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Community
Community
IRON RIVER — Father Gregory Veneklase is headed to Paradise.
Now, that statement rings with double meaning — no Veneklase has not passed away and no, he is not technically going to Paradise, Michigan. Instead, Veneklase is headed to a rustic retreat center just outside the eastern U.P. town called Companions of Christ the Lamb.
“I’m almost going to paradise,” Veneklase said with a chuckle.
For the past 10 years, Veneklase has been the pastor for the St. Agnes and the St. Cecilia parishes. His term at the local parishes ended in June and he has been transferred by the Bishop of the Diocese of Marquette, the Most Reverend John F. Doerfler.
An open house in honor of Veneklase will be held on Wednesday from 4-7 p.m. in the St. Agnes Parish Hall in Iron River. Parishioners, friends and guests are invited to “come and wish Father well.” A variety of refreshments will be served.
As reported in the April 30 edition of the U.P. Catholic, Veneklase will be replaced by Reverend Jose Cherian, who comes to St. Agnes, St. Cecilia and Immaculate Conception in Watersmeet from St. Stanislaus Kostka, Goetzville, Sacred Heart, DeTour, St. Florence, Drummond Island, and Our Lady of the Snows, Hessel.
Veneklase explained these orders came from the Bishop of the Diocese of Marquette.
“He’s the chief shepherd. So, the bishop is in charge of the church and the sacraments in his diocese. And the priests are his helpers. And so every now and then, he will transfer you. He hasn’t done too many, but this time he transferred 15.”
Veneklase was alerted to his change of duties in late March but not allowed to inform people until late April.
The 65-year-old priest said he thinks that priests are moved around in such a way so that they will not become too attached to a location.
He added that priests understand and accept that they will be moved from time to time.
“That’s where obedience comes in,” Veneklase said. “And our Lord said that obedience is better than sacrifice. So, when a priest is ordained, he promises obedience to the bishop and his successors. The Bishop of Marquette became my superior and I pledged allegiance to him.”
Veneklase, who grew up in Grand Rapids, entered the religious life at 29 years old. He eventually joined the Polish Carmelites and was ordained a priest in Poland in 1993.
Veneklase remained with the Polish Carmelites until 2010, when he began the process of leaving the order to become a diocesan priest.
He started in that role when he was assigned associate pastor of St. Mary and St. Joseph Parish in Iron Mountain. About eight months later, he was assigned to St. Cecilia and St. Agnes.
Veneklase said that being assigned to parishes in the Northwoods helped him live out his Carmelite spirituality, which involves a closeness to nature. Now, he will be going further into the woods.
“Actually, during this next term, I am not going to be involved in parish work directly,” he said. “Instead, I’m being assigned as a chaplain for a lay religious community, a lay association they call it.”
The Companions of Christ the Lamb Retreat Center is located just west of Paradise, into the “wilderness” Veneklase said. The Center describes itself as a “natural setting to find silence, prayer and peace” in its promotional materials.
The CCL offers a variety of rustic retreat opportunities, including a hermitage (with meals provided), a remote hermitage and solo wilderness camping.
The CCL is under the Diocese of Marquette and offers daily mass in a log cabin. Priests are also available for confession and direction. The retreat season runs from May 1 to Nov. 15.
This is where Veneklase is off to, a place with no electricity, no radio, no TV and of course, no internet.
“I will have a room with a wood stove for heating and a bathroom area. It’s a little bit rustic.”
Veneklase said he will hear confessions, say Holy Mass, offer the sacraments and provide spiritual direction and counseling to people who come on retreat.
“There are two 81-year-old priests out there, so at 65, I will be the kid. There won’t be any administrative responsibilities and that will be a change. But I will study their spirituality, their formation, so I can teach it to the laypeople and then I have to learn how to preach retreats.”
When news of his departure from St. Agnes and St. Cecilia reached parishioners, some of them decided to write letters to the Diocese of Marquette to request Veneklase stay.
“I didn’t orchestrate anything like this, but those who came here and said they wanted to do this, I said, ‘That’s your decision.’ I said, “All I ask is for you to be polite and respectful because if you aren’t, (the bishop) would say, ‘Good thing I transferred that priest, he’s a bad influence.’”
Veneklase, who laughs easily and is quick with a joke, seemed at ease with the change. He did, however, reflect on his time locally and said if he were assigned to come back, he would do so gladly.
“It’s been an honor to serve. God helped us get a lot of things done. I will hold everybody in my heart and in my prayers and I ask their prayers for me.
“We are a spiritual family and I consider not just the parish but everyone in the community is part of my family.”
And in one last departing joke, Veneklase pointed outside to North 4th Avenue, which had recently been repaved.
“I waited 10 years for the street to be repaved and finally it is. A going away present.”