Anneleisa and I met, fell in love and began our married life in Champaign Il in the early 1990’s. It was there that we experienced deep Christian fellowship and support and were surrounded by a cloud of witnesses that challenged us to seek Christian virtue and live the Gospel radically above all else.   This intentional fellowship was extremely formative and was instrumental in shaping the early years of our marriage. The Newman Center we attended at the University of Illinois in Champaign/Urbana was alive in Christ and in His Spirit. Thousands of people attended mass every Sunday and there were dozens of ministries and outreaches that were meant to strengthen faith on campus and reach out to those in need of Grace. Through retreats, prayer groups, and small group fellowships we experienced spiritual brotherhood and sisterhood and formed eternal bonds - bonds we knew did not come from this world but from the world above. Grace from heaven permeated our relationships and a Charismatic fire enlivened our ministries. We knew, without a doubt, that we never wanted this to end. This gift was a treasure, never to be squandered or lost. We were captured by Christ, meant for fellowship but with the purpose of growing in holiness so that our lives would light up the world.

We pursued community radically in those early years of marriage and even though we moved to Steubenville OH where I studied theology, we kept in close contact with our friends and eventually moved backed to Il. The Spirit had inspired us to continue to seek out, pray and discern what community meant and picking up where we left of we began to ask each other what authentic community should look like in our lives. In fact, a group of us began to meet regularly to discern this calling and after months of prayer and discernment many of our friends felt called to join the Brothers and Sisters of Charity (BSC) and to begin postulancy. Anneleisa and I however were uprooted and transplanted in Grand Rapids MI where we felt confused as to what God was doing and why. Void of weekly contact with our group of friends in Il we tried our best to build community here. And although God did bless us with a wonderful home parish, supportive friends who became like family, this call to Community never left our hearts. We watched our friends back in IL become Permanently Professed members of BSC and we met frequently enough to talk to them a lot about what made BSC different and how it impacted their lives. We were intrigued. In fact, my wife was ready to begin her BSC journey long before I became open. She waited patiently for the Lord to move in my life and speak to my heart. And one day he did.

After 9 years of discussions with our friends Colleen and Andrew Billing, one Sunday we had a conversation similar to the ones that we had had many many times over the years. It went something like this. They would say “Kurt you just have to come visit the monastery. Our kids love it there. They would rather go there than anywhere else in the world, even Disney.” Under my breadth I would say something snarky like “but your kids haven’t been to disney - mine have”. And seriously, I love our Disney trips and in my mind if I am taking a week vacation I am using it to take my kids back to Florida not go to some monastery. But son this particular Sunday, something happened. As Andrew invited me again, for the like the 100th time, it was no longer Andrew speaking to my heart, but Christ. And Christ said “Come and See”. A window opened in my soul. literally window, and through the window, I saw the monastery and the grounds of the monastery, and Christ was on the other side and He said. “Kurt, Come and See”.

On Oct 10 1988, at the age of 19, I gave my life to Jesus and surrendered my will over to Him as Lord of my Life. I know his voice, and he knows me. This voice calling me now to “come See” was that same voice, that same God, that same Spirit who called me then and promised me new life in Him. I was stopped in my tracks and immediately said OK. Without any further rebuttal. And that year, 2006, we made our first pilgrimage to the Monastery. Let’s just say Satan wasn’t happy and did everything he could to try and prevent us from going. But overcoming tremendous obstacles we made it. The Billings were right. Our kids loved being at the monastery more than Disney. They loved it then and love it today. In fact, we have gone back as a family almost every year since. I mean don’t get me wrong, we still love Disney. But the monastery is a place of spiritual richness and depth that we long for in our lives . It is a place where our souls plunge into the ocean of love, into the mercy of God and where we get a foretaste of what heaven will be like. Christ was already weaving this calling into the very fabric of our lives and as we progressed from postulancy, to temporary profession to permanent profess a tapestry of blessings was blanketing our hearts, protecting us and sustaining us through trials, through hardships, through blessing and celebrations. I can’t imagine what life would be like without this incredible blessing. Christian community, when set aflame by the Christian foundations of radical love, self sacrifice, interdependence, and apostolic ministry is the pearl of great price. It is truly a treasure never to be traded or lost, but rather cherished and nourished painstakingly by our daily walk with Jesus.