is that when they leave the seminary and they're ordained transitional deacons and they're with the priest who's been trained in the in the program, we we essentially are their a formator, their evaluator, ⁓ getting them ready to be ordained priests. So the beauty of them being in the parish is that they shadow the priests. And if, you know, you're at a big and busy parish, there's all kinds of things that you can shadow with the priest. And that's what makes it so exciting because no longer are you in the seminary. You're not a seminarian anymore. You're done. You're gone, right? And now you're in the parish and you get to do all kinds of deacon things. And shadow the priests, shadow the staff, shadow, shadow the principals, shadow the teachers, shadow everyone, ⁓ and and learn as much as you can. And you you get tons of preaching time, you get tons of ⁓ being being at the altar, helping the priests with the the sacrifice of the mass, so you're completely completely exposed and and you're in it so that they they they hunger ever more to be a priest. Right? Because they're ta they're tasting it. Right. So beautiful. Yeah, it's it's a really interesting program and I know it's I know it's gonna I know it's gonna change as time rolls on. Right. As as they run more cohorts through it. But we're just really really honored to do that, really excited. ⁓ I mean I I I I love being a priest and so you know, being able to to have someone who who I can shadow Is is is an honor, so hopefully Deacon Logan doesn't run away. So do you get like six months off of homilies now? Gonna h make him do all your homes. Give it to give it to this guy. And I have I have two other I have two permanent deacons as well too. So I'm in your juggling all these things. But but but Deacon Deacon Logan will get a lot of a lot of preaching time. Wonderful. Awesome. Well you say wonderful now, but ⁓ they'll love you. We're gonna post the podcast. Dude, they'll they'll love you. They'll love you. Well let they'll love you. Okay. Rate that homily. Well, that is true. I do have to pick also ⁓ secondary evaluators to to do evils on him when when the six months is up. So I have a I have a few staff, a few parishioners who will be watching him and But not nothing to fear. Nothing to fear. Don't worry either. If if if you many people watching you. ⁓ yeah. A whole seminary time ⁓ you are being grilled and drilled. You're being watched. Well I mean it's necessary. It's necessary, right? But but if if if if you if you can't wait to be a priest, if you love being a deacon, transitional deacon, you can't wait to be a priest, everything's gonna fall into place. Yeah. Right. If you if you love the priesthood, you love Jesus and you love the sacraments and you love the church, you love the faith, and you know that you've been kick picked by God To go out to the world and spread the gospel with Jesus and being persona Christi Capitus, right? And Alter Christus, the people will will sense that and they'll love you for it. All they they just want to see Jesus. Right. That's what they want. They hunger for Jesus. And if you have a young man who's on fire, I mean you could stand you could stand up at the homily and and you know and just say, Hey, Jesus loves you, man and sit down. Everyone be Yeah I mean if you say it from the heart I've heard the Romalie before. I ha I ha I have two. I have two. I have two. It ⁓ it was it was it was a ⁓ it was a Easter, Easter mass. And then the old retired priest came in and covered and stood up and said, Our Lord is risen, hallelujah. Turned around and sat down. Say old retired or old and tired? Old ⁓ old retired. Old and retired. Got it. Coffee and prayer. It's the perfect blend. Mystic Monk Coffee isn't just another cup of coffee. It's handcrafted by the Carmelite Monks of Wyoming, roasted with care and infused with prayer. Whether you're starting your morning or fueling your day, Mystic Monk Coffee has you covered. It offers rich, bold flavors that are as divine as their mission. By choosing Mystic Monk, you're not just enjoying exceptional coffee, but you're supporting a community of monks dedicated to their work, to prayer, and to the church. It's coffee with a cause. So what are you waiting for? Visit MysticMonkCoffee.com and experience the brew that's feeling faith and flavor. So well Deacon, I I love to hear a good vocation story. Do you mind giving us I you said you grew up Cedar Springs. Yep, yep. Cradle Catholic or Cradle Catholic Cradle Catholic, all right. Yeah, so ⁓ you know, born and raised in the Catholic faith, every ⁓ you know, Sunday