Father Bob Bussen plans travel, study during sabbatical

IC photo by Marie Mischel

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Msgr. Bob Bussen shares a laugh with a parishioner during the farewell reception in his honor in Heber City Park.

HEBER - In 16 years at Park City's Saint Mary of the Assumption Parish and Heber's Saint Lawrence Mission, Msgr. Robert Bussen has seen growth not only in the size of his congregations, but also in faith.

"I have witnessed through the years your growth not just in numbers but in your own individual maturation in the Lord Jesus Christ," said Msgr. Bussen, better known as ‘Father Bob,' during his homily June 6 at a Mass preceding a reception in Heber in his honor. "I have seen God at work in you. I am better for it."

A 1964 graduate of Weber High School, Msgr. Bussen attended Saint Thomas Seminary in Denver and was ordained a priest in Rome in 1971. During his first five years as a priest in the Diocese of Salt Lake City, he held various positions, including head of the religion department at Judge Memorial High School. He served as pastor of Saint Thomas Aquinas Parish in Logan from 1977 to 1986, then spent 10 years as vicar general for the diocese. In 1994 he became pastor of St. Mary, a post he has held since.

"I loved being a pastor in Logan," Msgr. Bussen said. "At that time it was a small community and a small group of students. I've always said I left my heart in Cache Valley."

His years as vicar general were very challenging but rewarding, he added. "As sometimes hard as those years were, they were just great a place to grow as a priest in understanding of the church - the good that's done by our diocese."

Being appointed to Park City "was an amazing gift," he added. "I found that living here was a very vibrant experience and it's a great place to shape a faith community. These last 16 years ... have been a wonderful experience in seeing the people of Saint Mary's grow into a truly, truly large dynamic force in this community."

Now, however, he feels he's at a point of change in his life. He plans to take advantage of the diocese's policy of allowing a sabbatical for its priests and spend six months traveling, studying and praying. First he will travel the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain - a pilgrimage of sorts, he said. Then he will audit classes in Belgium, focusing on Christology, ecclesiology and scripture. Finally, if he has time, he will go to New Zealand as a tourist.

"I'm going to be, for the next year, without a home," he said. "I have no place that I'm going to as yet, and that moment of leaving everything behind and not knowing what's ahead is exactly what sabbatical is about. It's a space given by God just to discern where does he want me to go now, what does he want of me now, how is that going to unfold in my life?"

While he is excited about his path, the people he has shepherded have mixed feelings about his leaving.

"Everyone's very sad, except it's hard to be sad because he's doing what he wants to do, so we have to be happy for him," said Sue Carlton, who runs the St. Lawrence thrift store.

Msgr. Bussen "is easy to work with because the mission is so consistent - to work with vulnerable, marginalized people," said Holy Cross Sister Suzanne Brennan. For example, when the economy took a down turn that resulted in people being out of work, Msgr. Bussen told his parishioners that more food was needed for the food bank, and "everybody helped," Sr. Suzanne said. "He has great leadership."

Msgr. Bussen also is very generous, said Holy Cross Sister Mary Ann Pajakowski, adding that he offered St. Mary Parish as a place for a summer program for 120 kids. It's also easy to ask Msgr. Bussen for help, she said. "You know where his heart is at - service and love of the people. All the people."

Msgr. Bussen has united the Anglo and Hispanic communities at St. Lawrence, said Martin Torres, a parishioner. "I don't think we have enough words to say how much he has helped us. He's a really, really good friend for everybody."

Peter Lowell, another parishioner, agreed. "He's united everyone. Everyone knows him and respects him. He genuinely cares about everybody."

A second farewell reception for Msgr. Bussen will be held 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, June 13 at St. Mary of the Assumption Church, 1505 W. White Pine Canyon Road in Park City.