The Retired Fund for Religious helps retired religious and their communities with rising healthcare costs

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

Benedictine Sister Emmanuel Pieper dedicated her life and ministry to students through art. Teaching grade school and high school art classes, Sister Emmanuel saw firsthand the impact that one person can have on another. Now, in her retirement, she stays busy making art and enjoying life at St. Walberg Monastery, Villa Hills. At 97 years old, however, Sister Emmanuel finds herself in need of additional healthcare, living at the onsite infirmary at St. Walberg Monastery.

Like Sister Emmanuel, tens of thousands of retired religious find themselves in need of additional healthcare, with the median age of nuns in the United States reaching 80 years old. As the aged and infirmed population is on the rise, religious orders are facing difficulties with the increasing cost of additional healthcare. Because of this, over 260 religious communities rely on funds from the Retirement Fund for Religious.  The retirement fund for religious has given over $1,000,000,000 to retired religious since their inception in 1988. This year, there will be a second collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious at Masses, December 12-14, so they can continue to provide for those retired religious in need.

“I think I have a wonderful life,” said Sister Emmanuel, “I thank God every morning for a new sunrise and a new day to live in his wonderful world.”

Her vocation story began at baptism, when she was named after her aunt who was a Benedictine Sister. She carried this with her throughout her life. “All my life I had an inclination to enter the monastery,” she said. Sure in her vocation, Sister Emmanuel entered the Order of St. Benedict at 17 years old, where they allowed her to continue her passion for art. She holds both her Bachelor and Master of Fine Arts from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana.

“I think I was born with a love of beauty, anything beautiful just attracts me so strongly,” she said of her affinity for the craft. Her artwork can be seen at Holy Cross District High School, Covington; St. Henry District High School, Erlanger, and Thomas More University, Crestview Hills.

She shared her love of art with the students she taught, whether in grade school or high school. “My favorite part was seeing how kids could develop,” she said, “seeing people catch on to something, be able to do it, be satisfied with themselves.”

Donating to the second collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious will help more sisters like Sister Emmanuel continue their ministry into retirement. Providing funds to those religious communities in need of help to offset healthcare costs.

National Catholic Youth Conference provides opportunities for deepening relationships with Christ

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

Four hundred students and chaperons made their way back to the Diocese of Covington, Nov. 22, following the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC), Indianapolis. The annual conference has become the premier destination for young Catholics to grow and reignite their faith, while growing in relationship with Christ and others. While there, the students participated in all the conference had to offer, Adoration, confession, prayer, games, breakout sessions, and most notably, a conference wide dialogue with Pope Leo XIV.

Covington Catholic senior, Brayden, had the unique opportunity to be part of the group of students from around the country to give input on the discussion topics for Pope Leo.

Even though the students gathered were from across the country, the central themes for their desired dialogue were the same. “Relationships, friendships, discussing things like technology, and things like that,” said Brayden. “We all have the same overarching ideas about our faith and the struggles with our faith and the things we go through in our daily lives.”

“It’s really cool to see how many different people can come together and share ideas and be able to hear different perspectives on things from people around the country,” he said.

Young Catholics uniting and forming relationships is a common theme of NCYC. One Notre Dame Academy, Park Hills, student, Noelle, said, “I really didn’t expect there to be a lot of people my age … but going out there and seeing all these young teenagers around my age and trying to grow deeper in their faith really inspired me to grow deeper in my faith as well.”

While the attendees form relationships with their peers from across the country, the true focus of the National Catholic Youth Conference is forming a strong relationship with Christ.

“I remember something that Pope Leo said and it really stuck with me,” said Noelle. “He basically said you have to deepen your relationship with God and want to have that relationship with him in order to give him your problems or struggles.”

Both Brayden and Noelle identified the Friday evening adoration at Lucas Oil Stadium as one of the most impactful moments of the conference in growing their relationship with Christ.

“Our entire diocese was able to sit down on the main floor of the stadium and so we were basically circled around the monstrance and Eucharist … the focus that people had on the Eucharist was amazing for me,” said Brayden.

Being down on the main floor of the stadium meant that there were approximately 16,000 other Catholics filling the stands of the stadium during Eucharistic adoration. But for Noelle, there was only one person she was focused on.

