Saturday, Nov. 4, is Venerable Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli’s 217th birthday.
Like many in the Diocese of Madison, I’ve taken an interest in the life and story of this holy man. I first heard his name in college, when I went to school in Dubuque, Iowa.
After college, I spent a few years further east before returning to the upper Midwest in 2017 for a job at the Dominican-run parish in Madison. One of my coworkers was a new priest who was named after the missionary; how fitting that his first assignment was in his namesake’s mission territory!
I first visited Father Mazzuchelli’s grave in 2020 and have returned a few times since. Earlier this fall I spent a Saturday driving around the tri-state area to visit parishes that he founded. A few weeks later I was blessed to visit the Sinsinawa Mound to venerate his penance chain, and I was able to see the inside of his tiny church in New Diggings.
I’ve been slowly wading through a biography about the priest and I have also made a tiny dent in his memoir. While I have nowhere near a complete portrait of his life and work yet, I’ve been struck by a few observations from his life that are worth pondering and applying to our own walk with the Lord and our lives of missionary discipleship.
1. People remember genuine Christian witness. Father Mazzuchelli’s biography says that the Natives that he ministered to were impressed by the simplicity of his life: He ate what was offered to him and slept on a mat on the ground when he was among them, and he had no interest in trading goods and making money. As one of his interpreters explained to a Winnebago tribe, “He is not thinking of his own interest, but only desires and longs for your good.”
His biography also recounts when the Primitive Methodist church in Benton was destroyed in a fire. Catholics were suspected as the culprits, but in a gesture of goodwill, Father Mazzuchelli made a donation toward rebuilding efforts.
He sent his donation with a strongly-worded letter expressing that other Christian churches must seek to return to the Catholic faith. Rather than protest the letter, the Methodist elder was so impressed by it that the church held on to it for over 130 years.
We shouldn’t make heroic sacrifices or other grand gestures out of self-love or a desire for attention, but when these are done out of true humility and love, they leave an impression on people that can’t be underestimated.
2. We must engage thoughtfully with the surrounding culture. Father Mazzuchelli writes in his memoir about an episode on Mackinac Island, his first assignment, in which a Presbyterian minister held a series of lectures attacking tenets of the Catholic faith.
Father Mazzuchelli attended each of these lectures and then held his own lectures in response to the minister’s. Father’s lectures successfully brought several lapsed Catholics back to the practice of their faith.
In our post-Christian culture, it can be tempting to either disengage entirely from criticisms and objections to our faith or to simply be defensive and dismissive toward them.
Granted, there are times when people aren’t truly interested in hearing our case and are just looking for a fight! But where there is openness to the Truth, it will profit us and those who challenge us if we engage with criticisms thoughtfully and respectfully, seeking understanding and genuine dialogue rather than simply trying to win an argument.
3. Patience and trust are the keys to enduring trials. Father Mazzuchelli found himself at the center of controversy early on in his ministry because multiple churchmen — the bishop of Cincinnati, the bishop of Detroit, and the Dominican provincial in the United States — claimed authority over him and his assignments. One of them called Father Mazzuchelli’s reputation into question and restricted his faculties. The issue would take about three years to resolve.
Father Mazzuchelli was understandably dismayed, but he continued laboring in whatever ways he could while respecting the restrictions placed upon him, unjust as they may have been.
Fighting and rebellion are often our first instinct when we are challenged, but in all our trials, our primary posture should be surrender to God’s will and the trust that God will bring good from our situation.
Venerable Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, pray for us (and happy birthday)!
Erin Daly is the content specialist for the Diocese of Madison Office of Communications.