Self-Portrait for 35th Anniversary of Priesthood, April 2018
My Place at the Table after Thirty-Five Years
The Real Presence of Jesus rests
In my soft hands
Not real work some would say
No work-related cuts or calluses
Lifting up the Bread of Life
The Body of Christ
Reflects back to me
The beauty of ordinariness
Dipping bread in homemade soup
For strangers
Serving family recipes
Around rectory tables
To spiritually malnourished friends
Sharing fresh loaves from the oven
When their bread has become stone
Lifting up the Cup of Salvation
The Blood of Christ
Remains heavy lifting
After all these years
Of carrying within me the bruises of many
I now conceive the primacy of blood
For parishioners’ mastectomies
Accident survivors
Mothers giving birth
The deep cuts of suicide
And the bloated fear of blood
In friends and strangers
Who died of AIDS
The Word of God
Falls from my mouth
More easily now
Since I have learned to listen more deeply
Conversing with people who need healing
From their mental illnesses
From wars and abuses that were not their fault
Or multiple addictions
Or sheer stubbornness
And now I finally admit in my silence
I am poor too
Since I am powerless to change them
From my own talents
Or to convince others that Jesus is not silent
My shoes are worn now
My shoulders slumped and my belt tight
For my possessions are many
As I walk in faith
And pace around my own infidelities
And my heartbreaks
For the step-by-step journey to love is long
Where the Word becomes flesh
Jesus remains present
In sacramental oil and song
As I mark and anoint another forehead
As a tattoo for salvation
Or a brand of fidelity
For the many who remain afraid to die
I am still surprised
By the consolations falling from
My mouth when a divorce is imminent
When a husband cannot admit infidelity
Or when a wife hides her multiple prescriptions
Or when a police officer knocks
On a parents’ door
During the nighttime
The Forgiveness of Jesus
Rests more comfortably
Within my heart
As mercy becomes a constant friend
As tender as a spring jonquil
And as hearty as an ancient oak
In my reluctant surrender to love
The years have drawn me more closely
To admit my insincerities and peccadilloes
And to see with sheer delight
Surprises that enflame
My heart with gratitude
So that there is more room
Under my skin
For both Jesus and myself to be together
Under the same roof
Of our priesthood
Bishop William McManus, John and Rosemary Raab, April 9, 1983
Broken But Not Divided 
We are blessed to have you in our lives. Thank you for your commitment and loving counsel and service.
Congratulations Fr. Ron, my first “R” father, on this wonderful achievement on the delayed this year feast of the Annunciation. I’ll say at least one extra one today for you and the countless souls you have served and helped now these many years.
Mike from Centennial
Dear Fr Ron,
A Happy and Blessed Anniversary! Thank you for all your teaching and guidance, helping us to open our minds and hearts to one another.
Nancy Binkley
Congratulations and Blessings, Fr. Ron…Happy Anniversary!
Paul Narduzzo
Congratulations Ron! You have indeed touched many lives. Beautiful article. Darlene
Congrats times thirty five–know what a blessing you are to all of us. You patience throughout the restoration has been a model to all of us to let go and let God. I cherish our friendship and sharing your gift of art that speaks so clearly to our visual senses–a perfect complement to the Word you eloquently share. Prayers for many more blessed years–A
Amen! So beautifully said! Thank you for your lifetime of dedication and love!!
CONGRATULATIONS! I’m so glad you answered your call. You have influenced my life in so many profoundly positive ways, and I thank God for you every day!
Absolutely Beautiful and profound!
Wonderful, Ron, I’m happy that I shared that ordination day with you! I’ll always remember your first homily at your first mass at St. Joes, in which you quoted your mom as saying, “Don’t get too big for your britches!” Your mom was right to remind all of us that the key to knowing Jesus is through humble service to Him.
Thanks be to God Fr. Ron. Your ministry through artistry, written word and wit and wisdom is a living witness to your Love of the poor Christ.
May our Lord bless and protect you. Amen