You Rock, Fr. Rodriguez!

On October 10, I posted "Musings about Frs. Euteneuer, Corapi, Pavone, and Rodriguez". Tonight I watched The Vortex episode on Fr. Rodriquez (see below). What an inspiring bunch of people! They know their faith, and they are defending it! They want the Truth. Me, too!

I am so inspired, I'm re-posting what I wrote before about Fr. Rodriguez:

...And last but not least, Fr.Michael Rodriguez. Now here is a priest who is a hero, in my book. He spoke clearly and eloquently and humbly to defend the teachings of the Church in his town (I watched some of the videos); I think his actions were important in educating the faithful of his parish; I think he talked the talk and walked the walk. His bishop didn't appreciate it. That's too bad, because I think Fr. Rodriguez set an example that other priests and bishops would do well to follow.

Now Fr. Rodriguez has been shunted off to a remote parish in the middle of nowhere, apparently. (And the people in that parish should be thanking God for the gift He has given them!) But from what I can see, he's not complaining. He's looking forward. He seems to feel that no matter where God places him, he should simply do his best as a priest. I think he knows that the people in that middle-of-nowhere parish deserve his full attention, just like the ones in his previous parish. I love this quote from The Big Bend Sentinel:

“Obedience to my bishop is essential to the priesthood,” Rodriguez said. “My bishop has transferred me to another assignment, and I intend to be obedient. The priesthood is my greatest joy. In the present circumstances, I intend to try even harder to be a good, holy priest.”

Fr. Rodriguez discussed his plans for his new parish - plans to introduce the extraordinary form of the Mass. Why? Because he's trying to "regain the Catholic faith".

“We’ve lost a great deal of Catholic faith,” Rodriguez said. “Marriage is looked upon differently. Many young people and children don’t know how to pray. Many don’t know about Judgment Day. A lot of elements have been lost, and that’s what I’m going to concentrate on.”

You rock, Fr. Rodriguez. You are probably the least well-known among the priests listed here, but I think you are the brightest star and the best example of what the priesthood is all about.

Here's the Vortex: