Am I happy? I can honestly and wholeheartedly say I am. In fact, I'm happier now than at any other point in my priesthood. I believe that is because, with age, I'm becoming wiser and more generous.

That is not to say that I'm a hero or a martyr, or even a workaholic. Most parents with young children are probably better servants than I. As a priest, however, I have been given an immense capacity to make a difference in a lot of people's lives.

By ordination, the church literally gives me a bully pulpit - instant leadership in the eyes of many if not most Catholics. To put that power at the service of people and the Gospel brings me a deep level of satisfaction.

The positive response I've received from almost every person I've served is a never-ending source of surprise. Yet the biggest surprise of my priesthood is how different I am today from on the day of my ordination. To say it another way: the reasons I like being a priest are completely different from the reasons I first became a priest.

Sixteen years ago I certainly had a sense that I wanted to help people and work in the church, but at the deepest level I became a priest to fill my own neediness. I was still pretty self-occupied. After a few difficult years of having to confront my own neediness I began to learn that reaching out to others - "dying to self" - would not make me disappear but rather enable me to find my true identity and self.

Even celibacy is not as difficult as it once was. Maybe I've become a confirmed bachelor, but my life is so full I don't miss having my own family. I have many families. In fact, I crave solitude more than a wife.

For a simple lifestyle, the pay is more than sufficient - even generous, and I never have to worry about being laid off or downsized!

Fr. Chuck Hanel, ,BR> St. Hubert Church
3727 Hubertus Rd.
Hubertus, WI 53033-9794
1-414-628-1141
frchuck@sthc.org