Hello! It is good to meet you. I thank you for your interest in me, my website and, most importantly, the Faith Pilgrims ministry, and I look forward to a long and faithful relationship with you.
I am a cradle Catholic, creedal Catholic and practicing Catholic; that is, I'm working on becoming a faithful Catholic. As I've grown well into adulthood I have realized that neither the faith at my birth nor the faith of my oath will have any worth, if I do not live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He is our faith. Thank goodness for maturity, as my nascent faith needed much time coming of age in the middle of a family of ten during the turbulent 1960s. My parents were practicing Catholics, to the extent that they participated in the sacraments and sent us to Catholic elementary school. Faith, and the virtuous living that resulted from it, were implicit in all we did, thereby meaning that neither was a topic of conversation--unless we lived un-virtuously. While it is true that my three brothers attended Catholic high school, neither theology nor Christology could compete against the real religion in our house: sports. I broke with tradition, and attended our local public high school. As much as I loved those athletic endeavors, I recall that my faith and beliefs were always important to me--even though my actions sometimes belied that vocalized importance. In practice they were not always the top priority, especially when rounding the bases after hitting a home run or going on a Friday-night date; and that lower ranking resulted in some bad decisions at different times in my life.
There were a few periods during my twenties when I strayed too far from “Rome,” but any separation was impossible. As I’ve told my children, a Christian does not “put on” the faith as if it were a special article of clothing only to be worn on a few special days during the year. Rather, Christianity is part of a person, as if one could see many tiny “C” letters under a microscope after a tissue biopsy. The faith is part of our identity, resulting from ancient traditions and the beliefs we eventually choose--and live.
As happens with many, my faithfulness increased once I married and then ever more so after we had children. In their childhood, I became increasingly focused on the intentional and purposeful process of helping form their faith. One of the main reasons for this was the growing awareness of how the culture was changing, especially when compared with the time when my parents began having children. The importance of faith and the nuances of it in relation to children became increasingly clear, and became explicit in the family experience.
Currently and over many years, I have paid the bills with a successful healthcare business, and published research in this field. But ministry is my present part-time passion and eventual full-time future. I have been actively involved in leadership positions in Faith and spiritual formation programs for adults generally, and men in particular. To aid in this endeavor I have achieved a second graduate degree, this one in theology, and used it to inform my first published book and my first radio program ("The 13th Apostle" with my dear friend Dan Duddy). I love the intellectual life, and the great book and great conversation that go with it, as well as the charitable life. And I love to incorporate great literature, mythology and philosophy into my experiences. This combination is redolent of the Classical Tradition, one that has proven to be the greatest but one whose flame has grown dim from neglect. So one purpose of this website, and the ministry that birthed it, is to fan that flame into one that allows more people to see its goodness, beauty and truth.
These days I live on the Jersey Shore, with my large gardens, larger imagination and occasional visits from my adult children.
I look forward to your comments, and to building a community of faithful Catholics with you.
Thanks
Tom
