By: Drew Roberts
When Fr. Brad Jantz goes to the airport, people tend to talk to him. Though this could be annoying to the average person, he isn’t bothered by it. In fact, he welcomes this type of interaction. His white clerical collar and black suit are an open invitation to anyone wanting to engage in religious discussion.
Jantz is the pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church. He was ordained in 2017 and has dedicated over 10 years of his life to the study of the faith. Serving as leader of his parish, he hopes to create a community of not only holiness, but acceptance and understanding.
Beginnings
Jantz wasn’t always a Catholic. Baptized as a Methodist but raised as a Southern Baptist, Jantz didn’t find Catholicism until much later on. Still, he credits his religious upbringing in giving him a moral framework at a young age.
“Being a part of the Southern Baptist Church through most of my childhood kept me on the straight and narrow through some years where I could’ve been tempted to not be on the straight and narrow, so I’m very grateful for that,” he said.
When he entered college, Jantz felt his allegiance to the Southern Baptist Church wane. His main problem was the conflict between faith and reason. He found it difficult to reconcile his belief in God with scientific fact, causing him to “wander a bit religiously.”
That wandering led him to join the United States Air Force where he served for 10 years. Once those 10 years were up, he found himself at a transitional period and was unsure of what to do. In response to this, he prayed.
“I felt God speaking to me through that time about a draw toward the priesthood,” he said. “I was looking at the various decisions I could make and that was the one that made the most sense.”
The Catholic Church tries to make sure all of its priests are adequately prepared. Before a potential priest can enter seminary, he must first spend a year discerning whether or not it’s truly his calling. Seminary involves 6-8 years of education and prayer. The first few years are geared toward earning a master’s degree in philosophy. The latter years are focused on Theology and specific priestly duties.
Jantz’s time in seminary took him to Italy, the epicenter of the Catholic Church. He found the experience to be quite unique, saying, “It’s a bit of a combination of a monastery, a university, and a frat house —the latter understood in the best sense. You’re kind of around a lot of people, all at a similar point in their life. You’re living together with both the fun and the difficulties that come with that.”
Intensive study of scripture and around three hours spent in the chapel every day defined Jantz’s experience in seminary. These are both integral aspects of the priesthood, but what is often overlooked is the importance of leadership. A church is a small business, after all.
“You need to have some experiences of leadership,” he said. “How do you manage an organization? How do you take care of a budget besides balancing your checkbook? How do you celebrate with people? How do you keep appropriate boundaries with staff? All of these things fall under what I would call human development.”
Looking back on his time in seminary, Jantz found the lengthy training process to not only be helpful, but necessary.
“It’s one thing to say ‘I’m interested in being a priest and the things that are done there are attractive to me. I think God might be calling.’ It’s another thing to literally lay down in front of the altar in the Cathedral, offering your entire life in service to God and His people. You have to work your way to that. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Priestly Responsibilities
The life of a priest is the life of a servant; Jantz is no exception. He says that “every day is different as a priest,” and with the responsibilities of an entire parish weighing on his shoulders, he must be present.
He likes to divide his responsibilities into four categories. The first of his responsibilities is the sanctification of the people of God. This includes spiritual matters like celebrating Mass, spending time in prayer, preparing parents for the baptism of their children, or getting a call about a parishioner’s death and then planning the funeral.
His second responsibility is teaching. This can be seen most clearly in the Sunday homily where Jantz gives a reflection on the Gospel at Mass. Teaching, however, doesn’t stop there. RCIA, a program established for adults looking to enter the church, and faith formation, a program where teenagers prepare for Confirmation, both fall under his jurisdiction.
His third responsibility is leading his church. As pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle, Jantz is essentially the owner of a small business, so managing a budget, hiring staff, and anticipating future needs are all a part of his day to day life.
The fourth responsibility, the cooperation with the wider church, is different from the others. Though it wouldn’t fall under the longstanding duties of a priest, it has become necessary in today’s age. With a doctorate in scripture, Jantz is often a resource for people seeking answers to religious questions. These questions could range from Catholics seeking clarification on certain teachings to members of other faiths hoping to cooperate. He most recently got a call from a representative of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints about uniting on social concerns.
