Brother Dominic Wetzel, O.deM. A Life of Faith and Trust in the Lord

Faith, Hope and Love

Within the Mercedarian Religious Community, the friars consist of Fathers, Brothers, those in formation to religious life and our Third Order and Lay Fraternity. Brother Dominic Wetzel is one one of our friars living in the Mercedarian Community in Overbrook, Philadelphia. Brother is a valued member of the family through his life, prayer, and openness to others in his daily interactions. His kind smile and good listening skills are some of the ways God works through his life as he goes about his work and daily activities. Being a teacher, spiritual director, promoting vocations within the Order and other tasks, he is one of those people who relates very well to the young, middle-aged and older generations. In his own words, here is his story:

Brother Dominic: In His Own Words

"As a child, God played an important role in my life. I was raised in the Church of the Brethren, and my grandparents made sure that I was at church every Sunday, went to Vacation Bible School, and participated in the Christmas and Easter plays. Prayer was also a big thing, and we always prayed before important meals, when someone was sick. And, of course, there was the Bible, in which I learned to memorize verses, and would read daily.

However, things didn’t always seem right, and with some family turmoil, I found myself ready to quit Christianity. During my teens, I was always seeking different experiences of faith and different religions. I was trying to fill a void, and it was only when I discovered Catholicism, did I find that void filled in having both the Word and the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Also, Mary played a huge role in my conversion through the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the rosary. Thus, when I was looking for a community, I wanted one that not only had Eucharistic devotion, but were also devoted to the Mother of God.

There are three things I love most about being a Mercedarian—our common life, our Marian devotion, and our charism. Because we are smaller, our common life is enriched by the fact that we can all get to know each other and there isn’t a sense of being just a number. We live as brothers and act like brothers. Our Marian devotion is one of the most beautiful aspects because we not only venerate Mary as our Mother, but she is considered the foundress of our Order.

We have beautiful traditions that enhance our devotion like the Saturday Salve, praying the rosary in common, and praying to her each and every morning. Lastly, our charism—to visit and redeem Christians in captivity challenges us a way to combat the new captivities of our time. We might no longer be running the redemptive missions of the past, but each of us, in a way, goes out into enemy territory to seek those who are in danger of losing their faith.

My advice for someone discerning is that they need to not be afraid and make a leap of faith. So often, many young men come to us themselves a captive of our cultural fear of commitment. Therefore, we do not get caught up in the "what if's and the could haves". Come and visit us. If you like what you see, come back, make application, and say yes to the call."

The St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation

The St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation for Freedom, Family, and Faith is associated with the Mercedarian Religious Order. Our foundation is all about the strengthening of family life through the intercession of our Patron Saint and through Our Lady of Mercy. Our Mercedarian friars are committed to praying for families, and we are grateful to them for their prayers and sacrifice. Brother Dominic Wetzel is also committed to offering his prayers for individuals and families in need of redemption and care through the charisms of the Order. We are so grateful for him and for all of our religious priests, brothers, and those in formation. We are thankful for their sacrifices for others.

The foundation is in support of stronger families, deeper faith-life, and we also fully support vocations to the priesthood and religious life. The website for the foundation is www.nonnatus.org. To learn more about the Mercedarian Religious Order and vocations to religious life, go to www.orderofmercy.org Brother Dominic and all of our friars will be praying for you and your families.