My Basilian Priesthood is a memoir of Michael Quealey's six years in
the order in the 1960s. During his priesthood, Quealey was director of
the Newman Centre at the University of Toronto and engaged in reforming
the mass and in other theological matters. The 1960s was a time of
questioning traditions, including the role of Biblical criticism, the
nature of liturgy, the place of women in the Church and in society, and
the power of community living and decision-making. Quealey was deeply
involved in all these matters, and sought to fulfill his commitment to
service and balance that with his faith and vows of obedience to the
institution of the Church. Written decades after the events he
describes, the book is his reflection on the excitement of the times and
the tensions created when tradition encountered new ideas and new forms
of communal living. Here's a story that blends Toronto history with
Catholic Church history and an inside look at 1960s counterculture.