Among the most well-known clergy in the Diocese of Little Rock is Father Jerome Kodell, OSB. 

And on May 22, the Benedictine priest celebrated his 60-year Jubilee.

Father Kodell grew up in Clarksville and attended Subiaco Academy, where the monks made a lasting impression. 

“As time went on, I was very impressed by the life here, what they were doing, and I liked the idea of working together and praying together,” he told Arkansas Catholic. “I felt a cause for God, and to be able to be with other people on a common project — that was very attractive to me. So I came back here later on and started a vocation here.”

But of all the gifts his religious career has allowed him, Father Kodell said one of the greatest was being allowed to study Scripture in Rome. He was ordained a priest in 1965 and earned his licentiate in sacred Scripture at the Biblical Institute in Rome in 1969. 

“That really shaped my whole life, as far as the focus and what I could do,” he said. 

One of the highlights of Father Kodell’s religious career began after his return from Rome, when several Catholics approached him about starting a Scripture study program in the years after Vatican II. 

Little Rock Scripture Study was established in the fall of 1974, with 40 attendees expected on the first night — but more than 150 showed up. Co-founded by Father Kodell and Fred and Tammy Woell of Christ the King Church in Little Rock, the program quickly gained popularity. Catholics copied session recordings onto cassette tapes, and the Woells printed study guides from their garage to meet demand. 

LRSS soon spread globally, translated into Spanish, Mandarin and more, reaching more than 50 countries. The program was acquired by Liturgical Press from the Diocese of Little Rock in 2019. More than 2.8 million study materials have been distributed worldwide.

Father Kodell was serving in the abbey’s mission in Belize from 1987 to 1989, when he received the news that the abbot at Subiaco had resigned. He returned to the abbey to help select the next abbot, thinking he would be returning to Belize shortly after. To his surprise, he was elected abbot on Nov. 8, 1989. 

“I went from being in the quiet atmosphere of Belize to suddenly being thrust into responsibility for (the abbey and its operations),” Father Kodell said with a laugh. 

He continued overseeing operations at the abbey and boys’ academy until he resigned as abbot March 24, 2015. In the 10 years since, Father Kodell has spent time as the abbey archivist and museum director, in the carpentry shop and on the monastic council. He has also authored several books. 

While things have changed a lot over the past 60 years, Father Kodell said that the most important things have stayed the same. 

“The main thing we all need to know is that our main vocation is our relationship with God,” he said. “You’ve got to be consistent in your prayer. It doesn’t have to be fancy. But every day, you’ve got to make room for God. I remember, what helped me a whole lot, was way back when I was confirmed, Bishop (Albert) Fletcher gave this homily. He said, ‘Boys and girls, what I want you to do is just say this little prayer every day. It’s just one sentence, and this is the prayer: Dear God, help me to know what you want me to be.’ … 

“You have to keep your prayer life alive and your private relationship with God alive. … Every day, in some way, you make communion with God. You turn to God, and he turns toward you.”

“St. Benedict, in chapter 3 of his Rule, speaks about the qualifications of an abbot,” Subiaco Abbot Elijah Owens, OSB, told Arkansas Catholic. “Benedict expects his abbot to ‘demonstrate everything that is good and holy by his deeds more than by his words.’ Father Jerome lived this not only in his monastic service as our sixth abbot for 25 years, but also in his life as a priest for 60 years.” 

The second oldest diocesan priest marked his 65th anniversary as a priest May 26 and celebrated his 90th birthday Dec. 31, 2024. He remains retired in Albuquerque, N.M. He offered this reflection on his life and priesthood.

“From this day all generations will call me blessed: The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.” 

These words, originally spoken by our Blessed Mother, seem strangely to also apply to me. 

All my life, I have been “blessed” by God. More than 90 years ago, I was born in a Catholic hospital, received emergency baptism by the hospital chaplain, a retired bishop, with my pastor, Msgr. Carroll, serving as my sponsor. 

My parents were both devout Catholics. My dad was a picture of stability and dependability. He was a doctor and had all the nuns and priests in Hot Springs as his patients. My mother was the most loving person I’ve ever known and became my best friend as I grew older. I had one sister, Connie Newman, who, upon her death, left me with a loving niece and two wonderful nephews, all of whom have generously shared their families with me. Another blessing. 

The Sisters of Mercy have always been a big part of my life. I was born in their hospital, went to their grade school and celebrated with them immediately following my first Mass. I remember as a little boy walking through the halls of their hospital with my dad as he made his calls. One of those days, a nun inquired as to whether I wanted to be a priest. I responded negatively and told her I wanted to be a doctor like my father. She replied that it would be good also, as one took care of the soul and the other of the body. Perhaps that planted a seed. Another blessing. 

The seed was assuredly not nourished during my high school years, when the priesthood was certainly not on my mind and other things less salvific took its place. When I graduated from high school, my father said he would send me to any university I wanted as long as it was Catholic. I chose St. Louis University in St. Louis, Mo., as it was the closest to Hot Springs. Another blessing. 

