Extension magazine - Winter 2022

36 INSPIRE
Vocations
Extension | Winter 2022 37
LEFT Father Marc Lenneman lays a foundation of faith among youth and guides them as they discern their vocations. MIDDLE Brett Rotz, a seminarian
with the Diocese of Helena, Montana, takes on chores at Legendary Lodge alongside his pastoral training. RIGHT Former Legendary Lodge camper Shai
LaFleur earned a master’s degree in theology from the University of Notre Dame through Catholic Extension’s Young Adult Leadership Initiative.
how to encounter Him in sacraments,
in sharing your faith with
your friends and in serving, especially
the poor.”
Rather than rushing young people
through a discernment process
to fill a quota, Father Lenneman
lays a foundation of faith for them,
hoping that the Holy Spirit will
do the rest of the work in helping
them discover what they are meant
to do with their lives.
The strategy works amazingly
well.
His ministry is increasing the
number of young people seeking
to serve God and the people of
western Montana as priests.
The Diocese of Helena, which
consists of about 45,000 Catholics,
has an astounding 14 seminarians
this year, even after ordaining
two to the priesthood in June 2022.
Ten of these seminarians came
from Carroll College and Father
Lenneman’s programs.
But the last thing this vocations
director would do is pressure
someone to become a priest.
Rather, he simply invites all young
people to encounter and listen to
the Lord themselves.
“You meet the Lord, and then
you begin to fall in love with Him
and you actually start to follow
Him,” Father Lenneman said. “And
then there’s a conversation that
happens. What does it look like
in your life to follow Him? Does it
look like priesthood? Does it look
like religious life? Does it look like
holy Christian marriage?”
EASING ANXIETY THROUGH THE
GOSPEL
Father Lenneman says the burden
of the need for priests in a diocese
should not fall on a young
man’s shoulders.
“It puts inordinate pressure on a
guy, or unmet expectations, or we
skip a stage where they don’t actually
know Jesus,” he said. “They
haven’t met Him personally. The
young man might not know that
Jesus loves him, and that He accepts
him as he is but also calls
him forward.”
Many young people today are
plagued by anxiety. They feel as
though they need to determine the
course of the rest of their lives at
their young age. Father Lenneman
helps young women and men put
their trust in God. “It means having
the patience to trust that the Lord
is the one who’s actually forming
and calling,” he said.
Father Lenneman’s approach
derives from Scripture. He often
refers to Luke 5, in which Jesus
boards a boat with Peter and
tells him to bring up the fishing
net. When Peter does, he’s overwhelmed
with the number of fish
and tells Jesus to leave, calling himself
a sinful man. Father Lenneman
shares Jesus’ reply to Peter with
the young men discerning today:
“Do not be afraid. I will make you a
fisher of men.”
These words of the Gospel ease
stress. “So, if you’re supposed to be
a priest, you’ll be a priest. And if
you’re not supposed to be a priest,
you won’t be a priest,” said Father
Lenneman. “You should only do it
if Jesus wants you to.”
Father Lenneman explained,
“First, Jesus calls us to be with Him.
Then He gives us a vocation. And
then He sends us out on a mission.”
FUTURE PRIESTS STAY GROUNDED
Discerning one’s vocation is only
the first step. Father Lenneman
ensures that young men on the
path to the priesthood walk a
humble road, not a golden highway.
This means being out with the people
and living normal lives. They
are not sequestered.
He encourages prospective candidates
considering the priesthood
to go on dates, join clubs and
get jobs. Experiencing life alongside
those whom they will one day
serve prepares them for the priesthood
just as well as classes in theology
and philosophy. Job experience
is an invaluable education in
the real-life challenges of overseeing
a parish.
ABOVE Cody and
Anna Tredik,
camp managers at
Legendary Lodge,
bring their son,
Noah, along as they
help young people
embrace their
Catholic faith.
LEFT The expansion
to the dining hall at
Legendary Lodge,
built with help from
Catholic Extension,
will allow more young
people in the diocese
to attend the camp.
Father Lenneman guides the
seminarians with five simple
rules: Be humble, be grateful, be
generous, work hard and suffer
well.
Many seminarians go to Legendary
Lodge in the summer to
help out. For most, it’s a trip to
familiar and sacred grounds. Their
service ranges from assisting in
group discussions to taking out
the trash. This task was assigned
to Brett Rotz, a third-year seminarian
studying at St. John Vianney
Theological Seminary in Denver,
Colorado. He came from Idaho to
attend the camp in his younger
years and returned as a counselor.
He recalls late-night conversations
about faith with friends under the
vast Montana sky. “Through peer
ministry at Carroll, through guys I
met at the Lodge, there’s been this
development of fraternity among
young people in the diocese
where I feel like I’m able to have
these conversations,” he said. Several
of his fellow counselors are
now seminarians as well. This
includes Kyle Tannehill, who was
ordained a transitional deacon in
June 2022. Next year, he will be
ordained a priest.
LAY VOCATIONS AT THE LODGE
Cody and Anna Tredik know
well the transformative power
of the camp. After attending the
camp themselves—Cody as a
yearly camper, Anna through a
Carroll College retreat—they have
served as camp managers since
2019. The married couple lives out
their vocations strengthening faith
among each year’s surge of campers.
They also work with communications
in the diocese in the
off-season.
The summer camp is open for
six weeks. Each week welcomes
a different age group of about 100
children. In addition to adventures
such as water sports, archery,
axe throwing and other summer
camp staples, faith is ever-present.
Mass is celebrated every day. Once
a week, campers climb to the top
of the mountain for Mass and confession.
“It’s a place where young
people from fifth grade to high
school can just get away from the
distractions of the world. They’re
able to learn more about prayer.
They get to know each other and