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Church, Literally
There are many types of people who
serve in the full time ministry. I guess if you really
think about it, if you’re a believer, you are
also a full-time minister. You may not work full-time
in a church, but no matter where you are, there are
opportunities to share the Gospel with someone. When
I started writing for MyTurlock.com’s section
“The Light”, I thought I was going to
be interviewing only a certain number of Pastors,
or ministries that only fit one type of criteria.
So why am I on my way to a house on N. Berkeley Avenue,
on the East side of Turlock? Frankly, a lot of questions
were going through my mind. Once I parked my truck
in front of this house, I made my way to the front
door. The house is your typical single family home
in a nice, middle-class neighborhood. I noticed a
small Virgin Mary statue on the front lawn. This wasn’t
the normal church setting that I have become accustomed
to. This was The Church of The Resurrection led by
Father Patrick Flood. So why was this Priest holding
mass in a single family home every Sunday? Why wasn’t
he leading mass at The Sacred Heart Church in town?
I needed some answers. Boy did I ever get them (and
then some)!
I
Will Eat Grass, Before I Leave Turlock
I was greeted by Father Flood himself
at the front door. He wasn’t wearing the black
suit with the white square collar that I was expecting.
I mean, come on, he’s a priest! He was in shorts
and a golf shirt. I told him that he looked like he
just got off the golf course. Sure enough, he had
just finished a round with one of his parishioners.
As I walked into this house, I noticed a large family
room that was converted into a small chapel. This
room was set up with pews and a small alter where
Father Flood led Sunday Mass. Before I could even
ask how his church started, he got down to the nitty
gritty. Father Flood served as a priest at Sacred
Heart Church in Turlock. During his tenure there,
some accusations, made by a former bishop, came up
about him. He was accused of having a drinking problem
as well as embezzling money from the church. Not only
was he asked to leave the diocese, his name was defamed.
They didn’t get rid of him right away, though.
He was asked to go serve in another parish out of
Turlock. He found out about the accusations when he
visited Sacred Heart Church one Sunday. He couldn’t
believe what he was hearing when parishioners were
coming up to him asking him why he had embezzled from
the church. That was when he decided to take legal
action against the church for defamation and slander.
He was determined to clear his name. Through a long
and lengthy court process, a jury voted unanimously
for Father Flood. He settled out of court with the
diocese and was asked to not minister in Turlock.
Father Flood had already decided that he would eat
grass before he would leave Turlock. So he started
The Church of the Resurrection, which started meeting
at the Full Gospel Tabernacle on North Avenue in Turlock.
Then Father Flood decided to move the church to its
current location and has been there ever since.
At
First, I Didn’t Want To Become a Priest
I have always wanted to ask someone
why they wanted to become a priest. Father Flood thought
it was a great question because he was amazed himself
that he chose to join the priesthood. The first time
he spoke this over his life was when he was in primary
school in his native land of Ireland. A priest by
the name of Father Patrick Peyton, who was the rosary
priest, visited his class room and told all the kids
his testimony about how he decided to dedicate his
life to serving God. I had to stop Father Flood for
a brief moment because I wanted to know what a rosary
priest was. Was this guy the rosary priest because
he prayed to Mary and not Jesus? All of a sudden,
I’m seeing red flags. The answer was yes and
no. When Father Peyton had a fatal disease, he prayed
to Mary, whom he called Blessed Mother of Jesus, and
told her that if the Lord healed him, he would dedicate
his life to the priesthood in her honor. I gave Father
Flood that look. He must have seen this look before
because he knew that I’m not Catholic and the
whole praying to Mary thing didn’t jive with
me. He informed me they’re not praying to Mary
instead of Jesus. They simply honor her because she
was chosen to be the earthly mother of our Lord Jesus
Christ. So we got back to the time he first spoke
the priesthood over his life. After Father Peyton
gave his testimony and the kids were heading home,
the teacher asked Flood what he wanted to be when
he grew up. He replied that maybe he’d become
a priest. Years later when he was in his early twenties,
those words came back to haunt him. He thought it
was such a weird idea that seemed so stupid. He couldn’t
imagine himself as a priest.