God saw that I needed more guidance and gave me the best roommate I could have wanted and certainly the one I needed. Jim was a strong Catholic from a middle-class family in Colorado. He got up every morning at 5:30 to go to Mass and receive the Eucharist. What else was I to do at that time of day? — certainly not study — and so I tagged along. It was there at Mass, before the Eucharist, that I began to feel a pull toward the priesthood. 

Each day, I would stop before a life-sized crucifix in the vestibule and ask Jesus to let me know what he wanted me to do with my life. I had come to realize that being a doctor was not my calling, and thought perhaps the priesthood was. I wrote to my dad, telling him of my decision. He then contacted the pastor, my godfather, and told him. Msgr. Carroll, from Ireland originally, commented, “Well, why wouldn’t he be; he had me for an example!” I have never been able to tell when the Irish are joking. 

I also wrote to my girlfriend at the time telling her of my change in direction. I don’t remember her reply, but it was amiable. Blessing. 

I can’t say I enjoyed those seven and 1/2 years in the seminary. They were instructive and formative. There were only a few priests who were gifted as teachers. The rest were mediocre or less. But those long years did give God a chance to work on me, to form the lump of clay. The times before the Eucharist in the chapel were the best. Again, there was that life-sized crucifix; again, there was the Eucharist. 

The years of formation passed, and I found myself lying on the sanctuary floor of St. Andrew’s Cathedral with my head resting on the cold tile (long replaced now with carpeting), waiting to be ordained a priest of God. Unworthy, surely. Blessed, absolutely! 

My first assignment was to live at the Cathedral and teach at Catholic High School. I loved teaching. I loved being with boys, sponges ready to absorb some truths, starting out promising lives, so filled with life and fun and dreams. If I had been able to see into the future, I would have seen that some would become my parishioners, that I would see their children and grandchildren come into the Church and that some would become my friends in their maturity. I would officiate at some of their marriages, would lay my hands on their heads as some became priests, would work with some on the diocesan level and would bury some. Another blessing. 

After teaching at Catholic High School for 15 years, I was assigned as pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Church in Pocahontas. As this was my first parish, I had a lot to learn. The great people in Pocahontas were generous and affirming in teaching me to be a good pastor. No priest could ask for a better parish or a more welcoming community. The six years that I served there were both formative and again a great blessing. 

In 1981, Bishop McDonald asked me to become the pastor of Christ the King Church in Little Rock. It was a challenging assignment to come from an agrarian parish to one in the state’s capital. The first year at CTK was difficult as there was conflict within the parish as to whether they should build a school, and the style and quality of the liturgical music. The Eucharist again provided the answer and brought peace to the community. Through the generosity of the parishioners, we built a beautiful Eucharistic chapel, and miraculously, Jesus solved the problems of the parish. 

In the 20 years I served at Christ the King Church, my love for the people who made up the body of Christ there grew steadily. My love for them was so strong that it was difficult for me to feed them the Eucharist without tearing up as I saw their goodness. The school became a reality, opening its doors with 200 students and growing to 700 as those years rolled by. Amazingly, there were those “boys” I had taught at Catholic High School, now strangely having grown older, serving as lectors, extraordinary ministers, parish council members, working with me to build the body of Christ within the parish. 

That gave me a great sense of fulfillment as I realized I had helped plant the seed of faith in their lives and was now blessed to witness its growth. What a great blessing! 

In 2001, my close friend, the legend of Catholic High, Msgr. George Tribou, died at UAMS hospital as Archbishop Sartain stood on one side of his bed and I on the other. He had done so much for so many. As I left that hospital, I had the feeling that my life had changed. I had lost all my immediate family five years before, and I was exhausted. I felt empty with nothing left to give. Within a few weeks, I wrote a letter to then-Bishop Sartain, asking to retire as pastor from the parish that I had grown to love so deeply. 

To this day, some 24 years later, I do not know if it was the right decision on my part, but it was made in prayer before the Eucharist. 

The exercise of my priesthood changed dramatically upon retirement as pastor of Christ the King Church. I had not stopped being a priest, simply being a pastor. Archbishop Sartain continued to call upon me when there was a need for a priest throughout the diocese. I shared a chaplaincy with Father Rossi for the nuns at Good Shepherd in Hot Springs, did some temporary fill-in work and became the administrator for the parish I grew up in, Our Lady of the Springs in Hot Springs. When Bishop Sartain was named the ordinary of Joliet, Ill., in 2006, the consultors for the Diocese of Little Rock elected me to serve as administrator for the diocese. 

Working at the diocese was a great blessing to me due to the quality of the staff. Three of the men I worked with there were some of the “boys” I taught at Catholic High School. They were fine kids when I taught them, but they were outstanding Catholic men when I worked with them. Blessing following upon blessing. 

When Bishop Anthony B. Taylor was ordained as bishop of Little Rock in June 2008, my duties at the diocesan office came to an end. I had served as a priest under four bishops: Fletcher, McDonald, Sartain and Taylor. They were all kind and supportive. Both Bishop McDonald and Bishop Sartain gave the honor of working for them as their vicar general. 