“I was surrounded by a huge crowd, but I was so zoned in on the Eucharist that I honestly forgot, I forgot everyone else was there, almost like it was just me and God in that instant,” she said. “Staring up at the host really got me feeling a lot about my faith, and very emotional. It brought me to tears a bit.”

The 2026 National Youth Conference will be held in Long Beach, California, and will return to Indianapolis in 2027.

“If you’re ever thinking about going to the conference, go in with an open heart and open arms, wanting to get the whole experience,” said Noelle.

The Bambinelli and Christmas tree blessing returns for a fourth year, celebrating the local church

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

The Bambinelli and Christmas tree blessing is back for another year, Dec. 13, at St. Mary’s Park, Covington, immediately following the 4:30 p.m. Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington.  This will be the fourth of what has become an annual diocesan tradition, where Bishop John Iffert blesses the bambinelli (infant Jesus) of home nativities and lights the diocesan Christmas tree.

The Christmas tree will stand tall in St. Mary’s Park as a representation of the local church of Covington, as churches and schools decorate the ornaments which adorn the tree. While the blessing of the bambinelli is an active participation in the local church, “it’s a way to celebrate together,” said Jamie Schroeder, chancellor.

“It reminds us of the reason for season, which is the spirit of it. We’re celebrating the birth of our savior, Jesus Christ,” she said. The blessing of the bambinelli is a tradition popularized by St. Pope John Paul II in 1969. He invited children to bring their bambinelli to St. Peter’s Square where he blessed them. Now, the tradition lives on in the local church of Covington.

“It’s a beautiful way to celebrate the season, it’s kind of like the Curia’s gift to the diocese. It’s one way for us to show our gratitude and appreciation for the people of the diocese,” said Mrs. Schroeder.

This year, the Bambinelli and Christmas tree blessing will feature a performance by the St. Thomas Chrildrens Choir and the reading of a classic Christmas story by Bishop Iffert. Also available will be cookies, homemade by Curia staff members, as well as hot chocolate and hors d’oeuvres.

So far, the event as yielded an average attendance of “250 to 300 people who come each year,” said Mrs. Schroeder. “It lifts your heart,” she said, “to see how many people are out there. It’s just exciting.”

There is no registration required for the event, “all are welcome to come and be with us, to celebrate the season of Advent and to have their little baby Jesus blessed,” said Mrs. Schroeder. Like last year, small bambinelli will be provided so all may be included in the blessing.

Thomas More University professor takes part in Vatican-sponsored AI Builders Forum

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Laura Keener

Editor

A Catholic cruise with Catholic Answers has found Dr. John Rudnick, a year later, at a completely unexpected destination — the Vatican-sponsored AI Builders Forum.

“Catholic Answers reached out to me knowing that I was working in higher education and asked me what we were doing in artificial intelligence,” said Dr. Rudnick. “They thought it sounded interesting,” and offered Dr. Rudnick an invitation to the Forum.

When Catholic Answers extended the invitation and he accepted, Dr. Rudnick said he had no idea where the Forum was being held. The awe of being at the Vatican and among 200 like-minded Catholic leaders — educators, healthcare workers, innovators, priests, bishops and others — has left Dr. Rudnick on an “academic and spiritual high.”

“It was a wonderful time. The people that I met were just as kind and as welcoming and giving and sharing as one could have. It was very much a Catholic community and we were all rolling in the same direction,” Dr. Rudnick said. “You could say that our goal is to get each other to heaven, and our goal is to try to make sense of artificial intelligence in a positive way.”

Dr. Rudnick is a professor at the College of Business, Thomas More University, Crestview Hills. In addition to Thomas More University, other institutions of higher education with representatives at the Forum included Ave Maria College, Boston College, Catholic University of America and Notre Dame University.

His attendance at the AI Builders Forum is beneficial not only for TMU but also the Diocese of Covington. Already, Dr. Rudnick is working with Deacon Jim Fortner, chief operating officer, and Kendra McGuire, superintendent of Schools, to develop ways to share the information and to develop AI best practices with educators and leaders throughout the diocese.

The Church now stands at a pivotal moment comparable to the introduction of the printing press — an inflection point calling not for hesitation but for imaginative, evangelizing leadership, said Dr. Rudnick. AI presents new possibilities to expand access to learning, deepen pastoral outreach and strengthen global mission impact. Rather than retreat, the Church is invited to guide the development of Christian digital humanism, ensuring that emerging technologies serve truth, beauty, justice and communion, he said.

