A Privilege to Serve, Reasons for Gratitude
by Ralph Martin | Mar 27, 2025
Dear Friends and Fellow Disciples,
As usual, there is a lot going on—thanks be to God! So much great work for the kingdom is being made possible through your support!
The class I taught during the fall semester at the seminary was perhaps my best class ever, both regarding how I conducted it and—primarily—regarding the amazing twenty-two men and one woman who comprised the class. All except four of the students were transitional deacons who will be ordained to the priesthood in just a couple months. What good men they are, and what good priests they will make!
Archbishop Allen Vigneron invited all the Sacred Heart Major Seminary faculty and their spouses to a wonderful Christmas reception with him at his home near the seminary. Given all the chaos, confusion, and division going on in the Church, it has been a special blessing to have Archbishop Vigneron give his protection to the seminary and me personally all these years.
As it turned out, the Christmas reception was the last time I saw Archbishop Vigneron before his retirement. The pope appointed the Diocese of Tucson’s Bishop Edward Weisenburger as the new archbishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit, and his installation ceremony was in March.
On the mission front, our time in Ukraine last summer is bearing ongoing fruit! A wonderful Ukrainian couple translated my booklet Priest as Prophet into Ukrainian to make it available to Ukrainian priests.
Also, one of our close friends at the seminary, Fr. Peter Ryan, SJ, and I each gave a talk at the annual meeting of the National Federation of Seminary Spiritual Directors in Columbus, Ohio. While there, we ran into Fr. Earl Mueller, who served with us on a mission in Africa for many years and now serves at a seminary in New Orleans. He even learned Swahili to communicate better with those we served in Africa! So many wonderful people have served with us on missions in so many countries over the years!
I also want to give a special shout out to our dear Canadian friends. Anne and I traveled to Windsor, Ontario, to give a talk at a parish where one of the seminary’s lay theology
graduates is serving as director of religious education. It was great to see a team of lay leaders and priests working so well together to lead their parish in renewal and evangelization. It also was great to see our lay graduate putting her theology studies to such good use!
One significant new development in Renewal Ministries’ outreach has been an explosion of requests for Peter and Debbie Herbeck to speak at events for married couples. They had been doing many of them but ran into a setback when Peter fell on the ice in his driveway in February (the dangers of living in Michigan) and cracked his pelvis in two places. Fortunately, the bones were not displaced, but he did need about a two-month recovery period, which he is only now emerging from.
One large event Peter had to miss was a mission in Brazil that he was scheduled to lead. Fortunately, Pete Burak and Rachel Herbeck were still able to go. Speaking of Rachel, have you heard her new podcast, Burning Hearts, yet? If not, you should. She’s got the fire!
To stay regularly updated on what we are teaching and preaching, subscribe to our YouTube channel and click the notification bell to be notified when a new video is published. I love walking from my “prayer chair” over to my microphone and camera to share what the Lord is putting on my heart to help strengthen and encourage you. It’s a privilege.
Your brother in Christ,
This article originally appeared in Renewal Ministries’ April 2025 newsletter.
rmartin@renewalministries.net
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It is always a great honor to partner with Renewal Ministries. Thousands of lives have been touched in Uganda alone over the years. We can never thank God for you enough. You guys are worth more than billions of kilograms of gold put together. Renewal Ministries was certainly God’s idea, not yours. Through your talks, videos, books, newsletter..you have drawn us closer to God and to love the Catholic Church more than ever. A huge thank you to all donors who support this incredible work of God through Renewal Ministries, May the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, bless and reward each one of you abundantly here on earth and later with Eternal Life!