Three years later, at the age of 77 and with a few health problems, I moved to Albuquerque, N.M., and helped at a local parish with a fantastic pastor intermittently for the next seven years until my lack of mobility made that impractical. 

I am blessed to have a nice home at the foot of the Sandia Mountains, made possible by the inheritance my mother left me. I live alone, but I have the additional blessing of a very loving niece who lives within a half mile. I am blessed to have a chapel. In that chapel, there is a beautiful antique French crucifix, and there is a tabernacle that Bishop McDonald gave me, and in that tabernacle is the Eucharist. Yes, I am blessed and always have been.

CORRECTION: The original publication of this article incorrectly stated the year Msgr. Hebert was named pastor of Christ the King Church. This online version has been corrected.

Father Rodolphe Balthazar will celebrate his 25th anniversary as a priest in June with his community at St. Vincent de Paul Church in Rogers.

The Diocese of Little Rock will commemorate Father Balthazar’s silver jubilee, along with other jubilarians, at a special Mass June 25. Father Balthazar’s priestly ordination was June 29, 2000, and for those who know him, this is a time to acknowledge a vocation rooted in faith and shaped by resilience.

“I first had the desire to be a priest during my First Communion,” Father Balthazar said. “After I received the sacrament of First Communion, I told my mom that I didn’t want to sin anymore, and my mom told me if I wanted other kids to feel that way, maybe I should be a priest.”

Born and raised in Haiti, Father Balthazar’s calling grew through a childhood steeped in faith — daily Mass attendance, nightly rosaries and regular spiritual quizzes from his mother, who asked her children to answer 10 questions about the gospel after every Sunday Mass. 

“Whatever happens,” she would tell him, “if you have your guardian angel and the Blessed Mother on your side, it will work out.”

Father Balthazar served as a priest in Haiti for 19 years, but he offered his services to the Diocese of Little Rock in 2019. It wasn’t his first connection to Arkansas — pastor Msgr. David LeSieur had met him during a 2010 mission trip to Haiti following the devastating earthquake. Later, when Bishop Anthony B. Taylor sent word that Father Balthazar was available to serve in the diocese, Msgr. LeSieur was happy to welcome him to Rogers.

“Father Balthazar has been in our parish since October of 2019, and he’s been invaluable to all of us,” Msgr. LeSieur said. “He’s multilingual, speaking English, French, Spanish and the dialect of Haiti.”

In addition, Father Balthazar decided to pursue a master’s degree in counseling from Missouri Southern State University, graduating in 2024. 

“His compassion in ministry, coupled with the knowledge of his degree, allows him to bring a great pastoral sensitivity to everything he does,” Msgr. LeSieur added.

On April 30, 2024, Father Balthazar was incardinated into the Diocese of Little Rock.

“He’s a priest of this diocese now — this is his home,” Msgr. LeSieur said.

That home includes his brother, Hamlet, who currently lives in Rogers. He has a sister in Paris, France, and another brother and his mother who remain in Haiti. Father Balthazar worries about the worsening security situation in Haiti, which has made it too dangerous to visit. 

Parishioners and staff at St. Vincent de Paul describe Father Balthazar as a calming, joyful presence with a heart for the hurting.

“He brings the hope and peace of Jesus Christ to the sick, the dying, the poor, the lonely, and those battling addiction or spiritual oppression,” said Deacon Ronnie Hoyt, a former parish manager who first met Father Balthazar through the parish’s mission work in Haiti. “He tirelessly offers his time, compassion and joyful spirit to anyone in need.”

Hoyt also credits Father Balthazar with being a unifying force in the diverse parish community. 

“He has a gift for lifting others up with his words and actions — encouraging people to grow in faith and serve with love.”

Although Father Balthazar’s daily ministry includes presiding over weekend and daily Masses and other sacraments, he also offers pastoral counseling. Despite a demanding schedule, he remains grounded in prayer and focused on others.

A simple celebration for Father Baltazar will take place in early summer and will be a moment to express gratitude for the priest.

“I just try to say ‘yes’ every day,” Father Balthazar said.

Father Ravi Gudipalli needed four tries to pass his driver’s license test when he was first assigned to Arkansas from his native India, but just one time to hear God calling him to the priesthood. 

His faith journey began as a middle school student at St. John’s Minor Seminary in the Diocese of Nellore, India, and hit a significant milestone last month at St. Mary of the Springs in Hot Springs.  

Father Ravi, as he is known, celebrated the 25th anniversary of his ordination during a Mass, reception and dinner April 25. More than 250 people attended, including 17 priests and parishioners from other churches Father Gudipalli had served in Arkansas.

Father Gudipalli, 52, laughs heartily when recalling what it took to secure a driver’s license when he first arrived in Arkansas in 2009.   

“I went for driving tests, and I failed three times,” he said. “I was thinking, ‘I’m not fit to be here. Let me go back to India.’ Then, at the end, after Mass, I went a fourth time and thank God I passed. This is what God had planned for me. No turning back.”

Father Gudipalli was born in a remote village in southern India, the youngest of five children. He was also a bit of a troublemaker in his youth.