During the AI Builders Forum, the 200 members broke into six workshop groups. These six groups are now forming global cohorts to continue discussing, evaluating and recommending policies on AI. Dr. Rudnick is part of the education cohort.

“We will try to help shape policies and guidelines in relation to guardrails, privacy, cybersecurity and how artificial intelligence can be applied in education to make things more efficient and effective for faculty members and for staff, and to also be flexible and adaptive to the needs of diverse student learning types,” said Dr. Rudnick.

According to Dr. Rudnick, in the United States, Hollywood’s fascination and representation of AI, often as an antagonist in its movies, is a formidable hurdle to overcome in the general public’s understanding of AI.

“The Internet can be used for good things or bad things, and artificial intelligence can be used for good things or bad things,” Dr. Rudnick said.

The overarching theme at the Forum and one that will help guide the ongoing work of the cohorts is to leverage AI always with the dignity of the human person and the common good at the forefront. That, like with all human innovations, AI is a tool to be used by and for persons, not to replace persons.

“AI is changing hourly, and it’s something to be reckoned with,” said Dr. Rudnick. “But if we approach it with the foundation of truth, beauty and goodness, with regard to the need for the Catholic bias to be at the root, and for this to be aligned with our souls, then we’ll be okay.”

Together with community, sisters pray for national immigration reform

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops continued their sessions of the Fall Plenary Assembly in Baltimore, faithful nationally were called to pray in solidarity with migrant communities and for the reform of laws surrounding immigration, Nov. 12, on the vigil of the Feast of St. Frances Cabrini — the first canonized American saint and an Italian immigrant.

The Intercommunity Sisters Peace and Justice Committee led the prayer service at St. Mary’s Park, Covington, joining with a sizeable crowd of sisters and laity for prayer and the recitation of the Rosary.

Divine Providence Sister Kay Kramer, a member of the committee, quoted Pope Leo XIV, saying, “Migrants and refugees remind us and the whole Church of her pilgrim dimension, perpetually journeying towards her final homeland, sustained by hope that is a theological virtue.”

“Hope should be our big resounding feeling today,” said Sister Kay, “Not despair, not sadness, but hope … We know with gratitude that so many of our clergy, consecrated religious and faithful already accompany and assist immigrants in meeting their basic human needs … We pray that the Lord may guide the leaders of our nation, and we are grateful for past and present opportunities to dialog with public and elected officials.”

New Marriage Catechumenal Pathways journeys with individuals from kindergarten through marriage to strengthen the home church

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

The Diocese of Covington’s marriage preparation program is currently undergoing a transformation in line with Pope Francis’ request for more intensive preparation and the ongoing With One Heart Diocesan Pastoral Plan. The new program, Marriage Catechumenal Pathways, is broken into four phases: Remote, Proximate, Immediate and Enrichment. These four phases intend to strengthen the sacramental faith formation and marriage preparation beginning in childhood and extending beyond the wedding.

Deacon Jim Fortner, diocesan chief operating officer and deacon assigned to Blessed Sacrament Parish, Ft. Mitchell, said, “Bishop Iffert laid out three strategies in the pastoral plan: faith formation, evangelization and leadership. This is faith formation.”

Marriage Catechumenal Pathways is not a new concept to those in the Church, said Deacon Steve Alley, St. Timothy Parish, Union, who is a member of the Marriage Catechumenal Pathways development team.

“The Catechumenal Pathways for Marriage was a request from Pope Francis. (The Pope’s concern) was that we, as a Church, don’t spend enough time training couples for sacramental marriage,” he said.

The first of the four phases is the Remote phase, where a stronger emphasis is placed on the age-appropriate education of the sacrament of matrimony.

“I think the main focus for children is always on first Communion and confirmation. This is going to put emphasis also on marriage,” said Deacon Alley.

Starting in kindergarten through 12th grade, students will learn about marriage in a foundational way. The ideal will be that when students graduate high school, they will be equipped with the knowledge needed to discern what God asks of them.

This discernment is phase two of the Marriage Catechumenal Pathways, the Proximate phase. In this phase, high school graduates who have not yet found their vocation discern God’s calling for their life.

