The BeatiDudes The Church Alive | Fr. Mark Garrett | Episode #266
A mission-trip porch in Porto Gorgio, waves breaking in the distance, and a priest listening like a dad - that’s the heart of this Friday episode.
Fr. Mark Garrett returns to share how a lifelong attraction to service, prayer, and spiritual fatherhood led him through nine years of seminary and into a vocation that still fills his “father” cup daily. Along the way, the Dudes riff on VHS baptisms, “formators,” the propaedeutic (aka “propaDudes”), and why the Church is very much alive through a new generation of priests. Hosted by Paul Kolker, Nick Bezner, and Jeff Schiefelbein - with banter, gratitude, and a sincere invitation to come (back) to the sacraments.
Highlights
• Spiritual fatherhood on a porch: Fr. Mark’s nightly mission-trip conversations with teens—listening, loving, and walking with them—felt unmistakably “fatherly.”
• Seeds of a call: From well-worn First Communion booklets to altar serving and imagining preaching as a teen, grace kept nudging him forward.
• Dating & desire: The honest tension—real desire for marriage and family, yet a deeper pull toward giving his life to the Church.
• Nine years, one “yes” at a time: Seminary wasn’t easy; a pivotal cathedral moment re-centered everything on the People of God.
• When the Church hurts: Fr. Mark names real wounds yet witnesses a young, faithful, others-focused priesthood rising to serve.
• Vocations in motion: St. Andrew’s Dinners, mentors, and the surprise clarity that sometimes comes on a simple morning walk.
Try This
• Come & see: If you’ve been away, slip into the back pew this Sunday. Let the sacraments do the talking, then introduce yourself to a priest after Mass.
• Discernment nudge: Curious about priesthood or consecrated life? Ask your parish about a St. Andrew’s Dinner or reach out to your diocesan vocations office.
• Fatherly presence: Take a teen (your child, godchild, student) for a simple walk and just listen. It counts more than you think.
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