Jan 14, 2009
I was sad to learn of the death of Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, who is modern Hero of Faith to me. His influences are too numerous than anyone can really know. I admired his focus, his clear thinking, his desire help people bring Christ into public life, and his complete, all-consuming life of faith. I also admired that he never sought to be personally in the public eye. That explains why there is so little video or audio footage of him being interviewed.
I was so very fortunate to have the honor of interviewing him for the upcoming second season of "Road To Cana". His agreeing to do the interview at all was what I consider a "miracle", because I was told that he does not do interviews and does not have the time. As I was writing the outline for the next programs for "Road To Cana", I was making my list of people to try to get for interviews. Fr. Neuhaus was at the top of the list. Of course, I knew it was likely he would not do it. But I decided to try.
I emailed the "First Things" office and requested the interview. The first response from the office said that the message would be forwarded to him but I was warned that he would probably turn it down. The next day, I received an email from the office saying, "Father wants to know what is this about." I replied with a full description of what the "Road To Cana" apostolate is and the program series the interviews would be used for. The next day, I received an email saying, "Father has agreed to do the interview." We then set the date, and in October 2007, my crew and I made the challenging trek into New York City, parking in a garage, and hauling all our equipment up to the "First Things" offices.
That was the first time I actually met Fr. Neuhaus in person. He was cordial, welcoming, warm, and genuinely happy to be doing the interview for what he said was a "noble purpose". I learned that day how much of a heart he had for marriage and the needs of people approaching marriage. As we met him in his office, with a desk piled with work, he came out from around his desk and proceeded to give me two uninterrupted hours of his time to interview him on subjects related to marriage and formation for marriage.
It was a highlight of my life to meet a hero of mine, and certainly a hero of the Church, and a day I will never forget. He looked so young for his age and struck me as someone who could easily go on for another 20 or 30 years. I was looking forward to finishing the series and sending him a copy. Post-production issues have delayed the project as we are just now finally finishing it. But getting Fr. Neuhaus a copy is not to be. God has His reasons for taking him at this particular time when there is such need of people like him. Now, it is for us to rejoice in the time we had Fr. Neuhaus and all this great man of God and soldier of Christ has accomplished, and the legacy of works we can refer to.
I am personally blessed to have my interviews with Fr. Richard John Neuhaus to share with everyone. The following are direct links to those interviews for easy reference. Enjoy, and may the Holy Spirit inspire you through these interviews.