“They’re discerning whether they want to be married, be single, maybe go into some religious order. It’s that searching,” said Deacon Alley. “This is just a lot deeper, personal and faithful way to journey through life. When you come out of high school, you immediately start that discernment process.”

Phase three of the Marriage Catechumenal Pathways is the Immediate phase, which begins right after a couple’s engagement. One year prior to marriage, the engaged couple will receive a mentor couple from their home parish. This couple will journey with the engaged up to the wedding day and for the first five years of marriage.

“We marry couples, but then we don’t accompany them after they get married,” said Deacon Fortner. This new structure will accompany the engaged and newly married on their journey. “Our hope is that once this program is set, it will be self-perpetuation. The couples graduating out of the five-year program would then become mentor couples for the next group,” said Deacon Fortner.

Also new in the Immediate phase is the betrothal ceremony where the engaged couple, in the presence of the priest, their family and friends, will receive a blessing as they make a commitment — a betrothal — to one another, said Deacon Alley.

Following the Immediate phase is the Enrichment phase, which is the first years of marriage, journeying with a mentor couple, to discover ways to practice the faith at home and to engage in parish life as a couple.

“The idea is that you become a community in your church, a community with other couples who may be dealing with the same things you’re dealing with as a couple,” said Deacon Alley. “The idea is that you have this small group of like-minded Catholic faithful couples.”

The formation of Marriage Catechumenal Pathways will change the way that the Diocese of Covington prepares couples for the Sacrament of Matrimony and marriage. Bestowing in them a renewed heart of spirit for the journey which lies ahead.

“The home church is the most important institution here. We have to form husbands and wives to create a strong home church,” said Deacon Fortner.

The Diocesan Pastoral Plan — welcoming new and continuing the formation of the people the Lord calls his own

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Laura Keener

Editor

The Catechesis and Evangelization Office has been working on the implementation of several goals following the priorities of Ongoing Faith Formation and Evangelization of the Diocesan “With One Heart” Pastoral Plan.

The grandest in scope has been faith formation and the Diocesan partnership with the Franciscan University’s Catechetical Institute. Through the Institute, the Diocese has been offering the complete Franciscan At Home library of courses and workshops free of charge to every person in the diocese. To date, over 1,100 learners have registered with Franciscan At Home. However, according to Isaak A. Isaak, director of the Office of Catechesis and Evangelization, 717 of those registered accounts are dormant.

“The challenge here is how to really engage all the people who are involved,” said Mr. Isaak.

To help engage learners, in October Mr. Isaak hosted an in-person workshop on how to navigate the Franciscan At Home website. The workshop was led by Brady Webb, the Catechetical Institute’s webmaster.

“He helped walk through the clutter of the website,” said Mr. Isaak. Mr. Webb also showed school and parish leaders where they can track the progress of learners and offered strategies on how to encourage them. “It was really helpful,” said Mr. Isaak.

Another way to help meet the engagement challenge is through the help of mentors. Currently, nearly 60 people from across the Diocese have been trained as mentors to help journey with learners taking the online Franciscan At Home courses. These mentors have been described as the “secret sauce” that differentiates Franciscan At Home from other online faith formation programs.

Additionally, the Office of Catechesis and Evangelization has developed and hosted 23 in-person courses for catechists and others. These courses were held during the summer of 2025. Mr. Isaak said, he is currently developing over 60 in-person courses to be held in the summer of 2026.

“We’re just trying to intensify our in-person workshops, because that’s a priority for the diocese. It brings people together, people network. They create friendships around faith formation,” said Mr. Isaak.

Another goal Mr. Isaak is working on is to boost implementation of the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA), formerly known as the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The two programs both are the process by which the Church welcomes new members and prepares them for the sacraments of initiation — baptism, Communion and confirmation. But, Mr. Isaak said, it is more than just a name change. “It’s even the way, the methodology, of transmitting the faith,” said Mr. Isaak.

Approved by the USCCB in 2021 for implementation starting in 2023, OCIA emphasizes the nature of the process as an “order” rather than solely a “rite” while retaining the core structure and purpose. A fundamental difference is that with OCIA, inquirers are welcome and encouraged to begin the process at any time, instead of waiting until the fall when the formal process would typically begin. And, it emphasizes continual spiritual formation as opposed to fixed checkpoints in a 10-month period.

