The appointment

Eight years ago this morning I awoke earlier than usual to keep a routine appointment with my doctor in St. Louis. I was at the time a senior in college working not very feverishly on one of my two senior seminar papers (the first on King Arthur, the second on Fr. Augustine Tolton).

Right about 6:00 a.m. my telephone rang, which was a rather unusual occurrence for that time of day. Being a resident assistant, I presumed one of the football players had locked himself out of his room, which was not an unusual occurrence. Being an RA in a dorm of football players was certainly an experience, and a good one at that. It taught me much, some of which I'm glad I learned and some of which I'd rather not know. As with all things, there were days I dreaded it, but overall I greatly enjoyed it. There's nothing like philosophical and theological debates in the hallway until 3:00 a.m. with half a dozen non or irreligious people all trying to out argue you to keep you going. It really was a lot of fun! Given the opportunity I'd be an RA again in a heartbeat.

I digress. After I answered the telephone not very happily, the voice on the other end was Bro. Thom, the Franciscan friar I worked for and with in Campus Ministry (it wasn't unusual for him to call at such hours, since he'd already been up for an hour or two and thought nothing of it).

The conversation went something like this:

BT (as we called him): You have a new Bishop.

Me: What?

BT: You have a new Bishop.

Me: Really? How do you know this?

BT: A friend from Rome just called; it was just announced.

Me: Who is it?

BT: George Lucas.

Me: (Honestly thinking he was making a prank call (which he hadn't done before [at least not to me], but would be in keeping for him:) What? You're making this up.

BT: No, really. He's the rector of Kenrick-Glennon in St. Louis.

Me: (Still a bit skeptical:) Are you sure?

BT: Yes. Turn on the television; it should be on the news soon.

Sure enough, he was correct. We did indeed have a new Bishop and his name was in fact George Lucas. Eight years ago this morning Pope John Paul II appointed then Monsignor George J. Lucas the eighth Bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.

Bishop Lucas' coat of arms, with a description, are now on the Diocese web site.