Ethics & Public Policy Center
Washington, DC
compliments of The Denver Catholic Register
The
"prayer" is in fact a last will and testament, written shortly before
the 22-year-old seminarian fell ill during his first year of studies in
Rome. In it, Frank Parater offered his life to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
for the conversion of Virginia: "I have nothing to leave or give but my
life and this I have consecrated to the Sacred Heart to be used as he
wills. I have offered my all for the conversion of non-Catholics in Virginia.
This is what I live for and in case of death what I die for ...
Since my childhood, I have wanted to die for God and my neighbor.
Shall I have this grace? I do not know, but if I go on living, I live
for this same purpose; every action of my life here is offered to God
for the spread and success of the Catholic Church in Virginia ... I shall
be of more service to my diocese in heaven than I can ever be on earth."
That was written on Dec. 5, 1919, and sealed in an envelope to be opened
in case of Frank's unexpected death. Frank Parater died of rheumatic fever
on Feb. 7, 1920.
Some time later, a fellow-seminarian
discovered the letter while sorting through Parater’s effects. Pope Benedict
XV asked for a copy of Frank Parater's testament, as did Pope Pius XI.
Then the Church and the world seemed to move on, while Frank Parater worked
for the Diocese of Richmond from a distance, so to speak.
It took another young Richmond
native, J. Scott Duarte, to bring the story of Frank Parater back to life.
Discovering this remarkable tale during his own student days in Rome,
Father Duarte kept Frank Parater in mind after his ordination and during
his graduate studies in canon law. Years of research and prayer were rewarded
this past January, when Bishop Walter Sullivan of Richmond established
a diocesan tribunal, under Father Duarte's leadership, to "examine the
reputation for sanctity and heroic virtues of (the)Servant of God Frank
Parater, Seminarian." After the local investigation is completed, the
cause will be sent to Rome.
Amidst the current turmoil
in the Catholic Church in the United States, some might wonder about the
utility, even propriety, of such causes. Isn't it more important to reform
priestly formation today than to expend time, energy, and resources digging
into the life of a seminarian dead for over three-quarters of a century?
But perhaps the two go together.
The reform of seminary formation
for the 21st century should have one overriding goal: to insure that American
seminaries graduate men of holiness, integrity, and zeal. By every written
account from the time of his death, Frank Parater was a model of holiness,
integrity, and zeal. Is it too much to imagine that his intercession will
be a crucial factor in the ongoing reform of priestly formation in the
United States? Only if you don't believe in the communion of saints. More
dioceses should be doing what Richmond is doing: seeking exemplars of
sanctity from every way of life and lifting them up as models for Catholics
today.
The last time I checked,
the Archdiocese of Cracow had some 50 beatification causes under investigation.
Some were due to the special circumstances of World War II and the Nazi
occupation, but many others were less dramatic: a woman who organized
nursing care for the indigent elderly; an auxiliary bishop who had been
an effective university chaplain; an engineer who was a model husband,
father, sportsman and friend.
Is any American diocese so actively lifting up local examples of sanctity? Reform requires saints. The introduction of Frank Parater's cause couldn't have come at a better time.