May 6, 2011
People of Faith
Pastoral associate laments ‘We have always done it that way’
BY STEVE HALBIG
The People of Faith feature is compiled by Steve Halbig, who asks a series of questions of people of the diocese — some who have reached the “age of wisdom” and some who are younger. All will share stories of faith.
Name: Joe Hardesty
Age: 32
Current position: I was previously director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries at St. John the Baptist in Newburgh for five years. In August I took a leap of faith and accepted a position at St. Ferdinand Catholic Church in Ferdinand as a Pastoral Associate.
What is the best part of your job? Working with people. We get the chance to work with people in their most vulnerable states: new babies, funerals, time of hurt. I enjoy trying to be that bridge to show that person God is with them through it all.
What is the hardest part of your job? Keeping my eyes on the truth. There are so many distractions working for the Church. It is easy to get frustrated in the day-to-day tasks. I have learned it is important to look past the task and see the bigger picture. Another hard part of my job is to get people to see God in their life. Sometimes we as Catholics get caught too much on the ritual of prayer and forget the purpose.
Who has been a big influence in your life? There have been a few, especially my parents, Tom and Pat Hardesty. As the youngest of 11 growing up in a Catholic home, my parents instilled in me my Catholic faith and a hard work ethic. Willeen Halter for convincing me to attend TEC (Teens Encounter Christ), where I made my personal dedication to follow God and accepted the faith in my heart. Father Joe Ziliak for being an example of gentle leadership and generous love as my pastor for 27 years and my boss for five.
Who do you consider to be the best role models today? That is a hard one. Today, because of the media, most people look to movie stars or sports players, but I think youth ministers are the best role models. There is a certain personality that comes with a good youth minister. They tend to balance real life and the spirituality of it well. In our dioceses few parishes have youth ministers.
Describe how your faith helped you through a difficult time in your life? Five years ago my dad died. I was leading a mission trip with about 30 people when I got the call he had cancer. About six months later he passed. I quickly turned to my faith. Our family gathered to pray the rosary and shared heart prayer. At that time I could have been angry at God, as some people are when they lose a loved one, but through my faith in the Church I understand and believe that it is part of life and a new adventure to reunite with God. It was definitely a process.
Do you have any hobbies? How do you stay active? Well, working in the Church is both a hobby and a full-time job. You work where your heart is. I also enjoy hosting friends over and cooking barbecue. It usually ends up with a loud board or card game.
What do you like most about being Catholic? I would say the Eucharist. We have a direct line of authority from Jesus himself. By that authority and God’s blessing we have the true presence. I have found comfort and peace in the Eucharist. That was not always the case. As a teen I took this sacrament for granted and went through the process, ate the host and went back to the pew, not understanding or reflecting on what just happened.
When I was 17, I made a TEC weekend (Teens Encounter Christ). On that weekend through Christ’s grace my eyes were opened and I accepted Christ and Catholicism as my personal faith. Through that TEC experience I have also come to love the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is a chance to recommit yourself to the Lord and with the added benefit of having a priest help guide you toward him.
Of those things that are possible to change in the Catholic Church, what would you change? I would change our relationship with technology, music and advertising. A new image of what the Catholic Church really is, is needed. We are losing our parishioners right and left because of our failure to utilize technology and incorporate that with our great tradition. We need to utilize technology and look at new music for our service. This would do away with the phrase, “We have always done it that way.” If a business had the same attitude it would be out of business.
Also, continuing education for clergy and lay. We should have a structure of continuing education, such as one on homiletics training with professional speakers or speech coaches. Education also is needed on the updated documents that come from the U.S. bishops such as “Renewing the Vision.” When we stop learning we stop growing. We need technology training and software to keep our leaders and staff at the cutting edge.
If you could make one change in your community, what would it be? The role of sports in the community and schools. In my time of working with parents and youth, we have a 500-pound elephant in the room. We are misusing sports for financial gain personally and institutionally. Whatever happened to no sports on Wednesday night and Sunday, the days for church and family. Today parents are driving their children from point A to point B six to seven days a week. Parents are glorified taxi drivers.
Now I am not against sports; sports are great within reason. Sports build discipline, teamwork and dedication. But at what cost. Schools today rely on sports so much for the profits that they sometimes have a bigger budget for sports than math or science. This is a hard fix but needs to be looked at.
Any regrets in life? I really don’t. I know I have led a sinful life but that is what made me what I am today. Each event, each choice changed me. I learned, sought forgiveness and adapted. The journey has just begun and I will continue to learn.
Tell us a few more things about yourself: I am the youngest of 11. I grew up in Newburgh. I attended St. John the Baptist Elementary School and Castle High School. I was very involved there as a teen and as a youth group Eucharistic minister. I was very active in the TEC movement and made many lifelong friends there. I also met my wife Lisa Bettag, now Lisa Hardesty, through TEC and Communion and Liberation. I have three wonderful energetic boys, Elijah, Samuel and Nathan. My little prophets.
What do you do in your spiritual life that you would recommend to others? It is essential to have quiet time for yourself. Sometimes I have so many things going through my head during this time, I have to write them down and get them out. Quiet time is essential to keeping a connection with God.
What is your best wisdom on life? You make your day your day. If you wake in the morning and tell yourself this is going to be a terrible day, nine out of 10 times it will be. But if you slide out of bed, look in the mirror, say this day is going to be a great day, a day that counts, more than likely it will. You control your own perspective on life. Yes, things will happen to you but you decide how you will handle them.
Contact Steve at shalbig@evdio.org