Extension magazine - Spring 2024

22 INSPIRE
Feature Story
Extension | Spring 2024 23
He describes the cowboy as “a
man who is humble, not in a hurry,
and has a broad perspective of life,
always looking toward a brighter
day. He usually rides for another
man’s brand, travels light and is
willing to sacrifice himself to accomplish
whatever task is at hand.
Yet he does it with a light heart.”
Father Lungren contends that
“Jesus has much of the same
disposition [as the cowboy].
He knows He’s on a mission.”
That mission is on behalf of the
“brand” of God the Father.
RANCHER AND RELIGIOUS LEADER
So what does it mean in daily
practice to be a cowboy priest? Father
Lungren does everything a
city priest would do. He teaches,
he administers the sacraments, he
buries the dead, he counsels and
he consoles.
But the cowboy lifestyle remains
part of his life and ministry.
At his first assignment, he
served at the Wind River Reservation,
where he encountered a wild
horse. Being the natural cowboy
that he is, he caught the horse and
tamed it in service of the ranch.
He named the horse Chief.
Eventually, he found and tamed
a second horse that he called Mollie.
These horses are somewhat of
a metaphor for Father Lungren’s
life. He never intended to be a
priest, but God pulled him into His
service, and he discovered a new
and beautiful purpose along the
way.
After high school, he was happily
ranching, competing in rodeos
and engaged to the rancher’s
daughter, whom he described as
“the girl of his dreams.” That was
ABOVE Father Bryce Lungren
produces quality meat for his local
community.
RIGHT Father Lungren rides a
horse he tamed.
also when he first began to hear
the call to priesthood, fueled by
his love of the Mass.
Much like his wild horses, God
eventually drew Father Lungren
in closer, and helped him see that
“when we discover our vocational
mission in life, we discover happiness.”
Even though he never wanted
to be a priest, he says he is happier
than he ever could have imagined
now that he is doing what God
created him to do in this world.
He openly said, “I am not a
desk-job priest. It’s not in my
nature. Sure, that is part of my
priestly responsibilities, but I
don’t have to take off my hat to do
so. I can still be Bryce even when
Father Lungren comes to call.”
And a rancher he remains.
On the side, Father Lungren operates
a small ranching co-op that
produces quality meat for his local
community. Every year he receives
a dozen “heiferettes” that have
been rejected by other ranchers
because they are infertile or cannot
sustain the herd. He receives
these 1,000-pound rejected cows
and takes them to a parishioner’s
pasture, where they graze for four
months and “fatten up” to 1,400
pounds.
In his spare time, Father Lungren
will personally slaughter,
hand butcher, package and freeze
the meat of these cows in a refrigerated
trailer that he procured. He
then distributes the meat through
his local co-op, which now has 150
members.
“There is so much satisfaction
in cutting a steak or grinding
hamburger in order to feed someone
I know. I gladly work late into
the night, not for money, but for
love,” he said.
He added that this satisfaction
is reminiscent of his grandmother
at the family ranch who would say,
“It’s no fun to cook for one.” He
learned that joy comes in feeding
PHOTOS RON WU
others. “What wisdom our elders
have to teach the younger generations!”
he said.
WE NEED MORE COWBOYS
One of the most iconic pieces
of original art ever produced by
Catholic Extension Society in its
118-year history is the image of a
cowboy praying his rosary in an
open prairie, much like the topography
of eastern Wyoming.
For decades, people have written
to Catholic Extension Society
requesting copies of this image
which first debuted in Extension
magazine in 1961.
It seems that the Catholic cowboy
way speaks to the hearts of
American Catholics. In other
words, Father Lungren is onto
something. “The Church needs
cowboys even more than the
world does,” he said. “She needs
more courageous and confident
men and women who seek the
truth, who don’t give up and who
are proud to be Catholic. Above all
though, she needs more authenticity
and less hypocrisy.”
In Father Lungren’s cowboy
parlance, being authentic is to be
“raw and real.” He said the cowboy
spirit has roots in “hardworking”
Jesus Christ. “He was all
about getting the job done, and he
knew how to have fun.”
Perhaps there is a little inner
cowboy in all of us waiting to be
let out. Father Lungren likens the
ups and downs of the spiritual life
to a bucking bronco. “It’ll dump
you if you’re not careful,” he said.
But if you put your mind to it
and keep going, “it’s a dance that
never gets old.”