The Lord said, “Fine. You keep on shutting the door. I'm just going to take the hinges off the door and take the door away.” Fr. Rich Dorsch joins Fr. Craig Giera to share his vocation story, with cohost Fr. Drew Mabee absent from the podcast this month. Fr. Rich reflects on his path from altar serving as a child to hearing and accepting God’s call to the priesthood. He and Fr. Craig also discuss the importance of prayer, community, and perseverance in discernment, and how even health challenges can become encounters with God’s mercy.
(0:25) Fr. Craig welcomes Fr. Rich Dorsch of St. Hugo of the Hills Parish. Fr. Rich shares early lessons from ministry, including learning to see challenges as opportunities, and moments during Mass and confession when he feels overwhelmed by God’s love for His people.
(3:17) The priests reflect on how wearing the Roman collar often draws strangers to conversation, even when they are running personal errands. Fr. Rich describes how these moments remind him of community and the presence of faith even in ordinary settings like grocery stores and gas stations.
(5:56) Fr. Craig shares about a recent discernment gathering, emphasizing how men often begin to hear God’s call in their mid-20s. Both priests encourage listeners not to fear that they are “too old” to discern and to trust that God works through every season of life.
(8:40) Fr. Rich remembers a difficult and overwhelming first time altar serving, an experience that almost made him quit. Later, he gets involved in campus ministry at Grand Valley State University.
(15:36) As Fr. Rich’s faith grows, friends, family, and even his girlfriend suggest the priesthood. Though resistant, he begins to recognize that his deepest joy comes from serving in the Church. After college, Fr. Rich works in hospital emergency transport and later joins his family’s dental insurance company.
(26:13) A young man recognizes Fr. Rich from a hospital interaction that helped bring his family back to faith. Fr. Rich says that after years of him firmly closing the door to the priesthood, it was like the Lord had removed the hinges and taken the door away, awakening in Fr. Rich the certainty of his vocation.
(31:28) Fr. Rich begins taking evening theology classes and attending daily Mass before finally enrolling in Sacred Heart Major Seminary. The priests discuss some of the challenges of adapting to seminary structure and community life, and Fr. Rich admits he nearly left twice before learning to go all in on his discernment.
(50:09) Fr. Rich recalls how some health challenges and dietary restrictions became unexpected avenues of grace and early ministry. His time in the hospital also deepened his compassion for those who suffer and helped him unite his priesthood with Christ’s own suffering on the Cross. He then offers some advice to young men discerning the priesthood and closes the episode with a prayer.
