You Are A Priest Forever

We just returned from the priestly ordinations for the Diocese of Austin. Our new bishop, Joe Vasquez, ordained seven men, including one of our good friends, Fr. Matthew Kinney. It was a beautiful and moving experience -- Darwin had never been to an ordination before, and I'd only been to one, years ago. The church was absolutely packed almost an hour before Mass began, so many people were eager to attend.

Reading the biographies of the new priests, I found them a fascinating cross-section of the church. Several were late vocations. One knew his vocation in high school and pursued it right away. Two had been married -- one with three children, the other with six. One was from Africa, one from Korea. Some had seen military service. One had worked for Wal-Mart! They bring a breadth of experience and a wealth of grace to the church in central Texas.

Please pray for our new priests in Austin, and that God will continue to send us more vocations of the same caliber as these good men.

Fr. Matthew Kinney
Fr. Adrian Chishimba
Fr. Charlie Garza
Fr. Mark Hamlet
Fr. Wade Russell
Fr. John Kim
Fr. Steve Sauser