What a privilege to offer a Grace Before Meals Presentation to the St. Elizabeth Sodality in Rockville, MD.  It was a great event with a lot of enthusiasm for our movement. The focus for the women of this sodality group was “spiritual maternity” – i.e., how women, no matter if they are biological mothers or not, possess a gift of being a spiritual mother.

The proceeds for this communion breakfast went to a local pregnancy center that assists women who need help in the midst of a challenging pregnancy.  The very fact that they think of supporting other women in crisis shows they are truly exercising their spiritual maternity by spiritually assisting other moms.

One of the things my breakfast table talked about was how “spiritual maternity” has the responsibility to pray for vocations. Without prayers from spiritual moms, it is very difficult to develop spiritual brotherhood required for the priesthood.

After the big breakfast with the women, I needed to get out and enjoy the 90 degree weather.  And so I took a hike around the cotoctan mountains with some seminarians, “spiritual brothers.”  These young men are spending their last few days at the seminary together.  John Williams (left) has decided to take some time away from seminary discernment and will be a position similar to the  ”dean of men” for the border students at the prestigious Georgetown Prep HS.  Tim Daniel was appointed by the Bishop to complete his theological training at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, my alma mater!  Despite their different vocational directions and distance, I urged them (as I do all seminarians) to continue fostering the spiritual friendship that every Christian Man needs!

Spiritual maternity and spiritual brotherhood is what we we’re all about at Grace Before Meals, simply because we’re all about the spiritual family!

Check out this last picture. When I got back from the hike, the Knights of Columbus were hosting an ice cream social for some of our seminarians.  One of the young men (young squires – i.e., young men who will eventually become Knights of Columbus) looked like a younger/smaller version of one of our seminarians (Scott Lutgring, left).  It was uncanny to see the similarities. They are not related, but they even dressed the same!

This gives new meaning to spiritual brotherhood!

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