SPECIAL ISSUE ON RELIGIOUS LIFE IN THE ALBANY DIOCESE

• THANK GOD FOR OUR PRIESTS
The focus this week in The Evangelist on vocations invites us to thank God for the blessing of the vocations of the ordained -- in particular, priests -- and to thank them for following freely God's invitation.

• WHY THE DIOCESE WELCOMES 'SECOND-CAREER PRIESTS'
"Having already lived a life that has been full of joys and sorrows, I'm better able to identify with parishioners' lives," said Rev. F. Richard Lesser, pastor of Corpus Christi parish in Round Lake.

• FATHERHOOD
For the ordained priest -- I am one -- spiritual fatherhood is a life-giving role of the highest order. The priest is truly the father of his people, the shepherd of his flock.

• LIFE AS A LAY MISSIONARY
For many years, "mission" meant what a few special people did: going out to the far ends of the earth to bring the Gospel message. Now, we realize that mission can happen anywhere, and that there are people in need of the good news of God's love right in our own backyard.

• A FUTURE PRIEST GOES TO WORLD YOUTH DAY
Although it was a sunny day, gloom, silence and a heavy, somber feeling hung there. The weight of overwhelming evil bore down on us as we walked gravel paths between barbed-wire fences.

• ASSOCIATION PROVIDES FOCUS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
People with disabilities aren't always able to enter religious life. For Louise Principe of Blessed Sacrament parish in Albany, this hit close to home.

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