A celebration of priesthood

Msgr. Garrity marks 50 years of ministry, says vocation is a bit like Dollywood

By Bill Brewer

Monsignor Patrick Garrity publicly recognized a number of people vital to his vocation during a Mass celebrating the golden jubilee of his ordination to the priesthood. They included fellow priests, seminarians, some bishops, parishioners past and present—and Dolly Parton.

The former have been instrumental in supporting him over 50 years, helping him in the creation and manifestation of his enduring ministry. The latter—Dollywood specifically—has helped him in his recreation and in putting his vocation into perspective.

Monsignor Garrity began the jubilee Mass on May 8 at St. Albert the Great Church in Knoxville by thanking those in attendance, especially Bishop Mark Beckman and the more than 20 priests and deacons who participated.

The longtime Diocese of Knoxville priest, who retired from active ministry in 2018 and currently serves as a sacramental associate at St. Albert the Great, considered the jubilee Mass to be “a celebration of priesthood.”

“I want to take a moment before we begin to reflect upon the priests in your life who were important to you growing up and who helped form you. Pray tonight and give thanks to God for those priests. And I want to offer this Mass for our seminarians of the Diocese of Knoxville. Pray for these seminarians that they will see the will of God at all times and that they will follow God wherever He is calling them,” the monsignor said.

Monsignor Garrity served as the Mass celebrant and homilist. Bishop Beckman was in choir, and priests of the diocese concelebrated. Deacon Mike Eiffe, who serves at St. Albert, was the deacon of the Word, and transitional Deacon Daniel Cooper served as deacon of the Eucharist.

Deacon Cooper was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Beckman on June 6 at the Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in an ordination Mass concelebrated by Monsignor Garrity.

The first reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah was given by Sister Elizabeth Wanyoike, ESM, of St. John Neumann Parish in Farragut, who served with Monsignor Garrity when he was pastor there.

The second reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians was given by John Stevens, a friend of Monsignor Garrity who gave the same reading 50 years ago at then-Father Garrity’s very first Mass, his Mass of Thanksgiving, at St. Edward Church in the Diocese of Nashville.

The monsignor said he worked so hard preparing for his first Mass in 1976 that he decided to use the same readings again on May 8.

“I was lucky to find the same reader,” he remarked kiddingly.

In his homily, Monsignor Garrity recalled fondly all the key steps along the way to his ordination on May 14, 1976, at the age of 27. He was ordained by Diocese of Nashville Bishop James D. Niedergeses at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville. And in 2011 he was elevated to monsignor, a papal honor bestowed on him by Pope Benedict XVI.

He emphasized that he wanted the Mass to be a celebration of the gift of priesthood, not only the gift of individual priests but also the gift of what priests are to the Church.

He spoke of those holy men who planted the seeds of his vocation when he was a child and young man growing up in Wichita, Kan.

He said he was blessed to attend All Saints grade school and Kapaun Mt. Carmel, which is a Jesuit high school.

“I think about the Jesuits and how much they helped to form me as a young man. Then I was blessed to go on to St. Meinrad College, where I encountered the Benedictine monks,” he said.

He described the dean of his hall at St. Meinrad, Father Daniel Buechlein, as a man with whom young freshman Patrick Garrity established a code: “I’ll see you in five minutes in my office,” Monsignor Garrity said, recalling what the dean often sternly instructed him to do. “I was not happy when he would do that.”

That recollection drew knowing laughs from the bishop and his fellow priests.

Father Buechlein would become Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein, OSB, who would serve as president and rector of St. Meinrad School of Theology. He was appointed the third bishop of the Diocese of Memphis in 1987, and then he became archbishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in 1992.

Monsignor Garrity said the two of them became close friends and Father Buechlein preached at Monsignor Garrity’s Mass of Thanksgiving.

The monsignor spoke very fondly of the priests who assisted him.

“All of those men helped to form me and helped me grow, and they helped me see what God was calling me to be,” he said.

In reflecting upon becoming a priest, Monsignor Garrity acknowledged being naïve in understanding what a priest did. He thought the vocation was summed up in celebrating Mass, hearing confessions, baptizing people, and visiting the sick and infirm in the hospital.

“That was pretty much it from what I knew. Boy, I didn’t know much,” he confided.

But along the way, he realized Dollywood, of which he has been a season-pass holder, offered an insightful comparison to the priesthood.

“Dollywood is a very special place. And what makes it special and successful is No. 1, there is a new ride or attraction every year. As soon as they close down, they are building something new—a new roller coaster, which I’m fond of, and sometimes a whole new area of the park. There’s something new and different every year,” he noted.

“And four or five times a year, everything changes. Decorations change. The lighting changes. And all the shows in the theaters change,” he added. “That’s what I found out about the priesthood.”

The monsignor recounted how, two weeks before he was ordained, Bishop Niedergeses discussed with him his first assignment and asked what he thought of teaching. “I said, ‘Bishop, I try not to think about it,’” which drew more laughs.

He further recalled that earlier during his discernment, he considered becoming a Jesuit priest, but he ruled that out because one of their charisms is teaching. “They all taught high school at some time. And I never wanted to teach high school.”

But once his priesthood began, routine and rote were not in his vocabulary.