Again, reaching out to its Franciscan University Catechetical Institute partner, the Office of Catechesis and Evangelization held two workshops, most recently on Nov. 9. Over 50 catechists and others attended the workshop led by Dr. William Keimig, deputy director of the Catechetical Institute at Franciscan University, focused on revitalizing OCIA ministry and reigniting parishes.

“OCIA becomes an instrument of renewal for the entire parish,” said Mr. Issak, “because the people who initiate OCIA are the entire community. It’s not just the ones who are involved on the OCIA team, and it’s not just the pastor’s responsibility. The hospitality, the teaching, the witnessing of faith, it’s the entire parish’s responsibility to initiate.”

Mr. Isaak said that implementation of the Diocesan Pastoral Plan has been a time of renewal not just for the OCE but for the entire Curia.

“It helps us to really renew our office. How do we look at the things we’ve been doing in a new way?” he said. “I think the Diocesan Pastoral Plan came as a blessing to the Diocese, because every office is engaging with the people of the Diocese. We really are keeping the vision of the Bishop, which is the pastoral plan, and to make it alive in the parishes, to make it alive in the schools, to make it alive with our people and with whoever we meet.”

Good Leaders, Good Shepherds cohort two priests find value in practical and pastoral leadership training

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

In 2024, the Diocese of Covington’s “With One Heart” pastoral plan was released, identifying three key focus areas: evangelization, ongoing faith formation, and leadership development.

One of the primary goals of leadership development is the building up of priests to help them have more confidence as they serve the people God has put in their care. In a partnership with the Catholic Leadership Institute, Bishop John Iffert invited all priests to attend Good Leaders, Good Shepherds leadership training. So far, two cohorts — a total of 38 priests — have completed this leadership training, with great enthusiasm.

The program consists of five, three-day-long sessions, with each session taking place once a month. This allows the cohort of priests to get to know one another and grow with one another over the course of five months.

“To spend those several weeks with them was great because I got to know them better, I got to hear their experience in leadership … I loved gathering that data and listening to their stories,” said Father A.J. Gedney, parochial vicar, St. Joseph Parish, Cold Spring.

Over the course of the leadership training, the priests learn a variety of practical leadership skills, like, “How do you have difficult conversations with people? How do you ask and give effective feedback? How do you motivate people? How can you listen?” said Father Gedney.

However, the program is tailored to priests, so in addition to the standard leadership training one might find in a corporate setting, they learned pastoral and ministerial leadership skills.

“They came in with the understanding that our job is not just the role of the boss of a parish or some ministry, but ministry itself,” said Father Gedney.

For Father Joseph Rielage, pastor, St. Edward Parish, Cynthiana, said that one of his primary takeaways was the need to delegate.

“It lets me know that, with the right group, with the right task and with the right goals, that I am not going to be the one that has to micro-manage. I can let others take care of things and get back to me,” he said. “That’s going to help me free up my time for more pastoral things.”

“What I’ve already seen bearing fruit,” said Father Gedney, “is being a better listener and receiving feedback better. Then, involving other people in solution and gathering solutions.”

A key aspect of Good Leaders, Good Shepherds training in the pastoral plan is the development of priests’ leadership skills. Father Gedney acknowledges the program’s success in this area.

“It’s helping augment my leadership knowledge. This is very much intellectual; you could say book learning. We can’t always learn on the job, although it might be necessary, it’s nice to have a little of intellectual learning before you apply it in real life,” he said.

Father Rielage said in appreciation of the training, “Good Leaders, Good Shepherd gives me the opportunity and the tools to be a good leader, be a good shepherd … no matter how much you think you know, there’s a lot more out there to help that you don’t.”

Eighth graders looking for a leg up to make shoe drive a success

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

Eighth graders at Holy Cross Elementary School, Covington, have organized a shoe drive within their school community in an effort to send 2,500 shoes to those in need across the world. Partnered with Funds2Orgs, a company which hosts shoe drive fundraisers, the eighth graders hope to make an impact this Christmas season.

Fundraising and charitable giving is not new to Holy Cross Elementary eighth graders, said Quinn, a leader of the shoe drive. “Every eighth grade has a fundraiser that they do. A couple of years ago they collected old phones, for us it happened to be a shoe drive.”

