Laboure Society
“My name is Braeden Connelly. I am discerning a call to serve Christ and His Church as a priest with the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. This is my story. ”
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My name is Braeden Connelly. I am discerning a call to serve Christ and His Church as a priest with the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. This is my story.
I am one of four children and grew up in a devout Catholic family in Kansas City, Missouri. My father is a CPA and has worked from home for most of my life, which helped him foster a very close relationship with me. My mother converted to Catholicism shortly after my birth, and is a nurse-practitioner. Somehow, she managed to homeschool all of us kids while she worked over the weekends. By the time I received my First Communion, I was excited to begin altar serving. When I reached high school, I quickly became involved in youth programs where I met priests who had a deep impact on me. They exhibited joy and a personal love of Jesus that was contagious!
Dad and Mom always told me that if I do what God desires me to do, I will never be unhappy. I had visited the seminary on some “come and see” weekends and was comfortable about giving it a shot. Although I knew I desired a personal relationship with Jesus, I had not yet experienced that relationship to the fullest. I wanted a relationship with Jesus because He had touched my heart on several key occasions in high school. I remember sitting in Eucharistic Adoration with Jesus and feeling a deep, consoling love from our Lord. I also remember encountering our Lord powerfully during a Steubenville conference. His love was so powerful that it caused me to weep. I discerned that God was inviting me to attend seminary and see where He would lead.
As I follow God’s calling to religious life, I seek others to accompany me on this journey. May we meet so that I can share more? Until then, please keep me and my classmates in prayer, and feel free to reach out to me at Braeden.Connelly@rescuevocations.org.
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