Great uncle, great priest

Father Roger Hessian, my great-uncle, celebrated his 60th anniversary of ordination into the priesthood in February. This remarkable milestone has prompted me to reflect on what a blessing he has been to our family. Growing up, I never thought much about having a priest in the family, but with age and perspective, I have come to realize what a unique gift it has been.

It brings God out of the four walls of the church and into the familiar settings of family life. The relationship “Father Roge” has with God is evident in the joy and peace he carries with him through life. His mere presence in our family during times of happiness and sadness brings us blessings, not to mention the very important blessings he has bestowed on us through his official duties as a priest. His close relationship with God brings us all a little closer to God.

Our family has an annual tradition of summer vacations to the north woods. We have a big family, and we rent a large lakeside cabin to house everyone. Aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, grandparents, great-aunts, great-uncles and great-great-uncles all come together for a week to relax and play. It’s loud, it’s busy, it’s boisterous. And right there in the mix of it all is Father Roge. Most of the week is bustling with activity as we enjoy the lake. Feet thunder down the dock as kids run and splash into the water. Squeals and shrieks accompany the natural sounds of bugs buzzing and leaves rustling. Uncle Tom’s pontoon boat runs like a ferry, taking rounds of people tubing, swimming or sunset cruising. Days often close with spirited songs and stories around a bonfire.

And amongst all that energy rests Uncle Roge. Reading peacefully in the shade, riding along on a sunset cruise or laughing with us around the fire — his stories reaching back the farthest in time and his laugh ringing out the loudest. He is a physical presence of joy and love, a physical reminder of the Holy Spirit there with us.

All week, we boat and swim and play, but when Sunday comes, for a bit of time we come together to pray. Father Roge leads us as we pray for those who are no longer with us in body but are with us in spirit. We thank God for our family. We gather around a long dining table and quiet ourselves as Father Roge adorns himself with a Guatemalan stole (a souvenir from a service trip visiting my sister when she worked as a volunteer), prepares the chalice and paten (a gift from my late grandparents on his ordination), selects family-favorite hymns for Uncle Bob to sing, and passes out readings for my cousins to read. He brings the Mass to us, he brings the Word of God to us, he brings the Holy Spirit to us, right to the center of our family.

Father Roge connects us to the Holy Spirit outside those summer vacations as well. He has presided over family weddings for my parents and many aunts and uncles, as well as my own wedding and the weddings of my siblings and cousins. He has welcomed new babies into the Church through baptisms and honored our loved ones as they have passed from this world onto the next at funerals. It gives me great pride to think of those remarkable moments when God is connecting with us so directly and using Father Roge as his conduit.

I am thankful for the blessing that Father Roge has been to our family, and know he has blessed so many others outside our family as well. Through his dedication to his vocation, he has reflected the Holy Spirit to so many, proclaimed the Word of God to so many, and taught the love of Jesus to so many. He has brought God into the lives of so many and helped me to recognize the presence of God in my own life.

Thinking back on the memories of the vacations of years past the images of Father Roge serve as a reminder that God was there, too, always is and always will be. He rests quietly in the shade; He joins us out on the water; He pulls up an Adirondack by the fire. Whenever we gather together in love as family, God is there.

Crowther, 38, is a member of St. Therese in Deephaven with her husband, John, and their three children. Crowther’s extended family has gathered annually at a lake resort for the last 40 years. This year, about 40 relatives will gather June 26-July 3 at a lake near Hayward, Wisconsin.