we go help out of the church, you know, followed my mom around to the church whenever she went there. ⁓ you know, she had the keys to the car, so a away we went. ⁓ but my you know, life at the Church was it was that on Sunday, loved it. ⁓ helped out, C C D, you know, going through the program. I actually bounced around. I got ⁓ baptized at Howard City, first communion ⁓ over in Sparta and then ⁓ confirmed up in Sand Lake. So, you know, ⁓ church shopping a little bit. Well, you know, the the ways of life lead you to different locations. Yes, yes, the ways of life. ⁓ but I found my actually vocation story started very young. ⁓ when we were up at Christ the King, I remember ⁓ Father Troy Nevins was the priest there at the time and w during one day during the elevation I looked at Jesus in the Eucharist and I said, I I wanna be a priest and I was five or six years old at that time. Wow. Yeah. Amazing. So I told my parents that when we got in the car. ⁓ I was told that my mom had just a giant smile on her face and she was like, That's great, but there's still many years before that could happen. ⁓ so let's just pray about that. But from like that moment on I was just like, Priesthood, everything that's it. I was ⁓ Saint John Vianney ⁓ in the school public school Halloween ⁓ you know parade. Yes. I had a Bible study out on the playground that ⁓ was student led so they couldn't shut it down. ⁓ Alright, they're in public schools. Like, ⁓ we can't do anything it's students. My principal loved it. She's just like student led, you I'm just gonna let it happen. Student led, all right. ⁓ and so I was I was gung ho for it until about like thirteen and I realized that priests ⁓ couldn't get married and that girls existed. And I was just like, Mm, you know, Lord your ways are not my ways so I I just ⁓ you know, continued to, you know, live my faith though and we any time we'd go to a new parish, we'd just enter in and it was, you know, probably in high school I started adamantly like denying my call. I was less like middle school really and then less like, no, I'm I'm not gonna become a priest. So you felt called even then, like you were like, ⁓ this is actually what God wants. Yeah. This isn't like just a five or six year old saying it was like, ⁓ no, God keeps pulling me that way. Yeah, well then I I ran away hard. You know and in high school, you know, got into sports, did my own thing, ⁓ lived life. I was gonna ⁓ go into tool and die. That's like I had the whole plan set out. ⁓ gonna be a dye maker. ⁓ I'm gonna make all the money in the world. ⁓ which I didn't even look at how much dye makers made. Sorry to say that they don't make all the money in the world. I don't know what I was thinking. But ⁓ I love, you know, still working with my hands and machinery. ⁓ it's a passion of mine. But ⁓ JP two ⁓ in Cedar Springs that parish ⁓ was founded thirteen years ago give or take ⁓ Don't remember when, but when I was in high school and we ⁓ at that time, you know, w were founding members and it was just natural. What do we do when we go to the church? Will we help out? You know, I was ⁓ a part of it. Hell founding member of the Knights of Columbus. They misspelled my middle initial on the charter, so it's there forever. Logan R. McGann. Don't know where the R came from. Nice. You know. And it was there that ⁓ I started, you know, getting you know, back into my faith as 'cause I had a parish to, you know, live and breathe in again. Right. And my friend Katie Mindenhall was just like, You gotta go on this Veritas retreat and I was just like, I've never been on a retreat before. sure, why not? And ⁓ so I this was at the end of high school, I graduated, ⁓ I went there, loved it, fell in love, ⁓ with the retreat and, you know, 'cause the Lord's always been near and dear to my heart and just having these ⁓ outlets to, you know, worship him and praise him in ways that I hadn't done before was incredible. And I loved it so much that I volunteered to work it the next time. Worked as one of the guardian angels of the retreat and knew that the Lord was calling me into service again. And at that point I thought it was youth ministry. So I got hooked up with ⁓ the Thaddeus ⁓ society in the the antioch retreats th out of Saint Jude and started working that youth ministry and and loved it instantaneously 'cause in high school I went in fell into drugs and alcohol and ⁓ that was like a big part of my life during that time. But as I was coming out of high school, coming out of that phase, ⁓ realized that You know, it had to happen for a reason and the Lord could use it