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Year for Priests: Reflecting on vocation, ministry

Name: Father Joseph A. Dillinger

Birth date including year: July 27, 1963

Hometown: Sacred Heart, Sioux City, Iowa

Education: BA, St. Louis University, MDiv-St. Paul Seminary

Ordination date: July 6, 1996

Current assignment: St. Bernard’s-Breda; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Mt. Carmel, St. Francis of Assisi, Maple River, St. John’s, Arcadia and Chaplain, Kuemper Catholic Schools.

Hobbies/interests: I love things that go fast, Indy cars, NASCAR, all forms of racing, taking vacations to Disney World with family, golf, relaxing by a fire with friends, cheering for Kuemper Catholic Schools, football, playing practical jokes on others, gambling and writing. Family and friends are important as well.

Describe your call to priesthood. It began in the second grade when a La Salette priest asked us to write down three things we wanted to be when we grew up. I wrote down a pilot, a firefighter and a priest. My vocation has had many twists and turns. I went to St. Henry’s Prep Seminary in Belleville, Ill., when I was a sophomore in high school and studied the La Salette father’s. After high school I left the seminary and began working in places like Burger King and Pizza Hut. After having nothing but lint in my pockets I went back to college and studied with the Oblate fathers. Upon finishing college I took time off again only to discover I still wanted to be a priest. I joined the diocese and five years later was ordained a priest. I always tell people God draws straight with crooked lines. I really believe God wanted me in all these different places. Ultimately, however, God wanted me to minister to the people of the Diocese of Sioux City. I feel blessed to be a priest here.

Did anyone or anything provide you with inspiration to follow the call to priesthood? I feel very blessed to have studied with the La Salette and Oblates. They were very good to me and it was there, while studying with them, that I developed my spirituality. I can’t say enough good things about the La Salette fathers and how blessed we were to have them in my home parish. I honestly believe that the seeds of a vocation are planted in the home and nurtured in the parish. I am very grateful to my family and the people of Sacred Heart parish for my vocation. You are in my prayers daily.

Was it a difficult decision to make? Obviously, this was not an easy choice. I left the seminary three times before deciding it was right for me. It is not always easy to follow where God wants you to go, especially, if it means putting your dreams aside. I was blessed to follow God’s will, even though at times it meant I had to put my dream of being a priest on the side. Ultimately, all the dots connected and I was ordained a priest.
What do you enjoy most about being a priest? Being in the huddle with the Kuemper football team just before the take the field. Each Thursday I eat supper with them and on Friday morning celebrate the Eucharist with the team. I lead the team in prayer before and after the game. It’s a rush for me. That aside, I really enjoy being the chaplain at Kuemper Catholic Schools and ministering to the students and staffs needs. Visiting the sick and dying are also very special to me. People let me into their lives and let me see things others don’t always see. Seeing people’s faith is what gives my faith life. God has blessed me with numerous people who have challenged me to grow in my faith.

Are there any particular devotions or prayers that are dear to your heart? Perhaps, my favorite place to pray is in the silence of my car. I love to turn the radio off and drive through the Iowa country side with my sunroof down and contemplate God’s awesomeness. I don’t have any set form of pray. I pray as my heart prays. Sometimes that’s in the silence of creation. Other times it takes the form of the Eucharist or music on my iPod. I use videos, journaling and spiritual books. Prayer for me is being in God’s presence and allowing Him to look at me as I look at Him. When on vacation, I enjoy sitting in the pew with others and enjoying Mass this way. Perhaps, the biggest the thing I did to enhance my prayer life was do a 30-Day Ignation retreat. It is something that words can never describe.

Why do you find priesthood to be a worthy vocation? The money, fast cars, free meals, a great place to live, never having to worry about what to wear and four weeks of vacation every year. The retirement package isn’t bad either (heaven). Seriously, for me it comes down to one thing: being able to share in my people’s faith. By far, this is why I am a priest and continue to be a priest today.

What would you say to a young man considering a vocation to the priesthood? First, I would say get active in your parish. This is where your vocation will be nurtured. Secondly, find a good priest and learn how to develop a prayer life. This will give you life when you feel down and out. Lastly, and in some ways most importantly, tithe 10% of your income. This will help up see how truly blessed you are and help you see what is most important in your life.