“I was not listening to my parents,” he said. “I was doing what I wanted, so they worried about me. In seventh grade, two brothers came to my house, and they said, ‘Put him in the seminary, he’ll be OK.’ So, I joined the minor seminary in eighth grade — for education.”

It was a six-hour bus ride from his home village. But he was not alone as his older brother, Dava, was enrolled in the seminary and in time became a priest, who now serves in Munich, Germany.

“The first three months, I struggled,” Father Gudipalli said. “It was discipline, getting up at 5:30 a.m. I slowly got used to the formation. When I was in 10th grade, my parents said, ‘Come back home. One (from a family) is enough to become a priest.’ And I said, ‘No, I want to continue.’ Then, after 12th grade, I said, ‘I want to become a priest.’”

Father Gudipall earned bachelor’s degrees in theology and philosophy. He was ordained April 24, 2000, and returned there for a reunion in January.  

“All my classmates came together so we celebrated a Silver Jubilee, 25 years, thanking the Lord for all the blessings,” he said. “It was a good celebration with my family, my friends, with my village people, and all the different priests that came.”

Father Gudipalli spent the first nine years of his ministry working in parishes in India.

“In 2009, my bishop said, ‘Would you like to go to America?’ I said, ‘Yes, I want to go,’ even though I knew English is very difficult, the weather is different, the culture is different. But still, I wanted to see the place.”

Father Gudipalli’s first assignment in Arkansas was as an associate pastor at St. Joseph in Pine Bluff. He has also served as associate pastor at St. Raphael in Springdale and pastor of Our Lady of the Assumption in Booneville and St. Jude Thaddeus in Waldron.   

Father Guidpalli returned home in 2016 to continue his ministry but was called back to Arkansas in 2019 and briefly served as pastor of St. John the Baptist in Hot Springs before moving to St. Mary of the Springs. 

The 154-year-old church sits in the heart of a tourist-filled downtown district.  

“It’s a great honor for me to be part of this historical church,” he said. “When I came here, it was the 150-year jubilee, and I was so blessed to be part of the celebration. More and more people are coming, appreciating the beauty of the church, the architecture. People from downtown love to be part of the celebration. And they come from so many different parts of America. It is a treasure for our Catholic faith.”

Father Babu Battula of Stuttgart opened the anniversary Mass, saying, “With all the confidence in the world, I can say Father Ravi is a faithful priest and that’s what we celebrate today — his love for his people, his love for his God.”

When asked by Arkansas Catholic how he reached the decision to become a priest, Msgr. Jack Harris smiled wryly before replying. 

“Well, I still haven’t made up my mind,” he said. “There wasn’t any point at which it happened. I took a look at it, decided I’d come in and look around and never found a reason to leave.”

There are many things that Msgr. Harris is involved in, but you might not know it — the humble pastor doesn’t talk much about his extensive career in prison ministry as a minister on death row, the fact that he’s a trained crisis counselor or that he’s been a finalist for Catholic Extension’s Lumen Christi Award. Many people don’t even know that he’s a monsignor — he often insists that people refer to him as Father Jack. 

Msgr. Harris graduated from Catholic High School in 1965 before attending the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville from 1965 to 1967. 

Shortly after, Msgr. Harris chose the seminary over completing a degree and was ordained a priest June 8, 1974. As he celebrates the 50th anniversary of his ordination, Msgr. Harris often wonders how he’s gotten to this place. 

“I talk to the Lord about that sometimes,” he said. “Did you call me here, or did I just come in on my own, and you’ve tolerated it?”

For the first 22 years as a priest, Msgr. Harris did juvenile delinquency work and delinquency prevention in Pulaski, Sebastian and Crawford counties. 

“That’s really what I believe I was called into the priesthood to do,” Msgr. Harris said. “… You look for the vocation within the vocation. Not everyone called into the priesthood is meant to be a pastor … you look at what you’re fitted for.”

Msgr. Harris said he often struggled with being a pastor for the first few years after his ordination in Jonesboro and Pine Bluff.

“I remember, in morning prayer every day, to pray for all those people that I so-called ‘served’ early in the pastorate because I didn’t do a very good job at all,” he said. “I didn’t have any concept of what that ought to be like. … that was unfortunate. It took a long time for me to figure out, in order for me to be a pastor, that I have to surround myself with the people who know what ought to be done in a parish.”

Msgr. Harris tries not to be too controlling when he’s in a parish because he often approaches problems as a crisis responder and prison chaplain — he is used to diffusing problems and soothing worries. 

As a crisis counselor, he has helped people and groups navigate their trauma and emotions after school shootings and the aftermath of 9/11. 

“Those things probably shaped how I approach people more than anything I ever learned in the seminary,” Msgr. Harris said. 

But he believes working in prison ministry has helped him as a pastor — from comforting and consoling the men who have missed their chances to change their ways, to steering kids away from treacherous paths. 

“The way I would describe my work is, I have two parishes, four high schools and one prison,” Msgr. Harris said. “In the evening, I’m in a gym somewhere. I stay busy at our ball field here. In the summer, with all the baseball and softball teams and the little ones down here playing everywhere, that’s where I’m going to be. … It’s part of what I do, and I like to do it.