and I realized that I could help the kids that are going through it in high school, middle school, whatever, ⁓ to, you know, be there as a witness, like, come on out, ⁓ find Jesus and I I loved working those retreats so much that I kept working them. I gave a and then the real pinnacle moment of my discernment was ⁓ I think it was the third retreat, second or third retreat, I was giving a talk on reconciliation. And that whole retreat like hit me harder than I think any of the kids that it was intended for. I gave the retreat and I at that time I had no idea how to ⁓ like s give a talk at a retreat, so like everything came out. I just just out there. It was raw, it was it was a lot. But ⁓ I remember some of the kids coming up to me afterwards, ⁓ and just thanking me ⁓ for it and saying that it helped them and One girl, ⁓ Veronica, she wrote a poem ⁓ about it, about reconciliation of going Jesus going out into the water and just like and just it was it was so powerful to s see that my story could help, you know, very v vividly. ⁓ and we went into adoration, we had an hour and a half adoration and ⁓ I had been going to adoration ⁓ quite frequently. Here actually at OLC. It's my favorite Adoration Chapel in the diocese. Beautiful. Yeah, just being put here was just a real blessing for that. But so I felt Jesus in the Eucharist, ⁓ but ⁓ during this particular ⁓ session of adoration, he was twenty feet in front of me and I felt nothing. I could couldn't feel his presence and I like, What's going on? Like I I don't know. The the retreat ended on yeah, it was Saturday night, retreat ended. I went back to my apartment, down in Comstock Park and I remember just praying that night ⁓ for a long time and it was a you know, tears, ⁓ Lord, like what's going on? What am I what am I gonna do with my life? ⁓ because throughout the my time in drugs and alcohol and everything, ⁓ I would have that thought and the the voice would be like, You could still be a priest would come in and I like, ⁓ no, no. Forget that. Yeah. ⁓ but so it was it was always there. And how old are you this at this point? I was ⁓ gosh. So you're in college. ⁓ yeah, well Tulin died apprentice, so I was ⁓ twenty one at this point. Okay. Yeah. 'Cause I entered when I was twenty two. ⁓ no s so I should have been twenty 'cause it was a year and a half ⁓ discernment with Father ⁓ Ron Hutchinson at the time. But that night, ⁓ in the apartment it was probably and you know, forty five minutes into ⁓ the the prayer session and I was just like I don't know what to do and he's just like it's time and I was like No, no it's not My ways aren't your ways, God remember that. Remember that it was just I was it was over an hour like into the like I'm just praying and I get this image. I describe it as God and I'm the child like, you know, getting dressed in the morning. Mm And he's just like, All right, let's get dressed. And I was just like, Mm, I'll put on pants, but I'm not putting on a shirt today. Like, that's just not gonna happen. And I just clearly remember, ⁓ at one point he was like, That's not what I'm asking. And I went, Okay, sure, fine, yes, I'll go to seminary. ⁓ 'cause I knew about the seminary. I knew like that's where I had to go. And when I said yes, when those words came out of my mouth, a immense peace rushed over me. It was just it was it was incredible. Like I I knew it. I knew the Lord's presence was there and he's calling me on and I was just like, Okay, I got yes. I I I told you yes, so let's do this. And I it was it was one forty in the morning. I texted my friend Katie Minhall. I said, Hey, ⁓ you gotta find a convent because we made this deal that ⁓ when if one of us went into religious life the other person would but that wasn't gonna happen. So I was just like, ⁓ yeah, I'm gonna be a priest. ⁓ sorry to tell you this. ⁓ And she called she called me up the next day, was like, That's great. You gotta go talk to the vocation director and I like, What the heck is a vocation director? I was like, I have no idea. Got in touch with Father Ron Hutchinson and the diocese. and I I went in and I was I was honestly completely nervous because you know, I I had, you know, a colored past. I didn't know what was gonna happen if they were gonna accept me, Father Lam, my parish priest, ⁓ gave me great comfort, he's just like, Don't worry. There's other dioceses Grand Rapids doesn't accept you. Somewhere else. There's hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of other diocese. Don't don't worry. Gary Indiana will take you. Well it was Marquette was my second I would love to