So far, the students have collected approximately 750 pairs of shoes but need help from community members to reach their lofty 2,500 pair goal.

“Everyone who reads the Messenger should have a very thoughtful heart on why they should help. This is to help guide the heart to do more good,” said Quinn.

“There are other people out there who, unfortunately, are not as fortunate as many in the Holy Cross community. I feel like they should donate because there’s people who really need shoes out there and can’t afford them,” said Madison, also a shoe drive leader.

With the shoes being donated internationally, Quinn emphasized the importance of donating multiple pairs of shoes because, “There are some people in less fortunate countries who have no shoes per person, it’s like there’s one pair of shoes for three children. That’s not enough,” she said.

Quinn and Madison have been diligently emailing news agencies and potential partner organizations like the Latonia branch library and Catholic Charities, Covington. Their efforts have yielded many donation bins throughout the Holy Cross campus. “We have donation bins everywhere,” said Madison.

“Most people donate them to the office. We also have a bin at the Holy Cross High School, and one at the Latonia branch library and we also have a bin at the Holy Cross Daycare closer to the gym,” said Quinn.

Once the shoes are donated, the team inspects them carefully for damage that would make them unwearable. “If they’re dirty that’s fine, but they can’t be beat up,” said Madison.

After they have been approved by the team the laces are tied together, or the pair is banded, so that they will not be separated, before being put in the bag for donations.

The shoe drive ends Dec. 2, just in time for the holiday season. “We are in dire need of help,” said Quinn. “It could be like a present from the community.”

Through his life Father Thomas Barnes sought to honor God

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Father Thomas Barnes, a priest for the Diocese of Covington, died Oct. 28. He was 87 years old.

Thomas Charles Barnes (“Tom”) was born on May 23, 1938, the only child of Charles Joseph Barnes and Florence Evelyn Barnes (nee Simmons). He was born in Grace Hospital, Detroit Michigan. He was Baptized at St. Margaret Mary Church, LeMay Avenue, Detroit on June 26, 1938. He was Confirmed at Our Lady Queen of Peace, Detroit, on June 1, 1950.

Father Barnes attended grades K-8 at Finney Public School in Detroit. He then attended Austin Prep, a Catholic College Preparatory run by the Augustinian Friars in Detroit, for one year (1952-53). He attended St. Augustine Seminary in Saugatuck, Michigan, for his sophomore year, where he met Robert Francis Prevost (later Pope Leo XIV). Father Barnes returned to Austin Prep for his junior and senior years, graduating in 1956.

In 1956, Father Barnes spent the summer at St. Sylvester Benedictive Monastery in Detroit and attended St. Benedict College, Acheson, Kansas, for three semesters, working toward a Bachelor of Science Degree.

On April 1, 1958, Father Barnes entered Gethsemani Monastery in Central Kentucky, where he remained for two years under the guidance of Father Louis Merton (Thomas Merton). Despite his love for monastic life, he decided to leave after two years, maintaining good friendships.

Father Barnes’s experience at Gethsemani profoundly influenced his spiritual life, particularly his commitment to reading and developing an interior life of prayer.

“He had a great respect for Catholicism and the interior life,” said Father Mark Keene, a close friend and vicar general of the Diocese of Covington.

After leaving Gethsemani, Father Barnes returned to Detroit, attended the University of Detroit, and worked on an assembly line for Ford. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree and later enrolled at the Pontifical Institute for Medieval Studies (PIMS) at the University of Toronto, where he earned a Master of Arts degree.

Father Barnes then attended Western Michigan University, earning his Master of Business Administration (MBA). Despite his MBA, his interest in religious life led him to try the Order of Friars Minor. After a few years, he decided he wasn’t called to this life and separated from the Franciscans.

From 1966 to 1968, Father Barnes worked for Mid-American Publishing’s Ultra-Van Division in Hutchinson, Kansas. From 1968 to 1970, he taught business at Kansas State University, Pittsburgh, Kansas. Former students thanked him for his teaching.

“He just seemed to positively change so many people’s lives,” Father Keene said.

