How to Deal with Change – April 10, 2024

Father Brian O’Brien joined Patrick for a conversation about change. Topics included: dealing with change (3:23), caller: change in my spiritual life has been good (12:10), caller: I think change is good (18:52), new priestly assignments (21:21), how lay people can prepare for a new priest (25:50), caller: difficulty with clustering parishes (29:16), saying goodbye to your priest (34:21), why do priests move? (39:03), caller: when we clustered parishes, I got discouraged by the response of my fellow parishioners (43:19), and caller: change has been hard, but good in my life (46:17). 

Patrick Conley was born, raised, and baptized in Wisconsin in a Protestant tradition. After meeting his wife, Kendra, through an Evangelical ministry at the University of Minnesota, they entered the Catholic Church in 2010. They listened to Relevant Radio, specifically The Inner Life, while preparing to enter the Church. Conley now holds a degree in theology from Oxford University and has served the Church in both academic theology and grassroots pastoral ministry. Conley teaches religion classes in a Catholic elementary school, serves as his parish Director of Religious Education, and is in formation for the permanent diaconate. He also hosts Practicing Catholic on Relevant Radio, exclusive to the Minneapolis area’s airwaves, and is a traveling presenter for the Catherine of Siena Institute apostolate. He lives in rural Wisconsin with his wife and their bulldogs, Georgie and Bingley.