Why I am Catholic — Paul Esch

I’m Catholic because, as Francis Thompson once wrote, the “Hound of Heaven” keeps finding me. And I keep finding him. Like a great fisherman, he keeps catching me and putting me in his ark. I keep catching him, too. Like a good shepherd, he keeps calling me and I keep calling back to him. He keeps showering me with blessings, too many to recount here in this small space, but let me try to explain.

He put me into a loving Catholic family, and my parents made sure I was baptized and took me to Corpus Christi church in Roseville for my first Communion. I found him at the Communion rail as Father Roy Lepak presided.

They provided me with a K-12 Catholic education. After receiving a new name and the gifts of the Holy Spirit in confirmation, I strayed as a teenager. But with the help of a dear friend, a senior high school retreat at Dunrovin Retreat Center and faithful people at the St. Paul Catholic Youth Center, I came to my senses. He found me in the sacrament of confession, and he gave me the opportunity to work in youth ministry during a key period of my life with one of the first Blitz teams, now called the National Evangelization Teams (NET Ministries of West St. Paul).

At the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, I had the privilege of studying with Father Lepak and many other professors of theology, philosophy and English. These brilliant scholars and priests helped me recover my Catholic faith and rescued me from what Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger called the “dictatorship of relativism … the greatest problem of our time.” Studying Catholic encyclicals and the New and Old Testaments helped me appreciate the gold mine that is our faith. Studying the writings of great doctors of the Church, such as St. Thomas Aquinas, helped me think more clearly and appreciate the goodness, beauty and truth of our faith, and prevented me from falling into a dark pit.

He keeps sending gifted people and fellow Catholics into my life who have made a significant impact on me. One such person gave me a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church when I wasn’t feeling too close to our Church. What a treasure St. John Paul II left for us!

He showers me with graces at daily Mass, the source and summit of our lives, especially when times are tough. Jesus’ words in the Gospels are like guardrails to keep me rolling down the middle of the lane. He gave me a devotion to his mother, Mary. I’ve been praying the mysteries of the rosary since I was a youth. Studying the Bible with other Catholic men from my parish over the years has called me to deepen my Catholic faith. He caught me in awe with eucharistic adoration at the beautiful Demontreville Jesuit retreat house in Lake Elmo. The retreats really do have a cumulative effect. Through the sacrament of marriage, my loving spouse and our beautiful son, he blessed us with a mission to raise a Catholic family and many opportunities to serve him.

We enjoy the rich heritage of our Church, which is one, holy, Catholic and apostolic, despite occasional signs to the contrary. What a joyful and meaningful gift our Catholic faith is to help us along our way.

Esch, 61, and his wife, Debbie, are active members of Transfiguration in Oakdale. They have an adult son living in Boston. A graduate of the University of St. Thomas, Esch is a human resources manager and musician. His performance schedule can be found at pauleschmusic.com and on social media. Esch is also a member of the national American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and the St. Joseph Business Guild based in North St. Paul.