“Every year was a new experience. You had to ask yourself every year, ‘Is this what God was calling me to?’” he said, adding that he reluctantly agreed to teach at a Catholic school.

He went on to spend many years in Catholic education. He also confided that he never believed as a young priest that he would need to learn how to prepare budgets, know how to read them, or know how to read blueprints.

But his duties as a Catholic school principal and parish priest made budget knowledge and construction know-how a necessity.

The schools where he served included Father Ryan in Nashville, Notre Dame in Chattanooga, Knoxville Catholic High School, and St. John Neumann in Farragut.

“You never knew what was going to happen next,” he said. “There was always something new and different—just like at Dollywood.”

Continuing the Dollywood theme, Monsignor Garrity said the priesthood was akin to the popular Sevier County amusement park because some days were crowded, some days it rained, and there were days when the roller coaster wasn’t working.

“But by and large they were all fun days—new and different and exciting—just like my priesthood for the last 50 years,” he said.

“I never in my wildest dreams, when I was 18 years old and got on a plane to fly to Indiana to become a priest, thought this is what I wanted to do and was given the opportunity to do. It was a challenge, but it helped me grow to become a priest and do things I never thought I would do,” he continued.

Looking back, the monsignor said he can’t believe he is the same person as the young man who departed Kansas on an airplane.

He has been awed by the intimacy of the priesthood, to be in the presence of Christ, to offer Mass and consecrate the host “so the people can receive Jesus.”

“What an awesome feeling it is to be able to hear somebody’s confession and to give a person absolution. What an awesome feeling it is to be in the room with someone who is dying,” he said. “To anoint someone. What a grace. What an opportunity. What a blessing.”

He pointed out that there are many opportunities as a priest to find joy, excitement, and peace that can offset any struggles, and he noted there are always struggles.

In comments he shared after Mass, Monsignor Garrity mentioned one of those opportunities.

In attendance at his jubilee celebration was a young family with a baby who was born about eight weeks too early. The parents called the monsignor on New Year’s Day to baptize the child because they weren’t sure if the child would survive. He baptized the baby on Jan. 1 at Knoxville’s Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital with sterile holy water and an eyedropper.

He asked the congregation to pray for priests, whether they are their parish priests or those in another parish, and to pray for seminarians.

He also encouraged them to pray for the priesthood.

“It has its days, like at Dollywood when it rains; it has its days when the roller coaster breaks down; it has its days when it is too crowded and a little uncomfortable,” Monsignor Garrity said. “But, by and large, I love my season pass to Dollywood. It has great joy. I have a lot of fun there. I am one of them out there. Just like the priesthood.”

Bishop Beckman congratulated Monsignor Garrity for 50 years in service to the Church in East Tennessee.

“So, Monsignor, you asked us to think about the priests who have impacted our lives. The folks out here are here because you have impacted their lives. For a moment, I want you to think about the countless men, women, and children over these last 50 years who are not physically present here. Some of them have already gone to the Lord. But they have been impacted by the gift of your priesthood,” Bishop Beckman said to conclude the Mass. “Thank you, Monsignor Pat, for your generous and good service to God’s people and the Church. And may God bless you. This is just the beginning of a new adventure—more days in Dollywood ahead!”

Monsignor Garrity then received a standing ovation from those in attendance.

In reflecting on the Mass after its conclusion, the monsignor said, “I loved it. The people here at St. Albert have just been great.”

He credited Father Christopher Floersh, the St. Albert the Great pastor, as well as parish manager Maria Armento and the church choir for organizing the celebration. A dinner for Monsignor Garrity, Bishop Beckman, and the priests in attendance was held at the parish before the Mass.

The monsignor explained that he first attended seminary not to become a priest but to see if he wanted to be one.

“I knew that if I didn’t go, I would wonder the rest of my life if I should have been a priest, no matter how happy I was, married with kids and everything else,” he said. “And you have to ask that question every year in the seminary: Is this where I’m supposed to be?”

Although God never dropped “a little note from heaven” instructing him to become a priest, Monsignor Garrity said God’s call to the priesthood grew stronger to the point he knew that is what he should do.

He said his mother told him before she died that he made the right choice.

He shared that despite his protest to Bishop Niedergeses at the suggestion of becoming a schoolteacher following his ordination, he spent 21 of his 50 years in the priesthood in Catholic education.

He recounted his various assignments, including three years at Father Ryan High School, six years at Notre Dame High School, five years as pastor of St. Bridget Parish in Dayton (his first pastorate), and 12 years as principal at Knoxville Catholic High School. Monsignor Garrity led KCHS from 1985 to 1997 when it was at its former campus on Magnolia Avenue, and the school renamed a wing the Monsignor Garrity Administrative Suite in his honor in 2017.

Other assignments have included St. Patrick Parish in Morristown, Holy Trinity in Jefferson City, St. John Neumann Parish and School in Farragut, and St. Albert the Great.

Monsignor Garrity is St. Patrick’s longest-serving pastor at 12-plus years and led the parish during construction of a new sanctuary dedicated in 2002.

He has also served as dean of the Five Rivers Deanery and as diocesan vicar for priests. In December 2002, he was elected to the National Federation of Priests’ Councils to represent the Kentucky and Tennessee province.