Preparing for ordination -- again

Life, in God's time, can begin after 50. That's what Thomas Morrette believes. At 53, he isn't thinking of senior perks, afternoons on the golf course or retirement funds: He's becoming a priest.

"I began thinking seriously about the priesthood a few years ago, but I kept putting it out of my mind, thinking, 'I'm too old to begin again,'" he explained.

But now he is spending a pastoral year at St. Gabriel's Church in Rotterdam, preparing to be ordained a priest.

Late choice

With his decision, Mr. Morrette joins a growing number of men discerning a vocation to the priesthood as a second career.

"I questioned if I had made the right decision in the early stages. Now, those doubts have left me," he said. "My family was surprised. I gave no indication that I'd been thinking about this."

He grew up in Schenectady and attended St. John the Baptist Church as a boy. He first heard a call to the priesthood while attending Siena College in Loudonville and entered the seminary. Just before his ordination as a deacon, however, he left.

First career

Mr. Morrette moved to New York City and became an educator, serving as a principal for an elementary school and as a parish director of religious education.

But he couldn't ignore the vocational call. In 1988, he was ordained a permanent deacon in the Archdiocese of New York. For the next decade, he served in parishes in Katonah and Chappaqua, two Hudson Valley "bedroom communities" to New York City.

When he decided again that priesthood was the right track for him, Mr. Morrette spoke to Bishop Howard J. Hubbard, who encouraged him to apply. Upon acceptance last summer, he began to study to be a priest in the Albany Diocese.

Duties

Because he is already ordained as a permanent deacon, Mr. Morrette has a leg up on other seminarians. At St. Gabriel's, he preaches at Mass, sits on the parish council and liturgy committee, and teaches a fifth-grade religious education class.

Even with his wide experience in parishes, he explained, there are new things to absorb. He calls learning to be a priest is a "24-hour-job."

A good priest, he noted, "needs to keep a balance in his spiritual life. He needs to be of service to his people, celebrate the sacraments and foster community in the parish. A good priest first tries to be holy and good. Second, he tries to serve people as Christ would want them to be served. I hope that I can be seen as an approachable shepherd worthy of their trust."

Studies

Most recently, Mr. Morrette has used his teaching experience to start an adult education series known as "Deacon Tom's Study," in which he tackles religious, moral and societal questions asked by the members of his classes.

One topic was good and evil: How can God can allow evil to prowl the world? In a subsequent session, the class discussed the difficult moral choices faced by terminally ill people and their families.

"Most of the bases at St. Gabriel's are covered. It's a pretty active place, but there did seem to be a need" for adult education, he said.

Inspiration

Laypeople inspire Mr. Morrette, who said, "I love the lay involvement here in the Diocese," and he appreciates "how smart and effective our laypeople are. They're responsible. They're very impressive."

He also wants to find more ways to attract young people to religious vocations.

Returning to the Diocese of his youth, Mr. Morrette admitted, made him "very nervous. But the first thing I saw was a sign on the door that said, 'Welcome, Deacon Tom.' That dissipated my fears."

(1/22/04)