That’s probably what’s been impacted by my prison ministry more than anything, because these are the ones who still have it in front of them. The men I worked with down there (in the prisons), their opportunity came and went, and they lost it somehow. … All of us are shaped by our history and what we do and in ways we don’t know.”

On June 8, all four of Msgr. Harris’ parishes — St. Joseph Church in Center Ridge and St. Mary Church in Saint Vincent, where he is the pastor, and Sacred Heart Church in Morrilton and St. Elizabeth Church in Oppelo, where he is associate pastor — held a reception for Msgr. Harris. 

Linda Boedeker, a parishioner at Sacred Heart Church in Morrilton and Msgr. Harris’ former secretary and bookkeeper of 12 years, attended the reception. 

“He’s one of the most generous, kindest, knowledgeable people as far as the Bible goes,” Boedeker said. “He’s just so humble. He’s one of the most humble people I’ve ever met. And his prison ministry is so very important too. We periodically took up donations for him and for the prisons.”

While Msgr. Harris might not think he’s the best pastor, Boedeker disagrees. 

“He’s the best man I’ve heard on the altar with his homily,” she said. “He has a spiritual meaning behind everything he says on that altar … There’s a point to what he says. He’d say, ‘Well, that’s enough,’ and we’d all say, ‘No, that’s not enough, keep talking.’ … He’s one of the most generous men I’ve ever met in my life, and it was truly an honor to serve under him as his secretary and bookkeeper.”

Larry Taylor, receptionist at the St. John Center for the Diocese of Little Rock, graduated from Catholic High School with Msgr. Harris. The two have stayed in touch ever since. 

“I’ve known Monsignor for a long time, since our days at Catholic High, and so enjoy his company,” Taylor said. “I recently hired a man to do some work for me, and he did a great job. When it came time to pay him, I told him that I was at the St. John’s Center and could be home in a matter of minutes. He exclaimed, ‘Do you know Father Jack? Is he there by any chance? He was so kind and helpful to me when I was on death row.’ 

“He went on to say that Father Jack had been instrumental in his exoneration and return to being a productive member of society. My hunch is that this is just one of many, many wonderful stories about Father Jack.”

Today, Msgr. Harris’ work helps everyone — from parishioner to prisoner — to see God in all things. 

“The people I worked with in crisis response and the people I worked with prison — for them, the event, the crisis, the decision has already happened,” he said. “And now we’re looking for, where is God in all of this? Not beforehand. I don’t think he did any of that. He didn’t make that school shooting happen. He didn’t make any of those men that I work with commit their horrible crimes. He probably tried to stop it. Now we’ve got to try to find what he’s trying to do now.” 

Father Norbert Rappold is a piece of driftwood in the chaos of life.

“When I’m in my chaotic moments, I basically remind myself I’m driftwood. Falling over the waterfalls, the chaotic life of a piece of driftwood, in the end, is what makes it beautiful and unique and one of a kind,” said the pastor of St. Peter the Fisherman Church in Mountain Home and liaison to the bishop for the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. “I’d like to think I’ll wash up on the shore of the ocean of Easter, and God will come pick me up and put me in my special place.” 

On June 12, Father Norbert Rappold, 62, celebrated his 25th jubilee as a diocesan priest. More than 250 people attended a potluck dinner at the parish’s Family Life Building.

Father Rappold, the eighth of 14 children, was born and raised in Conway. He attended St. Joseph School until the fifth grade, when the family moved to Houston, Ark. He then attended St. Boniface Church in Bigelow (New Dixie). His inquisitive nature earned him the nickname “Know It” in high school.  

“I was always one who was asking a million and one questions,” he said “… You can’t contemplate God if you don’t have a mind willing to kind of go out of the ordinary and step into the possibilities.” 

After graduating from Arkansas Tech University in Russellville in 1984, he worked as a farm manager, in construction and later owned a lawn care business. 

“I almost got married in those years. I was engaged. She met somebody else. I felt rejected. It kind of fell apart, but it was a blessing. I know what heartbreak feels like,” he said. “It became an integral part of my priesthood. When they come to me with those broken hearts, there’s nothing you can do to fix it; just sit with them in the midst of it because time is going to heal a broken heart.” 

Despite a good-paying career, something was missing from Father Rappold’s life. 

St. Boniface’s pastor, Father Edward Marley, CSSp, helped plant the seed for his vocation. 

“I was enamored with him. He was much older but still running the parish, and he was just normal,” he said. “He didn’t try to be holier than thou and some big theological genius. He was just normal and would talk to you wherever you were at.” 

After discerning his call for several years, he was accepted to St. Joseph Seminary College in Saint Benedict, La., and later attended Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans. 

Father Rappold was ordained June 12, 1999, at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in Little Rock, one of the last priests ordained by the late Bishop Andrew J. McDonald. 

He served as associate pastor of Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church in Little Rock for a year. In 2000, he became pastor of St. Agnes Church in Mena. In his 13 years there, Father Rappold experienced two pivotal moments of life-changing chaos: an EF3 tornado as he celebrated Holy Thursday Mass in 2009 and going to rehab. 

