Divine Mercy dentist works for an imperishable crown

The Boston workplace of Dr. Valdemar Welz is a little different than the typical dentist’s office. A visitor can see two Divine Mercy images displayed, as well as an icon of the Annunciation. In addition to these visual reminders of the faith, the soothing sounds of Gregorian chant sometimes fill the air.

 “The music depends on the patient’s choice. Some prefer silence, but we have chant Pandora stations for those who prefer peaceful singing,” said Welz, not the retiring type when it comes to sharing the faith—or to closing a career. Now 69 and in better shape than he was at 59, Welz is happy to talk about what really matters.

“This is a dental office,” Welz said, “so the specific job patients expect of me is to make sure they have healthy teeth. I’m happy to do this, and I’m also happy to talk about other aspects of physical health—as well as mental, emotional, and spiritual health.” The adoptive father of three knows the human person is a whole being, not just a bunch of randomly connected parts, so he does not isolate teeth from everything else.

Advice Welz has given his patients includes using baking soda rather than toothpaste (a practice he says is less abrasive yet more effective), and eating vegetables instead of animals. “A plant-based diet reduces cholesterol, lowers blood pressure, improves joint health, and gives more energy—things I discovered personally after switching over to a plantbased diet a decade ago,” he explained.

Welz, always in search of the truth, has come a long way, both physically and spiritually. A cradle Catholic who lost the faith due in part to bad leadership in the Church, he spent years looking for soul-satisfying facts in science and philosophy. He found some truth here and there, but it would not be until 1995 that he found the whole truth—and full satisfaction—back in the Catholic Church.

Intestinal fortitude

Retired gastroenterologist Bryan Thatcher has a parallel spiritual experience to that of Dr. Welz. Thatcher left the Church at a young age, but in his search for happiness, was drawn back to Catholicism. He founded the Eucharistic Apostles of the Divine Mercy, a prayer group now affiliated with the Marians of the Immaculate Conception in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

“Doctor Welz and I met years ago at a Healthcare Professionals for Divine Mercy conference,” Thatcher explained, noting that Dr. Welz “looks at dentistry not as a job but as a vocation, and realizes that we are spiritual beings in frail, mortal bodies. He is not afraid to pray with patients when they ask; he doesn’t want anyone to miss out on heaven. He is a wonderful role model and example for health care professionals today.”

Both Thatcher and Welz have been impacted by multiple readings of St. Faustina Kowalska’s Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul, particularly the giving up of one’s own will to enjoy the peace of soul found in the will of God. This is found in a letter-perfect way in entry 374, where a large “X” is used to indicate the crossing out of Saint Faustina’s own will, which was followed by an interior light that she would not be judged by God.

The two doctors appreciate the paradox that, in order to find strength, a soul must first realize its own weakness. Then the power of grace can be sought out in the sacrament of Reconciliation, frequent worship at Mass on Sunday and during the week, and silent Eucharistic adoration outside of Mass.

Freedom from sin

Like many Catholics away from the Church for years, Welz was initially reluctant to go back to Confession. However, the first priest he encountered after three decades away made the process so easy that Welz actually started enjoying Confession. “I didn’t understand the distinction between mortal and venial sins then, so instead of trying to remember everything I had done wrong, that priest took the initiative and simply went down the Ten Commandments, asking if I had done X, Y, and Z and, if so, how many times.”

Welz loves how the sacrament of forgiveness not only removes guilt, but helps to prevent future falls and makes possible a clear and quick path to heaven. He points out that there is a plenary indulgence for souls who go to Confession and receive Holy Communion on Divine Mercy Sunday—the Second Sunday of Easter—and, in a spirit of detachment from all sin, participate in the public prayers of Divine Mercy or recite the Our Father, Apostle’s Creed, and a prayer for mercy in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.

That plenary indulgence means a complete remission of the temporal punishment due to sin. In other words, it is a trip right past Purgatory, the one thing that stands in the way of a soul in the state of grace seeing God face to face. Welz keeps this goal in mind, even when others have become fixated on one illness. He knows that, whatever the problem might be, “the worst that could happen is, we die and go to Hell. The best thing that could happen is, we die and go to heaven.”

Although Welz is not usually the one to initiate spiritual conversations with patients, the subject can come up even when teeth are being assessed. He points out that even teeth are found in the Bible. “In fact,” he said, “they are mentioned more times than prostitution or tax collecting—about 55 occurrences. Gnashing of teeth (known as “bruxism” to dentists) is the focus of seven of those occurrences, indicating someone set against the will of God”.

Brushing up on history

While Welz can talk from personal experience about how the Church was created for spiritual freedom, he can also talk, from family experience, about physical freedom. “My mother was in a Siberian prison camp with some of her family during World War II and was repatriated back into Poland after the war. My father was imprisoned as well, and my wife’s parents actually met in a German Displaced Persons Camp. Dictatorial overreach and abuse were all too common for Poles in the 20th century.”

Welz calls to mind that “We were told in the visions at Fatima that the errors of Communism would be spread throughout the world. Poland was an early victim and many other countries have followed— even ones once thought to be safe from the errors.” The Boston dentist believes we live in an age of deception but also a time of atonement—accepting crosses and making the best of them, all for the love of God and neighbor. A life enriched by sacraments and prayer should also be filled with works of mercy, one of which, for Welz, is taking care of many nuns and priests at no cost.

“The whole point of life is to live in God’s will, which can be described in many ways, but one is that we simply accept what God, in His loving wisdom, sends us at every moment of the day, and then respond to those things with love, which is always connected to the truth.”

TRENT BEATTIE is a Legatus magazine contributing writer. 

Dr. Welz’s wisdom

“Forgiveness is all-important. This was made plain as day in Luke 6, especially verse 37, where we are told that, if we forgive, we shall be forgiven. That’s God’s deal with us: We will be given what we have given others.” 
“Saint Apollonia was tortured and martyred in 3rd-century Egypt. One of her tortures was having her teeth pulled out or crushed with pliers. Remember that next time you’re reluctant to get your teeth cleaned and realize which one is easier.”
“One of my favorite books is a very small one called Guidebook for Confession. In it, Pope St. John Paul II is quoted in his 1983 ad limina visit with American bishops, when he told them to do everything possible to make the administration of the sacrament of Confession a primary aspect of their ministry and the ministry of priests.”
“What would people say if a doctor decided he was only going to heal patients one hour a week? Years of expensive education utilized in so miserly a manner. Then what can be said for a priest who hears confessions only one hour a week?”