God and the Curveball

God and the Curveball. . , Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth., Due to his "excellent deportment and proficiency," Michael McGivney skipped several grades and finished his school at the age of 13 instead of 16. Inspired by his parish priest and teacher, Father Thomas Hendricken, he wanted to become a priest. However, when he shared this idea, his father "would not lend himself to encouraging in his son any such preference and, when in due time solicited, absolutely refused to grant paternal sanction." , Founder of the Order" Waterbury Democrat, June8, 1901, p. 1., For the next several years, Michael worked in a brass spoon factory. His father could observe him every day. Realizing that the idea of entering the seminary was firmly grounded in his son's heart, Patrick offered his financial and spiritual support., In September 1868, Michael was finally ready to leave his home. His family could hear the last shriek of the train that was leaving for Canada, where the eldest son was to begin to prepare for the priesthood., When Michael was preparing to take final exams in 1873, he received the crushing news of his father's untimely death at age 48. His family's shock and sorrow were compounded by the loss of its sole breadwinner. At age 20, and as the oldest son, Michael was expected to come back home to support the family, which could no longer afford seminary tuition. Once the future of his family was secured, he accepted a scholarship from the bishop of Hartford and went on to complete his priestly formation at the Saint Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, the nation's first Catholic seminary., On Dec. 22, 1877, Michael was ordained a priest, and for his first Mass, instead of a magnificent church in Baltimore, he chose his boyhood church in Waterbury. On Christmas Day, he came back home to stand before the altar in the presence of his friends, family and God.