Augustinians Receive Accolades for Ministry

Several communications have been sent recently to the Augustinian Provincialate praising Augustinian Friars for the ways in which they share their gifts in ministry. We give thanks and praise to God for the gifts we have received, and for the opportunity to give guidance and share Divine Love and Mercy with others. Here are excerpts from some of these letters and e-mails:

• “I would like to send a thank you note to Fr. Terry (Deffenbaugh, O.S.A.) for his wonderful book No Longer a Stray (Scepter Publishers (Opens new window), $9.95). I am not a child or youth but a 50 something caregiver for my 90 year old mom who has advanced Alzheimers and is in a nursing home after an emergency hospitalization. I am literally taking her back to my house today to die in peace. I have been reading Fr. Terry’s book off and on for months and was getting to the last pages today where Pup Pup is facing the reality of the resurrection of his master Christ and I found more hope in those simple lines than all the other religious books I have tried to read in these last two plus months. I want to thank him for writing such a wonderful book and encourage him to do another. I too believe animals have special God given charisms that can point us to a simpler and more profound love of our Lord than all the scholars.” --C. W., California

  
  
  

• “The generosity (of Christopher C. Steinle, O.S.A.) and his availability for service to his neighbor most in need has been very edifying to us. His missionary spirit and zeal for the salvation of souls are noteworthy. These cause him to find new ways of reaching our people, always with enthusiasm and renewed strength. Our people have been comforted by the Word of God, purified by Confession, and fed with the ‘Bread of Angels’. His pastoral ministry in Challhuahuacho, Pampa Bellavista, Mara, Carmen Alto, Huancuiri, Patario and Haquira has been arduous. This is a Quechua-speaking area, and in a few instances, we had to help him with translations. In this region there is still a high incidence of alcoholism and illiteracy. Father Christopher, with good judgement and insight, has presented Catholic doctrine clearly.” --Madre Buenaventura, M.J.V.V., Pastoral Coordinator, St. Peter Parish, Haquira, Peru

  
  
  

• “Most of all, I want you to realize that I have a foundation of faith because of the Catholic education that my parents provided me, which includes those values learned at Cascia Hall (Augustinian school in Tulsa, Oklahoma) through the Augustinians. I can still hear and see Father Sinnott teaching Catholic philosophy during my Senior Year. He drove home points that I still vividly recollect, utilize, refer to, and live, as well as preach, every single day. He was not the only one who had an impact on me, but he is just an example. So this Augustinian impact is well served, and do not let it ever be otherwise.” --The late Ray H. Siegfried (1943-2005), Oklahoma, in a letter written in 2003 after he was diagnosed as having Lou Gehrig's Disease (A.L.S.)

  
  
  

• “(T)he life I lead . . . is a direct and telling result of the call that I heard during my years at St. Rita (High School, Chicago, Illinois) to be a good, productive, knowledgeable man. Those teachers and guides that I had during those years were the catalysts for the reach and determination that I -- and most of my friends -- took away to help establish our purpose on God’s earth. . . You and your fellow Religious and teaching laity have established a place where young men can grasp the torch offered them to light the way for each through life. Please cherish your roles . . . The young men that the Father brings to you have need of the best expression of gifts He continues to give each of you.” --T.S., Michigan

  
  
  

• “I have been in the Douglas-Saugatuck (Michigan) area on many occasions during the past year and have enjoyed attending daily and weekend Masses at St. Peter Church (Douglas, Michigan). Thank you for making it possible for me to worship and enjoy the love and compassion of the parish members and your dedication to our Lord.” --D.D., Michigan

  
  
  

• “We Benedictines at Subiaco Abbey are very grateful for the care that the Augustinians are giving to the parishes in North Texas which our priests pastored for many years, but which we were forced to relinquish because of age and diminshed numbers. . . I want especially to recognize the devoted work and charity of Fr. Ron Scheible, O.S.A. at St. Peter Church, Lindsay (Texas). . . (P)arishioners have consistently spoken to me of Father Ron’s generosity, dedication and pastoral zeal. We are grateful and humbled to be succeeded in the ministry at Lindsay by such a wonderful priest.” --Abbott Jerome Kodell, O.S.B, Subiaco Abbey, Arkansas