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Fr. Dominic Izzo, O.P.
Fr. Dominic Izzo, O.P. is Director of the Dominican Foundation and Vicar Provincial for Advancement for the Province of St. Joseph. From 1995 to 2002, Fr. Izzo served as a missionary in Kenya, which is part of the Dominican Vicariate of Eastern Africa where he was called to various ministries such as Treasurer of the Vicariate, Local Superior, Student Master and Vicar Provincial. Additionally, he taught scripture at Tangaza College, in Nairobi, Kenya where a number of religious congregations send their students for theological training. Besides the academic teaching at Tangaza, he also served there as a Director of the Institute of Spirituality and Religious Formation and later as a Member of the college’s Board of Governors and Chair of its Finance Committee. From 2002 until 2010, Fr. Izzo served as Prior Provincial of the Province of St. Joseph and it was during that time that he was elected to the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM) National Board (2003), as CMSM’s President-Elect (2004), and CMSM’s President (2005-2007). He was also appointed for a second term as Friar Consultant for the Association of Monasteries of Nuns of the Order of Preachers in the United States of America (to which he was appointed by the Holy See in 2005).
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"Why do I Preach?"
A Meditation by Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P.
Posted by Fr. Dominic Izzo, O.P. on August 28, 2010
Sandro Botticelli's Vision of St Augustine (1488): Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence.
To help us enter into the life of St. Augustine, I would like to share with you a meditation from Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P.
Dominicans celebrate August 28 as the Feast of Holy Father Augustine. We call St. Augustine "Holy Father" because St. Dominic brought the Rule of St. Augustine to his founding of the Order of Preachers. The Order's medieval profession formula, which we still use today, speaks of being obedient according to Augustine's Rule and the Order's Constitutions. This obedience is not one of slavery, but of true freedom. Augustine's Rule is written for "those established free under grace" (Regula 8.1). It is more than coincidental that Augustine is known as the "Doctor of grace" and Dominic is acclaimed the "Preacher of grace." A Dominican seeks to live by grace and proclaim that grace to the world.
The greatest of all Fathers of the Church, Augustine is often symbolized by a very humble image, a shell. You find this shell on Pope Benedict XVI's coat of arms and the coat of arms of the Province's own Archbishop J. Augustine Di Noia, O.P. The shell represents the legend of Augustine encountering a child on the beach who was pouring seawater into a hole in the sand. Augustine, who was pondering the mystery of the Trinity, asked the child what he was doing. The child explained that he was trying to put the entire sea into the hole. When Augustine told him that it was impossible, the boy replied that it was more impossible to comprehend the Trinity than to empty the sea. It's a story that reminds theologians, under Augustine's patronage, of humility before the infinite majesty of God.
This feast's celebration has special meaning for me this year. In May I completed my Ph.D. in theology, specializing in the Fathers of the Church, at the University of Notre Dame. Now I begin teaching on our Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception of the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C. Reading Augustine makes me want to be a better Dominican, and I want to communicate his enthusiasm to my students here at our House of Studies. The best way for me to explain this inspiration may be to quote from one of Augustine's homilies: "Why do I preach? ... Is it for any other intention than that we may live together with Christ? This is my passion! This is my honor! This is my possession! This is my joy! This is my glory! Even if you would not listen to me, I will not be silent. I will free my soul-but I don't want to be saved without you" (Sermo 17.2) I think that expresses so well what Holy Father Augustine offers to St. Dominic and all preachers. We don't want to be saved without you.
Thank you for your support of the vocation to be preachers, and happy Feast of Holy Father Augustine!
Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P., currently serves as an instructor at the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC. His publications include two research articles on Augustine: "Matthew 25:31-46 as an Hermeneutical Rule in Augustine's Enarrationes in Psalmos," The Downside Review 126 (2008): 285-300, and "Looking in the Mirror of Augustine's Rule," forthcoming in New Blackfriars (a publication with articles and book reviews of general interest, with an emphasis on theology, philosophy and cultural studies).