Canceled: Father Paul Scalia to challenge men at March 28 conference

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After much deliberation from our Bishops and leaders of the Archdiocese, it was decided to cancel the March 28, 2020 Archdiocesan Men’s Conference due to concerns regarding COVID-19/coronavirus. More details HERE.

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Father Paul Scalia, son of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, will be the keynote speaker for the March 28 Archdiocesan Men’s Conference at St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights. Father Scalia serves the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, as episcopal vicar for clergy and as pastor of St. James Catholic Church in Falls Church. The sixth of nine children, he was raised in a devout Catholic family and observed his father practicing the faith in the public square. Today, as Father Scalia’s own profile rises, he leans on that example.

Q) What do you plan to share at the Men’s Conference?

A) A challenge to men, reflecting on both the gifts that men bring to the faith and also the responsibilities. A man is going to witness to the fatherhood of God in a way that only men can because he conveys that trait of fatherhood, those qualities that we traditionally associate with men: of courage, of steadfastness, that complementarity.

All of the sociological statistics indicate the need for strong fathers and how much better off kids are when they have strong fathers.

Q) The conference theme is “Embrace the Challenge.” What are the challenges of participating in politics today?

A) One of the challenges is how to enter into politics and appeal to people without sacrificing our principles. The patron saint of my diocese, St. Thomas More, is a great example of how to live in public life without surrendering one’s principles — and also how to do this cheerfully. St. Thomas had a winsome, witty way about him.

What we have to say to society is challenging, but it is good. What we have to say about life in the womb, what we have to say about man and woman and marriage — these are ultimately for the common good, but because they’re so controversial, they can come across as harsh. So how do we convey this with the sense of joy and gladness that it deserves?

Q) How does that joy play out in your daily life?

A) Honestly, it is in prayer and the sacraments. When I get up promptly, and I say my prayers promptly and I prepare well for Mass, then everything else is not necessarily easy but put in its proper perspective. It’s also from periodic moments of prayer — for example, the Angelus, pausing in the middle of the day at noon and calling to mind our Lord’s incarnation.

Q) What time does your alarm ring?

A) 5 or 5:30 a.m.

Q) That’s early! And to get up promptly takes discipline. It means going to bed early enough the night before.

A) All the great spiritual writers and guides emphasize this: That the victories of today were sewn last night. This is particularly important for men. For men, one of the great vices is screens and staying up late — and the threat and scourge of pornography, that’s ruined things not just for that night but it means in the morning you’re not going to be at your best. So there is that discipline.

This is why the Church has a liturgy of hours. The whole concept of night prayer, Compline, is that we end the day well.

Q) What’s your message to Catholics who are discouraged by how divisive the political climate has become?

A) Christ is risen! (Laughs.) And listen, back in the 19th century, leading up to the Civil War, there was an account of one congressman beating another congressman on the floor of the Senate with his cane. So yeah, things have been bad before.

One of the great things about being Catholic is this sense that we’ve seen it all. This is not the first time we’ve been in a tough situation. We look at all the saints who lived in difficult times but lived through them with a sense of joy. Most of all we look to our Lord who suffered persecution, suffered opposition, but in the midst of it all, tells us that we should be full of joy.

Q) You reject the term “conservative” as a political category. Would you elaborate on that?

A) Conservative, liberal — they are political labels, and they’re not good in the Church. Catholics used to be Democrats, and Democrats used to be conservative, so these things are too fluid. Those labels confine us and prompt people to see us as not welcome to them, and we want to welcome everyone because the truth of Christ is meant for everyone.

Our faith has political implications, and we need to live those out, and at the same time, we have to avoid these terms that I think equate our faith with politics too much.

Q) You’ve also said that when a person is adhering to Church teaching, there will always be someone who thinks you are too traditional and someone else who thinks you’re not traditional enough.

A) Catholics have to be traditional. We have to be rooted in the fundamentals that are handed down to us because those are unchanging. If they’re not unchanging, then we have nothing to give to the world.

Q And for those who may be viewed as not traditional enough?

A) Today there are some, unfortunately, who see a legitimate change as not legitimate. We shouldn’t confuse small-t traditions with the fundamentals of our faith. Just because they did things one way in the 1950s doesn’t mean we have to do it that way now. Things can change.

Q) What did you learn from your father when it comes to being a Catholic in the public eye?

A) He was not bashful about his faith. He understood that speaking about matters of faith was an encouragement to people. When he died, I was astounded by the number of people who expressed to me their gratitude for that — and people of all faiths.

Q) How does his example, along with your faith, influence you now that you’re a public figure? What does that look like?

A) What it looks like is remaining rooted. I am a priest, and I simply want to make the truth of Christ known. If that brings me public notice, OK, fine. If it doesn’t, fine. But the point is not the envelope, it’s what’s inside. It’s not the messenger, it’s the message.