About Ron | Ron Rolheiser

Ron Rolheiser was born in Macklin, Saskatchewan, in 1947, into a large family, to George and Matilda (Gartner) Rolheiser.

When he was a child, Ron’s father George, along with his family and other German-Russian families, emigrated from Saratov, Russia, and settled, as farmers, near the Alberta border, where they established a community centered around st. Donatus Church at Cactus Lake, Saskatchewan. Matilda, Ron’s mother, was from a settler family from a nearby area. After meeting George at a parish picnic, they married, purchased a farm, near Cactus Lake, 4 miles from Rolheiser’s original farm.

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fr. Ron often writes about the influence his parents had on him.

“[My mother] perfectly complemented my father. It was her mutual affection and respect that, perhaps more than anything else, gave us, her children, an incipient sense of security, stability, and faith. my father was the moral compass, she was the heart; but they could reverse those roles and she could offer the moral challenge while he provided the sensitivity. either way, they did it together and when they died, leaving behind a family that felt too young to be alone, they had given us what we needed, all the basic tools to build our own lives and live together. a bit of optimism and joy.”

both parents died young, in their early sixties, within three months of each other.

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life on a mixed farm included chores before and after school and help with planting and harvesting. driving farm machinery as a teenager was one of the most enjoyable tasks. the family was active and competitive. skating on frozen ponds in winter, playing hockey, playing cards, board games and ping pong tournaments were part of the winter evenings. ball tournaments were a big part of the summer. every weekend the family met at parish sports and picnics where family members played, trained and managed teams. Ron’s love of sports is rooted in these family times. family birthdays, holidays, weddings, and weekend dances often included cousins.

Education was highly valued by Ron’s parents. Excellence was expected and Ron was up to the challenge. he was an impatient scholar who was always looking for knowledge and ideas beyond the world he experienced. he shared a love of education and knowledge with his father, with whom he shared a strong bond and mutual respect.

After his school years, Ron entered the Oblate Missionaries of Mary Immaculate novitiate and professed his first vows in September 1966. Ordained a priest in 1972, Ron continued his education and received a B.A. (university of ottawa, 1969), b.th. (Newman Theological College, 1973), M.A. (university of san francisco, 1974), m.r.sc. (University of Leuven, 1982) and Ph.D/Std (University of Leuven, 1983). During and after his own studies, he taught theology and philosophy at Newman Theological College, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

in 1982, while living and studying in belgium, fr. Ron began writing a regular column for the Canadian newspaper, the Western Catholic Reporter. the column offered reflections on various theological, ecclesiastical, and secular topics. choosing to call his column, in exile, fr. ron wrote:

“all of us live our lives in exile. we live in our separate enigmas, partially separated from god, from each other and even from ourselves. we experience some love, some community, some peace, but never in its fullness. our senses, self-centeredness, and human nature place a veil between us and full love, full community, and full peace. we live, truly, as in an enigma: the god who is omnipresent cannot be felt; others, who are as real as we are, are always partially distanced and unreal; and we are, in the end, fundamentally a mystery even to ourselves.”

fr. Rum’s column is published in many Catholic newspapers around the world.

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fr. Ron’s writing is not limited to a weekly column. He has written numerous reports and has written Advent and Lent early mornings (Liguori publications 2005, 2019, 2020)

the following is a list of fr. Rum’s published books.

• the loneliness factor (dimension books, denville nj, 1979)
• spirituality for a restless culture (twenty-four publications, mystic cn 1991)
• the shattered lantern ( hodder and stoughton, london, 1994, and crossroads, new york, 1995)
• against an infinite horizon (hodder and stoughton, london, 1995, and crossroads, new york)
• the saint longing, (doubleday, new york, 1999)
• the restless heart (hodder and stoughton, london, 1998, doubleday, new york, 2004)
• forgotten among the lilies (hodder and stoughton, london, 1990, doubleday, new york, 2005)
• our great act of fidelity: waiting for christ in the eucharist (doubleday religion, new york, 2011
• laity and the Gospel: Being Missionaries to Our Own Children (Crossroads, New York, 2006)
• Prayer: Our Deepest Longing (Franciscan Media, Cincinnatti, 2013)
• Sacred Fire: A Vision for a deeper human and Christian maturity da (picture books, random house, new york k, 2014) winner of book of the year, catholic book awards, 2015, and best spirituality book, catholic book awards 2015
• the passion and the cross (franciscan media, cincinnati, 2015)
• wrestling with god (picture books, an imprint of penguin random house, new york, 2018)
• bruised and wounded: struggling to understand the suicide (paraclete press, brewster, massachusetts, 2017)
• the domestic monastery (paraclete press, brewster, massachusetts, 2018)
• the fire within (paraclete press, brewster, massachusetts, 2021)

fr. Rum is in demand and is well known as a speaker. Maintaining an active speaking program, his retreats and workshops have inspired many. Along with his academic knowledge in systematic theology and philosophy, he has become a popular speaker in the areas of contemporary spirituality and religion and the secular world. Franciscan Communications has produced fifteen DVDs of his retreats that are much appreciated for both individual and group use.

In 1991, while on sabbatical, Br. Ron was asked by his religious community to serve as provincial superior of his home province. he served two terms as provincial of st. mary province (canada). in 1998, Br. ron was elected regional councilor for canada, serving in the general administration of the oblate missionaries of mary immaculate in rome for six years. in August 2005, fr. ron became the president of the oblate school of theology in san antonio texas. he retired from that position in September 2020 and remains on staff as a full-time faculty member.

fr. Ron is still very involved in the life of his large extended family who enjoy their annual hiking trips and New Year’s celebrations. Most Christmases you’ll find him at his home church, St. donatus, near the old family farm in cactus lake, saskatchewan.

fr. Ron is also known for his commitment to prayer and exercise, an abiding love of sports, his sense of humor, his loyalty to his friends, and his enjoyment of a rare cigar and a good Scotch whisky.

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