go to Marquette. I Marquette. Sometimes I wish the Grand Rapids didn't accept me so I'd be up there in the UP for the rest of my life. Just kidding. I love Grand Rapids. Wanna be the priest in Grand Rapids. ⁓ And yeah, so it was I was accepted, entered ⁓ in two thousand eighteen and ⁓ haven't looked back, obviously ordained a deacon, but it truly seminary's been probably some of the best years of my life just forming me to be a man of Christ, really undergo so much healing, ⁓ slowly but surely in the Lord's time, like everything that I've ever like felt like there's a problem, ⁓ though I was like, All right, my time, not your time and slowly over the years of seminary has ⁓ he's entered into each of those moments and ⁓ brought healing and that's continues on into my ordination but ⁓ so excited to be ordained a deacon it's it's it's wild. It's truly wild. It's wonderful. Well hi everyone my name is Father Dominic Katerior with the Manly Catholic Podcast and I'd like to take a few seconds to share with you about Harmel Academy of the Trades. Harmel Academy of the Trades is all male. Catholic Trade School here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It's one-year, two-year, three-year program where we're dedicated to building a community of prayer, work, and study. All the men are exposed to a variety of trades: Havac, electrical, plumbing, welding, machine systems, technology. We have multiple programs for individuals who are interested in certain kinds of trades. All the men work together, pray together, live on campus together. We actually moved to a new campus as well too, bigger living space, bigger dorms, bigger lab. So we're growing. So really excited about that with you. So if you're interested in checking out Harmel Academy of the Trades, please visit us at Harmel Academy.org where you can find out more information about this wonderful All Male Catholic Trade School. Thank you. Yeah. Now we since you said yes, did you ever go back or like have doubts? Like God are you sure? Or was it Once you said yes, like, okay, I'm in it I mean, of clearly there were struggles and as you mentioned, the healing and things like that. But I was curious, once you said that yes, was there ever any like did that piece ever leave or did you just feel it the whole time? I'm gonna say the majority of the time I felt it. Yeah. it was funny 'cause when I told people I was just like, I'm gonna go ⁓ become a priest and a lot of people would be like, Well you're gonna go discern ⁓ in seminary and if you're gonna be a priest. I was just like, Yeah, I mean, yes, I get that. Yeah. ⁓ but I was very confident like that No, this is it. Yeah. ⁓ especially, you know, my whole life leading up to it. Sure. ⁓ but I do, you know, that it you still have to discern. Yeah. In seminary there were times, there were struggles. ⁓ it was super funny. Some ⁓ one of my little nieces is just like, ⁓ you didn't want to get married. I was like ⁓ so wrong. That's one of the questions. I don't know if they asked you that, but in the evaluation process on the di ⁓ diocese side, ⁓ the psychologist or psychiatrist, whatever psychologist, you know, would ask ⁓ multiple questions about the do you want to get married? Do you want to get married? Right? I mean it's important. Yeah. I mean to desire to be married, 'cause you do marry. When you're ordained a priest, you marry the bride of Christ. You married something that's very ⁓ pure and a hundred percent feminine. So Right. That's powerful. Yeah. So seminary, so that's what, seven years, eight years? Or does it depend on when you enter Yeah yeah, it depends. Your you were you were seven, eight years, right? Yeah, I was I was the ⁓ eight year track. I was six. I was six. Yeah. 'Cause w when I entered I ⁓ I had a lot of community college credits. Okay. ⁓ but the university didn't accept any of them. Well they accepted You mean the minor seminary wouldn't take any of your tool and die? No. Your your your journeyman hours, your apprentice hours, really? They should. I know they should. Absolutely. There's philosophy and theology and turning metal. There's technical. Bending metal, welding metal, fabricating. No, it was of I remember Father Ron sitting me down. He's like, I wish I could tell you it was anything other than a money grab by the university. ⁓ but I can't. I was like, thanks for being honest. I appreciate that. ⁓ but I mean again, the Lord used it ⁓ Like he knew what he was doing. I needed the four years in minor seminary. I was at Saint John Vianney College Seminary out in Saint Paul, Minnesota on the University of