Brother Pat

The life of a priest is hidden behind the holy robes he wears. Beneath the gentle prayers and the resonant echoes of the congregation lies a busy man, just like any other. I've always thought that priests have it easy, all you need is good charisma and do a mass every so often, but it turns out they have it hard and it doesn't improve with age.

I interviewed my local priest, Brother Pat, and as happy and funny and he is, his job seemed very lonely. It's a little heartbreaking.

But he seems alright. He's never shown any signs of depression or loneliness or melancholy. Saying he's used to it would be wrong I think. More like he's grown within this mindset of dedication to God, growing and maturing with a different path of life to everyone else; a lone wolf perhaps? The lone wise elder? He's a sort of badass if you think about it like that!

In the end, I don't pity him nor do I envy him. He's on a totally different level. Priests in general I reckon. To be true to the Word, true to the Priesthood, that is indeed a thorny, rocky road, but somehow badass at the same time.