Sliney Central

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

Michael Sliney

Treat women with respect

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “Always treat ladies with the greatest respect.  Do this wherever you meet them.  Show them that you regard them not as equals, but as superiors.  Bestow upon them those little attentions at home and abroad which go so far toward making them happy.  Offer to carry their bundles along the street, to give them a seat in the crowded car, to speak to the conductor for them, and the like; they will appreciate your kindness, and vote you a splendid young man.  Do these things in an unselfish spirit, without looking for a reward.  Show the same attentions to young and old, married and single,…But aside from all this, reverence a woman for what she is in herself.”  (From Bill Bennett’s, “The Book of Man”, p. 411)

Praying from the heart

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “And going on a little further he fell on his face and prayed. ‘My Father’, he said, ‘if it is possible, let this cup pass me by.  Nevertheless, let it be as you, not I, would have it.”

(Mt 26: 39)

    Before ordination, we have the tradition of doing “month long” Spiritual Exercises.   During these long days of prayer, I experienced a batch of dryness and it was really difficult to pray.  I told Christ, “I am really struggling in my prayer right now.  In a year, I will be ordained a priest and I am starting to feel a little anxious…I really need you to be close right now.”  Christ told me in a very simple and direct way, “Br. Michael, I know this is hard for you.  But I need your help…I want to help many souls through your priesthood.  You do not have to continue, but I need your help…” It is hard to explain this moment in a simple email, but it was real and it was intense.  I felt the full force of Christ’s love and this gave me all the strength and motivation I needed to push forward.  When it gets tough, talk to Christ from the heart and listen to him!!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

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Check engine!

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “In the life of the body a man is sometimes sick, and unless he takes medicine, he will die. Even so in the spiritual life a man is sick on account of sin. For that reason he needs medicine so that he may be restored to health; and this grace is bestowed in the Sacrament of Penance.”  –St. Thomas Aquinas

     Personally, my internal “check engine” light goes off every week.  This tells me to go into the shop and have my soul inspected by an expert mechanic (the Holy Spirit), acknowledge what has prevented my internal engine from running according to God’s plan (pride, impatience, etc…) and humbly ask the mechanic to put me back up to speed through absolution.  Don’t ignore these check engine or other warning lights for too long, or your venial sins will soon become mortal, (as I recently learned by not changing my brakes in time).   Confession is so helpful…take advantage of this amazing gift!!

God bless,

Fr. Michael Sliney, LC

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Thy Kingdom Come!

Dear Friends in Christ,

     “Know yourself, accept yourself, better yourself.”  (St. Augustine)

    During my 10 years of caddying, I had my eyes set on becoming “Caddy of the Year” at Forest Lake Country Club.  One of my older brothers, Jim, had reached this goal and for the first 9 years, I never quite “passed muster.”   This award was based on  your total number of loops (rounds) and double carries, and member recommendations based on your capacity to read putts, clubbing, hustle in finding balls and replacing divots, capacity to carry on conversations, etc…

    It was a good thing for me to attend 9 award ceremonies and not win.  Too many parents are concerned about their kids “self-esteem” and “confidence levels”…but learning how to lose and to come back stronger is a huge life lesson.   I realized that more work was needed and the details mattered….riding my bike early around the course to gather the fresh pin placements, to go the extra round when your buddies would head off to the pool, studying the member’s game so as to know the right club to recommend, getting to know the greens inside and out, etc… The 10th awards ceremony was so much sweeter as a result.

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