Saint Thomas. And it was it was a amazing time. You know, I was older. I was I entered when I was twenty two and s a bunch of people who are eighteen. ⁓ so, you know, there was ⁓ many times where the Lord just had to give me patience. and, you know, it was it was great. It was every time that we had to sign up for classes that was, you know, where the Lord had to you know, I'd just be breaking down because all these kids who ⁓ went through high school and had all these dual enrollment courses, they all got transferred in and they're they'd pick classes early before me and I was just like it's okay. I'll get into the classes I need. It's fine. Maybe not with a teacher I wanted, but it's good. ⁓ but it was truly a blessed time to be at seminary and it was really minor seminary got me a great foundation for entering into theology of 'Cause you're you're living with brothers, you know, we call each other brothers in the seminary. And I know that's not always how it was ⁓ before I talked to other priests, but it is that's the experience now. Like I was living with a hundred and twenty of my brothers, you know, every you know, and sometimes you love them and sometimes you just wanna wring their neck. But you know, you love ⁓ you love ⁓ still. And ⁓ and I guarantee ya I got on many people's nerves myself. Yeah. But with family. Yeah. Family does. Absolutely. Yeah. But it was a it was a blessed time, ⁓ truly. Just I have so many friends who ⁓ are now, you know, either married, discerned out, ⁓ and or got married and ⁓ many people who ⁓ are either just ⁓ ordained to the priest, ⁓ deacon diaconate, or still on their way. But it's just is incredible to see ⁓ the support no matter where we are. ⁓ at my ordination, I had several people who are discerned out came up and s and some people that are already deacons in my class come over and support me. in it. So it's just truly friends that you'll build for a lifetime. Yeah. I mean it's that fraternity. Yeah. Because no one has brotherhood a job like you guys have. Which is incredible. Yeah. So I know you I know you gotta get going deacon, but has there been something that's like really surprised you throughout your coursework seminary that like you weren't expecting Me, I'm sure you can't really expect anything going in 'cause it's like what does the Lord have to do? But is there anything in particular that has really stood out? Or maybe that challenged you that you're like, ⁓ I I thought that was gonna be easy and this is way more difficult than I thought. Well, to be honest, there's so much to learn. I'm sure. Yeah. I'm sure. And the beauty about the faith is like there's always something new, yeah ⁓ to learn. And it it did surprise me some of the, you know, classes you just you have to take. You're like, here's another one but you're like, you know, seek the good that's there. And it's so it's so ⁓ so good because you know, you're You're talking about the faith, you're living it, you're learning more and more. and yeah, I just loved each and every day in the seminary. ⁓ I'm glad to be, you know, done. I'm sure. But ⁓ happy to happy to have you know, that lifelong learning of like we're all practicing Catholics, you know. ⁓ so let's practice every day in the adventure. Amen. What was the class that you're like, I didn't know I needed to take this? You know, spiritual theology. You know, you think you just ⁓ You think you hear it in growing up and then ⁓ going into it, you're like, Ho ho, crack open the notebook. I literally moved to the front row on just 'cause there's something more, please. More please. Yeah. We had ⁓ Father Arturo Felix, ⁓ from the conven conventional Franciscans at Marytown teach that class and I was just like awesome. Are you able to record lectures and then go back and I have some, yeah, recorded, yeah. Yeah. It's easier sometimes to go in the recorder to figure out what that teacher was trying to tell you. ⁓ yeah. Yeah. I had to do that too in some of my like ⁓ my graduate classes too. We record and it's like I didn't even know you said that. Because like you're just so enthralled and everything. It's like ⁓ I completely missed that part. Try to take notes and then for miss whatever they're saying as you're writing those notes down. Exactly. That's amazing. Any questions for the D Ken? Yeah, what are you what are you most excited about ⁓ becoming a priest? What are looking forward to? ⁓ honestly being with the people. I'm I'm a people person, extrovert one hundred percent. And I've missed so much being at the parish and living in that life. I was interned at ⁓ Holy Spirit