“You’re struggling to help parishioners and people beyond the parish itself. You can see the community and town as the body of Christ,” Father Rappold said, adding the tornado’s devastation opened his eyes to serving beyond the parish walls. 

After struggling with alcoholism, Father Rappold spent three months at an out-of-state in-patient rehab center. He has been sober since 2006. 

“I was addressing my own brokenness and woundedness instead of letting it control me,” he said. “I began to let the Lord help me with it, taking control of it through his grace.” 

In 2013, he became pastor of St. Peter’s in Mountain Home, revitalizing the parish with community outreach, more adult faith formation classes and a sense of unity and stability. 

Father Rappold often gives blessings to people after Mass, hugs his parishioners and shares vegetables from his garden. Living up to his seminary nickname “No-Shoes Norbert,” it’s common to see him barefoot, wearing a Hawaiian shirt and shorts, greeting parishioners after Mass when he isn’t the celebrant. 

“I try to be genuine. I don’t pretend to be something I’m not. I think that’s something that Daddy always did. You may not have liked him, but you respected him. … I’m not going to get on your pedestal,” he said. 

Reflecting on 25 years of priesthood, he’s most grateful that “God didn’t ever give up on me.” 

“I’ve discovered the secret of chaos and calmness — God is in the midst of it. If you trust him, he’ll take care of you. Even if you don’t trust him, he still loves you. He’s holding you up,” Father Rappold said.

Friends, family and parishioners of Father Peter Quang Le knew the obstacles he faced on his 27-year journey to the priesthood.

They celebrated with the associate pastor at Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Barling on his 25th anniversary as a priest June 26.

“From the time I was 5, my mother took me to church every day and prayed that I would become a priest,” Father Le said.

He attended a minor seminary in the Diocese of Quy Thon from sixth to 12th grade. After the fall of Saigon in 1975, he continued studying philosophy and theology in college. When he was 23 years old, in 1982, his parents, two sisters and four brothers moved to the United States, settling in Iowa. Still, Father Le stayed, expecting to complete his seminary education in his home country.

“In August 1982, the Vietnamese government closed my seminary,” the 62-year-old said. “I went to live with my grandmother and took a job helping the bishop in the Quy Thon cathedral, hoping my seminary would reopen. By 1990, the government allowed six seminaries to open, but our seminary was still closed.”

In 1992, he moved to Iowa, but one year later, he relocated to Arkansas with a brother and sister. He met Bishop Andrew J. McDonald to see if he could complete his seminary education through the Diocese of Little Rock.

“Bishop McDonald sent me to the University of Arkansas  Little Rock for a year to learn English,” Father Le said, “and then the Quy Thon diocese gave me a scholarship to go to Rome, where I learned Italian and studied theology and canon law.”

On June 29, 1997, Father Le was ordained in Rome by Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan.

“Blessed Cardinal Francis is now a candidate for canonization,” he said. “He had been imprisoned by the Communists from 1975-88 and went to the Holy See after he was released.”

Upon his return to Little Rock, he spent one year serving at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church until he was reassigned to Christ the King Church in Fort Smith. After 10 years, the Vietnamese ministry moved to Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Barling, which has become its permanent home.

While serving in the state since 1997, in August 2013, he was officially named a priest of the Diocese of Little Rock.

“The Vietnamese community helps children communicate and worship with their grandparents who might not speak English,” Father Le said. “It preserves our culture and our religious traditions.”

Some of those traditions include devotions to Our Lady of La Vang and the Vietnamese martyrs. Father Le and parishioners travel 150 miles to Carthage, Mo., every August, joining 50,000 other Vietnamese Catholics to celebrate Marian Days.

Several years ago, he accompanied the Eucharistic Youth group on a mission trip to the Mekong Delta in Vietnam, where they built houses, fixed a bridge and ministered to poor rural families.

“We still have new families coming from Vietnam,” Father Le said. “Usually, they are sponsored by their relatives, who help them get jobs at the chicken plant. We also provide help when we are asked.”

Technology has helped Father Le expand his ministry to Vietnamese-speaking Catholics worldwide. Through Divine Mercy Radio, Father Le helps them pray and learn together as one community, scattered after the Communist takeover.

He launched Divine Mercy Radio through his website at radioltxc.org. It can be accessed through Facebook and Twitter and has a presence on several podcast sites and YouTube. He broadcasts daily from 2-10:30 p.m., using a combination of live and recorded material, assisted by about 50 friends who provide additional content and music.

“We begin each day with the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 2 p.m.,” Father Le said, “and we also broadcast homilies, lessons on the Bible, Church history and the catechism. In the evening, we pray the rosary and the Chaplet of the Holy Spirit. We have testimonies, witness and questions and answers.”

As early as primary school, Polycarp Ssebbowa knew he wanted to become a priest. He mentioned that inkling to his pastor, who became his mentor. He fulfilled his wish on Aug. 15, 1997, when he was ordained a priest in his native Uganda.

Next month, he will celebrate the 25th anniversary.

