Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin (USA), OFFICE OF VOCATIONS

School chaplains lead students to world of difference

By Joseph O’Brien

Acting Editor

LA CROSSE – Catholic Schools in the Diocese of La Crosse make a world of difference in the lives of their students – the spiritual world, that is.

There are seven high school in the Diocese of La Crosse, and in each one, at least one member of the faculty and staff stands out - the high school chaplain.

Each diocesan high school has been fortunate enough to have on staff a priest who serves as a spiritual guide for the students - Father Brian Jazdzewski, chaplain at McDonell, Chippewa Falls; Father William Dhein at Regis, Eau Claire; Father Samuel Martin at Aquinas, La Crosse; Father Brian Konopa at Columbus, Marshfield; Father Joseph O’Hara at Pacelli, Stevens Point; Father David Olson at Newman, Wausau; and Father Brian Stashek at Assumption, Wisconsin Rapids.

Father Martin has been chaplain at Aquinas since the beginning of the 2002-2003 school year. Before that he served for two years as chaplain at Assumption High School, Wisconsin Rapids.

But no matter what school he serves, Father Martin knows the students all have one thing in common – a desire to know their faith. As chaplain, it’s his job to make sure the seeds of faith are nourished in the tender soil of their youth.

"If there are habits formed when the person is young," Father Martin explained, "if there’s an experience of the sacraments, especially confession, planted in their souls when they are young, even when things go wrong or they do horrible things, the recollection of that time will come to their assistance. The habit will be there."

Most important of these habits, though, are those formed in regard to the sacraments, Father Martin added. Nothing can be more important for a high school student.

"Singing Kumbaya around the campfire is fun and all, but the real thing is the sacraments," he insisted.

For students to really achieve peace and happiness, though, Fr. Martin pointed out, this love for the sacraments must be coupled with a devotion to Mary.

"She makes us more receptive to Christ, less cynical," he said. "We become very closed minded, I think, when we don’t have that devotion to Mary. Mentally she keeps us open, heart and soul."

A chaplain at Columbus since the beginning of the 1998-1999 school year, Father Konopa has kept his heart and soul open, as well, to his students. It wasn’t always that way, though, as he recalled when he first found out he was being assigned to Columbus as chaplain.

"I had my doubts about teenagers in general," he admitted. "But when I got to the classroom and had the opportunity to share the Catholic faith, I was pleasantly surprised to see their interest and the light in their eyes that told me they acknowledge what I was teaching as true and being real for them."

But even outside the classroom and the chapel, the visible role of the chaplain remains an integral part of the students’ lives.

"Being available to them," Father Konopa noted, "being a part of their lives not only means hearing confessions, offering Mass and teaching, but it also means interacting with them in the school hallways and showing up to their sporting events."

As one of the rookie chaplains in the Diocese of La Crosse, Father O’Hara became spiritual point man at Pacelli this past school year.

The greatest concern for any chaplain, Father O’Hara noted, is maintaining the Catholic identity of the school he serves. And if that chaplain happens to be a priest, more power to him – and the people he serves.

"You get the grace of ordination as a priest and all that it has to offer present in your school," he explained. "That in itself is something for the school to be grateful for."

"Ideally what you have in a Catholic high school is a spiritual mission maintained and carried on within a temporal mission."

The best way for the chaplain to do this, according to Father O’Hara, is to present the Catholic truth in a clear, unadulterated fashion.

"The chaplain is there to be the leader with regards to the spiritual things," he concluded. "He is a leader who is always cognizant and appreciative of everyone’s commitment to the spiritual ideals of the Catholic School."

Published in the Catholic Times, January 21, 2003

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