From 1970 to 1972, he directed the Wichita Art Association. In 1972, he joined Citizens Union National Bank in Lexington, Kentucky, as executive vice president of the Trust Division, where he developed and expanded the clientele. He was also involved in civic organizations like the Lexington Council for the Arts.

Father Barnes left his position at the bank and Lexington to enter the seminary to study for the Catholic Priesthood in the fall of 1983. It was there that he met, then seminarian, Father Jeff VonLehman, pastor, St. Patrick Parish, Taylor Mill, who remembers Father Barnes as an “active contemplative, he spoke out of a very contemplative mindset,” he said. “You never had a dull conversation with Father Barnes.”

Prior to entering the seminary, Father Barnes’ mother had spoken to him about how he had done so many things in his life and been successful at them except for the one thing that he really wanted, which was to be a priest. Father Barnes figured at his age he probably only had one more chance. He explored the idea with some priests he knew and other friends and decided to try.

At a luncheon at a Chinese Restaurant with some clients of the bank, after he had decided to try the seminary, his fortune cookie at the end of the meal read simply: “You have made the right decision.” Father Barnes taped that fortune into his Christian Prayer Book. It is still there.

Father Barnes studied for the Catholic Priesthood as a seminarian for the Diocese of Covington, Kentucky. He always had a natural gift for counseling people, and so his working toward and achieving a master’s degree in Pastoral Counseling came very naturally.

Father Keene remembered him as a “great listener to people, sort of wedding the spiritual life and emotional growth and maturation of people. He was able to see that as one reality in a pretty neat way.”

Father Michael Hennigen, who succeed Father Barnes’ as pastor in 2019 before moving onto other roles, said, “Father Barnes really cared for people. He was a beautiful listener, and he loved to listen, really a counselor in many ways to many people.”

Father Barnes was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Covington on May 30, 1987. After ordination, Father Thomas Barnes served as a parochial vicar at St. Pius X Parish, Edgewood, for a year. Bishop Hughes asked if he would move to Holy Cross Parish, Latonia, to help Msgr. Elmer Grosser, who had come out of retirement to serve as an administrator of Holy Cross. Father Barnes served as parochial vicar for several years. In 1992 Father Barnes was named pastor of Holy Cross Parish, where he served as pastor until 2019.

During his pastorate at Holy Cross he created a welcoming environment for students and parishioners, recalled Father VonLehman. “He was always so accommodating to me as the chaplain and to the school, to the students. He was always helping to just make a welcoming atmosphere for them,” said Father VonLehman.

Upon Father Hennigens arrival to Holy Cross Parish he remembers Father Barnes, “really stressing the community feel and aspect of Holy Cross. That community included the parish, the elementary school, the high school, Catholic Charities and also the Child Care and Learning Center.”

Parishioner Terry Foster wrote in a Facebook post remembering Father Barnes, “We joined Holy Cross in the summer of 1996. We really felt ‘at home’ and Father Barnes was very much a reason for that … we felt very accepted at both the school and church.” Mr. Foster recalled in a <<Messenger>> interview that when he and his daughter joined Holy Cross Parish his daughter said, “Father Barnes makes going to Mass fun.” Father VonLehman said, “his humor always came out, he had a good sense of humor.”

While Father Barnes will be remembered for many notable things, perhaps most frequently mentioned by people has been that when you were with him you had his undivided attention.

“He was really genuine, he just seemed to really be able to pay close attention to people,” said Father Keene.

Father Barnes had a preternatural ability to see the potential in people and to then ask just the right questions to challenge people to see and believe what he saw in them. Many persons have commented how he “changed their lives.” This would include friends from his high school days, friends at the end of his life and Father Keene who said, “We met at a time in my life when I needed someone like him to be a mentor and really kind of challenge me in ways I needed to be challenged. That was kind of hard at times but I’m very grateful for it in hindsight now.”

Father Barnes’ interests and talents were many and varied. But, underlying it all was a desire to know God through life and to honor God by his life. He was insightful, compassionate, creative, intelligent and always with a great sense of humor. Friendships were always a priority in his life. He always worked hard to establish and maintain friendships that were deep and meaningful.

Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Nov.15 at Holy Cross Church, Latonia.

This obituary was written by Father Mark Keene and edited by the Messenger staff. The complete obituary is online https://www.connleybrothersfuneralhome.com/obituary/reverend-thomas-charles-barnes/.