“I was in second grade, still a child,” he said. “My vocation came early. I went to my pastor who was very kind and good humored. I needed to be like him. That was the beginning. I went to him at Eastertime and said, ‘I want to be a priest.’ He said, ‘Well, Polycarp, be a good altar server, study hard at school and get good marks and be disciplined.’ I went back to him every year at Easter for a review.”

Raised by a Catholic father and a mother who converted to the faith, Father Ssebbowa said many members of his mother’s extended family wanted him to become Muslim.

“That’s something I opposed so much,” he said. “With help, I was able to make a stand. The opposition had a great, positive impact on me because the more they opposed me, the stronger I grew in my faith.”

Father Ssebbowa attended seminary high school away from home, but civil war in Uganda made it difficult to travel home.  

“I became a stranger in my own family,” he said.  

Initially, he wanted to be a missionary with the Congregation of the Apostles of Jesus, but his bishop denied his request, preferring him to stay and explore leadership options at home. For the first 18 years of his ministry, he served a variety of roles in the Diocese of Kasana-Luweero. 

At an event in Milwaukee in 2012, he met Msgr. Scott Friend, then-vicar general for the Diocese of Little Rock.

“We had a meal together and that started my journey to the Diocese of Little Rock,” he said.

“It felt like the answering to my unfulfilled dream.”

Father Ssebbowa finally received the opportunity to come to the United States in December 2015 and has served parishes in Arkansas for the past seven years, including as associate pastor of St. James Church in Searcy, St. Albert Church in Heber Springs and St. Richard Church in Bald Knob; administrator of St. Mary Church in Batesville and St. Cecilia Church in Newport; and pastor of St. James Church in Searcy and St. Richard Church in Bald Knob. Beginning July 1, he became the associate pastor at St. Stephen Church in Bentonville.

Deacon Matthew Glover, JCL, chancellor for canonical affairs, said the diocese is considered a “mission diocese” because of its small Catholic population and depends on foreign-born priests to serve the faithful. 

“Our missionary priests from foreign countries help remind us not only that we’re all ultimately immigrants from other lands but also that we’re all ultimately migrating to our heavenly homeland,” Glover said. “Our foreign-born priests leave behind the comfort and familiarity of their home countries to serve our faith needs.  And it’s our faith that unites us all, despite any differences in language, accent, race or birthplace.”

Father Ssebbowa said the hardest parts of leaving Africa were being away from his family, learning and adjusting to a new culture and the ongoing struggle to communicate with his strong accent.

“I had to miss my family for many years and when my father had to leave the world without seeing him face to face. I have to live with it for the rest of my life,” he said. 

On Feb. 6, he was one of several foreign-born priests whose visa expired due because of a backlog with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. He was legally unable to work until March 29, when he gained permission to live and work permanently in the United States.

“I was grateful to God, to the people who assisted me, including the bishop and chancery. I really feel at home.”

Asked if he feels like he’s fulfilling God’s call for his life, he humbly answered, “I hope so.”

“I feel like I have done what I was supposed to do, but I have more to give, God willing. I don’t have control over my life, but I am willing and ready.”

A 12-year-old Boy Scout was on a Catholic camping retreat on the grounds of the Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows in Starkenburg, Mo.

He signed up for a 2-to-3-a.m. shift during the all-night Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament in the chapel but wound up staying until after 5.

“Picture yourself there by yourself, in the middle of the night,” he recalled. “You’re tired, but what a tremendous experience.”

That long sleepless night was a spiritual awakening.

“God kind of planted in my head from that time forward that maybe he’s calling me to be a priest,” said Father Eric Groner, SVD.

The Jefferson City, Mo., native is celebrating his 25th jubilee as a priest of the Society of the Divine Word. Father Groner came to Arkansas last August to serve as pastor of St. Peter Church and St. Raphael Church in Pine Bluff and St. Justin Church in Star City.

“I am so grateful for all the people I’ve gotten to know and all the opportunities I’ve been given,” he said. “I am grateful to be alive and well and in God’s service.”

Father Groner, the second of five children, has 13 priests in his extended family, and many cousins and great-aunts became religious sisters.

“I looked up to them, but I saw them as human,” he said. 

Historically in the U.S., the Society of the Divine Word was charged with ministering to poor African Americans, mostly in isolated rural locales. 

“Most of our parishes are African American or multicultural,” he noted in an April 15 interview. “My current parish is about 80 to 90 percent Hispanic. That’s kind of our mission field for today.”

Father Groner professed first vows on Aug. 18, 1990, and perpetual vows on Sept. 16, 1995. On March 23, 1996, in Techny, Ill., Auxiliary Bishop Curtis Guillory of Galveston-Houston, also a member of the Society of the Divine Word, ordained him to the priesthood. 

Father Groner said he believes the variety of his priestly assignments has helped him appreciate the Church’s universal nature. He was first sent to El Banco, a town in northeastern Colombia, while the country was engulfed in a 50-year civil war.

