• Mentor Training and Policy for Priests

Telling Our Sto"es• Newer Priests Meet Retired Priests

T"via Notes• Our History Put to a Test

Mento"ng andIntegration

Ann$ncements• Chrism Day Afternoon

• Annual Study Week

• 30th Anniversary Retreat

• Other Programs

The

pauseis as important

as the

note.- Truman Fisher

Quarterly E-magazine of Ongoing Formation ● for Priests and Deacons ● Intranet Accessible @ www.dsj.org ● No. 1

• SUSTAINING PRIESTS AND DEACONS • DIOCESE OF SAN JOSÉ IN CALIFORNIA • WINTER 2011

Lifetime

formationFOR A LIFETIME

OVER A LIFETIME

Lifetime

Contents of %& Issu( NO. 1 Lifetime

No. 1Page 2

PREMIER ISSUE

Retelling Our Diocesan Folklore Newer Priests’ Peer Support Group Venue for Retired Priests’ Stories

4

“Trivia Contest” for Clergy Some Fun with Diocesan History10

“Mentors Among Us Integrating Entry into Priesthood with the Wisdom of Experience

12

Policy for “Mentoring of Priests” Council Adopts Criteria for Selection and Assignments of Mentors

14

30Ongoing Formation of Clergy Committee Membership Changes

20 ANNOUNCEMENTS

Upcoming Events

Accent Acquisition for Our International Clergy

Spiritual Direction Studies

Retreat Offering

Seminars at “Vatican II”

“Vatican II” Sabbaticals

Corner

Permission to reprint or copy must be granted in advance

by the Vicar for Clergy.

The quarterly E-magazineof the Office of the

Vicar for Clergy,Diocese of San José

in California,for the ongoing formation of

priests and deacons.Intranet accessible only.

Fr. Richard Hilliard, EditorDesign by

IN EXCELSIS DEO

Corrections or correspondence may be

directed either to: rhilliard@dsj.org

or to: Office of the Vicar for Clergy

LifetimeThe Chancery

1150 North First St. Ste. 100San José CA 95112-4966

Letters will be published at the discretion of the

Vicar for Clergy.Anonymous submissions

cannot be considered.

Introducing...Lifetime

LifetimeNo. 1

Page 3

This new E-magazine for the priests and deacons of San José has been developed to keep us all acquainted with the current trends in the ongoing formation of the ordained. It is also intended to provide us all with timely information about events being planned for our participation. It is named “Lifetime” because what is written about the formation of a priest or a deacon today assumes that the education provided before his ordination will not carry him throughout his lifetime. If he is to be truly fully formed, he is to commit himself to continued formation over his entire lifetime. That’s the assumption out of which I am giving my energy to my position as “Associate for Ongoing Formation of the Clergy” for the Diocese of San José. I’m also expecting that you share this assumption with little need for anyone to convince you of its significance for effective ministry. I’m trusting that your experience has already taught you the validity of this fundamental view of what makes for a well-formed priest or deacon: ongoing formation “for a lifetime, over a lifetime.” The expandable “magazine” style has been chosen to acquaint us better with formational opportunities in our diocese and in our region. Feature articles will examine issues in a broader fashion. While some content could be provided in a “newsletter” format with customary announcements of upcoming events, the pages of a magazine can engage readers more in the purpose of events, provide a forum for reflection on events that have passed, allow for the exchange of opinions, and keep everyone informed about programs supporting other priests and deacons of our diocese. In this first issue, music is used as a metaphor for ordained ministries.

From a composer’s imaginative score, through a musician’s repeated rehearsals, to the applause from an audience for a stellar performance, music lends itself easily as a symbol for the unique mark each of us makes on the art and practice of ordained ministry. Cover to cover, music and images of musicians form the graphic design of this issue’s pages. Sayings about music are included for us to imagine ourselves as contributors to the bigger score of the Lord’s ministry, some of us better at “recalling lyrics” than others, others better in “adding harmony” to our works than in “orchestrating” the many parts needed to perform. What strikes me about music as a metaphor for what we do over our lifetimes is that just as music requires a performer’s return to a composer’s melody time after time, practicing, practicing, and practicing again, so too does the ministry of the ordained. We are obliged to return to the origins of scripture, to the basics of theology, to the essentials of pastoral practices, to the models given us by others more learned, and to the wisdom that only experience yields. It is then that we are given the insights to see ourselves singing the values of the gospel in renewed, vital and vibrant performances never imagined in us before. Special features are listed on the front cover. Regular content is detailed on the inside cover. Your opinion is needed as future issues are planned. Please let me know what else might be helpful or could be included as Lifetime evolves. I hope you find on the following pages something that inspires your own continuing formation as a deacon or a priest serving the Diocese of San José. Above all, I hope that you will enjoy your first Lifetime!

Fr. Richard Hilliard, Editor