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

‘I must do something’

By Joseph O’Brien

Staff Writer

AMHERST – Deacon James Kurzynski didn’t always want to be a priest – but he always had a sense God wanted him to be a priest.

"Ever since at least the age of four, the idea of discernment has always been in my mind," he explained.

Thanks in part to a family life firmly rooted in the faith and great priestly examples in his life, Deacon Kurzynski will be ordained a priest for the Diocese of La Crosse June 28.

Despite early promise, though, he almost walked away from his vocation.

After graduating from Amherst High School in 1992, Deacon Kurzynski, the son of Gerald and Sharon Kurzynski of St. Maximilian’s, Southeastern Portage County, attended the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point where he received a bachelor’s degree in applied music and voice in 1997.

"At that time, there were things I wanted to pursue. So my vocation didn’t really get fully reawakened until I went to UN-K," he said, referring to his graduate studies at the University of Nebraska-Kearny, which led to a master’s of science in education and group counseling in 1998.

While studying at UN-K, a professor inadvertently challenged him – and changed the direction of his life.

"It was the day after Mother Teresa died," he recalled. "My professor brought in a list of quotations from Mother Teresa. He admitted that while he wasn’t Catholic, Mother Teresa had affected his life as a person and as a counselor."

Renowned for her holiness and service to God, this nun would also affect Deacon Kurzynski’s life. The professor’s quotations were all memorable, but with the last "which was the shortest and simplest" Deacon Kurzynski received the kick in the gut that would recall his earlier desire to discern a vocation.

"I must do something," he said, quoting Mother Teresa’s concise statement on the role of the Christian in this life. "That stuck with me. I began asking myself, ‘What is the thing I must do?’"

That night Deacon Kurzynski decided to explore his vocation in a proper seminary setting.

"I knew it was going to gnaw at me until I explored it," he said.

It wasn’t long before he found himself, with help of then-vocations office director for the Diocese Father John Parr, at Mundelein Seminary in Illinois. There he received a bachelor’s in sacred theology in 2002, and a master’s in divinity this past year. Since his time at Mundelein, he’s become certain of nothing if not of the priesthood.

"Not to say there haven’t been up- and down-times throughout my discernment," he noted, "but whether smooth sailing or choppy waves, the rudder in my discernment has always been the priesthood – that was the one constant: I was being called to move toward."

He had help along the way. As a parishioner at St. Patrick’s, Lanark, Deacon Kurzynski took his own pastor as a model of the priesthood. Father John Swing not only exuded a great love for the priesthood, but he showed the joy that came with this sacred calling in life.

"Being a mission priest down in Bolivia, Father Swing used to bring a photo album of his time in Bolivia to the house," Deacon Kurzynski commented. "He talked about his experiences down there and the excitement and joy he showed really drew out of me my initial sense of vocation."

As a priest of the Diocese, Deacon Kurzynski hopes to exemplify the same qualities he sees in priests like Father Swing, who will be helping him vest during the ordination ceremony.

"I want to be a faithful priest," he said. "I want to be faithful to the Church, to the liturgy, and to the people."

Published in the Catholic Times, June 24, 2003

2002-2004. Office of Vocations, Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin (USA). Questions and Comments? Contact The Administrator.