Page 18 - Priorities #60 2014-November/December

Alumni
Joe Cowan Remembers
Headmaster Father Christopher Hites
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II was one of those kids who started high school in a dense fog. I was overwhelmed, timid, and lacked aca- demic enthusiasm.
Naturally my parents were concerned. Somehow they learned of the Priory, only 5 years-old at the time. Without my knowledge, they enrolled me in the sum- mer school program – as a dorm student.
Father Christopher was 49 year old when we met. He was of average height with wavy snow-white hair combed straight back. He possessed the body of a Greco-Roman wrestler with an expansive chest, broad shoulders, and thick upper arms. While a man of great charm, he was, at times, maddeningly rigid. Looking back I see he had an extremely difficult job. In the on- going cultural skirmishes that pitted the Order of Saint Benedict against post-war California youth, it was Fa- ther Christopher’s job to hold the line. He was the en- forcer. Classmate Jim LaTerza called him “The Great White Buffalo”.
Late in 1995, 31 years after graduation, I visited the
Priory to find Father Christopher gone. His health was
in decline. He went back his 1,000 year old spiritual
home, the great Archabbey of Pannonhalma, never to return to California. I regretted never properly thanking him for that second chance which proved so pivotal to the successful course of my life.
In1996,Ipurchasedmyfirstcomputer. Duringthatinitialeuphoricperiodofinternetwon- der and nonstop browsing, I discovered Pannonhalma to be Europe’s first monastery to support an on-line presence. So I typed into the “to” box the address of Pannonhalma Webmaster Mihaly Kiskeri,mihaly@osb.hu. Subject:“PleasedeliverthismessagetoFatherChristopher.”
I started with my name, class, and a list of my classmates. I thanked him for his willing- ness to accept me as a less than ideal transfer student. I wrote of how much I admired his life of sacrifice, dedication, and inspiration. I noted this to be my first ever e-mail then clicked “send”. The screen flickered, and who knows where it went. Then came the reply several days later:
Read Joe’s full speech at: http://prioryca.org/alumni/alumni-speeches/