With so many people counting on him, Jantz finds it best to find a balance between order and inevitable chaos, saying, “The priesthood is kind of an unpredictable thing day to day. I’ve got a general schedule, but part of it is just learning when to stay flexible.”
Challenges of the Priesthood
Even with Jantz’s ability to stay flexible, new challenges always arise. In one day Jantz could have a baptism, a wedding, a funeral, or a Mass. Each of these events requires a different mindset going into it, forcing Jantz to be “radically available.” Still, he finds that availability, even in the direst of circumstances.
“A call comes in the middle of the night that a parishioner is dying,” he said. “It’s one of those moments where you say, ‘I really don’t want to get out of bed. I’ve got a long day tomorrow, but of all the times in somebody’s life where I need to be available to them, this is the time where I have to be there.’”
Visiting a dying parishioner is something that comes with the vows every Catholic priest must take. These vows are chastity, poverty, and obedience. Jantz didn’t hesitate to name obedience as the hardest vow to follow.
“I know chastity gets a lot of attention, but obedience is the much harder promise that we make,” he said. “Being willing to serve God’s people in that kind of a radical way is a much more difficult thing than just keeping your zipper up.”
This vow of obedience can be especially difficult in America. Radical obedience is completely countercultural to the American values of freedom and individuality. Jantz described it as, “Looking at the basic assumptions about life that are built into the American psychology, and [spitting in its face].”
In the face of the challenges and responsibilities of the priesthood, Jantz is able to find solace in the center of the Catholic faith: the Eucharist. Essentially, the Catholic faith is built upon the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Catholics believe that the bread and wine offered at Mass transforms into the body and blood of Christ, allowing its members to partake in the sacrifice of Jesus.
“As St. Paul said, ‘If Christ had not died and if Christ has not been raised, you are still in your sins.’ If I did not believe that with all of my heart, I’d go find another job,” he said. “There’d be no point to what I do everyday because everything is always pointing back to that reality. The Eucharist is the real presence of that reality among us.”
The Parish
When he was announced as the pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle, Jantz had some big shoes to fill. The previous pastor, Fr. Ray Dunmeyer, served the parish for 13 years. When Dunmeyer retired, he actively recruited Jantz to take his place. This made for a smooth transition.
“It’s very clear that a lot of people in this community have given a lot of themselves to [this parish] over a very long period of time,” Jantz said. “A lot of times when you walk into a place you pick up on the hurts and the wounds that a community has experienced, and you’re worried about how those can be healed. I arrived and thought ‘I don’t really need to fix anything.’ This parish has gotten the fundamentals right in terms of growing. My challenge is [providing] for that growth. It’s a privilege to be here.”
One notable aspect of St. Thomas is its location. When it comes to Alabama, as well as the South in general, Catholics are a religious minority. Historically, Protestants and Catholics have butt heads over many teachings. Jantz feels that it doesn’t have to be this way, and that understanding can be fostered by people getting to know each other.
“Doctrinally we actually share about 95% of everything, and frankly, we share 95% of the most important stuff,” he said. “Who is Jesus Christ? God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Baptism is the gateway of faith. All of these things are shared by any recognizable Christian group. Emphasizing that as much as anything overcomes a lot of the misunderstandings.”
Controversial Catholic Teachings
The Catholic Church has not been without controversy in recent years. The issues of gay marriage, abortion, and the handling of clerical abuse are often at the forefront of any debate.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines marriage as when “a man and woman establish between themselves a partnership of new life” and states that it is “ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation of offspring.” Under this definition, a same-sex couple living as spouses would not be considered a marriage.
In comparison to previous popes, Pope Francis has upheld a more progressive view of gay people in the church. When asked about gay priests who keep their vow of chastity, Francis responded, “Who am I to judge?” He also stressed to parents the importance of accepting children regardless of sexuality, saying, “Homosexual people have the right to be in a family. They are children of God.” Though neither of these statements deem gay marriage as valid, they are more inclusive to LGBTQ+ parishoners than the statements of previous popes.
Jantz seems to follow this attitude. As a priest, he must uphold the Catholic understanding of marriage, but he doesn’t believe that necessarily has to extend to the law of the land. He hopes that Catholics and non-Catholics can have a dialogue on this issue, saying, “When we’re talking about people outside the church, the main thing is looking at people with love and compassion.”
