"I don't think
God asks us to
be any more
than we are --
people who
can love and
care for one
another."

Unless a Grain of Wheat
Dead Men's Bones
 

Stephen Boehrer was in Rome the day John XXIII was elected Pope. He stood in the Piazza San Pietro, watched the white smoke puffs, and hoped that a new liberating voice would be heard in the old institution. Boehrer was 25 years old then, a veteran of the United States Navy, anxious to finish his seminary studies and be ordained.

Thirteen years later, Boehrer was a respected theologian and the Chancellor in an American diocese. As right hand to the Bishop, he lunched with him frequently. One day the bishop tipped a glass to Boehrer and said, "The difference between us is that you think it's important to be a Christian, whereas I think it's important to be a Catholic."

That was the day Boehrer changed course.

Boehrer is a thoughtful man. The things that troubled him when he wore a Roman collar continued to trouble him, even after his colleague, Sister Rita Sheridan, became his wife, even after a successful career in business. The troubles turned into stories, the stories turned into books he knew he had to write.

Unless a Grain of Wheat is fiction, but the tension in it is real. The protagonist, Charles Mueller, is passionate about serving his church, and just as passionate about serving the people. He sincerely believes the church was meant for people, and yet he cannot seem to pull an ounce of caring out of the churchmen around him. This is a conflict Boehrer understands. He, like Charles Mueller, was caught in the tide.

Boehrer is a Wisconsin native, born in Durand in 1932. After early education in his home town he attended St. John's Preparatory School in Collegeville, MI. After Prep School and a semester of college he enlisted for four years in the U. S. Navy. Upon discharge from the military in 1955 he enrolled in Holy Cross Seminary in LaCrosse, WI where he completed studies for a B.A. in Philosophy. He next spent four years studying theology at the Gregorian University in Rome, Italy.

Ordained a priest in Rome he returned to the LaCrosse Diocese in 1962 and spent a year in Wausau as an associate pastor. At Catholic University in Washington, D.C. he earned a doctorate in theology and returned to LaCrosse to teach in the seminary and at Viterbo College. During this period he wrote frequently for the diocesan newspaper, organized a student program of support for the disabled, and instituted a program of adult religious education at Viterbo College.

In 1968 Steve was appointed Chancellor of the diocese. He left the active ministry in 1971 to marry Rita Sheridan. During his subsequent business career, he worked first in Human Resources and then as a Legal Administrator.  Both Steve and Rita moved to half-time jobs in 1988 and to full retirement in 1993. Rita returned to teaching history as a volunteer teacher at the LaFarge Lifelong Learning Center. 

Boehrer's talent for writing was clear when he was in prep school, where he wrote sports for the school newspaper. Later, he was known for his down-to-earth homilies, dozens of philosophical articles and a Sunday magazine story of "goose poop" humor titled, "I Know Where The Wild Goose Goes." Once retired, he picked up the notes he had jotted down over a quarter of a century and began writing under the guiding critiques of Judy Bridges and other writers at Redbird Studios in Milwaukee. His books Unless A Grain Of Wheat, and Dead Men's Bones are part one and two of a trilogy that deals with clerical power, its use and abuse.

If Boehrer has his way about it, his books will get under the skin of church leaders and give them a rash. He wants them, and all of us, agitated enough to force change in the old institutions. "I don't think God asks us to be any more than we are -- people who can love and care for one another." He wants the churches, all of them, to start showing that they care.