I have two priest friends from my old Steubenville days, Fr. Kevin Gillen and Fr. Mark Ropel, both in the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (SOLT). Fr. Kevin was my roommate at Steubie U and he used to be a Wall Street stockbroker. Fr. Mark is a former US Army Captain, Ranger qualified. They are among the men I admire most and are the epitome of “men with chests” Catholic priests (along with another ordained Steubie friend, Fr. John Klockeman).
Fathers Kevin and Mark are up in Wyoming right now and Fr. Kevin sent me a link to photos he took of some of their adventures. In several of them, you’ll see them on backcountry horseback trips, celebrating Mass in the middle of nowhere on tree stumps, rock piles, and even the back of a pickup truck. They are some amazing photos and I must say, I wish I could be with them on one of those trips. Among my dream trips is a horseback journey in Big Sky Country.
Enjoy the photos.
(You know between the priests who visit me here on this blog and the ones I know who I can call friends, I am reminded that the priesthood is in a lot better shape in many ways than the Scandal stories would lead us to believe. It’s important to remember that and I direct that comment at myself.)