So one night God woke him up and told him he wanted
him to become a priest. He started to laugh because
the idea was still so out there and unbelievable.
He decided to meet with the priest of his sister’s
church. He told him what God had told him and the
priest referred him to the Bishop. The Bishop wanted
him to write down why he wanted to become a Priest.
Through prayer and intercession, the Bishop told Father
Flood that he agreed that God called into the priesthood.
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They
Would Love To Silence Me
The Church of the Resurrection is an
independent Catholic Church. After the lawsuit Father
Flood tried to reconcile with the local diocese. He
wanted to put what he called a dark chapter of his life
behind him. Since then, a new Bishop had taken over
because the previous one had retired. “It was
real convenient for him to retire because of the law
suit with me and the O’Grady mess.” said
Father Flood. He wrote to the new Bishop seeking reconciliation
and invited him to visit his congregation. After three
letters the Bishop finally wrote him back. The letter
told Father Flood to stop writing and that reconciliation
wasn’t an option. According to Father Flood, they
don’t like the fact that he started his own church.
They have been trying all these years to silence him.
Civil
Rights Activist
Since he began serving God in the priest
hood, he has always spoken up when he felt that someone’s
civil rights have been violated. This was a guy that
was on fire for God and studied the Bible constantly.
“During my days in the seminary, when class was
over, I craved more of the word.” says Father
Flood. “The more I read, the more I started to
realize that what was written in the Bible, didn’t
jive with what the Catholic doctrine says. So I spoke
up. They didn’t like that at all.”
I realized that was a sore spot with Father Flood because
in his church’s welcome letter, it states, “We
say No to the abuse of the people of God, through institutional
violence, oppression, intimidation, manipulation, domination,
control, hypocrisy and fear tactics. He also told me
that Benedict, who he referred to as Pope John Paul’s
rottweiller, wrote horrible things about the gay and
lesbian community. As soon as he said that, I knew this
interview was going to get a little bit more interesting.
“We are all made in the image of our Lord,”
says Father Flood, “so why would they spew hatred
towards God’s children? It’s not their fault
that they were born that way.”
What
Did He Just Say?
“You don’t seem convinced.”
says Father Flood, after I give him that look again.
I told him that I would listen while he tried to explain
his last statement. Let’s be honest, that is not
the most popular statement that a clergyman can make
nowadays. He begins to explain to me that there is so
much hate for the gay and lesbian people, especially
from the Catholic Church. “I don’t understand
that because over half of the priests and bishops are
gay themselves.” Father Flood laughs. I asked
Father Flood if he thought that lifestyle was a choice.
He said,” Why would anyone choose to live that
lifestyle, knowing that if they come out of the closet,
they would be shunned for the rest of their lives? That’s
why I am convinced that they were born that way.”
Father Flood asks me if you think they are born that
way. Talk about having the roles reversed. I mean, who’s
being interviewed here? So I looked straight at him
and said,” Yes, I believe it is a choice.”
I mean you said it yourself. You think everybody is
made in the image and likeness of God. Whenever homosexuality
is mentioned in the Bible, it refers to it as sexual
immorality. I know that it is hard for a lot of people
to grasp, but it is a fact. So I have a hard time believing
that a homosexual can be made in the image and likeness
of God. That doesn’t mean I hate them. I have
family members who choose that lifestyle and I love
them with all of my heart. Father Flood looks at me
and says, “I can see that we will not see eye
to eye on this matter.”
A
Kind Man with a Gentle Heart
At the bottom of their welcome letter,
there is a quote from John Paul II. It says that today,
more than ever, the Church is aware that her social
message will gain credibility from the witness of actions.
Even though we didn’t see eye to eye on a couple
of issues, Father Flood is a kind man with a gentle
heart. He preaches God’s love. After all, it is
called the Good News.
Julio@myturlock.com
Staff Writer
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