In regards to abortion, Jantz believes in actively challenging the status quo. He affirms the Catholic belief that “a radical commitment to the sanctity of human life in every single way, even when that’s extremely inconvenient to us, is something that is a foundational principle of who we are.”
Although he doesn’t condone the practice of abortion, Jantz is critical of the pro-life movement in its current form.
“Sometimes, I think, as Catholics involved in politics, we make the mistake of achieving the goal we want over persuading people,” he said. “If somebody named me dictator of the pro-life movement here in the United States, that’s something I’d be very emphatic about. Our goal here is to persuade our society on this issue, not initially to make giant changes to the law, especially unilaterally.”
In recent years, many people have criticized the Catholic Church’s handling of sexual abuse carried out by priests. Often, bishops would have knowledge of this abuse and move the abusive priest to another parish rather than expose him.
Though conditions have improved, the church still carries the wounds of its past. Jantz is thankful that the church is taking accountability for its actions, but recognizes the long road ahead.
“We’ve certainly moved in the direction within the church—and I think society as a whole is starting to get this as well—that protecting the victim is something that has to be prioritized over protecting institutions,” he said. “That’s a transition that has been long and painful in the Catholic Church.”
Evangelization on Campus
In early February, a preacher arrived on the bricks of Montevallo and caused an uproar. He drew a large crowd of students every day he was on campus. The reason for the students’ anger was a sign the man held. On this sign, he named many groups that he felt needed to repent. Members of the LGBTQ+ community, atheists, Muslims, and Catholics were a few that made the list.
When Jantz heard about this, he said he “wouldn’t even dain to call [it] evangelization. There’s a lot of that person’s self, and not a lot of God.” He labeled the fearmongering tactics used by the man as a relic of a time when most people identified as Christian and feared Hell. In his ministry, he has found it better to emphasize the loving nature of God.
“I don’t feel like an authentic relationship with God is built on fear,” he said. “Generally nothing good comes from playing on peoples worst emotions like fear and anger.”
Jantz isn’t usually one to go to protests, but he said a situation like that could be an exception.
“I’d have stood shoulder to shoulder with an LGBT group that was against that,” he said. “That’s not who I am. That’s not what my faith is, to just talk about how God hates people. I don’t believe God hates people. God is love…See the entire New Testament.”
So how does Jantz proclaim the Gospel to students on campus?
He starts by recognizing the church’s ability to cater itself to different cultures. He brought up how missionaries in Latin America emphasized “liberation from structures of sin and injustice” in order to spread the faith. A similar thing happened in historically Buddhist Vietnam, where missionaries highlighted the monastic tradition of the church. To Jantz, preaching to the collegiate culture is no different.
Jantz celebrates Mass with Montevallo students every Wednesday as a part of Catholic Campus Ministry. Through this, he hopes to create an outlet for young adults to grow in their faith.
“College ministry specifically, is walking with people while they’re on that journey from a child’s faith to an adult’s faith,” he said. “It means kind of living in the tension and the ambiguity that comes with that. They are people who are having doubts like ‘Do I really want to do this Catholic thing? Do I even believe in God?’ That’s not an uncommon thought for someone to start having when they’re asked to walk on their own two feet with their faith.”
Jantz believes it is essential to “meet people where they’re at” in regards to college ministry. He doesn’t think forcing faith on someone is effective. Rather, he strives to create a welcoming atmosphere for anyone curious about Catholicism.
Montevallo student Courtney Keeler attends Catholic Campus Ministry weekly and speaks highly of the community Jantz creates.
“With his knowledge of the Catholic faith, he is able to strengthen ours and that brings us closer together,” she said. “He tries to get to know all of us and he tells us stories about his time studying in Italy and how he decided to become a priest which helps us relate to him.”
Jantz sends an open invitation to anyone curious about Catholic Campus ministry, saying, “the door’s open and we’ve got warm dinner whenever you need it.”
A priest’s life is defined by uncertainty. Jantz doesn’t know where he’ll be in five years. He never predicted he’d be leading a community of faith in Shelby County. What he does know, however, is that he’ll be a priest no matter the situation. That is the one thing that won’t change.
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