Between them, the Revs. Martin and Leonard Siebenaler have spent a century in priesthood. Ordained as part of St. Paul Seminary's Class of 1959, they will be honored next weekend at a pair of masses -- one in their honor and one of their own making.

Their kid brother, the Rev. John Siebenaler, also will take part in the festivities, but the "youngster" isn't old enough to reach his golden anniversary yet. He's been a priest for only 48 years.

"He's got to wait a couple of years," Father Leonard said.

The older Siebenalers will start things off June 28 by concelebrating the 8:30 a.m. mass at their boyhood church, St. Mary's in New Trier. They grew up on a farm near the small town in southern Dakota County.

That mass "is not officially part of the anniversary celebration," Father Leonard said. They organized it on their own as a fitting way to kick off the day.

At 1:30 p.m., they will be joined by their brother for a mass at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, 2035 W. 15th St., Hastings. A reception will follow.

At 76, Father Martin is a year older than Father Leonard. There were so few kids in town that they ended up in a combined class at school, which is why they have the same graduation date.

"We get asked a lot if we're twins," Father Leonard said. "I don't think we look all that much alike."

They attended Nazareth Hall Preparatory Seminary before enrolling in what was known then as the St. Paul Major Seminary. Having a brother in the class provided a built-in support group. Even after they were ordained, they regularly compared notes about life at their respective parishes.

Sibling rivalry? "On the golf course," Father Leonard said, "but never about our work."

Father Martin served at parishes in Minneapolis (Visitation and Saints Cyril and Methodius), St. Paul (St. Agnes), Loretto (Saints Peter and Paul) and Waconia (St. Joseph's). He's retired and living in Hastings.

Father Leonard served in Minneapolis (St. Anne's), St. Paul (St. Columba), White Bear Lake (St. Mary's of the Lake), Zumbrota (St. Paul's), St. Louis Park (Most Holy Trinity) and St. Michael (St. Michael's), where he still helps out, even though he has officially retired. He lives in Cannon Falls, Minn.

A call for calm "The religious extremists have been winning the day since 9/11," Bishop Mark Hanson said during a visit to the Twin Cities this week. The leader of the 4.8 million members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) thinks it's time for others to speak up. "We in church leadership need to give the world a different voice."

Hanson, a native of the Twin Cities who has degrees from Minnehaha Academy, Augsburg College and Luther Seminary, was in town to address a conference of pastors from the country's largest Lutheran congregations.

The recent appointee to a White House task force on interreligious dialogue and cooperation said that one of his missions is "to get people of different faiths to work together." The first step is getting them to talk together.

"Creating a dialogue doesn't mean denying the differences in our deeply held faiths," he said. "It's about creating an environment where we can speak about those differences and then find ways to work together for the sake of humanity."

He said that the passion inherent in religious matters can be misinterpreted by rhetoric.

"We have to de-escalate the tension that is characterized in so much religious language," he said.

On the road again The members of the Minnesota All-State Lutheran Choir have spent this week in rehearsal and are ready to hit the road. Before summer is over, the choir of high school students will have visited cities from Ada to Windom.

This year's tour marks the choir's 40th anniversary. That milestone will be honored with an alumni concert next Saturday at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, 12650 Johnny Cake Road, Apple Valley.

The choir has two other performances in the Twin Cities: June 28 at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Maple Grove and July 1 at Normandale Lutheran Church in Edina. In the greater metro area, the tour also includes concerts Wednesday at Zion Lutheran Church in Buffalo and Thursday at Bethel Lutheran Church in Rochester. See www.maslc.org for a complete itinerary.

Jeff Strickler • 612-673-7392