(I had more than an inkling a long time before I migrated across the Tiber.)
Yes, it’s possible. To me, he comes across as, “Maybe I’ll become a Catholic priest, because it’s like, my job being a priest, and I can’t be an actuary ... good thing my wife brings in the bux!”
Of course, his thought process may be totally different from the interpretation I’m drawing - that goes without saying!
Maybe it’s because of the way this article is written, but I have real doubts about this individual’s vocation. The way he’s already complaining about trying to serve two masters... That’s one thing I like about Catholic Priests. They’re priests. That’s what they do, what they are. They aren’t family men, business men who happen to suit up in a roman collar instead of a tie with their suit before they pick up their briefcases and trundle off to work.
Another way they used to say you could tell the difference between an Episcopal minister and a Catholic Priest was how expensive their cloths looked.
I should say... my Pastor (and his twin brother) are converts. They were Anglican priests from Australia for 25 years and now they’ve been Roman Catholic for 20. They look so cute when they’re standing in the Sanctuary together. They’re turning 70 this week. Really quite a fascinating story, those two. I think they’ve both done considerable time in the chaplain corps. If I have the story right, Father Bruce was the pastor, or vicar, if that’s the right term, when the parish was started in the 1980s, left, and now has been reappointed.
Father that we had before was married, I believe. He seems like a fine man... in his sixties now, probably pushing seventy.
Did it seem odd to you when you came in that people actually called the priests Father? I mean, in the Episcopal church their title was Father, and sometimes during a service or other ecclesial event I would call them Father Henry, or Father Sam. But when I was rehearsing for my confirmation, the lady in charge started saying “Father will cross here, and when he comes up to you say such and such, it made me feel funny. At first it creeped me out, but now I like it. It feels like a healthy submission to my elder.