I was a surgical intern in 1977 when one of my Oblate first profession classmates from the Battle Creek Novitiate came to visit my wife and me in Philadelphia. Now a young priest, Father Richard Yost, OSFS, was going to spend the day with me in inner-city Philadelphia. I had been assigned to an amazing Spanish surgeon whose sons were educated by Oblates, so Jose was excited to have Father Richard along. The climate in those days was different so the only credential Father Richard needed to scrub into surgery with us was his Roman collar and our assurance he would keep his hands out of harm’s way.
During a break between cases, Father Richard asked how we were able to keep the complicated surgeries orderly and organized. We asked if he realized we talked over the surgery while we scrubbed our hands but were quiet the last minute or so. The end of the scrub was for prayer, for the Direction of Intention, and time before surgery to place ourselves in the Presence of the Lord as de Sales calls it.
For lunch we had Philly Cheesesteaks at Pat’s, standing at tables outside with two firemen, dirty and still in their fire gear. It was just the kind of company Saint Francis would appreciate. Father Richard talked about how amazed he had been with what we did that morning and the three of us talked about how we were equally amazed at the courage firemen show on a daily basis. They told us they didn’t feel comfortable entering a burning building without a prayer asking for God’s guidance. They were not the least bit reticent about telling us their need to be in the Presence of the Lord before fighting a fire.
After lunch Father Richard (in his Roman collar) and I went to make rounds at a couple of hospitals and Jose went to see office patients, the plan being to meet for dinner. At one of the city hospitals, we saw a patient who had a terrible malignancy on the bottom of her foot. Although she was Catholic (Agape was her name) she was also a Voodoo priestess, or so we were told by the people who had literally dropped her off when she lost consciousness. Her tumors had metastasized and surgery prolonged her life but the quality had diminished over the last weeks. She was in and out of consciousness but was able to communicate to Father Richard that she wanted absolution. We left the room and went to the nurses’ station to write the progress note. Not thirty seconds later, Agape’s EKG went flat line and she passed away. No Code. Father Richard looked at me and said, “She needed permission to die.” Once Father Richard gave her absolution and put her comfortably in the Presence of the Lord, her soul was at peace. This was the same comfort the firemen and the surgeons felt that day before doing their jobs.
At dinner, the three of us unashamedly talked about how God really is everywhere, and like de Sales says, all we have to do is put ourselves in His presence by asking for such and how it doesn’t matter what our station in life is. He will help us be who we are and be that well. Priest, fireman or surgeon, people depend on us to be in God’s Presence and share ourselves with them if we are spiritually fit. That day there were five people who were happy to share that.
Rod Tomczak, MD, EdD
Retired, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery
The Ohio State University
