What do Ronald Zipperer and Archbishop Jerome Listecki have in common? Well, both men are leaders working toward positive change today.
Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity-sponsored Silver Lake College masters candidate Ronald Zipperer explains in an article that appeared in the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter how clean water and electricity is changing lives in Sokolo, a village in Uganda, Africa. He credits his college professors for influencing him to not only make a difference in the workplace, but also impact postive growth in communities and, “in some cases, distant places in the world.”
Archbishop Jerome Listecki, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, is clear that doing God’s will is the root of his responsibility as leader in a life of self-less service. In this portion of his January 4, 2010 Installation Eucharist homily, Archbishop Listecki encourages mindfulness of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s dedication and relationship with God:
We are fortunate to celebrate today the feast day of Elizabeth Ann Seton the first American-born saint. There was nothing easy about her life. The sickness and death of her spouse, her conversion and rejection by her family, a single mother educating her children and raising them in the faith. The world would easily have justified her cursing her lot in life. Yet this woman, armed with her faith, begins the Catholic School system, establishes a religious order and shapes the Catholic Church in the United States for the next century. What generates this kind of dedicated commitment? It is a confidence in God. In Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton’s own words:
“What was the first rule of our dear Savior’s life? You know it was to do his Father’s will. Well, then, the first purpose of our daily work is to do the will of God; secondly, to do it in the manner he wills. And thirdly, to do it because it is his will. We know certainly that our God calls us to a holy life. We know that he gives us every grace, every abundant grace; and though we are so weak of ourselves, this grace is able to carry us through every obstacle and difficulty.” (From the writings of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton) �
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