A few years ago, in the Lenten reflections at St. Viator Catholic Community in Las Vegas, Fr. Lawrence Lentz, CSV, adapted and told a parable:
Once upon a time, while traveling on horseback from Lyons to Vourles, St. Viator met a peasant walking along the road.
“You’ve got an easy job,” the peasant said. “Why don’t I become a man of prayer? Then, I, too, would be traveling on horseback.”
“You think praying is easy?” replied the saint. “If you can say one ‘Our Father’ without becoming distracted, you can have this horse.”
“It’s a deal,” the surprised peasant said.
Closing his eyes and folding his hands, he began to pray. “Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy… do I get the saddle and bridle, too?”
Lord, help me to be persistent in my prayer and to persevere in doing good works!
Last Monday, Fr. Larry died at the age of 81, in his 62nd year of religious life and 46th year of priesthood, and he is remembered for eminent kindness, skills as an educator, and an unforgettable sense of humor.
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Here’s then-Brother Larry in 1972, an English teacher and the English Department Chairperson at Saint Viator High School.
Fr. Larry attended Griffin High School for Boys in Springfield, IL. The Viatorians who he had as his teachers made a positive impact and sowed the seeds of his vocation. “They were just nice guys. They got along well with one another,” Fr. Larry said. “How they lived in community made a big impression on me.”
Fr. Larry went from Griffin into the Viatorian novitiate and professed first vows at the age of 19. He followed in his teachers’ footsteps, earning a BA in English and an MA in Education Curriculum from Loyola University Chicago, continuing to graduate work at Cambridge, and earning a second master’s degree at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.
In priesthood, he served as a teacher and administrator at Saint Viator High School and in Viatorian parishes around both Illinois and Nevada. All the while, he remained an educator at his core. “He was an educator, a priest, and most of all a Viatorian — and he was so proud to be a Viatorian,” Fr. Tom von Behren, CSV, said.
Fr. Tom and Fr. Larry shared religious life as well as deep family ties going back to their childhood in Springfield, IL. Fr. Tom’s mother was an only child, and his father only became Catholic as an adult. So, they parents reached into their Catholic friend group and chose Fr. Larry’s parents as Fr. Tom’s godparents, and their lives have always been intertwined. Fr. Tom and Br. Carlos Flórez, CSV, were with Fr. Larry when he died, and Fr. Larry asked Fr. Tom to preach at his memorial Mass.
Fr. Larry with (middle) Fr. Bob Bolser, CSV, and (right) Fr. Bill Haesaert during a gathering at Saint Viator High School.
“His greatest gift is that he was an educator,” Fr. Tom said. “He spent the first 12 years of religious life as a brother and was not called to priesthood until that later point. In priesthood, he continued as an educator, teaching liturgy at CTU and bringing classyness and elegance to liturgy.”
Fr. Mark Francis, CSV, thinks of Fr. Larry as the throughline that spans his religious life. “Larry represented my Viatorian life to me,” Fr. Mark said. “He taught me English; we were at CTU together; his work with association, including as the coordinator, was instrumental. He was a thoroughly positive person with a droll sense of humor.”
Fr. Corey Brost, CSV, has anchored his ministry with young men seeking asylum in the ideal of hospitality – a value Fr. Larry modeled for him early in religious life. “When I lived him while new in vows, it was such an experience of his kindness,” Fr. Corey said. “He was certainly a good priest and good preacher, and then he was a Viatorian in that he welcomed people and did so with good humor and keen insights.”
Fr. Larry carried the Easter candle at a St. Viator Easter Vigil.
In his later years, Fr. Larry was a fixture around Las Vegas, giving several years of ministry to Guardian Angel Cathedral in Las Vegas, St. Thomas More Catholic Community in Henderson, NV, and, finally, to St. Viator. As a priest with an eye for liturgy, the renovations of St. Viator’s church in 2016 were particularly special to him. “Given the Viatorians’ passion for good liturgy, we felt this was a wonderful excuse for us to collaborate as confreres and friends in this very special undertaking,” Fr. Larry said as renovations concluded. “With the help of many others, this is our gift to the St. Viator Catholic Community.”
In 2024, Fr. Larry had the joy of reaching 60 years in religious life – and being able to celebrate with the communities he has served and with his brothers in religious life. “It’s not just about my God and me. It’s about my brothers and sisters and me in community. That enables this apostolic work to be lived out in a genuine way,” Fr. Larry said.
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One Sunday three years ago, Fr. Larry’s homily particularly caught the ear of Associate Anthony Gugino that weekend as he served in music ministry. Anthony forwarded the Mass recording to the Province Center, and it became Episode 52 of our Viatorian Voices podcast. It’s a small encapsulation of this Viatorian’s faithful ministry, and it so happens to be a homily for the same Sunday (11th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A) that was read last Sunday – the eve of Fr. Larry’s passing.
Fr. Larry was a fixture at local, regional, and provincial gatherings alongside fellow Viatorians, even including this year’s St. Viator School Foundation dinner just three months ago.
“Both religious men and women and lay women and men – all of us are called to discipleship. And I think it’s interesting for us to note that, while there may be fewer official laborers in the vineyard today, there are actually many, many, many more opportunities especially for lay women and men to minister with the Church today than there ever was before,” Fr. Larry said.
“You don’t all have to be priests or religious, but we all have to serve as best we can to build up this kingdom here on earth now, so that we can all share in the kingdom that is to come. Together, we are the church. Not me, not this building – you are the church. You are the people of God. You are the builders of the kingdom today.”
May Fr. Larry rest in peace.