Many of you are aware that the Thomas More Center was begun by Mike and Carson Champlin. Carson died of cancer in 1989 and Mike, of course, continues to be on our Team. I was recently directed to a book by a priest who met Carson and Mike when they did a renewal in a parish in southern Minnesota. PRINTS OF A PRIEST (1996) is a collection of memoirs by Franciscan Elstan Coghill with assistance from Susan Orser. In it Coghill publishes some of his pastoral bulletin letters to the parishioners.
Here are two quotes:
May 1986
“A preview of coming attractions: At the evening Mass on May 10th, a parish mission will start, to continue till Thursday evening. It will be presented to us by Fathers Michael and Carson Champlin. They are blood brothers and members of the Dominican order, the order of preachers. And preachers is just what they are – – of the highest quality. I heard them about two and a half years ago at St. Hubert’s. I went to their first presentation — just to hear what they sounded like — and then came back for every one of their talks after that. You will, too, I think, if you come for the first session. I would like to extend the invitation to attend to all of the Gazette’s vast reading audience, whether Catholic or not. Their theme will be Spirituality for the 80‘s and Beyond.
June 1986
“The parish was treated from May 11th to the 16th to the powerful, personal, and personable treatment of the subject Spirituality for the 80’s and Beyond by our two friends from the Order of Preachers, Fathers Mike and Carson. Thanks, men, for what you did for our family.”
So you can see that way back in the 1980’s before Nick or I ever joined the Team, the “bar” was already raised quite high….!