I came across this story on Spirit Daily and wanted to share it. I can't imagine making it until 110, but it would help the vocation crisis if every priest did!Father Nicholas Kao Se Tseien, the world's oldest Catholic priest, died this year in Hong Kong at the age of 110.
Kao's gospel for a long life combines common sense and religious devotion. Eschew tobacco, intoxication, gluttony, anger and rudeness in favor of exercise, humility, charity, goodness, prayer, patience and piety.
"My life has been marked by two words: patience and death," he said through a translator. "Patience in the struggle for excellence of conduct, in learning from Jesus' patience on the cross. Death in learning to die without fear and to die in innocence."
Born into a Buddhist family, Father Kao converted to Catholicism as a teenager during the reign of the last Pope Benedict (Benedict XV, who reigned from 1914 to 1922). In common with the present Pope Benedict, Kao has a great fondness for cats - an affinity he credits with lengthening his life.
2 comments:
What a great story!
Does anyone know who is NOW the oldest priest? Our priest is 99 years old and we were wondering where he was in the ranking!! He was chaplain of our school for many years and the children are really anxious to know if he is one of the oldest priests in the world.
Post a Comment