Friday "Faculty" Feature - Our New Associate Pastor

We are changing the format today, as we are featuring our new Associate Pastor, Father Michael Owen. While he is an important part of our Parish and School, I don't think he technically falls under the "faculty" label.

Father Michael Owen joined the SS Viator & Wenceslaus Parish July 1st of this past summer. As our Associate Pastor, “Father Mike” works with Father Benjamin handling the business between our two church sites and ministering to our school. We reached out to Father Michael to collect some background information, here’s what we learned.

Father Michael grew up in the Chicagoland area. Note your calendar, his birthday is coming up on March 25th!  When talking about his family, he shared, “I have 5 brothers and 4 sisters… 3 nephews and 2 nieces… so far!” He went to school at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.  He was premed in college; the plan was to become a doctor specializing in infectious diseases. He could have been the first line of defense against the zombie apocalypse! Afterward, he attended the seminary at the University of St. Mary of the Lake and was ordained a priest on May 23, 2009. For nearly 17 years, Father Michael has ministered to all types of Catholics. And while he has made it as far away from Chicago as Rome, joining our Parish is a return to his Chicagoland home.

Part of Father Michael’s ministry involves teaching, both formally and when moving people deeper in their faith. In his words, “The best part of teaching is when the switch goes on in the student’s head, and you can see in their eyes and on their face… Oh, that makes sense now! Something has been learned!” Father Michael usually sees St. Viator students at Mass, but he has also visited classrooms, and we definitely saw him stop in at Winterfest. He's getting to know the student population. Reflecting on this growing relationship, he shared, “I’ve been so impressed that the students are able to understand, respond, and participate in the school Mass with very little distractions.”

To take the interview in a more familiar direction, we asked Father Michael for some of his favorites. When asked about his favorite color, he said, “ I don’t put too much emphasis on color… but I have been told that blue really makes my eyes pop!” Priests are known for their black attire with white collar, so that tracks. But those vestments!

Turning the conversation to food, Father Michael’s favorite is pizza, “Chicago-style, double dough, pepperoni and extra cheese.” And to start the day, “Just water for me. Occasionally I will have a protein shake if I have to skip breakfast.”

For entertainment, Father Michael likes to read and play video games. His “hidden talent” - imitations. He’s good at ‘em. Elaborating, he shared, “of course, most of my best impressions are a bit esoteric; professors from college, priests from the seminary. But with a little practice, I can copy just about anyone!”

Father Michael is still getting to know our community, but when asked what he hopes parents know, he replied, “I hope they know that I pray for them every day… and that I am here to help not just their kids, but everyone in the family on their spiritual journeys.”

On a personal note, Father Michael shared that his favorite book is The Story of a Soul, the autobiography of St. Terese of Lisieux. He is also a big fan of early American history. Reflecting on people who have influenced him, he shared, “ I have been blessed with a lot of good role models in my life. If I had to choose one, I would go with Francis Cardinal George, the former archbishop of Chicago. He taught me how to be a good priest, and he was the one who ordained me!” We all need those positive influences in our lives.

Father Michael has already stepped into additional roles outside of celebrating Mass. It is obvious that he takes some of the workload off of Father Benjamin's shoulders. And like Father Benjamin, Father Michael can also say the Mass in English and Spanish. We're excited to see how he connects with the Parish and our St. Viator School in the future. In closing, he sent this invitation to everyone, noting, “ A lot of the work I do is on Saturdays and Sundays! Please come join us at Mass!"

Thank you, Father Michael, for answering our questions and allowing us to learn more about you! When you see Father around (he’s hard to miss) be sure to stop and introduce yourself. Welcome, Father Michael.

We are Peace Builders; We are Eagles; We are St. Viator!