Sheen remembered

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen was a prominent priest and bishop of the 20th century. He was a brilliant philosophy professor at The Catholic University of America, the kind whose lectures drew students from all over campus. In the 1930s and ’40s, he hosted a weekly national radio program, “The Catholic Hour.” Millions listened to his talks.

In the 1950s, he had a prime-time TV show, “Life Is Worth Living.” He was a rock star before there were rock stars. He was serious and profound, but also funny and practical. More people watched his show than almost any other program.

I was one of them, a child of 9 or 10. Every Tuesday night, I watched his show. I was mesmerized by how beautifully and sincerely he spoke – without a note or teleprompter. I didn’t understand everything he said, but I liked watching him and enjoyed his humor.

When it looked as if my father would have back surgery, I wrote to then-Bishop Sheen, asking him to pray for my dad. After a few days, he replied. I was happy to read that Bishop Sheen was praying for my father. But I was genuinely surprised by what he wrote at the bottom of the letter: “You should think about becoming a priest. I’ll pray for you!” It was like receiving an Instagram from God – except back then, we had telegrams, not Instagrams. Actually, I had thought about becoming a priest, but his little note really started me thinking – and praying – about what God wanted me to do with my life.

What I didn’t know then but found out later is that Bishop Sheen made a daily holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament. He called it, “The hour that makes my day!” I have no doubt that he really did pray for me!

I tell you that story to highlight just two facets of Archbishop Sheen’s eventful life. First, he was an evangelizer before we were talking about evangelization. And second, he promoted priestly vocations by word and example.

Archbishop Sheen was truly a pioneer in using the technology of his day to evangelize. His radio and TV shows helped millions of Catholics to open their hearts to Christ, to take their faith to heart, to understand it more deeply and to bear witness to it in their daily lives. But he was also a prolific writer with the gift of making the faith accessible. And he personally brought many people into the Catholic Church.

Not many have a radio or television show or a podcast. Not many write books. But all of us can indeed bear witness to our faith and encourage those whose faith has grown cold to rediscover the fire of God’s love in the Sacred Heart of Jesus. And Archbishop Sheen can still help us. Many of his books have been republished. They have a timeless quality about them, and they can help equip us for the work of spreading the faith.

There is no way to know how many priestly vocations Archbishop Sheen fostered. He did so by his own joy as a priest, by his prayerfulness and by books such as “The Priest Is Not His Own.” But, as my personal story illustrates, he also encouraged priestly vocations behind the scenes – with something as simple as a postscript on a letter to a 10-year old. We learn from him how simple it is to pray for someone we think would make a good priest or to offer a word of encouragement. Many of us priests were strengthened in our vocations by parishioners who told us they thought we had the makings of a good priest.

Archbishop Sheen will be beatified this coming September in St. Louis. I’ll be there. After all these years, I’m still a fan!

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