Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Uncle Eddy

Dear Bill,

Your latest discernment update begs a response.  Just because you “feel attracted” to the vocation of marriage (most normal young men do, you know), and just because your prayer life has lately “felt kind of burdensome,” that is no reason to cancel your scheduled visits to the seminary.  On the other hand, though, you should still – in my opinion – follow through with your other options as well.  You need to be responsible in choosing your first post-graduation step, and that means depending less on subjective “feelings” and more on objective reason.  Our feelings are real, and they are God’s gifts.  They often help us follow our conscience and identify the right course of action.  But they are secondary factors.  They are not well educated, in general – they tend to follow a rather random course, like the weather.  We mustn’t steer our lives by them primarily; rather, we must stay oriented by the true magnetic north of our reason enlightened by our Catholic faith.  Today’s saint is a perfect case in point.

He was born of an illustrious family in central France and early on discerned a vocation to solitude and prayer.  So he joined the flourishing Cistercian monastery nearby.  His natural wisdom and growing holiness made him the logical choice for abbot.  He fulfilled that office in two separate monasteries, always using it to great advantage for increasing the fervor of his brother monks.  When the archbishop of nearby Bourges died, William was chosen to succeed him.  Of course, he had taken the monastic habit precisely in order to evade the hustle and bustle of life in the world, and the news of his election simply overwhelmed him.  He refused to accept it, energetically pointing out that it was an imprudent choice, that he wasn’t up to the task, that he felt God calling him to tend to the monks, etc…  Only when his religious superior ordered him to accept the archbishopric (and when he received a similar command from the Pope), did he acquiesce.  He cried throughout the journey from his monastery to the bishop’s residence.  But it turns out that his adverse feelings were way off target.  He was a model bishop.  His own example of charity and evangelical poverty, coupled with a deep spirit of prayer and penance, won the hearts of his flock, the return to the fold of numerous Albigensian heretics, and even the loyalty of his initially envious clergy.  The archdiocese flourished in every way.

So you see, my sentimental nephew, our feelings can betray us.  It is much wiser to balance them out with regular doses of reasoned reflection, sound advice, common sense, and prudence – Christian prudence, that is.

Your affectionate uncle, Eddy

Uncle Eddy Introduces the Saints

Navigating today’s world is tough and all of us could use a nudge in the right direction. Figuring out the right path to take at work, at college, or in social situations is not always easy. Looking to the lives of the saints can give us the insights we need.

Written by Fr. John Bartunek, LC, Uncle Eddy’s Saint of the Day is a fictional series of letters written by a man who has been imprisoned for the Catholic Faith. Using the saints of the day as examples, Uncle Eddy pens a daily letter with spiritual advice to his many nieces and nephews.

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Alex Kucera

Atlanta

Alex Kucera has lived in Atlanta, GA, for the last 46 years. He is one of 9 children, married to his wife Karmen, and has 3 girls, one grandson, and a granddaughter on the way. Alex joined Regnum Christi in 2007. Out of the gate, he joined the Helping Hands Medical Missions apostolate and is still participating today with the Ghana Friendship Mission.

In 2009, Alex was asked to be the Atlanta RC Renewal Coordinator for the Atlanta Locality to help the RC members with the RC renewal process. Alex became a Group Leader in 2012 for four of the Atlanta Men’s Section Teams and continues today. Running in parallel, in 2013, Alex became a Team Leader and shepherded a large team of good men.

Alex was honored to be the Atlanta Mission Coordinator between 2010 to 2022 (12 years), coordinating 5-8 Holy Week Mission teams across Georgia. He also created and coordinated missions at a parish in Athens, GA, for 9 years. Alex continues to coordinate Holy Week Missions, Advent Missions, and Monthly missions at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Cumming, GA.

From 2016 to 2022, Alex also served as the Men’s Section Assistant in Atlanta. He loved working with the Men’s Section Director, the Legionaries, Consecrated, and Women’s Section leadership teams.

Alex is exceptionally grateful to the Legionaries, Consecrated, and many RC members who he’s journeyed shoulder to shoulder, growing his relationship with Christ and others along the way. He knows that there is only one way, that’s Christ’s Way, with others!