“You had five major drug families fighting for territory, and you had socialists and communists waging war against each other,” he said. “It was very dangerous to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Called back to the United States, he ministered in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and New Jersey. He is chaplain for religious activities of the National Catholic Committee on Scouting and a chaplain of the Apostleship of the Sea, serving on 21 ocean cruises all over the world. 

“On a boat, you’re the chaplain and not just the Catholic chaplain,” Father Groner said, explaining a call to a stateroom can mean someone has died or is seriously ill and they’re sending for a helicopter. “You’re out at sea, but your job is just like it would be for a parishioner. You take care of their pastoral needs. That can mean anointing the person and comforting the family.”

During one cruise in 2017, the ship stayed out because of winds from Hurricane Ophelia. With churning waves rocking the boat, the Sunday crowd of 100 people grew to 500 for the daily service.

“They say there’s no atheist in a foxhole. Well, I guess there aren’t any atheists on a cruise ship in a hurricane either,” he added with a light-hearted chuckle.

His transition to Arkansas in August was a bit of a culture shock, as the Dallas-Fort Worth area has 8.2 million people and Arkansas about 3 million. Not to mention he arrived during a pandemic.

“Most of our parishioners caught COVID last January and thought it was the flu,” he said.

Father Groner is looking forward to resuming a full slate of ministries, including a soup kitchen near St. Peter Church. Confident that the Lord will continue to provide in his own time and way, Father Groner is content to do his best and not sweat the rest.

“You have to enjoy the time you get,” he said. “Don’t take life too seriously.”

This article was condensed from an article written for The Catholic Missourian. Used by permission. Information was also taken from a 2020 article in North Texas Catholic.

Around 5 years old, James Ibeh would gently rest his hands on anyone to pray for them. 

“My favorite verse in the Bible is when Jeremiah said, ‘before I formed your mother's womb, I called you.’ I used that because even as a child, my cousins were calling me ‘Father,’” Father Ibeh said. “… I used to (tell) people, ‘I came to the seminary to get licensed.’” 

Father Ibeh, CSSp, associate pastor in five parishes in eastern Arkansas, will celebrate his 25th jubilee Aug. 10. His innate connection to the divine from the start was formed like a diamond, enduring traumas that would leave most feeling hopeless but instead sparked something beautiful for him. 

The youngest of eight children growing up in eastern Nigeria, Father Ibeh, 55, grew up being “loved and cherished,” but against the backdrop of turmoil. When he was just 1 year old, the Nigerian civil war erupted in 1967, lasting three years. Memories of running from danger with his parents, camouflaging roofs to avoid air raids and learning not to cry when hiding shaped his devotion to peace. 

“I look at it from the point of view that I have a scar on my body, but that scar is a sign of healing,” Father Ibeh said. “… Why I say that is because I know that some people didn't make it. That I'm able to be here and talk about it is a sign of God's grace. And also, another advantage it has given me is to be able to walk through life strong, determined to endure and to go through difficulties. And knowing in all these situations, I am not alone.” 

At 17, Father Ibeh developed an umbilical hernia and an incisional hernia. Before his second risky surgery, Father Ibeh told the doctors, “Let us pray first.” After his surgery, he spoke with a healthy, wealthy man about to have the same surgery. That man died. 

“I went out and looked into the air, to the sky, tears all over my eyes, and I said I think (that) God has intervened in my life to save me,” Father Ibeh said. “And that’s when the idea of the priesthood became very, very insistent.” 

One evening following the surgery, “I don’t know what happened, I can’t explain it,” Father Ibeh began singing and dancing in praise of God for more than six hours. 

While staying with his sister, he met Father Damien Nwanyia, a Spiritan priest. 

“The first time I met him, I told my sister, ‘that’s what I want to be,’” he said. 

Father Nwanyia continued to mentor him, dying a month before Father Ibeh’s Aug. 10, 1996 ordination. 

Father Ibeh received a degree in accounting and spent 21 years in finance, serving locally and worldwide for the Holy Ghost Fathers.  

“You are just like a passage, just like a dispensary. What you have, you have because God has given to you for a purpose. You are just like a custodian of God’s gift to others. So you don't keep it,” Father Ibeh said of the lessons he learned. “It passes from you to others.” 

In 2017, Father Ibeh came to the United States for the first time  and was assigned as associate pastor of St. Andrew Church in Marianna, St. Francis of Assisi Church in Forrest City, St. John the Baptist Church in Brinkley, St. Mary Church in Helena and St. Mary of the Lake Church in Horseshoe Lake. He finds joy in working with his parishioners and celebrating Mass, no matter how small the crowd. 

“No, no, no, don't cancel Mass. If I see one person. I will come,” he said when one of the mission parishes suggested canceling Masses for low attendance in the summer. “… Jesus left 99 for the sake of one. So in the ministry, numbers do not matter. If it's one soul, it's as important as the entire world. So that's what gives the joy.” 

Throughout his 25 years of priestly life, Father Ibeh said he rejoices in his unworthiness, that God chose him. 

“There is a joy in the ministry that you wake up, you find yourself in your car, you move. Before you know it, a day has passed, a week has passed, a month has passed, a year has passed, and you still have the zeal; that's good,” Father Ibeh said.