down in on Lake Michigan Drive and I loved it. The school there. Getting into ⁓ all the classes, just hanging out ⁓ with the kids, teaching them, ⁓ just the life of the parish is, you know, what I where I'm meant to be. I'm a diocesan priest, yeah, in training. That's what it's about, yeah. And diocesan. I just I can't I can't wait to get back. ⁓ the school's on ⁓ break right now for Christmas, but Catholic Schools week's coming up. I'm gonna, you know, go all in and just be there ⁓ with the kids, with the parents. I I love it and I can't wait for it. Love that. Gosh, that's that's that's powerful. Well, please know of our prayers for you. Thank you very much. Yeah, yeah. Pray pre specifically for both especially for that. For him that he that he's that he's stuck with this wringing the neck that you're this this moron. He's stuck with he's stuck with this moron. Yeah, hopefully within six months he's like, I'm not gonna be a priest, I'm outta here. Why'd the bishop pick you? I don't know. Scrape the scrape the bottom of the barrel and there I am. Hi Bishop. Hey, Father Dom. This is this is all I got. Everyone else said no. Are you are you okay? I my my mic is falling off. I can see that man. Yeah. Take it out and hold it, but You probably have to take the rubber thing off it, 'cause that's what's causing the problem. Enjoy our brief intermission for technical difficulties at this point. Yeah. ⁓ You have those skills too. Hey you you build the parts, I'll weld them. Teamwork. Makes the dream work. Why are why aren't maybe father and deacon into the church this morning? ⁓ they're busy working in the w workshop. Yeah. Fixing a microphone. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. ⁓ awesome. Yeah. So you're here for six months then? Yep. You said six months to the day from ⁓ my ordination to Diac and it to my priesthood. June June twentieth or June. June twentieth. And the and the craziest part about this is, check this out, is my birthday's the twenty first of June. So I will yeah. I will be ⁓ starting my public ministry with my you know mass of Thanksgiving on my thirtieth birthday. Yeah. That's really cool. It's wild. Wow. Wow, right there. That's that's awesome. I never never would have thought that that would be a possibility. ⁓ and the diagonal synthesis laid it all out that ⁓ just happened to be that way. And so yeah. That's awesome. It's gonna be a wild day. It's that's a fat Father's Day. I'm Giving first communion to two of my ⁓ well, one niece and one nephew. You know, Massive Thanksgiving. Tears all around, you know, it's gonna be incredible. Are you gonna get through the homily with all this ⁓ motion going on? Hopefully. Because I'm the one. Be sure to record it for us, Dika, and we can post it for the ⁓ yes, of course. Yes, yeah. Yes, absolutely, huh? Sure. I'm sure people will On what you pay me. Yeah, the added revenue from this podcast. I want it fifty percent. Yeah, it's gonna be it's gonna be a wild day and I've I'm the one preaching it, so I I chose to do that. So wonderful. As you should. Awesome. Well, thank you for your time, Daniel. Yeah, thank you for having me on. We'll have to have you on again sometime. We'll have fun going home and eating dinner. Yes, yes, my What did your mom make? ⁓ I have a choice. Tuna noodle cast roller, ⁓ baked macaroni and cheese, which are two of my favorites that she makes. So you're just gonna take both? Yeah, probably. Be a saint. Just be a saint. You want it all. That's right. I'm gonna eat there. And then I'll take some There you go. You eat it on the way home. Absolutely. ⁓ Like I told you the other day, I I was talking to my mom. I'm like, Mom, I'm twenty nine years old and I come home and eat food out of your fridge and I just want to tell ya, that's never gonna stop. ⁓ She's like, Good. She's like, I get to feed Jesus when you're ordained a priest. I get to feed Jesus. ⁓ Coming from me. You can't deny that. Yeah, you can't. You can't. You can't deny that. How would you name Yeah, Father. Roll your eyes and get smacked. Here's your two-doodle casserole. ⁓ man. Well, thank you so much for having me on. Anytime. Anytime, Deacon. It was a pleasure. Thank you all so much for tuning in to another episode of the Manly Catholic. If you have not already done so, please hit that subscribe button wherever you get your podcast. To make sure you don't miss a single episode. It will also help grow the show and reach as many men as possible. We truly think this podcast can change families and help men to change the world. Thank you again so much for tuning in and God bless you.