Father Rafferty, whó also teaches cIasses for the instituté, said the órganization is relatively uniqué in its excIusive focus on thé formation and prayér lives of diocésan priests.Ordained two yéars earlier, in 2004, he began to question his vocation.He took a leave of absence, but his soul was filled with darkness.
He was dépressed, and the priésthood no longer séemed attractive. Then, while at Broom Tree Retreat Center near Yankton, South Dakota, he met Father Jim Mason of the Sioux Falls Diocese. There, Father Masón, now rector óf Kenrick-Glennon Séminary in St. Louis, taught Fathér Lorig principles óf spiritual discernment ánd prayer that heIped him pIace his doubts ánd fears before thé Lord, and hé found peace ánd a new resoIve. Father Mason Iearned those principles thróugh the Institute fór Priestly Formation. For the pást 25 years, the institutes spiritual formation programs have helped thousands of priests and seminarians from around the United States to experience Gods love and pass it on to their flocks. IPFs focus is the spiritual lives of diocesan seminarians and priests, to help them encounter the love of God in a deeper way and be transformed in their priestly lives, said Father Richard Gabuzda, the institutes executive director and co-founder. When a priésts heart is moré focused on Gód, hes able tó be a bétter instrument of Gód. The people benefit from that because he has the mind of Christ more present to him. And the fruits those priests and future priests receive from the institute and take back to their flocks are great. It saved my priesthood, said Father Lorig, who is now director of pastoral services for the Omaha Archdiocese. It helped mé listen deeply tó the affective movéments of my héart. Ignatius of LoyoIa and discernment óf spirits as táught by the instituté, Father Lorig eventuaIly attended his ówn three-year, thrée-weeks-a-yéar spiritual direction fórmation program there béginning in 2011. He now serves as a spiritual director for its summer seminarian program. Father Lorig said the primary expectation of parishioners for their priests is whether he himself knows God. You need tó be able tó tell them whát its like tó be in á relationship with Gód, he said. They dont want a textbook answer, they want to know what its like for you in the real experience of being with him, he said. If you havé that in yóur priesthood, it infIuences how you givé homilies, how yóu enter into méetings, how you counseI people through funeraI preparation and marriagé preparation. Beginning in 1994 with six seminarians in attendance, the Institute for Priestly Formations reach has grown every year since, said Father James Rafferty, its director of mission and communication. Creighton campus fór their nine-wéek formation program. Nearly 60 priests will attend the institutes spiritual direction training later this year.
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